Down here in the Southlands, we have a paradise—plenty of sun, sand, and beaches. The nature and good weather lend themselves to a booming tourism industry. Unfortunately, with tourism comes a few backs—one of the worst of these being bed bugs. Yes, when you have people staying in hotels, motels, and other travel situations, they bring all of their pests with them. That’s why today we’re going to cover 2023 Florida bed bug control and a few tips on how to travel bug-free.
2023 Bed Bug Control: Overview
Now, like with any pest, information is going to be your most potent weapon. Being able to quickly identify a bed bug infestation is going to be crucial to controlling them.
Bed bugs are small, oval, brown insects. They have flat bodies that are similar in shape and size to an apple seed. After feeding and getting a nice, large blood meal, however, they can swell to many times their original size. Not only that, but they turn red when engorged with blood. These flat bodies make them able to fit into tiny spaces. That can include anything the width of a credit card. Suitcases, for example, are no match for a bed bug. And so long as there’s blood to feed on, you can expect a bed bug to be there to feed.
These insects don’t make nests like ants, bees, or other social bugs. Instead, they live in groups in small hiding places around your home. They don’t fly but can scutter across the ground at surprising speed. They can climb sheer surfaces as well, such as walls and ceilings. I know seeing one on the roof of my house would have me scrambling for some 2023 bed bug control!
bed bug reproduction
Female bed bugs can lay hundreds of eggs. Each one is going to be only roughly the size of a mote of dust, making them impossible to see with the human eye nearly. Immature bedbugs, called nymphs, shed their skins five times before reaching maturity. They require a meal of blood before each shedding. Under favorable conditions, the bugs can develop fully in as little as a month and produce three or more generations per year. They can live from about 10 months to a year long. So when you see one female, understand that you already have a likely infestation on your hands.
Where did I get bed bugs?
Bed bugs, as I mentioned before, are incredible hitchhikers. Small, flat, and sneaky. Their slim flat bodies allow them to fit into the smallest of spaces and stay there for long periods of time, even without a blood meal. Bed bugs are usually transported from place to place as people travel. The bed bugs travel in the seams and folds of luggage, overnight bags, folded clothes, bedding, furniture, and anywhere else where they can hide. Most people do not realize they are transporting stow-away bed bugs as they travel from location to location, infecting areas as they travel.
You’re at risk of needing some 2023 Florida bed bug control if you even exist near a bed bug infestation. Everyone is at risk of getting bed bugs when visiting an infected area. However, anyone who travels frequently and shares living and sleeping quarters where other people have previously slept has a higher risk of being bitten and or spreading a bed bug infestation.
Living in connected housing is also a way that many people end up with bed bug issues. They can easily climb through wall voids, vents, and electrical outlets. So if your neighbor a few apartments over, or one townhouse over, has bed bugs, there’s a good chance you’ll get them too if not dealt with quickly. This goes double or triple for staying in hotels and motels, as they often prove to be hot spots for bed bugs in the Tampa bay area.
How to identify bed bug bites?
Bed bugs will bite you anywhere that you have exposed skin. Bites tend to cluster into a few places, though, that is usually exposed when you’re sleeping in bed. Some of these spots include the neck, face, hands, shoulders, arms, and legs, especially around the ankles.
Many people do not feel the bite itself or develop clear symptoms other than the dots where the bug bit and some minor surrounding inflammation and irritation. Others are considered hypersensitive to bites and develop more severe symptoms. It’s more than enough to have you running for some 2023 Florida bed bug control, however!
In most cases, symptoms occur more or less immediately after the bite, but they can develop or progress over the following days as well. Without further irritation, symptoms typically resolve after a week or so.
Almost all bed bug bites will produce some degree of discomfort, typically itchiness and inflammation. Other signs and symptoms of bed bug bites include burning sensations, a raised itchy bump, and small, zit-like welts that are arranged in a zig-zag pattern on your body. Bed bugs feed in a line as they go, so their bites are usually clustered.
2023 Florida Bed Bug Control: Dealing With an Infestation
Now, once you have an infestation of bed bugs, you need to call a professional. Unfortunately, these bugs are too good at hiding, moving, and avoiding detecting for a layman to handle. But, there are a few things you can do to reduce their numbers while you wait for professional help.
The first thing you’re going to want to do is regularly vacuum any carpets in your home. The spaces between carpets and the walls or carpets and the floor are favorites of bed bugs, so vacuuming them up is an excellent way to keep their numbers down. You may even get some eggs as well.
After that, regularly inspect and wash your sheets. Make sure to dry them at a high temperature for a good amount of time, as it takes a large amount of sustained heat to kill these durable pests. And finally, if you find an infested piece of furniture or electronics, get rid of it. Or at least put it somewhere that keeps them from spreading into other rooms of the house. For example, a bed bug infestation in a game console (more common than you think) can lead to plenty more rooms getting infested. But you can deal with the epicenter by putting it in an air-tight plastic case. Even if the bugs don’t die, you can at least have them cordoned off.
