In order for bed bugs to appear in an apartment, certain conditions are needed, which residents sometimes provide to these blood-sucking insects without knowing it. The problem is that these insects do not feed on food debris, garbage or spoil household items, but on human blood, for which they damage human skin.
Naturally, such a neighborhood in an apartment is an emergency situation that requires immediate intervention with the subsequent destruction of such parasites. The task can be greatly simplified if you use special chemical control agents, especially since you can see a lot of similar products on store shelves. Unfortunately, their use is not always justified. Do not forget about traditional methods of struggle, as well as preventive measures. The use of a whole range of measures will allow you to get rid of “uninvited guests”.
What do bedbugs look like at all stages of development?
The life cycle of bed bugs includes three states:
- egg;
- nymph (larva);
- imago (adult).
Stages of development of domestic bugs: 1. Egg 2. Hungry and well-fed larva 3-6.
Stages of transition to adulthood 7. Hungry adult bug 8. Well-fed adult bug If there is a constant source of food, female parasites lay clutches every day. Each clutch contains up to 12 elongated white eggs. They reach 1 mm in length. At one end of the egg there is a small hole through which the formed larva emerges. Depending on the ambient temperature, this occurs on days 4–19. By the time the nymphs appear, the eggs acquire a yellowish tint.
The larva has a flat, hairy body with pronounced segmentation and three pairs of limbs. Its length ranges from 1.5 to 4 mm. Initially it is translucent, with a brown tint. As the nymph matures, it becomes dark brown in color. The abdomen of the young parasite consists of 8 sections. It holds up to 1.3 mg of blood.
The body of the larva is covered with a chitinous shell. Over time, the pest becomes cramped in it. Then he sheds it and forms a new shell. After 5 molts, the nymph turns into an imago and gains the ability to reproduce.
Attention! The lifespan of bed bugs reaches 12–14 months.
Adults have a round body shape, slightly pointed at the back. Female house bugs reach a length of 8 mm, males - 6 mm. Before laying, the female body stretches into a long oval. The color of adult pests is dark brown. At the junction of the head and abdomen, short, non-functional wings can be seen.
External differences between male and female bedbugs
Distinctive features of insects
Scientists have studied about 40 thousand species of bedbugs. And only one of them is an ectoparasite that feeds on the blood of humans and warm-blooded animals. It is a bedbug.
The insect's body is flattened. Its length varies depending on the degree of saturation and can range from 3 to 8.5 mm. Body color also depends on the degree of saturation. It can be either dirty yellow or dark brown. In well-fed insects, the body may turn black.
The bug's mouthparts have a piercing-sucking structure and contain two canals. One channel is intended for taking food, and the other for secreting saliva, which has an anesthetic effect and prevents blood clotting.
Due to the flattened and segmented structure of the body, a hungry bug is very difficult to destroy by mechanical force. A well-fed insect becomes round and motionless, so it can be easily crushed.
How do bedbugs live, when and what do they eat?
Bed bugs are nocturnal. During the day they hide in their nests located in secluded places in the apartment. At night, parasites crawl out of their hiding places to drink blood. Night is the best time to search for food. While a person is sleeping, it is easy to approach him and choose the most tender part of the body to bite.
It takes 4-10 minutes for a bedbug to get enough. During this time he can make about 10 bites. The body of a well-fed parasite lengthens to 8–9 mm and becomes convex. Adults “go hunting” once every 5–6 days. Nymphs need food more often: they suck blood every day. Without it, the larvae go into suspended animation. They can stay in this state for up to 1.5 years.
Saturation of the bug with blood for 10 minutes
Bedbugs have a developed sense of smell. They sense the air exhaled by a person at a distance of 3 m from him. Pests can feel its warmth at a distance of 1 m. In 1 minute, bedbugs cover about 100 cm. But, having drunk blood, they become slow and clumsy. At this time, they are especially vulnerable: they can easily be crushed in their sleep, turning over from one side to the other. Therefore, after waking up, you can find crushed individuals and blood stains in your bed.
Features of reproduction
At the moment of mating, the bug pierces the female’s genitals, injecting sperm into her. A fertilized female, even in the absence of a male individual, is capable of laying eggs every day throughout her life. Over the entire period of its existence, the female individual lays up to 500 eggs.
