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You must have felt such glee when you finally got the all clear from the exterminator. Bed bugs are a truly difficult infestation to fight, and so it only makes sense to celebrate once you finally get rid of them. Unfortunately, for some people, bed bugs come back after treatment – and this is just the hard, hard truth. If you find that you are seeing signs and symptoms of the bed bugs coming back, then you have unfortunately joined the group of people who now must deal with their bed bug infestation the second time around.
The terror that can grip you when you begin to notice the symptoms of a bed bug infestation coming back can truly be gut wrenching. For some people, the relief that they felt when the bed bug infestation finally went away was so palpable. Because of this, they experience sheer horror when the bugs come back. Unfortunately, there are some cases where the bed bugs don’t get completely eradicated by the exterminators. There are many different reasons why this may happen. Therefore, we will look into each and every one of those reasons today.
So, if you’re here wondering why you again have bed bugs after second treatment, don’t worry – we are here to help you figure it all out. Without further ado, let’s get started!
Do Bed Bugs Come Back After Treatment?
Generally, when an exterminator gives you the all clear, the bed bugs are typically truly gone. Provided, of course, that they did their jobs properly that is. However, despite how well these exterminators may have done their jobs, sometimes an infestation can start back up due to a few missed bugs. This is the sad truth – sometimes, it may just take a few tries for you to truly get rid of the bed bugs. So how exactly do bed bugs come back after treatment? Let’s investigate, shall we?
Is This The Same Infestation, or Are These New Bugs?
The first thing that you will need to ask is, is this the same infestation as before, or are these new bed bugs? It’s definitely possible that bed bugs come back after treatment – especially if the treatment was done in a rush, or haphazardly. The exterminators only have to miss a few bed bugs and the infestation can start all over again. This could certainly be the case if the exterminator you hired is neither competent nor qualified.
Don’t be so quick to blame the exterminators either, because sometimes you might just be responsible too. To be honest, it might even be someone in your family or a visiting guest that brought the bed bugs back to into your home. If you live in an apartment, another thing that could have happened is your neighbors had a particularly bad infestation. Yep – you can certainly get a bed bug infestation from your neighbors. After all, bed bugs are fast little critters and they can truly make it through quite a distance if they really needed to. And if it’s too far for them to walk, well… all they need to do is hitch a ride. Because of this, you should be wary of neighbors with bug problems.
It truly is unfortunate that bed bugs come back after treatment sometimes. However, there are many things that you can do so that you can ensure you don’t end up facing bed bugs after second treatment once more.
Don’t worry… if you need to learn how to really get rid of bed bugs – we are here to help. Before we talk about how to get rid of the bed bugs completely, first we need to talk about…
Hiring The Right Exterminators
The most important thing that you need to worry about first and foremost is making sure that you have hired the right exterminators. If you feel as though the reasons why your bed bug infestation came back after your treatment was because the exterminators you hired were incompetent, then you will most certainly need to hire a new company to help you out. The fact of the matter is, hiring the right exterminators is paramount to ensuring the complete eradication of the bed bug population in your home. Here’s a quick guide on how to do just that:
Check Their Qualifications
Before hiring exterminators, be sure that you are taking a proper look at their qualifications. By this, we mean that you should be asking if they are licensed. The company itself must be licensed, and the technicians should ideally be, too. To know whether a company is truly licensed, you can check by giving your state’s pesticide control office a call. It’s important for the company to be licensed if you want to be assured that they are properly informed on what to do. Proper licensing also ensures that the company you are hiring is updated when it comes to the new techniques and chemicals that are used on exterminating jobs.
Check Their BBB Rating
Another thing that you should look at is the company’s BBB or Better Business Bureau rating. The BBB rating is essentially more of a guide line as to the customer satisfaction for a particular company. If the company’s BBB rating is anything below, B, you may probably want to stay away.
Check Their Reviews
One more thing that you can do is to look at the company’s reviews online. A good way to figure out whether the company is actually trustworthy is to check their reviews. You can look on websites such as Yelp, or even on Google Maps where some people may leave reviews. A good rule of thumb is if there are more negative reviews than positive ones, you probably want to find a different company instead.
Ask About Their Policies
Finally, it’s important that you ask a company what their policies are before you hire them. Ask if all of their employees are trained and up to date on the latest and greatest techniques. Also ask if they have insurance policies that will cover any incidents that may occur on your property.
How Do I Get Rid of These Guaranteed?
