It’s reckoned that one in five people in the UK has dealt with a bed bug infestation. A bed bug bite feels much like a mosquito bite, painful and intensely itchy. The difference is that a mosquito tends to be easy to see or hear, whereas bed bugs hide all over the house and spread fast if you don’t catch them early.
Miss the early signs and you can find yourself stuck in a cycle of infestation for months. So how do they get in? Almost always, you bring them home with you, or a guest brings them to you.
What are bed bugs?
Bed bugs are tiny, reddish-brown creatures shaped a lot like apple seeds. They can’t fly, but they move quickly and are brilliant at squeezing into small cracks and crevices. Their favourite hiding spots are carpets, bed frames, the stitching of a duvet and the edges of a mattress. They come out at night to feed on human blood, which is why you’ll usually find them in bedrooms and around beds, right next to their food source.
How do you bring them home?
For something with a head smaller than a pinhead, bed bugs are remarkably good at hitching a ride. They can’t fly, but they latch onto fabric and travel with it.
The most common route home is your clothing after a hotel stay. All sorts of guests pass through a hotel room before you, and any one of them could have left bed bugs behind. They settle in, wait for the next occupant, then climb into your clothes and your suitcase. By the time you’re back, they’re in the house.
You can also pick them up just by brushing against someone who’s carrying them, on a train, on the tube, in a supermarket, on a plane or even walking through the park. Keeping a little distance from other people helps reduce the risk of taking a stray bug home.
Cinemas, theatres and restaurants are another source. Like a hotel room, these are places people sit for a while. If someone with bed bugs on their clothes sits down before you, a few can drop onto the seat, then transfer to your clothing when you take their place.
Why one bug is enough
It only takes a single bed bug, or even one egg, to start an infestation. A single female lays around 250 eggs in her lifetime, so one stowaway can become a full problem within days.
If you think you might have bed bugs, give our team a call. We’ll talk through the signs with you and send out our bed bug specialists to clear the problem. We’re open every day except Christmas Day, from early until late.