There are two words that will strike fear into anyone who has a
bed. They are a pain to deal
with and they can take a very long time to get rid of as well.
What's up, world? It's Tony, the sleep accessories editor for mattress clarity.
And in today's video, I'm going to give you some tips and tricks on how
to identify early signs of bed bugs, what you can
do to help mitigate the problem, and more. So stick around round.
You can also read more about this problem in an in depth
article, mattressclarity.com, as well as some reviews for bedding
pillows and mattresses. Let's get started.
Before I get too far into this video, I do want to point out this
is for educational purposes only. If you do have a
bedbug infestation, please contact your local pest control because
they are the professionals and therefore equipped to handle removing the
infestation. So with that disclaimer out of the way, here are three major
early signs you can look out for to see if you have bed bugs.
First and foremost, bites. There is truth to the saying
don't let the bed bugs bite because they have to eat, and unfortunately,
you are the main course. Now, there are tons of bugs that can
hide in your bed and bite you throughout the night, but one way to tell
if it's bed bugs is if the bites are in a line on
your skin, because they will move across your skin as they bite you.
The second sign to look out for are stains in your bed sheets.
This can happen for a few different reasons. The first being it's blood
from your skin that hadn't fully dried after you were bitten and it transferred
to your sheets. The other is, if you toss and turn like I
do, you may crush a bug while doing so, so that's just where it comes
from. And as the infestation grows, these stains will
become more prominent as it becomes a mix of blood, crushed bugs
and bug droppings. The final sign to look out for if you think
you have bed bugs is an unexplained smell.
You'll start to notice a rather unpleasant odor around your
bed or your bedroom as the infestation grows. And this
is just a mix of the pheromones from the bugs, blood drying
on your sheets, and of course, just dead bugs within your sheets. So if you
have a smell and you can't identify the source,
chances are it might bed bugs. Now, unfortunately, the one
thing that will absolutely confirm you have a bedbug infestation
is seeing one skitter across your sheets. And again, if that
happens, please contact your pest control.
So you've identified that you have an infestation, you've called pest
control, and unfortunately, they can't be there the same day.
Here are some tips and tricks you can do to help mitigate the spread
of the infestation before the pros arrive. Number one
is to fully inspect your mattress or your room for
the source of the infestation.
Bedbugs love to hide. So be sure to examine every
nook and cranny in your mattress or your room to
find where they are. It can be either in your mattress
itself, a box spring if you have one, or a frame
if it has places to hide. The next step is to strip
your bedding from your bed and place it into plastic containers
or plastic bags to separate the bugs that are hiding in your bedding
from the mattress. From there, you'll launder everything
on the highest heat setting you have in your washing machine.
Because heat is the most effective tool, you have to kill the
bugs that are hiding in your sheets. The last tip I have
is investing in a mattress encasement. This will cover your entire mattress
and trap the bed bugs inside and separate them from you,
which, as I said, you are their food source. Now,
unfortunately, mattress encasements are a bit of a long term investment
because depending on the size of the infestation and how many bugs you have
in your bed, it could take a very long time to completely starve
them out.
Now, you've confirmed you have a bedbug problem, and you may be thinking
to yourself, how the heck did I get bed bugs? After all,
they don't just appear out of thin air. One thing to note is that bed
bugs are hitchhikers. So think if you've traveled recently
because you might have picked them up from your hotel room.
Now, bedbugs are a nationwide problem, and they plague hotels
more often than you might think. So if you're especially worried about picking
bed bugs from traveling, be sure to thoroughly inspect your room
before settling in. So if you do have travel plans on the horizon,
here are some cities to be cautious of because they've had higher
reports than others. These cities include New York
City, Baltimore, Cleveland, and Chicago. And in
a more broader sense, some states to be cautious of are California,
Florida, Maryland and New Jersey.
Well, there you have it. Some tips and tricks on how to identify and handle
bedbugs in your room, as well as some travel destinations to
be aware of. If you're traveling soon, you can find
more in depth information about bedbugs and how to handle them,
mattressclarity.com, as well as some reviews on
pillows, bedding and mattresses, as well as some money saving coupons,
too. See you next time.