Bugs are Hiding Everywhere
Hidden Bugs In Your House
We all know how nice it is to have our homes clean and fresh smelling.
We do major Spring and Fall Cleaning and clean our homes once a
week and do a little ‘major’ cleaning off and on through out the year;
but do you know what is running around your home in those hidden
areas?
Here are only four examples of some hidden bugs
that you may have, but there are many more possibilities.
BED BUGS
Bed Bugs don’t only hide in beds!
They are in small crevice’s in our home, stuck in our upholstered
furniture and love to hide in suitcases; so we even take them along
on vacation. They love to hide there eggs (the size of a pinhead)
in inner spring mattresses and box springs, small crevices, carpeting
and any place dark. Usually the homes look like dark spots or stains
on furniture and mattresses, another sign of bed bugs is dark red-
dish spots (dried blood) and they prefer to hide close to where they
feed.
What are bed bugs?
They are small little brown, flat oval-shaped creepy crawly
bugs that feed on human blood, small animals and birds and can go
weeks (and up to one year for adults) without eating. YUK!
Does that mean I have a dirty house?
No, they love to be transported. So they can be brought in from
suitcases, merchandise that you purchase in a store or various
other methods. But once you have them, you have to kill them
because they do multiply fast.
How do you get rid of these pesky little things?
You should call in an exterminator (insecticides should only
be used by a professional) but if you can’t spend the money
for one the next best thing is: Wash all of your furniture,
mattresses and floors and woodwork with Lysol (kills 99%
of bacteria) and then spray with a lice control solution.
This needs to be done once a year (or Spring
and Fall Cleaning) in order to maintain a bug free home.
Reducing clutter is a necessity.
Belongings strewn about rooms afford many places
for bed bugs to hide, and impedes inspection and treatment.
Infested bedding and garments will need to be bagged and
laundered (120°F minimum), or discarded since
these items cannot be treated with insecticides.
Items that cannot be laundered can sometimes be de-infested
by heating for several minutes in a clothes dryer. Other items
can be wrapped in plastic and placed in a hot,
sunny location for at least a few days (the 120°F minimum
target temperature should be monitored in the centermost location
with a thermometer).
Bedbugs also succumb to cold temperatures below 32° F,
but the chilling period must be maintained for at least two
weeks. Attempts to rid an entire home or apartment of bed
bugs by raising or lowering the thermostat will be entirely
unsuccessful.
Most housecleaning measures are of little benefit in bed bug
management. Site-specific vacuuming, however, can help
remove some of the bugs before treatment with insecticides.
Bed bugs (especially the eggs) can be difficult to dislodge.
Optimum results will be achieved by moving and scraping the
endof the suction wand along infested areas such as
seams, tufts and edges of bedding, and the perimeter edge of
wall-to-wall carpets.
Afterward, dispose of the vacuum contents in a sealed trash
bag. Steam cleaning of carpets may be helpful for killing bugs
and eggs that vacuuming may have missed.
DUST MITES
What are dust mites?
They measure about 1/100th of an inch in length, which is
about the size of a period at the end of a sentence. They
feed off of human blood and are microscopic, brown in color
and have several legs and crawl fast.
Where do they hide?
They are in all of the hidden areas where there is dust.
Mattresses, carpeting, woodwork, small crevices and furniture.
How do I get rid of them?
- Enclose mattresses, box springs and pillows in zippered allergen- and
dust-proof covers. - Wash bedding materials, including pillow cases, sheets, blankets and
mattress pads every other week in hot water (130 °F). - Eliminate or reduce fabric wall hangings such as tapestries or pennants.
- Purchase stuffed toys that are machine washable.
- Avoid using curtains, drapes or blinds on windows. Use plastic shades
instead. - Remove carpeting from the bedroom and replace it with tile or wooden
floors. - Replace upholstered furniture with wooden or plastic furniture or vacuum
and clean regularly. - Vacuum often with a vacuum cleaner provided with a high efficiency
purifying air (HEPA) filtration system. Throw away vacuum bags after
use because dust mites can leave the bag - Use HEPA filters in your home for heating and air-conditioning
- Reduce humidity in the home (under 70%).
LICE
Is there more than one kind of lice?
