Even in the 21st century, humanity has not gotten rid of domestic parasites - bed bugs. These tenacious insects can enter the house in many ways and remain undetected for a long time.
Over many centuries of proximity to these parasites, man has invented different ways to get rid of bedbugs using folk remedies. Little bloodsuckers cannot adapt to them and die.
There are many methods to get rid of bedbugs. Which one to use depends on the circumstances.
In some situations, it is more effective to use a toxic chemical. There are times when it is better to use traditional recipes. The main thing is a positive result.
Bed bugs reproduce quickly. Their bites carry the risk of infection. For young children, living in an apartment with bedbugs is especially harmful.
A weak immune system can manifest itself as an allergic reaction to the bites of domestic parasites. Urgent destruction will be the solution to all problems.
Advantages of folk methods
Folk remedies for bedbugs have their advantages:
- can be used in an apartment where children, allergy sufferers, pregnant women, elderly people, and pets live;
- some methods can be used repeatedly;
- do not cause an allergic reaction;
- in most cases, they do not require preliminary preparation and subsequent cleaning.
It is very important that some folk recipes can be used as preventive measures against bed bugs. Synthetic chemicals do not have this quality. If there is a kind of breeding ground for bedbugs near the apartment, for example, a hostel, then preventing the appearance of parasites becomes a necessity.
Habitat destruction
In most cases, bed bugs make their first nest in close proximity to “food sources.” Accordingly, if the problem is noticed quickly, and they have not yet had time to “spread” throughout the entire apartment or house, it is necessary to carefully examine the “sleeping area”, disassembling the furniture as much as possible and even removing the upholstery. The procedure is quite labor-intensive, so it is used infrequently.
When the presence of a nest is confirmed, heat treatment is necessary. Both high and low temperatures (below -25ºС and above 50ºС) are destructive for bed bugs, so in winter, if the weather is suitable, you can simply take the furniture outside for two days. In the warm season, if you have a special hair dryer or steam generator, you can blow hot air.
Operating principle
Folk remedies for killing bedbugs have different methods of action. For some it is contact - household. A domestic parasite must definitely touch the poisonous agent.
Bed bugs are very fond of the smell of kerosene, it is not for nothing that it is used in folk practice, and in the manufacture of chemical poisonous preparations they use flavorings with this smell.
Toxic substances penetrate the chitinous shell of the insect and paralyze it. Some substances need to penetrate the insect's respiratory system to kill the parasite.
Not every toxic agent will have an effect on eggs and larvae. The thick protective shell reliably protects against the penetration of foreign substances. The hatched individual will be infected with poison, which will remain on the shell.
This will be enough for her death. To do this, you need to spray a toxic composition on all habitats of domestic bugs, areas of their intended visit, and nests.
According to the method of influence, all methods are divided into 4 categories:
- Natural. This includes plants with an unpleasant aroma that many parasites cannot tolerate. They have a repellent effect. Plants do not pose a danger to people.
- Chemical. Drugs with a strong odor and harmful effects. Effective to use.
- Mechanical. Collecting pests with a vacuum cleaner, throwing away old furniture with insect nests.
- Thermal. Steam treatment, exposure to low or high temperatures.
Plants
Bedbugs have a very powerful sense of smell. They need this primarily in order to quickly detect the source of saturation. It is the smell of the human body that is the main guide for the movement of parasites around the room. But they are also able to pick up other scents that will act as a deterrent on them. So, what grass are bedbugs afraid of:
- sagebrush;
- chamomile;
- wild rosemary;
- tansy;
- valerian;
- celandine.
Using wild rosemary
Ledum is an evergreen plant that can be found in the swamp. It contains essential oil, which helps against bedbugs. It has a stupefying and soporific effect. Young shoots of wild rosemary can be used as an insecticide. It is enough to dry the grass and fumigate the room with it.
Ledum is a poisonous plant, so it is necessary to collect it with gloves, and to process the room only with a mask that will protect the respiratory tract.
An infusion and decoction based on this plant will help against an allergic reaction caused by bedbug bites, which allows it to be used as an anti-inflammatory agent.
Dalmatian chamomile
Despite the fact that there are quite a few types of chamomile, only one helps against bedbugs - Dalmatian. It contains pyrethrins, which act only on insects.
Chamomile is used as follows:
- fresh inflorescences must be ground to a powder;
- scatter the product around the room and pieces of furniture;
- leave for 5 days.
