Signs of bed bugs

Bed bugs hide in tiny cracks and crevices and usually visit their host for a feed briefly in the few hours just before dawn. To an expert pest controller, signs of bed bugs are easy to spot. But to the untrained and inexperienced eye, identifying bed bugs is a little harder.

Here are a few of the common signs that there may bed bugs in one of your rooms.

An inspection by Rentokil will help to confirm a problem and enable our Technicians to offer the best solution using industry leading bed bug treatments.

As part of our bed bug services, Rentokil also passes on our expertise in the form of training for your staff on bed bug early warning signs. Contact our team to find out more.

Bed bugs or their eggs get into clothing, furniture or suitcases and are then transported wherever these items go. As they are so small and like to hide in cracks and crevices during the day, it can be very easy for bed bugs to move into your home or hotel.

There are some preventative steps you can take, especially if you are a frequent traveller, to prevent this pest from invading your home or business.

If you are worried you have brought bed bugs back home after your travels, there are a few things you can do to reduce them from spreading to your home:

• Leave your luggage in your garage or in the bathroom. Bed bugs don’t like the tiles or concrete and if they are present you will see then easier than on carpet!
• (If you’re REALLY worried), take your clothes off in the garage or bathroom and put them straight into the washing machine.
• Wash and dry clothes at the highest possible temperatures.
• Treatment by a professional pest controller is always the best solution to get rid of bed bugs. However as a precaution and if possible you can put your suitcase in the sun, away from the house for a couple of days, to help eradicate any bed bugs.
• Vacuuming can greatly reduce the size of the bed bug population, but only when they’re clearly visible. It cannot guarantee total elimination. (Empty and clean the vacuum to avoid transferring eggs to other rooms.)

With the number of guests moving in and out of your hotel or dorm rooms, it is impossible to completely prevent bed bugs. However, there are ways you can prevent an infestation taking hold and moving from room to room and that is via early detection:

• Train your staff on how to identify common signs of bed bugs.
• Ensure thorough checking for bed bugs is written into your room cleaning processes.
• Have a procedure in place for handling bed bug complaints.
• Inspect adjacent rooms to identify if the bed bugs have spread (although Rentokil will do this as part of our emergency response survey).
• Immediately contact Rentokil to arrange a thorough inspection and bed bug control program.

Call Rentokil on 1300 307 825 or contact us for expert bed bug control and prevention for your home or business.