Yes there is, there are three kinds. All 3 types of human lice belong to the order Anoplura, the sucking lice. Body lice infest clothing, laying their eggs on fibers in the fabric seams. Head and pubic lice infest hair, laying their eggs at the base of hair fibers. All 3 types take periodic blood meals by piercing the skin of their host with narrow anterior mouthparts.
How can I get lice?
Getting lice does NOT mean that your house is dirty or that you are a dirty person.
Head lice can be transported by using someone else's hair brush, hat, head phones, scarf or comb.
Body Lice is transported basically in clothing and hide in the seams and crevices of clothing or in bedding. They thrive on dark humid areas and closets where clothing is stored.
Pubic Lice is commonly called crabs, these lice occur on the skin and hair of your pubic area and on eyelashes. Sexual contact or contact with infected clothing, bedding or even toilet seats can spread pubic lice.
All three types can be spread by sitting on furniture that is contaminated with lice
What do they look like and how do I know if I have them?
Lice are tiny, wingless parasites (bugs) that feed off human blood. They are transported through various means, lay eggs and are transported again.
Symptoms:
- Intense itching.
- Lice on the scalp, the body, clothing, or pubic or other body hair.
Lice can be up to 1/8 inch (3 millimeters) in size. - Lice eggs (nits) on hair shafts. Nits resemble tiny pussy willow buds.
Nits can be mistaken for dandruff, but unlike dandruff, they can't be
easily brushed out of hair. - Small, red bumps on the scalp, neck and shoulders.
How do I get rid of them?
Head lice can be treated with over-the-counter or prescription products. Shampoos and lotions that kill head lice contain pesticides and other
chemicals, so it is important to talk to your doctor before using these products, especially if you are pregnant or nursing, or if you have allergies
or asthma.
It is also not safe to use products with pesticides on or near your eyes. If you find head lice or nits in eyelashes or brows, talk to your doctor.
The products that kill head lice don't usually kill all nits.
To reduce the risk of another lice infestation, pick the remaining lice and nits by hand or by using a special comb (one brand name: LiceMeister comb) to remove them. Comb through all of the hair one section at a time every 3 days or more often, for at least 2 weeks or until you stop seeing head lice and nits.You should also use hot water to wash any bed linens, towels and clothing recently worn by the person who had head lice.
Vacuum anything that can't be washed such as the couch, carpets, your child's car seat and any stuffed
animals. Because head lice don't live very long away from the scalp, you don't need to use lice spray on these items
FLEAS
Where did they come from?
Fleas can be transported by your animals; a matter of fact, a flea will lay about 50% of the eggs on your pet however, they can fall off of the pet
and fall on your carpeting, mattresses and furniture.
How do I get rid of them?
The very first thing that needs to be done is to wash the animal using a flea shampoo. Then remove anything from the area that you are cleaning that can become contaminated; toys, pet dishes and clothing. Either wash all of the pet bedding or destroy it.
Secondly: Vacuum everything, all of the furniture, carpeting crevices, fans and heating vents. Empty the vacuum and seal and discard immediately!
Third: Use a flea pesticide; The most effective formulations contain both an adulticide (e.g., permethrin) effective against the biting adult stage, and an insect growth regulator (methoprene or pyriproxyfen), necessary to provide long-term suppression of the eggs, larvae and pupae.
Pet owners will need to carefully read the “active ingredients” panel on the product label to determine if these ingredients are present.
Examples include
Raid Flea Killer Plus(R), Siphotrol Plus(R), , Bio Flea Halt(TM), and Fleatrol(R). Pay special attention to Carpets, throw rugs, under and behind
beds and furniture, and beneath cushions on which pets sleep should all be treated. Pay particular attention to areas where pets spend time or sleep, as these will be the areas where most flea eggs, larvae and pupae will be concentrated.
In cases where pets spend most of their time outdoors, it may also be necessary to treat the yard.
One way to determine if the yard is infested is to walk around the property wearing white athletic socks, pulled to the knee.
If fleas are present, they will be seen against the white background of the socks.
I am sure from now on; that you won’t hate the job of vacuuming as much as you used to!
Jan Hayner is a Professional Organizer and creator of Easy Home
Organizing;providing tips and hints on organizing and Housekeeping
shortcuts and solutions. Go to her website at
http://www.organizingyourlifetheeasyway.com for advice, tips,
newsletter and checklists.