think you might have white tail spiders or an infestation of bed bugs? Find some answers in this guide or get in touch.
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WHAT COULD IT BE?
BED BUGS
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Bed bugs are between 4-5mm long and are oval in shape. They do not have any wings but have 6 legs and 2 antennae. They are rust red to brown in colouring and are usually flat until they have fed.
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Bed bugs will typically feast on blood, predominantly from humans, but can also feed on some other animals.
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Bed bugs love to stay close to their food source, so they are generally found around the bed. They can sense heat sources and will come out to feed at night when the host goes to bed.
Bed bugs typically hide during the day in dark cracks and crevices like the piping folds of the mattress and the bed frame slats. They can also be found in furniture, along skirting boards where the carpet meets, books, curtain rods, light fittings, shelves, in and around picture frames, appliances and other nooks and crannies in dark locations.
It should be noted that Bedbugs can be transported unwittingly to other locations, causing new infestations or bringing them back to the premises already treated.
This can be through strollers, purses, luggage or even clothing.
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Although they are not a disease carrier, bed bugs are mostly known for their irritating bite marks.
Often the bite marks are seen in a line, as the bed bug commonly makes ‘test’ bites close together.
For some people, they are just marks on the skin, but for others who might have an allergic reaction they cause swelling at the bite site as well as itching.
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Bed bugs lay between 1-10 eggs a day and incubate for 6 - 10 days.
As a nymph they have 5 moults over roughly 5 weeks, with a blood meal between each moult.
Bed bug adult lifespan can range from 45 days to 1 year with females laying between 200-500 eggs in their lifespan
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Steam is an effective killer to both the eggs and insects. This can be the first step in helping rid them from your home.
Put all infested clothes and bedding sheets into sealed garbage bags. This is so they don’t spread to other rooms when you transport them through the house!
Then place them in your washing machine on a hot wash cycle (60+ degrees celsius for at least 90 minutes)
Then pop them into the Dryer (highest heat for at least 30 minutes). This is to kill any eggs or adults that may be present.
Bag every clean load into new and clean garbage bags so they can’t be re-infested.
Steam clean your mattress, then wrap and seal that in a plastic moving cover, purchased from most hardware stores.
Steam clean your curtains, carpets, rugs and furniture.
Make sure to call us and book a treatment.
This is not something you can fully treat by yourself, you will need professional intervention to nip this in the bud and stop it spreading throughout your entire house and to other locations.
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IPS provide a bed bug specific indoor spray.
Please call us for helpful information about what you can do to start the eradication process and what the treatment involves.
We will then book in a day and time that best suits you for the necessary treatment.
Get in touch to chat further.
NEED HELP?
Contact us for a no obligation
FLEAS
If you have pets and have started noticing small red itchy dots forming on your lower legs and feet then you’re probably already ankle deep in a flea infestation.
Fleas can be tiny but fierce with armoured bodies that make it difficult for them to be squished. You’ll know you’ve got an infestation if you see your pets itching more often than usually and spy micro sized reddish-brown wingless insects springing out of your carpet or furniture. You’ll also probably start to notice itchy and swelling red spots on your legs surrounded by red halos.
IPS can usually help eradicate these pesky little biters with a spraying service, but get in touch and we can discuss a service that is right for you.
NEED HELP?
Contact us for a no obligation
MITES
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Mites are less than 1mm in size with 8 legs and an oval body shape. There's no clear distinction between the head and abdomen.
They are semi-transparent to a red-brown in colour once they’ve eaten.
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Mites will typically feed on bird blood. Which is why they are often associated with bird infestations.
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Mites are usually found on birds and in their nests.
They'll most commonly be found on Starlings, Pigeons, Sparrows and Poultry.
Mites are mostly active in spring and early summer.
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There are many types of bird mite species, however the predominant one encountered by people in their homes are the ones carried by Starlings.
These enter the home by the Starling host who set up residence in the corners of the roof. These birds build their nest and raise young in the roof space of your home.
The bird mites live on the skin of these birds and their young until the birds leave the nest. When this happens, the mites left in the nest seek out their next feed. They then enter the home through any cracks or crevices..
Mites will leave small red bites over the skin where they have tried to feed on humans. These bites are numerous, will generally swell and will cause severe itching. Luckily, they do not transmit diseases and they cannot survive more than 3 weeks without a feed from a bird host.
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Mite eggs hatch in 2-3 days, remaining as larvae for 1 - 2 days, they are in nymph form for 3-5 days and carry out the next 90 or so days in adult form. In their adult form they can reproduce for a full 8 weeks.
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Bird mites will die naturally within 3 weeks without feeding from a bird host.
However, most people can barely stand a day of the infestation and the bites that accompany it. You will need professional intervention to eradicate this pest. In the meantime, you can use insect repellants to give yourself some relief until the cavalry arrives. Just make sure whatever you use has the active ingredient DEET in it, making sure to read the label and follow its instructions.
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IPS has a bird mite specific indoor spray.
Please get in touch for a free quote and helpful information about what you can do to start the eradication process and what the treatment involves.
We will then book in a day and time that best suits you for the necessary treatment.
NEED HELP?
Contact us for a no obligation
spiders
Australia is notorious for its creepy crawlies, and two of the most common house spiders that raise the most concern are Redback spiders (identifiable by their vibrant red markings on their backs) and Whitetail Spiders (identifiable by it’s white tip on the end of its back). There are also a number of other common household species that can make your skin crawl, including wolf spiders, black house spiders and huntsmen, to name a few.
Here’s a fun fact, wolf spiders are unique in the way that they care for their young. Once hatched, the wolf spider will carry its young on its back until they are ready to fly the coop. Since wolf spiders can hatch up to 100 babies and each wolf spider has 8 eyes, if you come across one you could have up to 800 little eyes glaring back at you.
IPS provides spraying services to assist with the eradication of these pests.
NEED HELP?
Contact us for a no obligation