We have become more and more mobile as a nation. We travel for business as well as for pleasure. However, we may not be traveling alone. You may not realize that bed bugs have joined you on your trip. Bed bugs love to hitch a ride on clothing, coats, blankets, and anything other fabric. In fact, due to the ability for them to spread in this way, bed bugs are now a fairlycommon pests in homes, offices, hotels and even on airplanes.

The big question for most of us, then becomes, How do I get rid of bed bugs if they invade my house? The answer, according to pest control experts, is to follow the following steps.

Your first step in is to determine how bad your bed bug infestation is. It is important to know whether you only have bed bugs in one room or in several rooms. This will determine how much of your home needs to be treated for these pests.

In order to figure out where the bed bugs are hiding you can check furniture (especially that made of fabric), behind picture frames and in clothing. These pests like to hide. So, the key to finding them is to look out for blood stains on sheets or pillowcases. There may also be dark or rusty looking spots on sheets and mattresses, sheets, and walls. These spots are the bed bug excrement. It is also possible to find bed bug fecal spots, egg shells or shed skins in areas where they may be hiding, such as in piles of clothing, mattresses or behind pictures. You may be able to smell a musty and offensive odor coming from their scent glands.

Once you have determined where they have made their residence, it is important to act quickly. You will want to clean, clean, clean. Wash bedding, curtains, linens, and clothes in hot water and dry them on the highest dryer setting. If you have stuffed animals, shoes, and other non-washable items, you can place them in the dryer on the highest setting for at least 30 minutes. Scrub your mattress seams with a stiff brush in order to get rid of the bed bugs as well as their eggs.

Then you can vacuum your bed and the area surrounding your bed. Make sure that you put the vacuum bag down inside a plastic bag and put it in a trash can that stays outside. Purchase a tight, zipper cover for your mattress and box springs. Keep this cover on for at least one year to completely kill off these problem pests. If there is any clutter around the bed, clean it up and keep it clean.

Finally, make sure you call in an exterminator to complete the job. An exterminator can perform treatments that are safe for you and your animals that you would not be able to do on your own. The bed bug exterminators at Hopper Environmental Serivces can make sure that the combination of your treatments and his/her treatments have worked to completely rid your home of bed bugs.