There are a lot of outdoor pests in Hawaii that can make their way into your home or business, but none are as annoying or as hard to get rid of as bed bugs. These tiny creatures can make life stressful and miserable for you and your family. Identifying and preventing bed bugs in Hawaii is key to controlling them. If you don’t know what a bed bug is or what a bed bug looks like, don’t worry. We will tell you everything you need to know about bed bugs in Oahu.

What Do Bed Bugs Look Like?

When it comes to controlling bed bugs, the first thing you need to do is identify them. To identify bed bugs, you are going to have to look very closely as they are very hard to spot with the naked eye. Adults are about ¼ inch in length and have flat bodies. Their color can vary from red-brown to copper-colored. Young bed bugs are very small, about 1/16 inch in length and have almost no color. When a bed bug feeds, its body swells like a balloon and becomes bright red. Bed bugs do not fly, but they can either crawl or be transported from place to place on objects, people, or animals.

How Do Bed Bugs Get Into Our Homes?

Having bed bugs is not a sign of a dirty home. Even people with the cleanest homes can get bed bugs if they aren’t careful. Bedbugs gain entry to your home through our clothes, used furniture, luggage, and almost any item they can latch onto. Once they have infiltrated your home, they will scatter throughout, but they prefer your bed where they can have easy access to you and your blood. Bed bugs can move very quickly over smooth surfaces. They usually hide behind headboards, under mattresses and box springs, behind dressers, and in the folds of sheets. Just one female bed bug can lay up to 200 eggs in her lifetime. As their numbers continue to grow, they can spread to other rooms or infest other apartments.

Can Bed Bugs Spread Diseases?

The famous expression about bed bugs isn’t a lie. Like mosquitoes, bed bugs feed on the blood of mammals, except bed bugs prefer the blood of humans over pets. Reactions to bed bug bites appear differently in everyone. Some may experience an allergic reaction, while others will only experience minor itching. According to the Centers For Disease Control, although their bites are annoying, bed bugs are not known to spread diseases.

Signs of Bedbug Activity

Knowing the signs is key to catching bed bugs early. Here are some of the most telling signs that you have a bedbug infestation.

You wake up covered in tiny red bumps
Bloodstains on your bedsheets
Bed bug droppings on sheets, mattresses, and behind headboards
Shed exoskeletons and legs from molting

How to Contain Bed Bugs

Bed bugs, like fleas, are a nuisance when they get into your home. They can breed very quickly, which makes getting rid of them an uphill battle. According to the EPA, Controlling bed bugs without professional help can be achieved, but it takes a lot of hard work and determination:

Remove all sheets and clothing out of the infected room and place them in sealed bags to prevent bedbugs from spreading to other rooms.
Wash the sheets and clothes and dry on high heat to kill any remaining bed bugs and eggs.
Place the washed clothes in NEW sealed bags to protect them from being re-contaminated.
Cover your mattress and pillows with plastic liners. Furniture such as stuffed chairs and sofas may need to be discarded if infested.
Scrub the walls and floors behind beds, dressers, and furniture.

Professional Bed Bug Control Available

If you suspect your home or business is infested with bed bugs, then don’t wait any longer. Call the professionals at Sandwich Isle today. We have years of experience dealing with and eliminating bed bugs from customers’ homes all across Oahu.

Is your commercial business infested with pests? With our Commercial Pest Control program, we can save your small business from being overrun with pests.
For more information, call us at (808) 638-2406 or contact us online. Don’t forget to check out our monthly blog for more helpful tips and tricks.