Bed bugs are miniature insects that can only survive by completing a task that is unique in the animal kingdom. They need to drink human or animal blood in order to live. These bugs are brown in colour, turning red after successfully drinking blood.
Bed bugs leave bites on your skin that are identifiable by their small size and red color. The bites become itchy over time.
If you have bed bugs living in your house, they’ll likely be biting every member of your family. However, the bites won’t necessarily show up on everyone’s skin because some people are more sensitive to bed bug bites than others.
This guide will identify the best method to spot whether you have bed bugs living with you in your home.
Bed bugs are notoriously good at hiding in your home. Bed bugs are no wider in size than the seed of a pear and no deeper than a five pence piece. This means that bed bugs can hide just about anywhere and are almost impossible to see with the naked eye.
Bed bugs hide in places close to where you sleep, such as beds and sofas. Bed bugs may hide in cracks in the walls, under floorboards, or in gaps within your bed frame. A bed bug may live in your carpet, or within your mattress and bedding.
A blacklight is cheap to buy and easy to find, and is the ideal tool to help you spot tiny bed bugs. A blacklight emits ultraviolet light, which can’t be seen by the human eye. Instead, you see a purple light. You may be familiar with ultraviolet light because it’s used in tanning shops and nail salons, as well as hospitals.
Although ultraviolet light can’t be seen by your eyes, it is effective in bringing bed bugs to your attention. When the blacklight is pointed toward a bed bug, the UV light makes the bug glow. Pointing your blacklight into potential bed bug hiding places will identify whether you have bed bugs.
There are many items available on the market called ‘bed bug lights’. These products claim to be specially made to find bed bugs in your home. However, this is not true, and the products aren’t unique.
Bed bug lights are merely blacklights that have been branded in a way that suggests they are something you couldn’t find elsewhere. By doing this, companies are able to charge you more money and you’re more likely to spend because you assume the product will be specialized.
Bed bug lights will still be effective. They’re no different to a standard blacklight, so you should save money by buying a regular ultraviolet light.
The best way to know whether you have bed bugs in your home costs nothing and requires minimal effort: simply look at your skin. If you have bed bugs, it is likely that you have small red dots on your skin. These small red dots are bed bug bites, and will confirm that you have some of these creatures living with you.
If you don’t have bites, it’s possible that you still have bed bugs in your home but that your skin isn’t sensitive enough to show the marks. Ask your family members whether they have red dots on their skin to confirm whether you have bed bugs.
When cleaning, you can keep an eye out for red stains. These might be caused by bed bugs being squashed. Black marks on furniture or bedding may suggest bed bug excrement.
Bed bugs glow under ultraviolet light. Using a blacklight is one of the most effective ways for you to identify whether you have bed bugs in your home. Additional methods to spot bed bugs are looking out for bites and red and black marks on bedding or furniture.
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