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When I was a child, bed bugs were considered to be a rather disgusting nuisance written about in classic novels that no longer existed anywhere in the modern world.
The truth is that humans and bloodsucking bed bugs made strange but regular bedfellows for centuries until shortly after World War II when strong pesticides like DDT and chlordane came into widespread use. Heavy pesticide use nearly eradicated bed bugs for over 50 years with most people living today having little to no memory of the major pest threat they were in the past.
The knowledge that pesticides damage the environment and contribute to health problems resulted in the banning of DDT in 1972 and chlordane in 1988. In addition, the changing attitude toward the use of chemicals along with bed bugs developing an increased resistance paved the way for a slow but steady resurgence. Bed bug problems are now commonly found even in the most modern and sanitary living environments including four and five-star hotels!
Identifying Bed Bugs
Bed bug bites typically manifest as tiny, itchy bumps that seem to come out of nowhere. Besides a tick bite, bed bug bites are probably one of the most feared!
Bites from bed bugs resemble those from other types of insects. This makes diagnosing bed bugs as the source of the problem particularly difficult. People usually figure it out over time when they notice that the bites occur whether or not they have been outdoors and exposed to other insects. So, the bites occur regardless of season, weather or the amount of clothing worn when outside.
Compounding the problem is the extremely tiny size of bed bugs. They are about the size of an apple seed, flat, and brown in color. This minuscule size allows them to easily stay hidden! If you suspect you have a bed bug problem, search around the seams and tags of your mattress and box spring. Â Cracks in the bed frame and headboard are other common places they hide.
According to the EPA, a better way to identify a possible bed bug infestation is to look for physical signs of their presence. While cleaning or changing the bedding, look for:
- Reddish stains on bed sheets or mattresses caused by bed bugs being crushed (gross!).
- Dark spots (about this size: •), which are bed bug excrement. These dark spots may bleed on the fabric as a black marker would.
- Eggs and eggshells, which are tiny (about 1mm). Also, check for pale yellow skins that immature bed bugs (called nymphs) shed as they grow larger.
How to Get Rid of Bed Bugs
If you ask people who’ve successfully gotten rid of bed bugs in their homes, you will hear a very common theme that it wasn’t an easy process!
A thorough cleaning of the area where the bed bugs live is crucial to resolving the problem successfully. Notice that the first two steps are very similar to what is done to get rid of fleas.
Removing Existing Adults, Nymphs and Eggs
- Declutter the bed bug-infested rooms. This is especially important for items stored near and under beds and couches. Items such as stuffed animals and shoes should be placed in the drier on the highest setting for 30 minutes. Cardboard boxes should be thrown out.
- Thoroughly wash all bedding in hot water and dry it along with pillows on the highest setting in the drier. If you have curtains, remove them and wash/dry in the same manner or have them dry cleaned.
- Use a stiff brush to dry scrub furniture fabric on couches and chairs and mattress seams to loosen bedbugs and their eggs to prepare for vacuum removal.
- Vacuum areas that were dry scrubbed above and adjacent areas thoroughly. Vacuum conventional and wool carpets as well as hard floors. It is important to immediately empty the vacuum and place contents in sealed ziplock bags. Dispose of bags in the garbage can outside.
Get Rid of any Missed Bed Bugs
- Encase the mattress, box springs, and pillows in zippered plastic covers to keep bedbugs from reinfesting and/or escaping. This is the same as what is done for dust mites. The covers need to remain in place for a year to ensure all bed bugs and their eggs are dead. Alternatively, purchase a new nontoxic mattress.
- Bed bugs can hide in cracks in plaster and peeling wallpaper. Be sure to repair any that are visible in the area(s) of infestation.
- Apply the biological insecticide BotaniGard, a product that contains a special type of microbe (Beauvaria bassiana) which kills bed bugs (1). This fungus is safe for humans and grows naturally in soils throughout the world and acts as a parasite to bed bugs eventually killing them. This is not an overnight solution but effectively works over time. Those with mold allergies should consult with their practitioner before using.
- Sprinkle CimeXa, non-toxic insecticide dust made of engineered silica powder, on the floor around the infested area. The exoskeleton of the bed buds is scratched by the dust when they crawl over it, which causes them to quickly dehydrate and die. CimeXa will remain viable for up to 10 years as long as the conditions are not damp and it is left undisturbed.
- As an alternative to steps 7 and 8 above, set up bed bug traps to catch stray bed bugs and/or hatching eggs missed by the above treatments.
Definitely Have Bed Bugs? The Nuclear Option
If your situation requires calling in the professionals, the good news is that you don’t have to fumigate your home with who knows what chemicals to get rid of the bed bugs. There are non-toxic ways to eliminate them without endangering your health or that of your family even though an infestation with bed bugs is so much worse and seemingly intractable compared with any other pest!
