What is a Bed Bug? It’s a small insect that feeds on human blood, usually during the night when our sleep is deep and we don’t disturb their feeding by moving around.

The bugs are about the size of an apple seed with a sensory capability that lets it find it’s food source (you) even in complete darkness. When they feed they use a small beak to pierce your skin and gorge on blood. Often times bites will be in a line as the bug follows a blood vein.

Where Do Bed Bugs Come From

The answer to this question is that they can come from a variety of places. And they aren’t that picky about where they infest. It can happen in the nicest of luxury hotels, seedy motels, apartments, condos, hospitals, restaurants, movie theaters, or warehouses.

How dirty and messy your home is also has nothing to do with getting BedBugs. The only thing that a messy home does is give the bugs more places to hide, making it harder to treat for them.

One most common way to get Bed Bugs is bringing used furniture or clothes into your home. These bugs are so small that they can easily hide in the cracks and crevices of furniture or in the seams and folds of used clothing.

If you happen to visit a place that has an infestation the bugs can cling to your clothes to follow you home, starting a new infestation.

Although they have nubs of wings they can’t fly and get around by crawling and attaching themselves to furniture or clothing. In a single night they can crawl up to 20 feet – pretty amazing for how small they are in size.

And because of that small flat size, they can squeeze through some extremely small holes like those that can be found around plumbing and wiring between apartments and condos.

An infestation grows by the laying of eggs. Each female can lay dozens of eggs every day after feeding and 500 or more over their lifetime.

How To Check For Bed Bugs

Signs of these bugs are easier to find than the bugs themselves unless you have a large infestation. These bugs lay eggs that then hatch. As they grow (molt), they discard the used shells as they grow into larger ones.

So the signs that you might find include discarded shells, eggs ( the size of a pinhead), fecal droppings, and blood smears that can happen if a bug gets crushed.

You might even smell the bugs if an infestation is large enough. It’s a cloyingly sweet smell like coriander. This is why there are dogs that have been trained to sniff out infestations. Trained Dogs

You should start any inspection by equipping yourself with a flashlight and maybe even a magnifying glass. These will help you find these tiny bugs.

Since they like to feed nocturnally when we sleep start your search around your bed or any other place where you sleep.

Pull back sheets and look along the seams for the above signs. Then check along the seams of your mattress and the cracks and crevices of any nearby furniture. Look under drawers and behind nearby pictures hanging on your walls.

Where do Bed Bugs hide. Everywhere. But like I said, start near where you sleep.

Bed Bug Bites

The bites of these bugs can be very itchy. Their health effects can include skin irritation, psychological trauma, and allergic symptoms. It can vary from person to person but nobody likes the idea of having these tiny pests crawling on them while they sleep.

The bites can lead to skin problems ranging from small areas of redness to prominent blisters. 

You can use a hydrocortisone cream or antihistamines to help speed recovery from these bites.

You can also steep a tea bag and hold it on the bite until the itch recedes.

How To Get Rid Of Bed Bugs Fast

Bed Bug spray is commonly used to treat these bugs. It can be a kills on contact type of spray or one that leaves a residual powder that kills for weeks. SafeRest Mattress Encasements” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Bed Bug proof mattress protector so seal up your mattress and box springs. I’d also put the legs of your bed in a small cup to make it harder for the bugs to crawl up onto your bed.

If you have a larger infestation you might also pull your bed away from the wall to make it harder for them.

Once you’ve treated your bed and used a
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