Where Do Bed Bugs Come From?

Bed bugs once thought to have been exterminated for good, are back to bug the Toronto region.

Since the use of pesticides and chemicals like DDT, Chlordane and Lindane by bed bug exterminators in Toronto has decreased, the number of bed bug infestations has increased once again. The truth is they were never gone but lying dormant waiting for us to let our guard down.

There is a popular misconception that bed bugs infestation is a result of poor hygiene and neglect. Most people believe that regular dusting and cleaning would keep these blood sucking critters at bay and seldom suspect that their houses could be thriving breeding grounds for one of the most common parasitic insects in USA & Canada. Also, since bed bug bites go unnoticed for long times as the skin takes time to get sensitized to the bug’s saliva and show visible marks, it is very hard to pin point the exact time and cause of infestation.

Bed bugs live within cracks and crevices in walls and furniture where temperatures are relatively low and thorough cleaning is very difficult in such areas especially without the proper equipment used by pest control companies. The blood suckers lie dormant for most part of the day and come out late night or early morning before dawn for a quick bite to return to their nests for days and even weeks between feeds. Thus, it’s usually weeks or months before their presence is detected in a household in which time, they would have multiplied many folds.

Hotel rooms are convenient natural homes for bed bugs as an unsuspecting guest who stays for few days would hardly show or notice the first signs of bed bug bites. The itching and patches of red welt can be easily confused with allergic reaction to new piece of clothing or mattresses. The bugs even attach themselves to pieces of luggage and clothing and hitchhike their way to new homes and fresh breeding grounds. It is thus a good idea to inspect the hotel rooms for signs of infestation and request for freshly laundered bedding before turning in and scrubbing clothes properly upon return from hotel stays.

The most common reason for bed bug infestation in cities like Toronto is bringing in second-hand furniture without inspecting and proper cleaning.

Used furniture that comes from well maintained dwellings and may look clean may be home to scores of bed bugs that could produce hundreds before detection. The creepy crawlers flit through cracks and underneath doors to spread to other parts of the house leading to a full scale infestation within weeks making it tricky for bed bug removal.

You can spot bed bugs yourself by looking under mattresses and in cracks in bedposts. Where there are a few there are usually many. However, getting rid of them poses a challenge as you can kill the ones that are visible using chemical sprays but it is the ones that hide in tiny crevices that are difficult to see and kill. Pest control companies in Toronto use different techniques and equipment to make sure the bed bug removal process is thorough and efficient. Bed bug pest control companies use heat cleaning technique where the temperature of room is raised to above 50 degrees and the pressure pushes the heat into even the slightest cracks to kill the bugs along with their eggs and larvae.