Why DIY Bed Bug Control Is Hard To Execute

What do bed bugs look like?

You likely know that bed bugs are reddish-brown insects with six legs and an apple-seed shape, but you may not know that they don't always look like this. Here are a few facts to consider:

• Newly hatched nymphs are 1/24 of an inch long, and white.
• Newly hatched nymphs turn into bright red insects after taking a blood meal.
• While bed bugs are flat insects, they look bloated after a blood meal.
• Bed bugs turn tan as they develop.
• You may see the black feces inside a bed bug. In dim lighting, the black feces inside a bed bug's abdomen can make it look like a black insect.
• At full-size, bed bugs are still only about ⅕ of an inch in length. That's pretty small.

Every bug you find in your bed is not a bed bug. So, knowing how to identify bed bugs is critical.  

Where do bed bugs hide?

You can pull a bed apart and not find a single bed bug, even if dozens are inside your bed. Bed bugs are experts at hiding. Here are a few places you can look for them.

• Take a butter knife and drag it along the seams of your mattress and box spring. These bugs tuck right into tight spaces.
• Use a flashlight and a butter knife to probe underneath labels.
• Inspect rips in your mattress and box spring.
• Check around the grommets and vents of your mattresses.
• Look in the compressed space between your mattress and box spring.
• Use your flashlight to check every tiny recess in your bed frame. If you see something wiggling, you're likely looking at bed bugs.
• Lift your bed frame and look underneath the feet.
• Check under the feet of your bedstand, chairs, and couch.
• Look under the cushions of your couch.
• Unzip your couch cushions and inspect inside.
• Check along baseboards and crown molding.
• Check around door frames
• Inspect outlet covers.

Bed bugs don't just hide in beds. You may find them in couches, living room chairs, gaming chairs, electronics, pianos, and any furniture item with a void.  

What signs do bed bugs provide?

There are a few helpful signs you can look for as you attempt to find bed bugs. You'll see these as you use your butter knife to probe gaps, creases, and the compressed spaces under labels.

• Bed bugs shed their skins as they grow. These skins are tiny and yellowish.
• Females lay tiny white eggs that are about 1/24 of an inch in length.
• Bed bugs leave excrement on sheets, pillowcases, and other fabrics.
• Bed bugs excrete blood. These stains will likely look tan or brown when you detect them.
• Bed bugs are a little stinky. If they're hiding in your home, you might notice a scent of coriander.

Knowing how to detect bed bugs is helpful before, during, and after treatments. Before treatment, these tips will help you figure out where bed bugs are hiding. If you have a strong vacuum and you uncover bed bugs huddled together in a small space, you may be able to suck them up and stop your infestation immediately. During your treatment, detection helps you to know that you are having success. After you are done, effective bed bug detection provides peace of mind.    

The Problems A Bed Bug Infestation Can Create In Your House

The primary reason Greensboro residents want to get rid of bed bugs expeditiously is that bed bugs bite. As you try to apply DIY bed bug treatment, these pests will routinely let you know that you have not won the battle. They're going to bite you—and they're going to bite you a lot. It is what they do.Each bed bug typically bites three times, so going to bed at night and waking up with fifteen bites on your skin is evidence that you have five bed bugs, not fifteen.

• Over time, five bed bugs can easily turn into fifteen. A female bed bug can lay around five eggs every day for ten days after drawing a blood meal. Yikes!
• Bed bugs feed on blood and need it to reproduce, grow a population, and survive extinction. The longer you have an infestation, the more bites you're going to get and the more bed bugs you're going to have in your home.

Have you been struggling to get rid of bed bugs? Are you noticing that these bugs keep coming back over and over? Well, the truth is that they don't go anywhere. They sometimes pause and wait for dangerous conditions to change, which can make you feel like they're gone. It is one of the ways they outsmart Greensboro residents and avoid extermination. But they can't outsmart you if you understand how they think. Let's look at a few reasons why bed bugs are tricky to control and what you can do to counter their natural defenses.

Why You Can't Get Rid Of Bed Bugs On Your Own

If you're scratching your head (and other parts of your body) wondering why you can't get rid of bed bugs, we understand. Bed bugs are impressive adversaries. You have to keep in mind that these insects have been dwelling almost exclusively with humans as far back as we have history. It takes resilience, natural adaptability, and unique defensive behavior patterns to survive when their very presence in a structure is detested. How do they do it?

• When a bed bug sheds its skin, something miraculous happens. Its next skin is more tolerant to any harmful materials in its environment. If a bed bug nymph survives exposure to a treatment product, it becomes stronger. Did a Kelly Clarkson song just echo in your mind? It is true. You definitely want to make sure your first effort gets the job done.
• Bed bugs work together to avoid danger. A few bugs will go out to feed. If those few don't return, the others take notice.
• Bed bugs avoid treated surfaces if they detect the control material being used.
• Bed bugs are indoor pests. They don't live in your yard. If you use something to drive bed bugs out of your home, you should know that it won't work. They don't want to live outside. They will do everything in their power to continue living inside.
• Home remedies are often used to stop bed bugs because they're more "natural" than over-the-counter products. Unfortunately, these remedies are based on poor science and often fail inexplicably. An example is using vinegar and water to stop bed bugs. If you spray this solution on bed bugs, it will act as a desiccant. If you spray vinegar and water on a surface, it will do nothing to stop bed bugs. It will simply dry up.

There are many more challenges to DIY bed bug control, but you get the idea. Bed bugs are extraordinary insects. They've been outsmarting us since the dawn of human history. But there is good news. Licensed professionals draw upon industry research and will apply field-tested methods to effectively control bed bugs. It takes know-how and experience, but it is possible.