Ways to deal with bed ticks: the return of restful sleep

Bite mites are domestic parasite pests. The main place of its habitat is easy to guess by its name: the insect prefers to settle in people's beds. You can drive out a tick from the apartment by following the instructions.

Pest Description

A separate type of "bed tick" does not exist. This term is called microscopic dust saprophagous ticks (lat. Dermatophagoides), the main food of which is the cells of dead skin of humans and animals. They are also called "linen." Unlike bed bugs, parasites, ticks do not bite a person and are not able to do this because of their microscopic size.

To understand what bed mites look like, just imagine their closest brothers. But their length varies in the range of 0.1-0.5 mm, so it is impossible to consider without an increase in insects.

They live all over the planet, adjacent to humans. Inside the house, the optimum temperature for the existence of the tick is maintained - from 18 ° C to 25 ° C. He also likes high humidity: with it, the pest multiplies much faster. The total life cycle of an individual is approximately 65–80 days. At one time, the female lays 60 eggs.

Insect life in the house

The insect's habitat in the house is not limited to bedding. The tick climbs into the cracks in the furniture, inhabit the mattress, feather bed and blanket. Fewer individuals can be found around the bed and under it, where dust accumulates, as well as on slippers and some clothes. Bite mites can live in pet hair or feathers.

Where do the bed mites come from? They enter the house mainly on human clothing or with household items, on the hair of pets and even with the wind.

Bed mites, contrary to popular belief, never bite a person, because blood is not suitable for their nutrition, and the oral apparatus is not suitable for making holes in the skin. Insects feed on dead cells of the human body: mainly skin flakes and flakes of dandruff. They host microorganisms suitable for bed mites as food: various fungi and bacteria.

Therefore, a bed on which bed linen or dust has not been changed for a long time (there are a lot of dead and peeling particles of skin in it) is a very favorable environment for the tick to live. Studies by scientists have shown that if 1 person sleeps in bed, then in a week he leaves 1 g of particles of his skin. They are very tasty for the insect. Therefore, most individuals live directly in the bed, although the tick is able to spread throughout the room.

What harm do they bring to a person?

Since bed mites do not feed on human blood and do not leave bites on his skin, when they are in the house in a minimal amount they do not bring significant harm. But the danger increases in direct proportion to the increase in population in the room.The fact is that the feces of the tick and chitinous cover released during molting contain a strong allergen that can cause acute painful reactions in some people.

One individual defecates about 25 times a day.

First of all, we are talking about manifestations from the respiratory system. Doctors say that inhaling feces and chitin from dust mites, which include bed mites, is one of the most common causes of asthma. Skin manifestations are also observed - the formation of bumps and scratches, causing severe itching. It brings a person emotional discomfort. Permanent proximity can lead to chronic irritability or insomnia. Therefore, the destruction of bed ticks must begin immediately after the signs of their presence in the rooms.

Signs of the appearance of bed mites in the house

Due to the microscopic size of the insect, it will not work to notice him or his stool in bed without a magnifying device. Therefore, a person often does not realize that a bed tick is wound up in a bed, although it is already actively propagating in a mattress or in the seams of linen, and is harmful to households. He notices that a pest is “wielding” in the house when pronounced signs of infection with it appear.

The "symptoms" of a bed tick that settled in the house include:

1. Education on the body of redness and lumps, similar to allergies.
2. Persistent coughing or sneezing, not associated with respiratory and other diseases, as well as smoking. They are observed for a long time - more than 2 weeks for no apparent reason.
3. With a long stay in the house, especially in the bedroom, there is a stuffy nose and even lacrimation.
4. After staying in bed, the whole body and head itch.
5. The appearance of scratching and itching in pets.
6. Exacerbation of chronic respiratory diseases and ailments of an allergic nature.

Acute symptoms disappear after a person leaves the room for a long time. Moreover, without the use of drugs with antihistamine effect and other anti-allergic drugs. This is due to the fact that his body ceases to be in contact with the excrement of bed tick.