Having smelled its aroma, bedbugs will immediately begin to leave their nesting places. Many people do not have time to do this, since pyrethrins can have a paralytic effect. This is where mechanical methods can be used to collect immobilized individuals.
Sagebrush
The special herbaceous smell of wormwood is guaranteed to rid your home of blood-sucking insects. It is enough to put a small bunch of this plant fresh, and the bugs will immediately react and try to leave the room.
These parasites have a very delicate sense of smell, and the pungent smell of bitter wormwood greatly irritates their receptors. But, unfortunately, this happens until the insects get very hungry. In this case, even the proximity of a stack of wormwood will not frighten them and, no matter what, they will again begin to bite a person.
Wormwood helps get rid of bedbugs, not only repelling them, but also masking the odor of the human body. But here it is necessary to clearly determine their habitat, since if you put a bunch under the bed, and the bedbugs live in the mattress, then you cannot expect a positive result. And when insects come from the cracks, fresh grass under the mattress will completely protect the sleeper from bites and will force parasites to avoid the bed.
It is important to remember that wormwood quickly loses its properties after drying, so a fresh bunch will last no more than three days.
To increase the period of influence of this plant on insects, you should make an infusion or decoction based on it, which can be used at any time of the year.
Tincture is a rather expensive product, since to prepare it you need to purchase a liter of pure alcohol. The output volume is also 1 liter. This amount is enough to treat only one sofa, and the mixture will last no more than a week. In addition, the tincture should stand for about a month, and during this time there will be a lot of bedbugs, and this remedy will definitely not help here.
The decoction is more productive. It can be used to treat rooms and furniture several times. It is convenient for them to spray the area, which will significantly reduce the amount of product used. This method is suitable for treating baseboards, corners, crevices and other hard-to-reach places.
Valerian
Another effective herb for bedbugs is valerian. This is a fragrant plant with a high content of essential oils (about 4%). They are the ones who force bedbugs to get out from secluded places, where you will already be waiting for them with a vacuum cleaner or slipper.
To treat the room, you can use bunches of fresh, just picked herbs or a ready-made pharmacy tincture.
Celandine
Poisonous celandine is widely used to repel bedbugs. Its pungent, characteristic aroma is very effective, and it produces the greatest results in the form of a tincture. To prepare it you need:
- chop 180 g of fresh celandine leaves with a knife;
- pour 10 liters of water over the grass and leave for two days;
- After the specified time has passed, add 50 g of laundry soap shavings to the solution and dissolve it completely.
Use the resulting infusion to treat bedbug nests and the area where they move.
Tansy
Tansy will also help rid you of bedbugs. Its smell has a strong effect on insects, which repels them. But it is quite difficult to destroy bloodsuckers with the help of this plant. If bedbugs have been living for quite a long time, and their nests are very large, then it is necessary to prepare a concentrated decoction that is poured into their habitats.
The treated surfaces will repel insects and keep the area from their penetration for 4 days. Then the smell will disappear, and the feeling of hunger will lead the parasites back to the person.
Tansy is poisonous, so it is necessary to remove it out of the reach of children and pets.
For prevention, you can spread dry and fresh tansy branches throughout the room and leave them for several days. This method can drive away a small number of insects if they have already settled in the room. But after some time, if more serious measures are not taken, the parasites will return and reproduce successfully.
Mustard seeds for bedbugs
The use of mustard to combat parasites has been known for a long time; it is still used in Russian villages. It is a safe alternative to chemical drugs. Mustard seeds are steeped in hot water for 30 minutes. The liquid is poured into a container with a spray bottle and the infected areas are treated. Using dry mustard is no less effective. The powder is scattered over baseboards, carpets, and upholstered furniture. Insects cannot tolerate the pungent smell of the spice.
Lavender oil for bedbugs
The strong smell of essential oil disorients parasites in the apartment. When searching for food, they rely entirely on their antennae. They are the organ of smell. Insects capture carbon dioxide emissions. The persistent smell of lavender prevents bedbugs from finding a person. Concentrated oil can be applied to the legs and frame of the bed, but more often it is used in the form of a solution - 20 drops per 250 ml of water. The composition is poured into a spray bottle and sprayed throughout the room. The main attention is paid to the treatment of the bed or other sleeping place.
Attention. Essential oil can cause allergies; before using it, you should test the body's reaction.
Experts recommend preparing a mixture of several types of essential oil. The active ingredients complement each other and have a stronger effect on parasites. Lavender is mixed with peppermint, cloves, and tea tree.
