Bedbugs (Cimex lecturalius) are red-brown biting insects that feed on the blood of people. They are attracted by the heat and carbon dioxide (CO2) in the breath we exhale while sleeping, so they mainly live in bedrooms. Eliminating bedbugs is very difficult, since they are very small, and hide in the cracks and holes of the bed, such as the mattress, bed base, headboard, bedside table, skirting board, sockets, sofa, etc., or any object close to the place where we sleep.

Places most infested by bedbugs are usually: hotels, hostels, pensions, tourist flats, youth hostels, country houses, residences, colleges and private homes after travelling. These are places where there is a high turnover of people staying to sleep, as they move around in clothes, luggage, furniture, bedding and so quickly colonise new bedrooms.

Professionals consider them to be one of the most difficult to control pests in the world. The rise of low-cost tourism coupled with their extreme adaptation and resistance to chemicals. It makes it compulsory for approved Pest Control companies to apply a Disinfestation Protocol for the entire organisation in order to eliminate bedbugs.

We are sorry to say that home remedies are not effective and the use of household insecticides only causes the spread and therefore the aggravation of their problems. Never apply insecticide on bedbugs, call an approved company like Gimasur and an expert will advise and reassure you not to make mistakes.

Most frequent symptoms and errors with bedbugs.

Detecting and eliminating bed bugs is a difficult process. They hide in holes and cracks during the day. The first symptoms of bedbugs are their bites, which may look like other insects or rashes. The bites are red, with a small, slightly darker spot in the centre, itchy and are grouped in a line, in the areas of the neck, hands, arms, legs and face, as they do not tend to get under clothing. These bites usually occur at night while we sleep. Some people are not affected by the stings, but others may experience allergic reactions that cause swelling and itching.

Desperation for eradication cannot lead to intoxication of yourself or your loved ones by the use of household insecticides. Not only will it not control the pest, but it will aggravate the spread of the problem throughout the remaining rooms of your home or business.

It’s no use, throwing away the mattresses if you have a bedbug attack. Some of these insects will have taken refuge in the slats of the bed base, the sofa, the headboard, the bedside table, the sockets, etc. So in a short time, they will colonize the new mattress. Eliminating bedbugs should be part of a complex treatment in which multiple techniques are integrated.

HOW WE GET RID OF BEDBUGS

To eliminate bedbugs from the bed, it is necessary the action of properly trained and specialized professionals, since this plague is very difficult to solve with home remedies.

Gimasur’s technicians will reassure you and offer you the keys to eliminate bedbugs in a safe and effective way.

For insect control treatments we mainly use physical techniques (suction, drying and thermal shock) with which we greatly reduce the use of insecticides. The use of high temperatures is a physical technique that If the pest is large, we complement the physical techniques with professional biocides authorised for use on textiles, such as fumigation. Since not all insecticides are, and your safety and that of your people is one of our premises. Once the treatment has been completed, in 2 weeks we will repeat the operation in order to eliminate any larvae that may have hatched, as the eggs are resistant to the chemical products.

In addition to these treatments, it will sometimes be necessary for the user to combine a series of recommendations given by the technicians to put an end to the bedbug infestation definitively.

Businesses with high risk of bedbugs

Hotel and tourist businesses are the most affected by bedbugs due to the high turnover of people who suffer from them, which means that it is impossible to prevent the entry of these insects into the facilities.

Removing bedbugs is a complicated job (even for experienced technicians) as they spread very quickly. If it is not controlled in time it can be a great risk for your company since it can cause the loss of customers and therefore the reduction of income, even forcing you to close the business for some weeks or months.

Within the services that we offer you at Gimasur Ambiental, we propose to carry out Pest Prevention Advisories to inform you of the deficiencies and a series of corrective measures that your business should carry out to reduce the risk of suffering from bedbug infestations.

More information at https://gimasur.com/disinfection/pests-in-hotels/ and remember: PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE.

Preventive measures against Bed Bugs

• Do not pick up mattresses or furniture from the street next to containers. Be careful with second-hand furniture as well.

•  Extreme caution during travel. Do not put your bags or luggage on the bed. Put them in the appropriate places, but on the opposite side of the headboard.

•  Inspect the mattress or headboard of the beds where we stay at least the first time before we stay. In our home, in case of bites, it should also be checked for early detection of infestations.

•  If needed, Gimasur has specific mattress covers for bedbugs. They are used both to prevent them from serving as a refuge and to keep the bedbugs inside, so there is no need to change the mattresses.

•  If you have detected the presence of bedbugs, never try to solve the problem with household insecticides as this will spread the problem to the rest of the rooms. Contact a professional specialised in eliminating bedbugs, your health and peace of mind will depend on it.

•  In the event of an infestation, all bedding should be washed at temperatures above 60°C.

•  If you are a risk business such as tourist establishments (Hotels, Hostels, Pensions, Hostels, etc.) we advise you to implement Inspection and Disinsectisation Procedures. In case of your absence, eliminating bedbugs will be an almost impossible task, since the spread from one room to another will be done, for example, through the laundry cart.

•  The presence of cracks and holes does not help to eliminate bedbugs as they are shelters and breeding areas. Carpeted floors, unsealed baseboards, provide shelter and make pest control treatment difficult in the event of an infestation.