Bed Bugs

Bed bugs are blood feeding insects from the Cimicidae family. The common bed bug Cimex lectularius is small oval shape about 4 to 5mm long brown to reddish-brown.

When fully fed, the bed bug looks like a dark oblong balloon.

Bed bugs generally feed on blood from mammals or birds. They can lay up to 500 eggs in a lifetime. Bed bugs live between a couple of months and a year.

Bed bugs usually produce a series of bites and are generally found in an item of clothing or a bed sheet or mattress. They give off a musty sweet smell especially where they are in large numbers.

They routinely deposit partially digested remnants of previous blood meals which leave a rust-like or tar-like residue.

Bed bugs are nocturnal and generally hide in cracks, crevices, mattresses, seams, furniture, etc. It can take them up to 10 minutes to feed until full. 

They sometimes excrete old blood causing the tell-tale rusty marks seen on bedding in infected homes. They feed repeatedly and have been known to be active in temperatures as low as 8 degree Celsius.

Bed bugs generally only travel around 1,5m to feed, although they have been known to travel as far as 9 meters from their hiding spot. They seem to prefer humans, but do feed readily on birds rodents and other animals.

What do i do if i suspect that i have a bed bug infestation?

Contact HEP Pest Control Services and ensure that a thorough inspection is done to identify the pest and find their hiding places.

Sanitation alone will not eliminate a bed bug population. They need to be killed.

Once all bedding and clothing where applicable has been treated, they should be washed in hot soapy water for at least 20 minutes.