Directions for use:
- Add a few drops of oil to hand cream and apply to exposed areas of the body.
- Soak the napkins in the mixture of scents and place them in the bedroom.
- After general cleaning, wipe all surfaces with a solution of water and a mixture of essential oils.
- Add lavender to an aroma lamp or make a candle based on it.
- Apply a few drops of oil to a wooden bracelet; at night it will protect against insect attacks.
Lavender after bedbug bites
An insect bite causes redness and itching; a homemade remedy will help get rid of the unpleasant consequences. As a base, take baby cream and add 3 drops of tea and 2 drops of lavender oil. The composition is applied to the damaged area.
Remedy #1: Vinegar
A popular remedy for night parasites is vinegar. It should be remembered that it does not kill, but only repels insects. Used as a preventive measure.
You can coat the penetration areas of bed bugs with a vinegar solution. The disadvantages of the method are a specific smell, the need for constant repetition, as the smell disappears.
It is better to use vinegar with other means, for example, mothballs. If you mix vinegar, alcohol (90%), naphthalene in equal parts, and spray it on the bedbugs from a spray bottle, the effect will be positive.
Remedy No. 2: treatment with turpentine
Turpentine contains many essential oils that bed bugs do not like. The prepared solution should be sprayed in the habitats of domestic bloodsuckers and lubricated in hard-to-reach areas.
When treating surfaces with turpentine solution, precautions must be taken. The solution is highly flammable - this must be taken into account. It is toxic; gloves should be worn to protect hands.
If you get turpentine on your skin, wash the affected area under running water and soap. The solution may leave permanent marks on surfaces. To avoid this, before processing you need to carry out tests with a brush and solution.
Recipes with turpentine:
- Dilute 10 ml of turpentine, 15 ml of kerosene. 100 ml boiling water 40 g soap;
- 50 g of laundry soap and the same amount of ammonia, 150 ml of turpentine;
- 100 ml of turpentine and also kerosene, 25 g of naphthalene.
After treatment with turpentine, the room must be ventilated for at least 24 hours.
Naphthalene
A slightly less toxic analogue of turpentine. It was created specifically as an insecticide, so it is guaranteed to cope with bed bugs. Not only their sense of smell suffers, but also their chitinous shells.
Approximately 10-15 g of mothballs are poured into a glass of water and left for 8-10 hours. Treat the room with the prepared solution, leave for a day, then thoroughly ventilate.
Remedy No. 3: ammonia
Another folk remedy for bed bugs is ammonia. It is not used in its pure form; it must be diluted with water. 3 large spoons are mixed with a liter of water. Floors are washed with this solution.
They pour it into the cracks between the baseboards and walls, and wipe down the furniture. After treatment, you need to open the windows and leave the room for a while to ventilate the smell.
For prevention, you can place small containers with ammonia in the habitats of domestic parasites. For example, these will be caps from bottles of medicine. Children and pets should not have access to such areas.
Remedy No. 4: kerosene
Kerosene helps remove bedbugs at home because it has a detrimental effect on them. The liquid permeates the chitinous shell of domestic parasites, enters the respiratory system, and prevents the penetration of oxygen. After some time, suffocation sets in.
Kerosene must be used carefully. It is highly flammable. Because of this, it should not be used near electrical appliances or open flames.
There is no need to lubricate mattresses and upholstered furniture with kerosene. It is better to apply it on paper and push it into the baseboards. So that later you can pull it out. Bed bugs will run out to smell the smell, then you can spray them from above.
Remedy No. 5: camphor oil
House parasites cannot tolerate strong odors. Camphor oil can scare them away. For a more lasting effect, it is better to prepare a mixture of equal amounts of this oil and turpentine ointment.
Coat the legs, all elements of furniture, beds, baseboards, areas behind the furniture, under the window sill, and heating radiators with the resulting composition.
It is important to treat the bottom of the mattress. This method will repel bed bugs. The disadvantage is the unpleasant odor, which will need to be removed by careful ventilation.
Sagebrush
Another powerful natural insecticide that has been successfully used to combat insects, including bed bugs, for centuries. In Russia it grows almost everywhere, so there are no problems with collecting grass.
A significant advantage of wormwood is that it “works” against bed bugs in any form. You can simply place fresh or dried herbs in the room and treat it with alcohol or water infusion. Store-bought sachets and essential oils will also be effective.
