Do you make a good effort to keep your home clean? Many people do. Maintaining a clean living space is not only good for your mental and physical health, but it can also help deter a number of annoying, dangerous, and destructive pests. Unfortunately, there is one pest that couldn't care less about how dirty or clean your home is. We are talking about bed bugs. If you are having trouble sleeping at night, or have been waking up with bites on your skin, you might be dealing with these parasitic pests inside your New York City home. How did they get there? Let’s find out now!
Bed Bugs Are Hitchhikers
Bed bugs were not built for traveling long distances by themselves. They don’t have wings to fly, their legs aren’t strong enough for them to jump, and they are about as slow as pests come. Despite all of these hindrances, bed bugs are amazing at traveling. How do they do it? With our help! Instead of crawling into your home through a gap or crack, bed bugs crawl onto items and let us do all of the work for them. Backpacks, luggage, and even furniture can all be used by bed bugs to get around. All it takes is one infested item for an infestation to begin in your home.
How To Spot Bed Bugs
The more you know about bed bugs, the more equipped you will be to stop them from entering your home. To spot bed bugs in your home, on items, or anywhere else, look for these signs:
- Live reddish-brown, oval-shaped bed bugs.
- Dried bloodstains.
- Tiny reddish-black dots of fecal matter.
Bed Bug Hotspots
Bed bugs need people to get around. Where there are more people, that's where bed bugs are more likely to be. Here in New York, bed bugs are everywhere—at malls, in theaters, all over schools. Anywhere people gather in large numbers, bed bugs are plentiful. How can you reduce your chances of bringing bed bugs home with you? Here are some bed bug prevention tips we recommend:
- Inspect items for bed bugs before buying. Make sure to be extra careful with furniture.
- Do not leave items such as backpacks, luggage, and suitcases in one spot for more than 20 minutes when out in a public area.
- When traveling, check the rooms you're going to be staying in for signs of bed bugs. If you suspect bed bugs are present ask to change rooms.
- Before coming home from traveling, store used clothing inside an airtight bag. When home, wash this clothing immediately on high heat.
- Teach your family and friends about bed bugs.
- Show your children how to inspect their bags before coming home from school.
- Be extra careful with purchasing second-hand items, especially furniture and appliances.
How Hard Are Bed Bugs To Prevent?
As hard as bed bugs are to prevent, they are much more difficult to eliminate. When faced with danger, bed bugs flee into hiding. Once hiding deep within your walls or ceiling voids, bed bugs can survive upwards of 5 months without a blood meal. Oftentimes, homeowners think they’ve finally found success dealing with bed bugs, only for problems to spark back up a few weeks or months later.
The Best Way To Deal With Bed Bugs
A home just doesn’t feel right with bed bugs. At Parkway Pest Services, we are committed to helping homeowners find fast and reliable freedom from sleep-wrecking pests like bed bugs. If bed bugs are keeping you up at night, let our team of dedicated professionals have a look. They will recommend the best course of action and help you get your home back to how it should be: bed bug-free!
Give us a call today for any questions about our bed bug control services in NYC or to schedule a treatment for your New York City home.