Ways to fight

When pests are found in the house, the question arises of how to get rid of bed ticks. If their population has reached a large scale, then it will not be easy to do, and simply cleaning and processing the bed will not be enough. Special acaricidal agents with anti-allergic effect should be used. It can be both purchased drugs and folk tricks. But you need to start by putting in order the sleeping place and premises.

Acaricides are drugs of chemical origin, created specifically for combating ticks.

Indoor cleaning

Cleanliness in the house is the key to a successful fight against bed mites. If there is not enough food for them - dead particles of human skin and domestic animals, then the pests will soon die.

Therefore, you need to carry out a general cleaning:

1. Remove the mattress and blanket from the bed and move it away from the wall to gain access to hard-to-reach corners.
2. Thoroughly clean the floor, removing all dust.
3. Wash bedding in hot water and iron with a hot iron.
4. To process a mattress, blanket, pillows, soft toys and carpets with pile: bed mites often live in them.

In operation, you can use the device for steam processing. Things that can not be washed, it is enough to give dry cleaning.

Insecticide treatment

If there are already a lot of individuals in the house, then a simple cleaning can not be done. Then you should use special remedies for bed mites:

1. "Tsifoks", produced in the form of a concentrate with an insect-acaricidal effect. It is bred in water in accordance with the instructions. The active substance is cypermethrin, which is quite effective for 30 minutes after application. For processing 1 m² you will need 50 ml of an aqueous emulsion.The product is applied to upholstered furniture, floors, walls, carpets and baseboards.
2. Sipaz-Super with a similar method of application and the content of the same cypermethrin.
3. Aerosol Hexal AG Milbiol from house dust mites has a natural composition: it contains neem plant oil. Due to its natural origin, it is allowed to use the product for the processing of bedding, pillows, blankets and mattresses. The only negative can be a specific smell, vaguely reminiscent of the aroma of onions or garlic.
4. Acaritox is a broad-spectrum acaricide and insecticide with alfacipermetrin. They release it in the form of a powder, which must be dissolved in water. They can process the floor and crevices of the bed, but not bedding.
5. Easy Air Spray from a dust mite, also eliminating allergens. It is sprayed onto the bed and bedding. Capacity 1 liter is enough for processing 50 m ².
6. Allergoff additive that eliminates allergens during washing with 30% bezylbenzoate in the composition.

Using chemicals to treat the furniture and premises, it is recommended to ventilate the room later, and even better - leave for a day. Also, then it is necessary to wash the floor and baseboards with a solution of bleach or water with other disinfectants.

When using any pesticides, it is important to strictly follow the instructions and use personal protective equipment.

Folk remedy

If the problem has not yet acquired a grandiose scale or there is no desire to use purchased products with toxic substances in the composition, you can use the "folk" drug for bed mites. It is easy to cook at home, they are affordable and safe for human health.

It is necessary to prepare the working composition, combining all the ingredients:

• 50 g of soap (solid or liquid shavings);
• 100 g of ammonia (available at the pharmacy);
• 1 liter of water.

All components are thoroughly mixed. The resulting solution is used for processing furniture, floors and carpets, and for washing bedding.

Prevention

It is important to know not only how to detect bed ticks and destroy them in the house, but also how to prevent them from appearing in the house. The problem is easier to prevent than to solve. All preventive measures are reduced to regular maintenance of cleanliness with the prevention of dust accumulation:

1. Wash all things and bedding in a timely manner.
2. Vacuum the carpets and upholstered furniture well.
3. As dust develops, do a wet cleaning. It would be better if you add a little salt to the water.
4. To carry out general cleaning with special means: to process floors, carpets, furniture.
5. Iron the sheets with a hot steam iron.
6. Instead of carpets with pile, choose carpets with weaving fibers.
7. In the warmer months, it is recommended to take pillows, blankets and mattresses outside under direct sunlight.
8. The mattress can be protected with a special cover.

When cleaning, furniture should be moved aside and all corners and cracks should be washed. The less dust there is in the house, the less will be the pest population.

In one bed can live 2 million dust, or bed, ticks. They can cause a person to have a strong allergic reaction and reduce the quality of sleep. To get rid of pests, it is necessary to clean and use special acaricidal products designed to control ticks.