How to Detect Bed Bugs

Bed bug infestations are on the rise and with that, they are surprising many home owners as they discover that they too are infected. You can detect these nasty little pests so that you can move on to getting rid of them now.

Things You'll Need

• Double sided sticky tape
• A flash light

Instructions

1. Check for bites.

   Many people find out they have bed bugs when they start getting bed bug bites. This isn't a good way to do it because studies suggest that many people don't start showing signs of bed bug bites for six months of being bit and some never show signs. However, it can be noted that bed bug bites look similar to mosquito bites and often occur on the back, arms, or legs. What tends to set bed bug bites apart is that there are often three or four bites in a row or group.

2. If you think you might have bed bugs (someone you know has recently discovered them, you have bites that may or may not be associated with them, or for some other reason you are concerned) then you can take a flashlight to bed with you. Anytime that you wake up in the night you can shine the flashlight down your body to check for feeding bugs. Bed bugs are very fast and may flee from the light. If you see a scurrying bug then this may very well be a bed bug.

3. Look for their debris. Bed bugs are good hiders and don't like the daylight. However, their debris isn't so good at hiding. Check your sheets, bedding, and mattress for reddish, brown, or black spots or streaks. This is often a sign as it is blood that has accidentally been released or fecal matter. Another thing to look for is bits of exoskeleton that will be piled up in their hiding spots (such as folds, creases, or cracks in the mattress or the gab between the mattress and the box springs) and eggs that will also be there (the eggs are amber and very small if unhatched or white if hatched).

4. Trap them. While trapping bed bugs doesn't get rid of them, it does let you identify the problem very quickly. You can take double sided sticky tape and attach it to the edges of the mattress, box spring, and on the floor around the bed. Make sure you aren't going to stick yourself to it. Then wait four to seven days. You should catch a few bed bugs in the tape if you have them. This will let you compare them to pictures online and move on to treating them.

Tips & Warnings

• Identifying a bed bug isn't hard. They are very small 3/16" or less with the nymphs as small as pin heads. This is about the size of an apple seed. They are reddish brown in color with nymphs being clear to yellowish (except after feeding in which case both adults and nymphs will have a reddish glow). They are very flat and look like a small pear shaped beetle or roach.

• Don't panic. Having bed bugs isn't fun and getting rid of them can be hard, but they don't spread disease like other blood sucking insects, and they are relatively harmless (this doesn't mean you want to live with them just that you don't want to panic).

Resources

• Bye Bye Bed Bugs