Bed bug pesticides

Bed bugs are in the family of Cimicadea insects, they live by feeding on blood of humans, and other warm blooded things.  The name bed bug comes from the fact of where they are normally found in the homes of people.  They make there homes in mattresses, sofas, and other furniture that have normally have cloth on them.  Although there are different species of bed bugs that live in other parts of the world, and feed on different things.  There is a species in West Africa and South America that feed on people and bats, there are also species in North America that mainly feed on poultry.

Bed bugs are very small and hard to locate unless you know what to look for.  They range in size from 1mm to 4mm depending on how old they are.  When they are first hatched they are almost clear and have no color but the closer they get to adulthood they become more of a rust color, or the color of dried blood.  The way you can see if you have bed bugs is by looking in the crevices of beds and sofas, you will be able to find empty molts of young bedbugs and dark red and black spots on your bed.  The spots are dried blood that they either regurgitated or excreted.  Almost 50% of people that get bit show no signs of infestation except for itching on the skin.  Some people have red raised bumps where they have fed, and severe itching.  In some rare cases there have been nausea and illness.

Bed bugs are one of the hardest pests to get rid of, they are very resilient and can hide in the smallest of spaces in your furniture.  And the fact that they have grown resistant to a lot of the pesticides we use today don't help.  There have been an upsurge in bed bug cases in North America due to these reasons, and the fact that over seas travel has become more and more common.  Recently it has been said that bed bug infestations in North American have gone up 500% in the past 10 to 15 years. 

During the 40's and 50's the use of DDT (DichloroDiphentl Trichloroethane) pesticides were very popular and took care of the bed bugs of that era.  Not that DDT has been banned and can't be used as pest control anymore bed bugs have been on the rise ever since. There aren't that many insecticides that help in the control of bed bugs, and the ones that are out there are very expensive, and are strong chemicals.  There has been some that say freezing them may help, but I haven't heard anything else about it.  There are other things that may help like, Diatomaceous earth, Neem Oil, and Rubbing Alcohol.  The Diatomaceous earth is a different variety of fossils of algae and other things ground into a powder, by sprinkling it on bed bug colonies it gets on their exoskeleton and dehydrates them and killing them.  Neem Oil is made from the bark and leaves of the Neem Tree, by spraying it on carpets and curtains it is a natural bug repellent that has been seen to help a little.  Rubbing alcohol  can be sprayed on adult bed bugs and eggs to control them, although it's not used as permanent treatment it may help a little as well.

Either way if you have a bed bug infestation you need to contact a pest control agency.  The chemicals they use will be more effective then anything that is sold over the counter since the solutions used to kill them are so strong.  This might be expensive but once they are gone you will be relieved and realise that it was a worthy expense.

If you have any questions or comments please contact us, we would like to hear any solutions you have had with bed bugs also.  Just click the comment thing at the bottom of the page.  Good luck and I hope you can get rid of the bed bugs fast.