Fall Bedbug Infestations | American Pest Professionals

Are Bedbugs Less Likely to Invade in the Fall?

Unlike other pests, bedbugs don't care if the season is summer, fall, winter, or spring. These invaders thrive in warm places, making your heated home an ideal autumn environment for them to live and breed. This means you can have an autumn infestation. If you suspect your home has a bedbug problem, contact a pest control expert — regardless of the season.

How Does an Autumn Bedbug Invasion Happen?

The summer may seem like peak bug season. You have the windows and doors open and spend time outside. This allows bugs (bedbugs and other invaders) to easily hitchhike into your home.

Now that the weather is cooler, the closed doors and windows should make it more difficult for pests to enter your home. But that doesn't mean they can't come in. While bedbugs may have limited opportunities in the fall, they can latch on to your clothes, bedding, and other items. Some of the top ways bedbugs enter homes during the fall months include:

• Travel. Do you have a fall getaway planned or a trip to a relative's house for Thanksgiving? Hitchhiker bedbugs could latch onto your clothes or hide in your suitcase, making their way back to your home.
• Costumes. Did you recently rent a Halloween costume? If the costume wasn't properly cleaned, bedbugs could hitchhike their way to your home on it.
• Blankets and bedding. Do you have blankets and other heavier-weight bedding items in summer storage? These items could harbor a bedbug (or a few).
  

Check your clothes, bedding, bags, and anything else you bring into the house for bedbugs. Separate these items and wash them using the highest water temperature and dryer settings. If you can't wash some of the items (such as a suitcase), seal them in plastic bags for as long as possible. It could take up to a few months (through the winter) for the bugs or eggs to die in the bag.

What Should You Do About an Autumn Bedbug Infestation?

Even though you tried your best, the bedbugs won. Like any other season, you need professional pest control help to treat a fall bedbug invasion. While freezing temperatures can kill these pests, your home's indoor air will not likely effectively exterminate bedbugs. To effectively eradicate these bugs, you need a freezer setting of at most zero degrees Fahrenheit, according to the University of Minnesota.

Common signs of a bedbug infestation include:

• Bedbugs. These apple seed-shaped bugs may look like brownish or reddish fleas or ticks. A pest control professional can accurately identify the bugs for you. The bugs can hide anywhere from your bed to the floorboards, behind wallpaper, electrical outlets, and upholstered furniture.
• Eggs. You may notice small white eggshells or eggs on furniture, the floor, or other home spaces.
• Bites. These itchy red bites often appear in clusters. Unlike summertime bug bites, you won't have as many potential culprits to consider in the fall.
• Streaks on fabric. Bedbugs can leave behind small rusty-colored blood spot streaks on bedding.
  

Not only can a pest control professional identify bedbugs, but the exterminator can also control these invaders. Bedbugs are notoriously difficult to get rid of. Never attempt a do-it-yourself control treatment. Instead, leave this job to the experts. After the exterminator eliminates the pests, they can recommend ways to prevent a winter, spring, or summer re-infestation.

Does your home have bedbugs? Contact American Pest Professionals for more information.