If you find bed bugs in your elderly parent's home, take immediate action to eliminate the pests now. Bed bugs can inflict multiple painful bites during the night. If your loved one has a weakened immune system, blood disorder, or another serious condition, bed bug bites can be dangerous for them. Learn how to fight the pests in your loved one's home with the exterminating tips below.

Move Your Loved One Out of the Home

If your loved one still resides in the home, relocate them immediately. Many older people suffer from frail or fragile skin that damages very easily. If your loved one scratches their skin too much, it can become severely infected. Germs can enter the open wounds and infect or poison your loved one's blood.

When you relocate your elderly parent, don't allow them to take anything out the home, including clothing, shoes, and personal items. Bed bugs are small and flat enough to hide in these items. Instead, purchase your loved one a few items to wear and use until they can return home safely. 

Once the home's clear, wash and dry every item your loved one owns in very hot water for 30 minutes or more. The water's temperature should be about 140 degrees F in order to eradicate the bugs, their young, and their eggs. Prior to cleaning your loved one's items, sort and place the clothing in their own storage bag or sealed container. You can still place dry-clean-only items in the dryer to kill the bed bugs. 

You can use a strong household cleaner to sanitize and clean your loved one's knickknacks, dishes, and any other items you can't wash or dry in the laundry. If you experience any problems carrying out the tips above, have a bed bug exterminator visit the home right away.

Contact an Exterminator

An exterminator may use different methods to clear your loved one's house of bed bugs. Many pest control experts use insecticides to do the job. Other exterminators apply heat to the home. You can always ask an exterminator about their methods when you contact them.

It may also be necessary to remove and discard some items from the home, including furnishings that can't be cleaned or treated. Bed bug eggs can still lurk in these items and hatch later on in the future. Your loved one may face another invasion if this happens.

After an exterminator eliminates the bed bugs in the home, your loved one may return. A pest control contractor will provide instructions on how to prevent bed bugs in the future.

If bed bugs threaten to take over your elderly parent's house, call an exterminator for a bed bug removal appointment.