Bed bug extermination may take from a few days to a few months. What makes the difference?
Amount of mistakes made along the way.
To help you out we’ve listed the most common errors, described their rationale, and what you should do to avoid them. By avoiding these common mistakes, you will not only reduce the number of bites but also their effect on your well-being, and the time needed to be bug-free.
1. Delaying the Treatment
Bed bugs reproduce quickly and can infest an entire home in a matter of weeks. Delaying the treatment can allow the infestation to grow, making it more difficult, costly, and cumbersome to eliminate. Do not wait to discover a live bed bug. Act immediately already when you see signs of bed bugs.
2. Changing the Sleeping Environment
Moving either to a sofa or a friend’s place seems a good choice. The problem is that there is a very high chance you will bring the bed bugs with you to a new location. Moreover, bugs from the original location may spread to neighboring rooms, or even apartments in their search for blood. Atop of it, bed bugs may survive up to one year without feeding. So unless you intend to vacate for that long, this strategy won’t work. So although we would like to help you the best we can, we have to inform you, that based on the above you should not stop using your bed during the infestation. If the bites are proving to be too problematic check this Guide on how to drastically cut them in a matter of a few hours.
3. Moving or Discarding Infested Items
If you cannot escape, you should discard the infested items, correct? Sadly, it is similar to the case above. Moving any items (furniture, clutter, textiles, or bedding) without proper sealing can spread the infestation. This causes even more problems down the line since then you will have to treat an even bigger area. Discarding the infested items can spread the infestation in the entire building or even around it. So you will be without your belongings, but since bed bugs hide in various places, there is likely some will remain hidden. This means that after moving or discarding the items you will see a decrease in the number of bites or bed bugs. But there is a very high chance that a reinfestation will occur in a few weeks.
And the worst part? If some of your neighbors gets them in a foreseeable future they will blame you.
4. Toxifying Your Home
Bed bugs mainly live in your bedroom. Do not forget, however, that you do too!
Almost every chemical substance comes with specific hazards. Exposure to a powerful substance only increases your health risks. So a decision to apply an extensive amount of toxic, yet inexpensive chemicals in this area should not be taken lightly. After all, pesticides are toxins intended to harm and kill.
If you have pets or children then even more so. Their differences in metabolism and size may make them even more susceptible to such toxins. Not to mention that they crawl on the floor, touch or even lick everything that looks different.
Thankfully, nowadays already exist effective, safe, and non-toxic pesticides. One such is SayByeBugs and you can read more about it here.
5. Using Homemade, Unproven DIY Treatments
Do-It-Yourself treatments, such as essential oils, alcohol or home remedies, have questionable effectiveness. Sure, they are accessible and cheap. But that is also the only advantage. Usage of incorrect, impure, or unknown active compounds, with unknown dilution, will deliver unknown results. Combined with an improvised approach can even lead to a disaster (e.g. fire, explosion, surface damages, allergies, etc). It’s best to use proven methods supplied by reputable providers with a proven track record.
6. Not Limiting the Infestation
Bed bug treatments require certain preparation steps:
- placing all textiles in sealed bags or containers,
- Isolating the Bed,
- removing the clutter
- regular washing of potentially infested items at temperatures of 120°F or higher. Use this designated laundry detergent if you cannot reach such temperatures.
- thorough vacuuming using a HEPA-designated vacuum filter or disposing of the vacuum bag immediately to prevent spreading the infestation.
- Seal shut cracks, crevices, and voids. Especially within a 10-ft. radius of any spot where you sleep or where you have found signs of bed bugs. Do not forget wallpaper, floors, and bed frames. Use a high-quality silicone-based sealant, or other home DIY tools and accessories to get the job done.
Failing to do these steps can not only reduce the effectiveness of the treatment but, more critically, prolong the infestation. Understand that without this step you may be improving the situation on one side, but on the other, the infestation has free reign and can keep expanding.
7. Not following up with additional treatments
Bed bug infestations are very resilient. Their existence relies on a multitude of factors (e.g. infestation severity, environment, resident’s habits, etc). Usually, they require multiple treatments and different approaches to fully eliminate them. This is because almost no approach is perfect (read more about it here). Therefore failing to do these needed follow-ups can allow the infestation to persist and reemerge. Always check and follow the supplier’s recommendations. We also advise making regular monitoring check-ups after the treatment has been finished.
8. No Preventive Measures
No home is completely immune to bed bugs. Even if you are very careful, there is always a possibility to get them. For example, you may try restricting all common bed bug sources and then a visitor brings them to your home.
So instead of trying to block your home from the world, we rather recommend following a selection of preventive steps. With them, you significantly reduce your probability of another infestation but create no restraints to your lifestyle.
9. Failing to Seek Help
Bed bugs are notoriously difficult to eliminate. Failing to seek the assistance of experts can make it more difficult if not even impossible to be rid of them. You may resort to a Service Provider (see our Guide to choosing an exterminator) if you lack time, but not money. Otherwise, we recommend SayByeBugs. Its kill-on-contact effectiveness, combined with an easy and safe application, free customer support, and a money-back guarantee is the best way to deal with this problem. They provide every client with all the needed information to get rid of bed bugs once and for all. They’ve been doing this since 2016 and have helped already more than a quarter of a million homes to be free of bed bugs.
In the end, remember that bed bugs are notoriously stubborn to be rid of. Persistence, discipline, usage of proven products, and applying them according to instructions will eventually bring you to your goal of infestation removal.
P.S.: Once you get rid of them, do not forget to implement the preventive steps as well. Otherwise, they can return.
Interested to learn more about Bed Bug Treatments?
Click on the links below to learn more.
- Guaranteed Family Safe Solution Anyone can Apply
- Fellow American Explains his story with Bed Bugs: Robert’s lessons and How to be Rid of Bed Bugs for Good
- How to Choose the Right Bed Bug Treatment?
- Pros and Cons of Available Bed Bug Treatments
- 6 Steps to Take Immediately after Discovering Bed Bugs
If you really want to get rid of bed bugs today try SayByeBugs! It was developed as a safe and highly effective alternative among a sea of products that rarely deliver on their promises.