The egg hatches into a larva that goes hunting. After drinking a full portion of blood, the larva molts, forming into a nymph. The insect then goes hunting again, drinks blood and molts, reaching sexual maturity. The entire development cycle of the insect does not exceed 40 days. Unfavorable conditions increase the development period to 100 days.
Why are bedbugs dangerous for humans?
There is no evidence that bedbugs transmit infections. But since they feed on human blood, there is an assumption that deadly diseases can be transmitted through bites:
- smallpox;
- hepatitis C;
- tuberculosis;
- brucellosis.
At the site of the bite, hyperemia, swelling, and itching develop. You want to scratch him constantly. Scratching is microdamage to the skin, opening the way to any infection. Infection occurs by contact through dirty hands and surfaces with pathogenic microflora multiplied on them. As a result, the bites become inflamed and suppuration may begin.
Bedbug bites on a child
Another danger from bedbugs is an allergy to their bites. Insects produce a special substance. It has a local anesthetic effect and helps them drink blood without being noticed. If it enters the bloodstream, people with hypersensitivity may develop an allergic reaction. The most severe possible condition is anaphylactic shock.
Bedbug bites also worsen a person's overall well-being. Itching prevents proper sleep, which causes the development of irritability. Lack of sleep reduces the productivity and quality of life of residents in whose apartments small bloodsuckers have settled. Children may develop iron deficiency anemia.
Attention! If within a few hours or days after the bite the temperature rises, nausea and other symptoms of intoxication appear, consult a doctor.
How do bedbugs get into an apartment?
The reasons for the appearance of bedbugs in your apartment have nothing to do with its cleanliness. Pests often settle in perfectly clean and tidy rooms. To understand how bedbugs could have started, answer the following questions:
- How long have you been visiting? Insects could climb on you and hide in the folds of your clothing.
- How long has it been since you went on a business trip and spent the night in a hotel? Bed bugs could get into your suitcase, outerwear, and other clothing.
- Have you shopped second hand? Parasites can enter your home through used clothing, furniture and household appliances.
- Have you had contact with stray animals or taken them home from the street? Bed bugs could parasitize them. The habitat of insects can be chicken coops and other poultry houses.
Another source of pests is your neighbors. Surely none of them will admit that they have bedbugs. But this does not in any way prevent insects from moving from one apartment to another through the ventilation ducts.
Company offer
Bed bugs have a high survival rate. Unprofessional disinfestation, in most cases, leads to the fact that insects only become more resistant to removal and resistant to the toxic substances used.
That is why it is important to choose the right sanitary and epidemiological service. Dez Group has been sanitizing commercial and residential companies for over ten years. The company employs more than fifty experts, each of whom has the necessary level of qualifications and competencies in their field.
The activities of our company are certified and approved by all supervisory authorities; in our work we use advanced equipment and technologies, as well as substances that meet all requirements and GOSTs.
Among our advantages are:
- ABOUTExtensive experience in the field of disinfection, disinfestation and other types of sanitary treatment.
Our company can provide a full range of services, from laboratory tests to preventive measures.
- We work with both individuals and legal entities.
We provide comprehensive services for both removal of individual types of insects and complete pest control.
- We work strictly according to the contract, on transparent terms.
If necessary, you can enter into a long-term contract for our work at a certain frequency.
- Quality assurance.
The professionalism of our employees and the use of the best methods allows us to guarantee the complete destruction of harmful insects in the premises.
In order to get advice and recommendations for solving your problem, as well as to calculate the final cost of pest control, you can call the number on our website or fill out the feedback form.
How to detect places where bedbugs accumulate in an apartment
The most popular habitats for bedbugs
Before you get rid of bedbugs, you need to make sure that they really exist. Direct evidence of their presence in the apartment is the detection of insects at any stage of their development. Their nests can be found:
- behind the baseboard;
- under the floor covering;
- in the cracks of walls, pieces of furniture;
- inside electrical appliances, in sockets;
- in closets with clothes, books;
- in upholstery of upholstered furniture;
- under the mattress, between it and the headboard;
- in the folds of curtains, tulle;
- behind pictures and other hiding places.
