Quick facts
Bed Bugs, or Cimex Lectularius, are widely known as very annoying biting pests. They are one of the world’s most common pests and also pose a nuisance to people in Singapore and across the globe. Their primary source of food is blood, and they feed almost exclusively on human blood. As their name suggests, they primarily infest beds or areas near beds, in order to feed while you are asleep. Despite our best efforts, bed bugs can still prove to be a problem.
Waking up because of itchy bites is already unpleasant enough, but bed bugs are also possibly capable of being a transmitter of several viruses. They are present in hotels and various other lodging establishments in Singapore.
Bed bug bites are not immediately painful, and most typically don’t even register that they are bitten instantly, as they don’t feel any pain or irritation on the spot. However, bed bug bites produce red welts that can become extremely itchy. They can best be described as small, swollen red bumps with a red centre.
While there are rarely any immediate effects, it’s extremely difficult to attain a peaceful night’s sleep once you are aware of a bed bug infestation. You may be more aware of their movement along your skin, making peaceful sleep much more difficult to attain. Poorer sleep quality can affect your daily life, making you feel fatigued and more irritable.
Adult bed bugs are about 0.5cm long, are oval in shape, reddish-brown, and wingless. They require blood in order to reproduce and complete their life cycle. Both male and female bed bugs feed on blood. Repeatedly feeding on blood, coined as blood meals, happens throughout their lives. Female bed bugs require blood to develop and lay eggs, which may reach a number as high as 500 over the course of their lives.
Apart from infesting your bed, bed bugs are also extremely tricky customers. Their flat shapes and miniscule sizes allow them to hide almost anywhere: in your mattress, in the headboard, or even power plugs. They are also known to hitch onto your clothing and hide in your clothes, which might eventually lead to them spreading throughout your laundry and clothes.
Sign of infestation
- Their exoskeletons. These are often translucent and simply look like empty shells.
- Actually finding live bed bugs on your mattresses and sheets. How bed bugs look depend upon when they have fed. Generally, they are dark and the size of an apple seed.
- Rust–colored spots from their bloody fecal material that they excrete after feeding.
- A musty and sweet odor.
- Bites that come in straight lines or tight clusters.
How to get rid of this?
- A thorough inspection will be carried out to identify the nesting area
- pesticide residual sprayed over the entire house: including all mattress, bed frames, skirtings, cracks and crevices, gaps, electrical trunking etc, at our recommended interval for the control of bed bugs
