To take care of bed bug extermination you need to make a few decisions.

First and foremost, are you doing the extermination yourself or hiring a professional exterminator. Even if you hire an exterminator there are things that you can do that will save you time and money.

Hiring An Exterminator

Hiring an exterminator can be expensive. Even if you live in an apartment where an exterminator will be supplied by management you could end up with costs.

Then you have the issue of having a stranger in your home. This is a deal killer for many people.

But the plus is that if you find an experienced exterminator they can help get rid of the infestation. Just make sure that the exterminator is experienced with bedbugs. You can do this by asking for references or about their training and equipment.

A good exterminator should also have a guarantee that they will come back as needed. Bed bugs hatch from eggs. These eggs can be pretty hard to treat. So a good treatment plan will call for retreating as needed.

Exterminating Yourself

You can also decide to exterminate yourself. This gives you more control over the timing and what is going to be used to kill the bugs. It also lets you respond more quickly if there is a re-infestation from the bugs.

In either case there is a lot that you can do to make the extermination more effective.

Bed Bug Extermination

How you prepare for extermination is almost as important as the extermination itself. There are certain steps that you should take to make the extermination as successful as possible.

I’ve always thought that it was important for the bed bug exterminator to give you a checklist of what you should do to prepare.

First Step

The first step should be to make sure that it is bed bugs that are infesting your home. BedBugs require different treatments and tactics that other bugs. Bed Bug Pictures

You should look for these bugs in any area that you sleep. While the bugs can travel up to 20 feet in a night they like to be close to their victims.

These bugs feed on our blood during the night when we are asleep. They are especially active in the hours just before dawn. They are also very small.

So while you might feel the effects of their bites it can be tough to find them. Look around your bed. Check the seams oi your mattress. Look in the cracks of your bed frame and any furniture that is close to your bed. Even check behind picture frames that are close to your bed.

What you are looking for is signs of these bugs. Use a flashlight to make the search a little easier. You might find actual bugs, blood smears, eggs, or shells from when the bugs molt as they grow.

Protect You Bed From Bed Bugs

One of the first things that you should do, whether you are using an exterminator or not, is to protect your bed.

Making sure that the bugs can’t get you on your bed will give you instant relief from the nightly biting. You do this using mattress protectors. These are designed to seal your mattress to save the cost of a new one if the mattress and box spring have been infested.

You need to strip your bed, clean and treat your bed. With the mattress off your bed treat the frame including the nearby furniture and along the edges of any carpet.

Wash your bedding in hot water and dry with high heat. Be careful and put the linens in a trash bag as you take them to and from your bed so you aren’t spreading bed bugs along your path.

If you are treating yourself use both a contact and a residual bed bug treatment.

Next is to consider how the bugs get to you while you are in bed. They can climb up the bed legs or crawl up the wall. If you have a large infestation you should consider moving your bed away from the wall till you get it under control. There are also cups that fit under your bed legs which make it impossible for the bugs to get on the bed. A low tech way that can also work is to wrap double sided tape on the legs.

Once your bed frame is treated you can put the mattress and box-springs back on. Make sure that they are completely covered by a mattress encasement. These zip tightly over your mattress to protect it from more bed bugs and seal in any that are inside.

When you put the linens back on make sure that none of them dangle to the floor. This just gives the bugs another way to get on your bed.

These steps are an important tactic whether you are treating yourself or using an exterminator.

Treating Your Home For Bed Bugs

Treatments that you can use or that an exterminator will use can be in several forms.

First is a contact killer. This is designed to kill bed bugs on contact. Of course you have to find them first. But it can be an important part of your treatment plan.

Next is to use a bed bug killer that lasts and is a deterrent to the bugs for weeks. Use this residual spray around that legs and wall.

Always make sure that you follow exactly as the directions tell you so that you are being safe.

Another thing that I always use is diatomaceous earth. Make sure to get the food grade so that it is safe to use. Sprinkle a thin coat of this powder around the bed legs, on your frame, and along the wall next to your bed.

This powder works by tearing holes in the bed bugs abdomen, causing them to die by drying them out. This powder will work as long as it is undisturbed.

Retreating

Probably the single largest thing that you can do to get rid of bed bugs is to make sure that you retreat.

You see, bed bugs multiply by laying eggs. These eggs take about 10-14 days to hatch. They are also hard to kill. So even if you do all the steps above, if you don’t retreat the hatching eggs can start a new infestation.