In addition to direct evidence of the presence of parasites, there are indirect signs of this. These include:
- blood stains on the bed;
- red and swollen spots on the body, itching, appearing after a night's sleep;
- a characteristic smell of pests, reminiscent of old cognac;
- light brown husks (chitinous shells) and yellowish shells of already empty eggs in secluded corners of furniture and rooms.
Attention! While there are few bedbugs in the apartment, they nest next to the power source - the place where you sleep. As the population grows, insects spread throughout the living space.
Example of a bedbug inspection
Carefully inspect the mattress for black spots. This is especially worth doing when checking into the hotel.
An example of black spots and accumulations of bedbugs on the seams of a mattress.
Example of furniture inspection. There are bedbugs in the seams of the sofa. And they hide in the nightstand. Inspect the furniture if you buy it secondhand.
Example of inspection of baseboards and carpets. Characteristic black spots were found.
Get Total and Get Express
Get is very advertised and popular today. The flagship product of this brand is Get Total, the auxiliary product is Get Express. We often work in apartments that people before us treated either with Get Total or with a mixture of Total and Express, and we can’t say anything outstanding about this product.
The main problem with Get is that its active ingredient is chlorpyrifos. On its basis there is a professional drug Agran, only Agran also contains cypermethrin. So, Agran poisons bedbugs in all services in a row, mainly due to its cheapness. It is especially loved by novice exterminators and those who are not involved in pest control professionally, but want to quickly make a pretty penny in the summer, during the season. They have this classic of the genre: buy a garden sprayer, a canister of Agran and advertise “professional removal of bedbugs the first time.”
Because of this, almost all bedbugs in Moscow, St. Petersburg, throughout the Moscow region and in many regional capitals have already encountered chlorpyrifos in Agran, and many have already managed to develop resistance to it. And that’s why Get Total based on it often doesn’t work.
It is interesting that the manufacturer is actively focusing attention, and buyers are relying on the microencapsulated structure of Gets. This is not entirely correct: the microencapsulated structure of Geta does not increase its effectiveness. Microencapsulation allows you to increase the safety of the product for people and pets, and Get Total is really good at this - it is low-hazard and practically odorless. But it poisons bedbugs in the same way as pure, unencapsulated chlorpyrifos. And whether it will work for you is a big question.
Theoretically, the mixture of Get Total with Get Express should kill bedbugs for sure, because the active substance of Get Express is lambda-cyhalothrin, a substance of a different class. But in fact, due to errors in processing, even with such a mixture, people often fail to remove bedbugs. Although we almost always remove bedbugs with professional preparations based on lambda-cyhalothrin the first time.
The most useless ways to deal with bedbugs
Vladimir B.
Insecticide Treatment Expert
Ask a Question
We receive a lot of questions about bed bug control. We answer some of the most popular questions.
The most useless thing you can do to get rid of bedbugs is:
If you keep the lights on at night, won't bedbugs bite?
They are not afraid of light; only dangerous activity can scare them away. While you sleep, the light will not prevent insects from drinking blood.
If you move to another apartment, will the bedbugs die of starvation?
It won't work. Adults will move to neighbors, and nymphs will become numb. When you arrive, you will again become their victim.
Is it possible to kill them all with a “slipper”?
Physical extermination helps control pest population growth. But you won’t be able to completely get rid of bedbugs at home this way.
On the Internet I found many methods of fighting bedbugs using spells. Will this help?
Conspiracies, rituals, ceremonies, prayers and other actions associated with “supernatural power” have zero effectiveness. The fight against bed bloodsuckers requires decisive and consistent action.
Note
Now you know how to poison bedbugs effectively and safely. We have presented the 10 best insect repellents. Be sure to buy medications from trusted places and beware of counterfeits. Read the instructions carefully and follow all safety precautions. Treat the entire room thoroughly and try to keep it clean after killing all the insects. Then the parasites will not be able to return to you again. If the first treatment did not get rid of all parasites, then you need to re-use the selected product. Sometimes there are a huge number of insects in the apartment and the substance cannot cope with them in one approach.
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Working methods for controlling bed bugs
All methods of combating bed bugs can be divided into three groups. They differ in effectiveness, complexity, time of onset of results and safety for people and animals.
Professional pest control
An exterminator inspects the habitats of bedbugs / An exterminator poisons bedbugs.
