When we shop for a cleaning product, we want one that sufficiently cleans. So, we read the label, look for reviews, and rely on word of mouth from friends who vouch for the product. Money is precious, and we don't want to waste our hard-earned money on something that does not work.
In the same way, when you suspect bed bugs are inside your home, you want an effective solution. You don't want to go to bed anxious about how many bites you may get while you sleep, nor do you want to spend the next day feverishly scratching and miserable.
To end your bed bug problem, you need the Mooresville bed bug exterminators from Lake Norman Pest Control. We have been serving the pest control needs of our community for decades. Professionalism combined with simplicity undergirded by a tenacious spirit to get the job done undergirds the values of our company. We have a team of highly-trained technicians, including the only technician to receive the North Carolina Technician of the Year from the NC Pest Management Association. Our people-focused company maintains high accountability standards, and we treat our customers fairly and professionally.
You probably found this article because you suspect you have a problem with bed bugs and are looking for answers. Please keep reading to determine if bed bugs are present in your home, what to do next, and how to avoid a future infestation.
Visual Clues: Identifying Bed Bugs By Appearance
Bed bugs in Mooresville are elusive creatures that hide in cracks and crevices in the daytime and emerge only at night while you sleep. However, that does not mean you may occasionally notice bugs squeezed into the mattress seams when you change the bed sheets. How do you know if it is a bed bug, not a tick, bat bug, or a flour beetle?
As you look at the critter squeezed into a seam, look for these characteristics:
- Length: 1/4-inches
- Color: Mahogany or reddish-brown
- Shape: Flat, broad oval or swollen and elongated
- Appearance: Crinkly-looking
- Legs: Six
- Antennae: Two (short)
You may have noticed on two descriptors that they can be one way or another, so keep reading for a detailed explanation.
Bed bugs are insects, so they have six legs, two antennae, and a three-part body (head, thorax, and abdomen). Bed bugs are ectoparasitic insects, i.e., they use blood for nutrition but do not enter the body. Between midnight and 5 a.m., they climb onto a nearby host and anchor themselves using tiny claws on the base of the legs. Once in place, the bed bug probes the skin for a capillary-rich area.
When a bed bug discovers a location with good blood flow, it pierces the skin. You do not wake up at this point because the bug injects an anesthetic to numb the area temporarily. In addition to the numbing substance, it also secretes an anti-coagulate into your body to promote blood flow. As the bed bug draws blood, its mahogany body becomes reddish-brown, and its shape changes from flat and oval to elongated and swollen.
Another way you can identify bed bugs by appearance is where you find the insect. Some people mistake ticks for bed bugs, but you won't find them in tall grasses outside, nor will they be stuck on your body with their heads buried beneath your skin. Bed bugs hid in mattress seams, box springs, behind the headboard and picture frames, curtain folds, loose wallpaper, inside electrical outlets, and cracks between the baseboard, walls, and flooring.
Additional signs of a bed bug infestation include reddish-brown fecal stains on bed linens, the mattress, or walls, a musty odor — especially if there is a large infestation in a contained area — and bites on your body. While adult bed bugs are visible to the naked eye, you can find discarded cream-colored body shells (exoskeletons), white, pin-head-sized eggs, off-white egg shells, and translucent nymphs if you use a magnifying glass and search the areas mentioned earlier.
If you see insects meeting the above description, you need bed bug pest control near you from Lake Norman Pest Control. Our technicians can determine if bed bugs are living in your Mooresville home.
Bed Bugs And Sleepless Nights: How They Affect Your Well-Being
Unlike mosquitoes and other ectoparasitic insects, bed bugs do not spread disease but can still be problematic. When bed bugs inject their saliva into your bloodstream, your body dispatches histamines to the location. The histamines cause the wound to swell, turn red, and itch. Because bed bugs probe the skin to find capillary-rich areas, and histamines respond to each location, people often experience a series of itchy bites in a row or a cluster. Furthermore, bed bug bites occur on skin exposed while you sleep; thus, they are often on the arms, back, legs, and face.
Because these bites are so annoying, they can create anxiety in those who think they have a bed bug infestation. Those with a high degree of apprehension due to bed bugs often have problems sleeping, which results in a cascade effect of low work performance, inability to concentrate, irritability, etc. Although bed bugs do not transmit disease-causing pathogens, the constant scratching can result in broken skin exposed to pathogens under fingernails or other surfaces and lead to an infection.
Mental health experts note that those who have suffered past bed bug infestations sometimes suffer flashbacks, even after the problem has ended. Although a bed bug infestation is not the result of uncleanness, those who experience the issue often feel stigmatized and withdraw from interaction with family members and friends. The stress from a bed bug infestation can add anxiety to those with an existing mental health concern and result in debilitating results.
Lake Norman Pest Control provides bed bug control services in Mooresville, so you can rest at night without being afraid you will wake up with more bites.
Eliminating Bed Bugs: The Smart Solution For Your Home
Unlike cockroaches, bed bugs do not enter a home from the yard for food, water, or shelter. Instead, bed bugs use people and previously used furniture as modes of transportation and public venues as hubs. These areas include hotels, motels, theatres, and public transportation. Bed bugs crawl into handbags, clothing, and shopping bags and ride in them to a home.
Hotels are notorious for bed bugs because they hide behind headboards, mattress seams, and box springs. When someone enters the room and places their suitcase on the floor, bed bugs crawl inside and hide in the cracks. When the individual arrives home, the bugs exit, find a hiding location, and feed on their new host.
Although there has been a significant upsurge in bed bug infestations since the late 1900’s, you do not have to coexist with them. If you see the signs of an infestation, you need the best bed bug pest control near you from Lake Norman Pest Control. We will dispatch a trained technician to your home to investigate for bed bug signs. If those indicators are present, we will review a preparation checklist with you and set up treatment time. Although many bed bug infestations are in only one or two rooms, we treat the entire house with the latest products to ensure none of them escape and begin reproducing.
We return one week after the treatment to ensure no bed bugs have escaped. If, somehow, some bed bugs remain, we will retreat until we eliminate the remaining bugs. We back up our bed bug elimination program with a 30-day warranty once we complete the process; we will return at no additional charge should you find more bed bugs during the warranty period. For those who get a pest control package, we warranty the bed bug coverage as long as you continue your service.
Long-Term Bed Bug Prevention: Tips To Prevent Reinfestation
We all like to take a vacation, and there are times when we need public transportation, so we can't live as hermits because bed bugs are in the world.
However, these are things we can do to prevent a bed bug infestation from occurring in our homes:
- Place luggage on a luggage rack when in a hotel room.
- Store worn clothing in sealable plastic bags.
- Immediately wash and dry clothing upon returning home.
- Vacuum the house regularly.
- Suction out corners and cracks in the home.
- Wash bed linens frequently.
- Seal mattresses with bed-bug-proof covers.
- Inspect clothing and handbags when returning home.
- Avoid purchasing used furniture from previously infested locations.
- Inspect used furniture for bed bugs before bringing it into the house.
Vigilance is necessary because it takes only one fertilized female to start an infestation inside a home. You can avoid a reinfestation if you apply these tips.
When you contact Lake Norman Pest Control for bed bug control in Mooresville, we can provide additional tips and expand on the suggestions in this list. Call us today to schedule an appointment and to learn more about our residential and commercial pest control services in Mooresville.