The smell of wormwood is quite sharp and bitter, but with rare exceptions, people tolerate it normally. To “drive away” bed bugs from your sleeping area, just put a sprig of wormwood under the mattress or put it on the bed linen. Or spray the frame of a bed or sofa with the tincture from a spray bottle.
The effect is achieved instantly - you can sleep peacefully this night. Then the procedure is repeated daily or every other day, creating unbearable discomfort for bed bugs. Therefore, they go in search of a new habitat.
Remedy #6: Tea Tree Oil
Tea tree oil is an effective folk remedy. It is used as an additional preventive method of repelling bed bugs.
First, high-quality treatment against domestic parasites is carried out. But in the future, according to all instructions, it is recommended to regularly carry out such treatments for preventive purposes.
To do this, it will be enough to use tea tree oil. You will need to wash all your clothes and bedding using this product.
Furniture and floors should also be treated with oil. For every 500 ml of water add 18 drops of the product. Spray the solution on all objects in the room, even lamps and carpets. To increase effectiveness, you can diffuse tea tree oil every day.
Remedy #7: Valerian
Valerian tincture can be used in a set of measures. If this product is applied to baseboards, blood-sucking parasites will crawl to the surface. Here you can treat them with other means for which contact with the parasite is important.
The advantage of valerian tincture is its ability to identify the habitats of domestic bugs. Disadvantages - it is a deterrent, pets like it too much.
When there are pets in the room, they are able to lick off the valerian solution much earlier than bedbugs. In this case, there is no point in using this remedy. Valerian tincture does not harm the larvae and eggs of night parasites.
Remedy No. 8: tansy
Folk methods of fighting bedbugs have always used medicinal plants in their practice. Tansy is a popular remedy for many problems. This plant with yellow tiny flowers collected in inflorescences is dried in summer.
When nocturnal insects appear, tansy is laid out in their intended habitat, also under the mattress of a sleeping place, under the back of upholstered furniture.
Tansy has a pleasant bitter aroma that bed bugs cannot stand. The flowers of the plant are bright, but toxic. They should be kept away from small children and pets. It is good to use tansy for preventive purposes.
It is also not tolerated by other parasites - flies, cockroaches, fleas. Dried flowers can be sewn into gauze bags and placed next to the bed. As a preventive measure, keep things in your belongings during a trip.
Bagul or wild rosemary
This plant has a second name “bedbug”, confirming that its properties as a natural insecticide have been known among people for a very long time and have successfully stood the test of time. It has a strong aroma (this applies to both fresh and dry herbs), intolerable to bed bugs, which have a developed sense of smell. Therefore, the plant does not kill them, but forces them to leave the room.
The effect applies only to adult individuals; accordingly, wild rosemary cannot be removed for at least 2-3 weeks in order to get rid of not only the existing population, but also new individuals hatching from eggs and larvae at different stages of development.
When choosing wild rosemary to combat bed bugs, you need to take into account that the specific aroma affects not only them, but also people and pets. A high concentration of phytoncides often provokes persistent migraines, constant bouts of coughing and sneezing, and a sore throat, even in those who are usually not particularly sensitive to odors.
Remedy No. 9: Pyrethrum
When there were no chemical preparations for domestic parasites, housewives themselves prepared folk remedies for bedbugs at home. So they dried chamomile flowers, then ground them into powder.
He coped well with cockroaches, bedbugs, flies, fleas. Today you no longer need to prepare this unique remedy for so long; just buy Pyrethrum powder.
The active substances in the powder, upon contact with a parasitic insect, block the transmission of impulses along neurons between cells. Paralysis and death of the parasite occurs. Pyrethrum successfully fights ticks and helminths.
Benefits of Pyrethrum:
- nice smell;
- active ingredients do not cause addiction to bed bugs;
- environmentally friendly product;
- successfully fights parasitic insects, but is safe for humans and pets;
- disintegrates in the light, residues that are not completely removed will not pose a danger to children and pets;
- ease of use;
- acts on other domestic parasites - bird eaters, fleas, mosquitoes, cockroaches, garden pests.
Peretrum decomposes quickly, so it should be re-treated. It only helps with a small number of domestic parasites. The powder is scattered in places where insects accumulate.
To penetrate hard-to-reach places, you need to take a rubber bulb, pour powder into it, and spray it with its help. 23 g of the drug must be used per square meter.
Peretrum can be diluted with water in a small volume. Treat furniture, window sills, door and window openings with the solution. The powder is not an allergen. But if you have an allergic reaction to plant pollen, it is better to carry out the treatment while wearing a protective mask.