Disinsection is the fight against harmful insects through extermination using chemicals. At home, it involves treatment of rooms by SES workers using the cold or hot fog method. It penetrates into hard-to-reach places and causes the death of parasites.
Advantages and disadvantages of disinfestation
Fast - processing takes 0.5–1.5 hours (time depends on the size of the home).
Effective - the likelihood that domestic bloodsuckers will remain alive is negligible.
Reliable - specialized companies provide a guarantee for a certain period. If bedbugs appear again soon after the parasites are removed, a second treatment is carried out free of charge.
Expensive - depending on the region and area of the premises, the cost of one treatment can range from 1000 to 5000 rubles. and more.
Dangerous - chemical substances of hazard class IV (low hazard) are used for processing. But since it is carried out indoors using highly concentrated agents, there is a risk of poisoning.
It’s troublesome - before pest control you need to prepare the apartment.
Self-administration of drugs
Hardware stores offer a large selection of pest control products for use at home. This includes various powders, aerosols, suspensions, emulsions and other insecticides. They can be either natural (safe for humans) or chemical (poisonous).
Advantages and disadvantages of dealing with bed bugs yourself
Cheap - preparations for pest control are ten times cheaper than calling an SES.
Less troublesome - the apartment can be partially prepared.
Convenient - during self-disinfestation, you usually do not need to leave the room.
It is not always effective - pests have developed resistance to one part of the preparations, while another part of the preparations cannot penetrate into hard-to-reach places.
Sometimes it is dangerous - if the product is chemical, it can cause poisoning of people and animals.
Long - the fight against domestic bedbugs can take several days/weeks.
Traditional methods
Folk remedies for killing bedbugs: 1. vinegar;
2. turpentine; 3. ammonia; 4. kerosene; 5. camphor oil; 6. tea tree oil; 7. valerian; 8. boric acid; 9. tansy; 10. pyrethrum. Also popular:
- sagebrush,
- salicylic acid,
- transformer oil,
- denatured alcohol,
- naphthalene,
- alcohol,
- soap and water,
- petrolatum,
- neem oil
Traditional methods of combating domestic bedbugs are aimed at creating conditions in which the life of parasites becomes impossible. They involve the use of strong-smelling herbs, compounds, and high temperatures.
Pros and cons of traditional methods:
Cheap - almost no material costs required.
Safe - do not harm pets or people.
Ineffective - creating unfavorable living conditions for bedbugs helps to restrain their growth, but it is almost impossible to completely get rid of them using folk remedies.
Advice! Take a comprehensive approach to the fight against bedbugs in your apartment. Using chemicals together with folk remedies will help defeat harmful insects faster.
Treatment with folk remedies
From time immemorial, folk remedies have been used in the fight against parasitic insects. Their undeniable advantage is safety for health, and the disadvantage is low efficiency. Most of them have a repellent effect, so they are effective only in combination with chemical insecticides. These include:
How to prepare for disinfestation
Before getting rid of bedbugs, you need to block all exits for insects. During processing, they will try to leave the room through small cracks in the floor, walls, and exhaust ventilation holes. If they get into your neighbors' apartment, pest control will only give temporary results.
To discourage bed bugs:
- carry out minor repairs (seal cracks);
- cover the ventilation grilles with tape;
- Cover other exit routes from the apartment with duct tape.
Professional pest control involves treating everything in the home with high-temperature chemicals. This includes interior decoration, furniture, toys, household appliances, textiles, books. To increase the effectiveness of the procedure, you must first:
- remove sockets;
- disassemble the furniture as much as possible;
- remove paintings, clocks, carpets from the walls;
- Place the rugs on the floor with the wrong side up.
Preparation also includes removing items from the apartment that should not be exposed to high temperatures and chemicals. This includes underwear, dishes, and personal hygiene items. You need to take your pets out of the rooms, clean the aquarium, and also leave yourself.
Attention! After chemical treatment, the apartment needs thorough wet cleaning. Only after it can you bring your children home, let your pets go and put all your things in their place.
Heat treatment
To kill bedbugs yourself, it is not necessary to use pesticides or ineffective folk remedies. It is enough to know about the weak points of parasites. They die instantly at temperatures of 50ºC and subzero temperatures.