Note that if you live in an apartment, flat, or townhome, the problem becomes more difficult. Bed bugs seem to be able to move around a building with relative ease. According to a friend who experienced a very bad infestation in a large city apartment building, the only thing that seemed to work was an expensive heat treatment where all affected apartments were treated simultaneously by experienced professionals. The heat treatment method usually requires 2 or 3 sessions to be completely effective.
If you live in a standalone house, the problem is a bit easier and cheaper to handle as you can treat it yourself in most cases (see DIY ideas below). Just keep the heat treatment idea from experienced professionals in your back pocket in case nothing else works!
DIY Bed Bug TrapsÂ
In addition to the steps for removing bed bugs above, bed bug traps are very helpful in resolving the problem as well. Bed bugs locate their human hosts via attraction to carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted during exhalation. This can be used to trap them for easy elimination. There are two ways to accomplish this.
CO2 Bed Bug Trap
First, you can make a homemade CO2 trap for less than $20 (see here for the video or written instructions).
The CO2 trap essentially uses a yeast ferment made from dry activated yeast (not brewers yeast), sugar and water. The microbial culture generates carbon dioxide gas which lures the bed bugs into the homemade trap.
Unfortunately, this method is quite complicated and requires many steps as you can see from the link. While you are welcome to try it, I would suggest the dry ice method below. It is much easier for not much more cost.
Dry Ice Bed Bug Trap
The second trapping method is quite simple. Just buy a small chunk of dry ice, which is frozen carbon dioxide that emits the gaseous form CO2 as it melts. Companies that make dry ice are available in most urban areas. In my experience, they are more than happy to sell you some for a reasonable price. By the way, using dry ice to get rid of ticks in your home works too as ticks are also attracted to CO2.
Many supermarkets now sell dry ice as well. For example, the large Publix chain of grocery stores in the Southeast United States sells dry ice very affordably. The cooler containing the dry ice is located near check-out.
Once you have your dry ice ready, follow these instructions to set up a bed bug trap.
- Place the dry ice in a glass bowl that has a paper towel or cloth wrapped around it. The cloth allows the bed bugs to easily climb up.
- Slide the bowl under the bed or where you suspect the bed bugs are hiding. The bed bugs will climb up the side of the bowl on the fabric, fall into the bowl and be unable to escape.
- Repeat the process as necessary until all bed bugs have been removed. You will know this as new bugs won’t appear in the bowl during an overnight period.
- One pound of dry ice will last for about 5-8 hours at room temperature.
If you absolutely cannot find any company in your area that makes or sells dry ice, you can buy a machine to make it (this is one of the cheapest). While a bit pricey, it’s certainly less expensive than calling in the professionals for 2-3 treatments.
Post-Treatment Monitoring
Once you have treated your home for bed bugs either professionally or via the steps listed above, monitoring is essential.
The best way to check that treated rooms remain free of bed bugs is by using bed bug interceptors.
These specially designed plastic devices are placed under each leg of a previously infested bed, couch or sofa. Non-infested pieces of furniture where bed bugs are suspected to be hiding are also a good place to set them up.
Interceptors also identify which way the bed bugs are crawling and prevent the spread of bed bugs from one piece of furniture to another.
Keeping these devices in place for a month or so after treatment will help you confirm whether your house continues to be bedbug-free or follow-up treatment is required. In short, these devices give you invaluable peace of mind!
Healing Bed Bug Bites Naturally
If you are already suffering from bed bug bites, the best way to heal them quickly is using a natural herbal salve.
Witch hazel for bug bites works very well too. Just dab some on several times a day using a dampened cotton ball until healed.
For quick relief, rubbing the inside of a banana peel on insect bites is the best mosquito bite remedy I’ve found. However, I don’t know if it works as well for bed bug bites. It’s worth a shot since you probably already have some in your kitchen.
If you need other ideas, more natural and effective ways to relieve insect bites are provided in the linked article.
Have you battled a bed bug infestation where you live? Did you manage to get rid of them without resorting to chemicals? If so, please share with us the methods you used!