Buying Peretrum is difficult. Not every pharmacy sells bedbug repellent. There is this remedy for human health. It is not suitable for controlling parasites. You need to look in specialized stores and on Internet sites.
Bedbug harm to humans
Here are the problems the proximity to this synanthrope causes:
- psychological discomfort, irritability, nervousness, sleep disturbance, aggressive behavior;
- traces of blood on bed linen, unpleasant odor, waste from the pest;
- the likelihood of becoming infected with the hepatitis B virus, smallpox, tuberculosis, anthrax;
- allergic reaction to an insect bite.
Bedbugs in the house make life unbearable. It is a dubious pleasure to fall asleep in bed, knowing that at night a blood-sucking insect will crawl into it and dig into the skin with its jaw apparatus.
For people, the appearance of bedbugs is a real stress. Owners of infested homes do not understand where the pests came from, because the house is perfectly clean. But bedbugs are not cockroaches that are attracted to a dirty trash can. They search for people and animals by smell, because blood is their only food. Blood-sucking parasites are not interested in food, garbage, wood, processed leather, etc. They also don't need any blood spilled. Plasma and formed elements enter the esophagus only under pressure, so they need a living person or animal for nutrition.
Insects are small, tenacious, and hide well, so getting into a house is not difficult for them. The pest comes to you along with purchased items, clothes and furniture, comes in luggage from a business trip or vacation, crawls from neighbors who started the treatment. Having settled in a place where there are all conditions for feeding and reproduction, the bug will never leave voluntarily. They can only be destroyed or forced to leave the shelter. And for this you will need disinfestation agents.
Remedy No. 10: boric acid
This acid is an odorless white powder. It is not poisonous to warm-blooded animals, but poses a threat to insects. Often used to kill cockroaches and ants. The advantages of boric acid are low price and availability.
Bedbugs do not eat boric acid, so you will have to provide direct contact with boric acid to kill them. There are different ways to do this. You can sprinkle discovered bedbug nests with boric acid, sprinkle all baseboards and folds of upholstered furniture. You should only use dry powder.
This application has many disadvantages. We have to hope that the bugs will pass through the boric acid and die from such contact. Such an accident will not contribute to reducing the number of these creatures.
"Disadvantages" of using boric acid:
- long period of destruction;
- low efficiency;
- does not affect eggs and larvae;
- inaccuracy of the method of influence;
- powder constantly scattered in all places that cannot be removed.
Boric acid can be used as a means of controlling bedbugs if no other drugs are available. For a small population, the powder can cope.
Disadvantages of using folk remedies
There is no single recipe for how to remove bedbugs from an apartment on your own. Everyone uses the method that suits their situation. Any remedy has strengths and weaknesses. The disadvantages of folk remedies include their weak impact.
Often they will not kill the pest, but will only scare it away. But even with the use of chemical toxic substances, after a certain time, parasites can again appear in the apartment.
Another disadvantage is the strong pungent odor, but it is one of the ways to influence pests. This can be avoided, since you can constantly ventilate the room.
Rarely does any folk method destroy larvae and eggs. Their protective shell is susceptible only to strong chemicals. Eggs left behind will continue the existence of a colony of house bugs.
Reviews
“I always believed that only specialists could remove these parasites from the apartment. But it turns out that you don’t need to pay other people so much, all you had to do was ask around and find a couple of recipes for getting rid of bedbugs! Pests are no longer a concern. Everything went with a bang.”
Ekaterina, Stavropol
“On the eve of the holidays we noticed bedbugs. They didn’t know what to do, so they turned to the Internet for help. The folk method of treating with kerosene provided overwhelming help. We celebrated with friends, so leaving the apartment for two days was not a problem. The insects were gone. I recommend."
Marina, Moscow
Combining folk and chemical means of struggle
A good way to destroy blood-sucking parasites is a combination of traditional methods and modern chemical means of control. When domestic pests appear in the house, you should not wait for the population to multiply to unusual sizes.
To forget about bedbugs, you must first treat them with a modern chemical preparation. It must precisely destroy all adults and larvae with eggs. According to the instructions, such processing must be carried out more than once.
Next, you need to use folk wisdom to begin preventing the reappearance of pests. If they appeared once, it is possible that they will wake up the next time they appear. For example, use essential oils in the house, arrange dried herbs.
Since it is not easy to get rid of them, you need to combine all known methods. Bedbugs develop a habit of using only one product, so using one product for a long time is ineffective.
