Bed bugs have been around long enough to be on most people’s radar. Great, you know they are out there threatening to cause you headache and grief, but how do we avoid them? The common instruction is to be cautious when traveling and inspect for them. Great, how do I go about that? I don’t know anything about bed bugs. How do I inspect a mattress for bed bugs?
Can I Even See Bed Bugs?
In order to know how to inspect a mattress for bed bugs, it helps to know what a bed bug even looks like. Think of a watermelon seed. They are roughly the same size, shape, and sometimes even coloration. Usually, the bed bug will be more red to even orange or yellowish in color, but they can be quite dark as well. Here are some bed bugs that were trying (quite unsuccessfully I must boast) to evade our heat treatment the other day.
Ok great, so they look like tiny specs. What good does that do me, you ask? Well, this is the kind of thing you are initially looking for. Once you catch a glimpse, you can move in close and see something more along the lines of this.
Where on the Mattress Do I Look?
Most people who don’t wish to dedicate their lives to studying bugs believe that bed bugs hang out deep inside the mattress. If this were true, we would have quite the challenge doing adequate inspections. The truth is bed bugs tend to only move far enough away to be well hidden. If this is just under the sheet or between the box spring and frame, that is good enough for them. Examples of things you will find on a mattress include:
- bed bugs themselves
- nymphs (mature bed bugs)
- blood stains
- fecal droppings (think of pepper flakes)
- eggs (small, off-white, hardest to find)
Here are some examples of what you may see:
What if I Find Them at Home (or My Business)
Regardless of how meticulously careful we may be, we still may end up with a bed bug finding its way into our life. This is not fun, but it is not the end of the world. They are master hitchhikers and it doesn’t say anything about the kind of person you are (except for maybe a little unlucky at times). The best news is we have bed bug experts on staff that can help with:
- Staff education
- Inspections
- Identification
- Elimination
- Preventive plans
If you have any questions at any point, reach out to the biting insect specialists at Rove Pest Control and get the assistance you need before you waste any stress of your own on these ancient tormentors.