In summer, it is enough to warm the room to a critical temperature. In winter, the freezing procedure will help. It involves opening windows. Furniture should be taken outside and frozen. Infected items are also taken outside or placed in the freezer.
If you find places where insects accumulate, you can destroy them by pouring boiling water over them.
Review of drugs to combat bedbugs
If there are bugs in your apartment, and there are only a few of them, you can try to destroy the parasites yourself. For this, there are many effective insecticides of natural and chemical origin. Let's give a brief description of the most popular means.
Ecokiller
Natural insecticide: does not contain pesticides or poisonous substances. Completely environmentally friendly product. Safe for people and animals. Product contains: 100% diatomite powder (silicon). Has no smell. Does not cause allergic reactions or poisoning.
Principle of action: microparticles of the product fall on the insect’s body, joints or joints. The wax layer is mechanically destroyed, drying out the insect, and water evaporates from the insect’s body. As a result, the insect dies from desiccation.
Instructions for use: treat the bed frame with powder, sprinkle it near the baseboard and in other places where bedbugs have been noticed. After the pests disappear, carry out wet cleaning. The product is safe for people and animals.
- Ecokiller bed bug repellent 150 ml.
₽ 149,00
- Ecokiller for bed bugs 500ml.
₽ 349,00
Karbafos
Karbafos
The drug is a dark brown liquid with a specific persistent odor. The active substance is malathion. It penetrates the external integument of the parasite and is oxidized to toxic maloxon, which has a nerve-paralytic effect. The product is effective against adults, nymphs and eggs. There is a possibility that insects will develop resistance, in which their bodies begin to break down malathion into safe compounds.
Analogues of Karbafos according to the active substance:
- Fufanon;
- Furanone;
- Foscon-55.
Karbofos is low-toxic for warm-blooded animals. Therefore, it can be used in everyday life. The liquid is used to treat detected clusters of parasites. But it cannot be used for upholstered furniture. The smell eats into textiles and does not disappear for months. 2 months after bedbug baiting, carry out general cleaning.
Dichlorvos
Dichlorvos
Dichlorvos is an aerosol with a specific unpleasant odor. Contains organophosphorus compounds that enter the body of parasites through the integument or respiratory tract. They act as a nerve agent. The risk of developing resistance is small. The drug decomposes quickly. The maximum duration of action is 3 days.
Spray the aerosol in the area where insects accumulate. Use it to work out communication routes between apartments. So that a toxic layer remains on the surfaces, each for an area of 1 square meter. m. you need to spray Dichlorvos for 20–30 seconds. It should be handled using personal protective equipment. After spraying, you need to leave the apartment with your pets for 2 hours. You can enter it only after ventilation.
Attention! Dichlorvos is effective only against adults and nymphs. Therefore, a second and third treatment is required at an interval of 10 days to destroy bedbugs that have hatched from eggs.
Hot fog
Hot fog
Hot fog is the name of the method of treating apartments against bedbugs using any insecticide. It consists of spraying the product with a steam generator, which provides a complex effect. The destruction of pests occurs not only by paralyzing their nervous system. They die from high temperatures, which reach 90 ° C.
After treatment with the hot fog method, a toxic cloud consisting of particles up to 10 microns in size hangs in the premises. This is 30 times less than when spraying insecticides using an aerosol can. Therefore, the active substances penetrate into the most inaccessible places, eat into the structure of upholstered furniture and interior decoration and continue to act for several months.
Attention! The hot fog method is the most effective method for controlling bed bugs. But he requires calling the SES.
Xulat Micro
Xulat Micro
Xulat Micro is a concentrated suspension containing:
- cypermethrin;
- tetramethrin;
- piperonyl butoxide.
Substances penetrate into the body of the bug by contact. Thanks to their combined action, they instantly paralyze the nervous system of pests. The drug is not effective against eggs, but its effect lasts for 6 months. Repeated treatment 10 days after the first may be required only if the apartment is heavily infested with bedbugs.
Dilute 5 ml of suspension in one liter of water. Mix the mixture thoroughly and treat all surfaces with it, paying special attention to cracks and other secluded places. Solution consumption - 100 ml/sq. m. The drug has low toxicity for adults, children and pets. Therefore, it is approved for use in children's institutions.
