Bed bugs are not your average bug, their need to breed and feed is fierce. 2-4 bed bugs can multiply to hundreds if left unattended. The mere thought of bed bugs feeding on your blood while you sleep is enough reason to take your mattress outside and burn it to ashes. But would that solve the problem for good?
Bed bugs can still be in your home even after turning your mattress into ashes. You’ll have to deal with a severe case of infestation from the source. In this article, I will share a couple of ways to make homemade bed bug spray recipes, these recipes should help a great deal with the bed bug issue.
Some of the homemade bed bug spray recipes listed in this article will help repel bed bugs from your home and others will help kill them instantly.
The scary part about bed bugs is that you might have them on your bed without knowing about them, the good news is that this major problem can be solved once and for all. Read on to know more!
Table of Contents
What is the main cause of bed bugs?
Dirt? In a way, yes, but you can be an extremely clean person and still have a bed loaded with thousands of bed bugs (yes! That gave me goosebumps too). Research has shown that one of the major causes of bed bugs is traveling!
If Mr.A has bed bugs in his house, there’s a high possibility of the bugs getting onto his belongings such as luggage or even clothing, and then bed bug free Mr.B gets into the same cab, bus, or airplane with Mr.A and then the bed bugs migrate.
Are you scared already? Don’t be, if you haven’t seen any bed bugs yet, there might be a chance that they aren’t near you, however, you should still try out our recipes as preventive measures before things get out of hand.
Bed bugs can easily transfer from person to person completely unnoticed, but you could get rid of them before they think of multiplying in your home.
How Can I Tell If We Have Bed Bugs?
If you notice some of these signs in your home, you probably have bed bugs on your bed. Remove your sheets and check thoroughly for bed bugs in their usual hiding spots.
- Bloodstains on your pillowcases.
- Bloodstains on your bed sheet.
- Dark spots of bed bug excrement on sheets or mattresses.
- Bed bug eggshells.
- An offensive, musty odor from the bed bug’s scent glands.
17 Ways To Make Homemade Bed Bug Spray Recipes
1. Diatomaceous Earth
One of the most efficient homemade remedies for the complete eradication of bed bugs is diatomaceous earth. It has unique abrasive properties and works by absorbing the water that protects fats and oils from the outer layer of the bed bug’s exoskeleton.
All you have to do is get diatomaceous earth and sprinkle it in cracks, mattresses, and bed areas, the bed bugs will eventually come in contact with the substance and die from dehydration. However, don’t use too much as this can also be detrimental to your health.
2. Bed Bug Killer Spray Using Essential oils
Lavender and tree oil are very good in fighting off pesky little insects — bed bugs inclusive. Using these essential oils and other ingredients you can make an ideal killer spray for bed bugs. Trust me, it works like a charm.
Ingredients
- 1 cup of water.
- 5 drops of bergamot essential oil.
- 5 drops of lavender oil.
- 5 drops of cedarwood oil.
- 1 tablespoon of witch hazel.
Instructions
- In a spray bottle, mix all the ingredients.
- Give it a good shake and allow it to sit for 2 mins.
- Spray the mixture to the corners of your bedding and areas where you see bed bugs.
3. Petroleum Jelly
Petroleum jelly is another very useful item that can be used to control bed bugs. While this idea might not completely stop them, it should slow them down a bit allowing you to easily spot and kill them as you please. Simply rub petroleum jelly on your bed headframe and legs, you can smear some jelly on the side of the bed too.
4. Alcohol
Using alcohol might not repel the bed bugs for good, however, constantly spraying this mix should keep the bed bugs off your mattresses with time. It is simple to make; in a spray bottle, add alcohol and a little water then spray areas where you see the bed bugs. I won’t recommend this for the complete eradication of bed bugs, but it does help in a way.
5. Dettol And Washing Powder
Essential oils and other ingredients might require you to go out to buy them. If you want to create a homemade bed bug spray recipe with items already in your home, here’s one to check out. In this DIY tutorial, the creator uses Dettol and washing powder with some water to create a mixture that helps to get rid of the blood-sucking creatures.
6. Use A Vacuum Cleaner
It’s time to put your vacuum cleaner to good use (if you have one). Besides the mattress being their favorite spot, you can also find bed bugs in other areas of your home, so, I would advise that you take your time and thoroughly vacuum everywhere and everything in your home, from furniture to clothing, walls, nooks, crannies and more. This would help a great deal.
