Pests that go bump in the night

In Pests

Pests that go bump in the night

It’s almost Halloween! That means as the clocks go back and the nights draw in, PEST UK begins to treat more and more pests found in your home. But do you know what pests are lurking at bedtime?

One of the most common pests that go bump in the night are bed bugs. These tiny insects can cause a lot of distress. Aside from their itchy and irritating bites, they can also cause a psychological problem – causing those suffering sleepless nights and great discomfort. These pests are mostly nocturnal and will likely feed before dawn, meaning their victims often know they have an infestation when they wake up to bites on their bodies.

Signs of bed bugs

Signs of a bed bug infestation include:

• Raised, red (and sometimes itchy) bites, usually in rows found on the neck, shoulders, back, legs, or arms.
• Dark spots, similar in size to an ink dot, found on the bed frame or the mattress.
• Small stains of blood on the bedsheets.

The key thing to remember is that not everyone reacts the same to bed bugs. It is possible that two people that sleep in the same bed are both bitten by bed bugs and only one will show evidence of bites.

Preparation for treatment of bed bugs

Bed bugs are extremely difficult to get rid of. DIY solutions can only make a bed bug problem worse and you risk spreading the infestation across your entire home. Therefore, we advise seeking professional pest control help to efficiently eliminate bed bugs.

Before one of our technicians can attend to deal with bed bugs we always advise that the following preparation is done beforehand:

• Firstly, bedsheets, clothes and curtains must be removed and washed.
• The rooms to be treated must be vacuumed and cleaned.
• Drawers and wardrobes must be emptied and the clothes only to be re-introduced to the rooms once they have been washed or tumble dried.
• Rooms must be clear of toys, books, boxes, CDs, posters, etc.
• Objects in the room that cannot be either washed, tumble dried or sprayed with the insecticide (books, shoes, cd’s, DVD’s, etc) must be put in a freezer overnight or failing this into a bag in a room not slept in for the technician to advise you.

Treatment of bed bugs

Our technician will spray a residual insecticide in the infested rooms. All insecticides used are biodegradable, almost odourless, non-tainting, and do not corrode or stain. The areas where the bed bugs will be expected to crawl as well as their harbourages will be treated. Once the sprays have dried it is important to sleep in the rooms treated to ensure the bedbugs will go on the treated surfaces.

PESTUK

PESTUK are full members of the BPCA, the governing body for pest control in the UK. Using a BPCA member company ensures you have a qualified, fully insured company treating your pest problem.

PESTUK have offices in Oxford, Guildford, Enfield, Shepperton, Wantage, St. Albans, Salisbury, St Albans and Enfield.

Call us on 0330 100 2811 to book an appointment regarding pests that go bump in the night or any other pest problem you may have.