Get Total
Get Total
Get Total is one of the most effective drugs. It is a liquid cream suspension with an orange aroma. Its active ingredient is chlorpyrifos. It penetrates the chitinous shell of the bug and paralyzes the nervous system. The product is effective against adults, larvae and eggs. It remains effective for 6 months.
Dilute 50 ml of product in 1 liter of water. This amount is enough to treat an area of 10 square meters. m. Use the prepared solution within 24 hours. Get Total has low toxicity, so if the instructions are followed, it is safe for people and animals.
Executioner
Executioner Executioner
is a highly toxic drug, including for humans. Effective against nymphs and adults, but does not affect eggs. Therefore, to combat bedbugs in an apartment, double treatment is required with an interval of 10 days. The active substance is fenthion, which has a nerve-paralytic effect on pests.
The insecticide is available in liquid form. To treat an apartment, dilute 6 ml of the drug in 500 ml of water. Shake the mixture thoroughly. This amount is enough for 5 sq. m. When working with the Executioner, the use of personal protective equipment is mandatory.
Other drugs for controlling bedbugs based on fenthion:
- Forsyth;
- Sulfox;
- Bifethrin;
- Biocyfen.
Combat
Combat
This is an aerosol based on imiprotrin, a neurotoxic poison effective against adults and larvae. Does not destroy bedbug eggs, which necessitates secondary treatments. The drug is almost non-toxic to people and animals.
Protect yourself with a respirator and spray the spray where bedbugs have been spotted. With the help of a long and narrow tube, you can treat the space behind the baseboard, cracks in the floor, walls, spaces between furniture and other hard-to-reach places. Then open the windows and leave the apartment for 30 minutes. Take your pets with you.
Raptor
Raptor
To combat bedbugs, Raptor is used in the form of an aerosol based on alphacypermethrin. This substance penetrates the chitinous shell of insects and acts as a neurotoxin. In terms of toxicity to humans, the drug belongs to hazard class III. Therefore, you need to work with it using personal protective equipment. Raptor is ineffective against eggs.
You need to spray the aerosol near the nests formed by bedbugs. It can be used to treat cracks, joints between elements of upholstered furniture, baseboards, carpets and other secluded places. After treatment, leave the room for 30 minutes. Then ventilate it for 2 hours.
Cucaracha
Cucaracha
Cucaracha is a concentrated suspension based on a complex of two neurotoxins: cypermethrin and malathion. Adult bedbugs and nymphs are sensitive to the drug. The product is ineffective against eggs. In terms of toxicity to humans, it belongs to hazard class III (moderately dangerous).
To prepare a working solution, dilute 2.5 g of suspension in one liter of water. Consumption is 45–50 ml per 1 sq. m. surface. When processing hygroscopic materials, it doubles. Repeat treatment after 10 days.
Insecticide
Insecticide
Insecticide is a three-component aerosol based on permethrin, cyperiethrin and piperonyl butoxide. The first two substances are powerful neurotoxins. The last component blocks the production of protective enzymes in the bug's body. Most insects die within half an hour. The product is effective in the fight against bedbugs at all stages of development.
Spray the spray for 10 seconds to cover every square meter of space. Keep the can at a distance of 20 cm from surfaces. Pay special attention to cracks and secluded places. After disinfestation, leave the premises for 5 hours. Then come to open the windows. After two hours of airing, you can return home.
Signs of a premises being infected
Bedbugs secrete an enzyme that has a specific odor. Thanks to this enzyme, the infested room “smells like bedbugs.” The purpose of this substance is controversial among scientists. Some of them believe that by secreting an enzyme, bedbugs scare away enemies. Others are of the opinion that this substance acts as a pheromone that attracts individuals of the opposite sex.
Another sign of the presence of bedbugs are bites on the skin that appear at night. Bites are rarely localized to one area of the skin. Bed bugs move around the body, leaving a trail of punctures. The distance between them can be several centimeters. In one night, a victim can receive up to 500 bites.
Bedbugs bite a person and disturb his sleep. Tossing and turning in his sleep, the victim crushes well-fed insects. As a result, brown marks remain on the sheets. And in places where insects accumulate, dark spots of excrement, eggs and chitinous cover, shed by the larvae, remain.
Baiting bedbugs is the only way to protect yourself and your loved ones from the possibility of contracting various diseases transmitted by parasites from one person to another.