7. Use The Washing Machine
While bed bugs might be in other areas of your home, you’d still find most of them on mattresses, pillowcases, stuffed animals, throw pillows, and more. Here’s what to do; remove the mattress and every other thing on the bed with a covering over it and toss all the items in the washing machine. Set your machine on the highest heat available and that should help kill the little bloodsuckers.
8. Talcum Powder
If you can’t find talcum powder to buy, you could simply use baby powder as most of them have talcum. This product works just like diatomaceous earth, it dries up the bed bugs. Simply sprinkle the powder in areas where you probably have bed bugs and allow the powder to do its thing.
9. Vinegar
Never underestimate the power of vinegar! This is a very useful method that helps get rid of bed bugs in your home. All you have to do is get pure white vinegar and then turn it inside a spray bottle, do not add water, cover the bottle and spritz the solution on cracks, beddings, furniture, and other places to keep bed bugs away.
10. Moth Balls
This recipe will only help kill adult bed bugs, but might not be effective in getting rid of eggs and nymphs. So, you might still have a bed bug problem even after trying this, however, you can rinse and repeat the process for a better result.
So, for this method, you will have to purchase a couple of mothballs. Save a couple of them and place them under your bed, sofa, and other furniture. Using a hammer or stone, grind the mothballs to powder form and a good amount into a spray bottle, then add a little warm water and shake. Spritz the mixture on areas where you suspect bed bugs have infested.
11. Freeze Them
Just like heat, bed bugs won’t survive in the cold. If you suspect a piece of clothing or bedding to be infested with bed bugs, you can place the item(s) into your freezer and leave them there for up to 5 days. While this is not a very effective method, it will help reduce your bed bug issue by a great deal.
12. Sun exposure
Human sweat and grease will stay on the quilt to breed a lot of bacteria, and sun-drying the quilt can achieve the effect of rapid sterilization and mite removal.
At the same time, proper drying can increase the life span of a comforter by about two years. It can be said that sunbathing is the best way to maintain our bedding and improve the quality of sleep.
13. Use boiling water
Use boiling water to pour scalding bedpan, a straw mattress, bookcases and furniture, and other crevices, boiling water-soaked clothing and other cotton fabrics, can quickly kill bed bugs of all ages and eggs.
14. Manual trapping
Constantly knocking bed frame, bed mat, bookcase, mattress pad, etc., the bedbugs from the hidden shock down, and then kill.
15. Soaking method
- First, put the clothes in order, put a large bucket of water, put washing powder, soap in.
- Then put all the clothes into the bucket soaked for 3 hours, you know, bedbugs are not water-based, two hours enough to kill the clothes on the quilt.
- But do not forget that there are bedbugs eggs, bedbugs eggs are very difficult to eliminate, clothing and quilts can be cleaned soak for two hours, and then cleaned, bedding quilts knocked to dry.
16. Salt exposure method
- The walls and bedboard are all cleaned up, the following to the clothes, remember to add salt when cleaning clothes.
- A small amount of salt put in can be broken to kill bedbugs eggs, clean well to be placed under the sun to prevent residual bedbugs eggs.
How To Get Rid Of Bed bug Eggs
After killing adult bed bugs you shouldn’t rejoice just yet. You probably forgot the eggs, especially if you didn’t use heat. In this video tutorial, the creator will show you how to get rid of bed bug eggs.
Other Useful Tips To Get Rid Of Bed Bugs
So, at this point, you must have succeeded in killing a good percentage of bed bugs in your home. Now, it’s time to share some tips with you that will help make your home completely bed bug-free with time.
- Wash your clothes, beddings, curtains, and pillowcases with hot water regularly.
- Vacuum your entire house once every day. (Stressful but worth it)
- Get rid of the clutter around your bed.
- Repair cracks and glue peeling wallpaper.
- Use a hard toothbrush to remove leftover bed bug nymphs and eggs before vacuuming and washing with hot water.
- After coming home from travel or work, wash your clothes and vacuum your bag just in case.
Final Advice
Bed bugs are one of the most stubborn creatures on the face of the earth. They can live up to a year without feeding, so starving them to death might not be useful, unless you want to take a vacation away from your home for 3-4 years!
If you have tried everything to get rid of those little suckers to no success, it might be time to seek professional help. In any case, most of the tips and recipes in this article should help you deal with your bed bug issue permanently.
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