Bug Treatment For a Mattress

Mattress encasements trap bed bugs inside, causing them to die.

Bed bugs are a problem many homeowners face. These tiny pests live in mattresses and other protected areas of the home, causing homeowners to experience intense itching when bitten. There are steps homeowners can take to eliminate bed bugs and prevent re-infestation. Severe infestations of bed bugs often require treatments by professional exterminators.

Identification

Bed bugs are very small insects that are reddish-brown and turn darker red after feeding on their primary food source, human blood. If bed bugs cannot find a human host, they may feed on dogs, birds, rodents and bats. Two species of bed bugs are common in the United States. Cimex lectularius is found in cooler climates and Cimex hemipterus is found in subtropical and tropical areas, such as Florida. Signs of bed bug infestations include dark spots of fecal matter on mattresses, bed bug eggs, eggshells, live bed bugs, and skin casts on the floor underneath mattresses where immature nymphs molt. Seeing reddish-stains on your mattress or sheets is caused by crushing bed bugs during the night.

Diagnosis

Inspect your mattress and the areas around your bed for signs of bed bug infestations. Examine your mattress, box springs, bed frames and baseboards underneath and near your bed. Homeowners should also look around window sills, door frames, underneath electrical outlets and underneath wallpaper for bed bugs as these insects often invade these areas. Check chimneys for signs of bats or birds, which bed bugs feed on as well.

Treatment

Sanitizing your mattress and the area near your bed can help reduce bed bug infestations. Wash all bedding and mattress pads in hot water and dry in a hot dryer to kill live bed bugs. Scrub the mattress with a stiff brush to loosen bed bug eggs and vacuum the area thoroughly. Discarding your mattress may get rid of a few bed bugs, but the new mattress will quickly become infested if bed bugs are still inside the home.

Encasements

Placing your mattress, box springs and pillows in an encasement may help kill bed bugs. These covers are designed to trap bed bugs inside causing them to die over time. Since bed bugs can live for up to one full year without feeding on blood, the Environmental Protection Agency or EPA recommends that homeowners leave encasements on their beds for one full year. Removing encasements too soon may result in another infestation of these insects. Always purchase a high quality encasement designed for bed bug control. Examine encasements regularly for tears or rips where bugs could escape.

References

• Ohio State University; Bed Bugs; Susan C. Jones
• EPA: Bed Bugs