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We have been battling bedbugs since June. We wash and dry everything on our beds (10 people) a few times a week. We bought mattress covers for all 10 beds. We have tried Botanigard for three weeks and saw no difference, but, after looking into another product which is basically the same thing Aprehend, we realized 1) the botanigard was shipped during hot weather, which kills the mold and 2) the sprayed area must be undisturbed, and as we are living in very cramped quarters after moving here quickly (long story but we moved for a big job offer) and we had to rent whatever we could find in two weeks for two adults, 8 children, 9 dogs, and 1 cat, so, we’re in a small place, while we look for our new home! But, anyway cramped quarters and there is no way the apprehend will be left undisturbed, soo… We looked into Cimexa and found a guy on Youtube who calls Cimexa a “gamechanger” he helps low income people get rid of bed bugs, really neat guy… and then I read about a study an entemology team at the University of Kentucky were doing in Central Kentucky (which is where we happen to be) and they found an apartment complex infested (badly) with bedbugs and told them not to take any steps to rid themselves of the bedbugs, they would be there in the morning, and they used only Cimexa and, long story short, they got rid of the bed bugs with only Cimexa. It’s an interesting read. Everything you read will tell you that Cimexa alone will not get rid of infestations, as well as the makers of Cimexa, will insist that you cannot use it alone to get rid of them, but if you read the testimonies of people talking about Cimexa, you will read over and over the stories of people being free from bed bugs, who had tried everything else, including trying pest control companies. So, we started by putting it around the perimeter of each room near the baseboards, then we took the covers off the electrical outlets and put it in the voids around the plug ins. We were still seeing bedbugs when dismantling the beds for wash days, but nothing like when we first got them. Then, I was thinking about setting up c0 traps and just realized one day that we could experiment and use ourselves as the traps. This worked for us, because we are already living without bed frames (just mattresses on the floors) because of being in temporary limbo with our housing. But, to make the human traps, we just pushed our beds together in the middle of the rooms, and each night we surround our beds with a line of Cimexa. Like just drawing a line around the beds with the powder. The bugs are drawn to us in the night by our cO and our warmth, but in order for them to get to us, they must cross the Cimexa barrier. In the morning, we sweep (carefully so as not to breathe it in) it up in areas that will be high traffic. After starting the experiment, the numbers of bedbugs have dropped dramatically, we are constantly looking for them, and, except for a few “crispy”, mostly dead stragglers once in a great while, we are free from them! Now, I have found out we can only say we are really free from them if we don’t see one for 6 to 8 weeks, so, for now, I can’t say we are free from them, we are officially on Day 3, because, like I said, for the last couple of weeks, every time I declare “it’s Day 1” we find a “crunchy”, mostly dead straggler. So, hopefully, we won’t find anymore, and 6 weeks from now, we can resume normal life! But as for some of the side frustrations about bed bugs, when you have an infestation, you have to be very careful about visiting other people. This can be a great frustration, and make a family feel so isolated. It just seems like too much work to go thru just to visit someone. There are websites that give advice on this, but basically, you have to put all clothes you’re planning on wearing in the dryer for 30 minutes, put those clothes in garbage bags, shower, put the dryer clothes on and leave the house immediately. All I can say is, thank God we are homeschoolers, or I would be out of my mind at this point! It can be really hard emotionally, which is something I never knew, or thought about. I have also learned that most people who get bed bugs don’t tell anyone. I understand why, after going thru this. When we told people, family and friends, definitely didn’t want us to come over. This can be hard on kids. But, I have so much hope, and feel so blessed to have found this website, and to have been able to access Cimexa! Thank you!
These are great, more natural steps that some of my clients prefer to use in between our visits with them. I will share your post with those who are interested. Thanks, from your friends in TX
Several years ago I came home from visiting a friend with the little bugs… they were attacking me every morning at 2 a.m. but not touching my husband. After weeks of interrupted sleep I spent hours online searching for solutions. I can’t remember where or how I stumbled on the this information but it worked within 24 hours. I did launder all the linens, vacuum the entire room, spray my bedding with a vinegar/essential oil spray; but the solution was diatematreous (I’m not sure I spelled that right) earth. A thin layer between box and the upper mattress. Not the pool but the one sold in organic gardening shops. 100% satisfaction. It suffocates the bugs.
Thank you for all the tips and methods to get rid of bed bugs. I think that we have bed bugs and I really want to get rid of them. That is good to know that I can wash all of my sheets and curtains in super hot water and that will help. I will have to make sure that I give that a try.
Before you are going to apply these above tools or ingredients in your house, you should know something those are doable before application. When you are infested with bedbugs and other insects, take your infested clothes or bedding to laundry. Then wash them in soapy water at the temperature of at least 120 degrees. After drying them, spray or apply powder beneath them or in the surroundings. Use mattress protectors if you want to resist those little bed bugs.
These are some really good methods for bedbug removal. But if the bedbug problem persists then you must contact a professional pest control service provider and seek professional help to get rid of bedbugs.
I have had some nasty bedbug bites, I use a flannel with almost steaming hot water and the itch stops for up to 3 hours or more, just don’t test by scratching or you will have to do the hot water thing over again. When I was in Kyoto I got some bites on my legs and arms and bought hot coffee and poured it on them, a bit radical but I was a long way from my Hostel.
Thanks for sharing these methods, never ran into the problem of bed bugs, but my neighbor told me they had an issue with them so I decided to start doing my research.
What really worked for us is mixing in a spray bottle two cups 90% rubbing alcohol with one cup water and two TBS of dawn dish soap. Spray in your bedding, walls, any place those pests can hide. Dries them out quick. Almost instant kill. Use DE on the floor under your bed and between mattress and box springs. (wear respirator when applying, it could damage your lungs with fine powder, but once it’s settled it’s fine). Good luck, these things are persistent.
Not sure if what I have is bedbugs or not. I see like little brownish beatles in my home