How to get rid of bed bugs: ‘Quickly’ kill off a infestation in three steps
Bed bugs are one of the most worrying types of pest as they can be incredibly difficult to get rid of once an infestation makes its way into your home.
Not only are bed bugs tiny but they are easy to go unnoticed until it is too late as they breed incredibly quickly. One female bed bug can lay up to 500 eggs in a lifetime, and their lifespan is only around six months.
Nicholas Forth, a bedding expert from Endurance Beds, has explained the first step to getting rid of bedbugs is to completely clean your mattress as they can quickly travel to other areas of your home.
He said: “Despite only being 5 millimetres in size – bedbugs can become a big problem very quickly, and although not inherently dangerous, they can still cause a lot of chaos in your home.
“They can lead to bed bug bites which are irritating to the skin, they can also leave unwanted debris such as bed bug droppings and reddish stains from crushed bed bugs.”
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Clean and steam the mattress
While the bedding is in the laundry, you need to thoroughly clean your mattress. Simply use a stiff brush to scrub the mattress to remove any remaining bugs or eggs, then vacuum everything in the area.
Nicholas said: “Vacuum the mattress, pillows, box spring, bed frame, headboard, and footboard. The initial hoover will get rid of any bed bugs, shells, faecal droppings, or eggs on the surface.”
Next, you will need to steam the mattress and everything close by in the bedroom with a high-pressure steamer. The most effective way to kill bedbugs is heat, and using steam can help get rid of infestation at high temperatures.
Once everything is vacuumed, place the vacuum cleaner bag in a plastic service and then throw it away in a rubbish bin outside.
Cover the mattress
Once everything is cleaned to the best of your ability, put the mattress in a mattress protector which has a zipper to protect your mattress and stop any remaining bed bugs from spreading to the rest of the house.
Nicholas said: “This will eventually kill any leftover bugs that you haven’t managed to remove from your first cleaning as any remaining bed bugs will be trapped and won’t be able to feed on you.
Continue to repeat these steps consistently to successfully get rid of bed bugs as it may take some time and patience to completely wipe out an infestation.
If the infestation is persistent or severe, then speak with a professional exterminator or pest control company that will have more expertise in eliminating these frustrating bugs.