Bed bugs can truly be annoying to deal with, but don’t lose hope. As impossible as it might feel to get rid of them, the truth is you can. You will, however, need plenty of patience and time. Mentally prepare yourself for these things, because you will also need to put in a lot of time and hard work. Don’t let this discourage or dissuade you, however. Just remember, you can get rid of the bed bugs. Give yourself a little pep talk before you read the tips below. Are you ready? Let’s go!
Consider Retiring Your Mattress
First of all, if you can afford it, consider getting rid of your current mattress and simply purchasing a new one. Doing this is certainly a sure-fire way of getting rid of the bed bugs in your bed once and for all. However, it’s important to note that you should definitely only purchase a new mattress once an exterminator has been back for a second treatment. Also, make sure that you do the steps below so that you can ensure your new mattress remains totally bed bug free.
Brush + Vacuum Your Mattress
If you didn’t do this after your first treatment, it could be one of the reasons why the bed bugs came back. Don’t worry, if you do it this time, then you stand a better chance of keeping the bed bugs away forever. Note that this step is only really important if you intend to keep your mattress. If not, you can simply throw the old mattress away.
For this tip, you will need a brush with stiff bristles. The first thing you will need to do is to start brushing at every single crevice and seam in the mattress. While you’re at it, go ahead and brush the mattress and also the box spring too. Don’t be afraid to use a reasonable amount of force. This is because doing this will dislodge the bedbugs and basically drag them out of their hiding places. After you do this, you can then grab your vacuum.
Another thing worth mentioning is that you will definitely want to have a vacuum with disposable vacuum bags. You will want them to be disposable because after every time you vacuum you will not want to keep the bag. Put the vacuum bag into a plastic bag immediately after you finish vacuuming. Seal the plastic bag and throw it in the garbage outside right away.
Do this right after the exterminator comes. Also, you will then want to be doing this regularly for a while.
Wash Everything in Hot Temperatures
As resilient as bed bugs can be, they aren’t like space bears which can survive just about anything and everything. Bed bugs will die in hot enough temperatures. Because of this, you can throw items made of fabric in the wash. Wash all of your clothes, bedsheets and bedclothes, stuffed animals and the like and crank the temperature up high. After that, you will also have to put it all in the dryer. Let it dry on high heat too. We cannot stress this enough – you will want to wash everything you have. Unfortunately, this will mean that if you have some delicate items of clothing, you may end up losing them completely. Sadly, this is simply the reality of the battle against bed bugs. Some things are simply just straight up losses.
Another thing you will have to do is also wash other items in high heat. If they aren’t washable, such as in the case of shoes or some childrens’ toys, you will simply have to throw them in the dryer on high for about a half hour. Accept the fact that you may also have to let go of some of these items, especially if they will not survive a trip through the dryer.
Reduce Clutter
It’s important for you to get rid of any and all possible hiding spots for bed bugs. This way, you won’t find yourself surprised that some bed bugs come back after treatment. Simply make sure they have nowhere to hide. Many people don’t like having to go spring cleaning, but hey – take this as a chance to finally get rid of all of the stuff you’ve been holding onto for far too long. Might we also suggest you perhaps give the konmari method a try? Marie Kondo’s organizational style has helped many people worldwide, because of this you might find it good for you too.
Get Your Carpet Treated and Cleaned
Here’s another thing that you will want to do to make sure you don’t get these pests back – get your carpet treated. A good steam clean would really help to get all the shed bed bug skin as well as any bugs that are left, dead or alive. Another thing is if you feel like you need a little extra help so you can be one hundred percent sure there are no more bugs left, one more thing that you can do is sprinkle borax all over your carpet. And then, you can let it sit for a few hours. After, you should then vacuum everything back up. If you have an ant infestation under your carpet, doing this will also get rid of them.
Do Your Regular Home Maintenance
If you have not performed any home maintenance recently, you are going to want to. If you have any cracks or crevices in your plaster, or if you have wallpaper that is peeling up, you’ll certainly want to do something about it. Things such as these, along with decaying wood or deteriorating finishes, make really good hiding spots for bed bugs. Therefore, fill all your cracks and glue down all your wallpaper – it will go a long way towards helping you get rid of your infestation completely.
Conclusion
If you’ve had bed bugs come back after treatment, then follow the tips we’ve mentioned above so you can completely get rid of them in the future. Furthermore, if you even so much as suspect that you actually have an infestation again, you should certainly call the exterminators. However, don’t just hire any exterminator you see! Make sure that the company you are hiring is qualified and has a good reputation so that you are sure of the standard of their work.
We hope that our guide has helped you so that you can finally shake your bed bug invasion once and for all! Finally, don’t let the bed bugs come back after treatment again!
