Natural Bed Bug Repellent
If you’re an environmentally conscious consumer, you may be looking for a natural bed bug repellent for your home. Here is a list of five different methods to repel bedbugs naturally. Many of these methods use household staples that you probably already have in your home.
Thoroughly Clean Your Room
You know the old saying, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Be sure to thoroughly clean all the soft surfaces in your home. Wash all clothes and bedding on the hottest setting the garments will tolerate to kill any bedbugs that may exist, and vacuum all other soft surfaces such as carpet and upholstery.
Seal all cracks and crevices to the exterior of your property to keep bedbugs outside where they belong. Make sure to inspect all new furniture, clothing, bedding, etc. when it arrives at your home. You wouldn’t be the first person to get bedbugs from the factory.
It should go without saying, but launder your clothes, take regular showers and vacuum your house multiple times per week. Cleanliness is an important factor when it comes to staying free of bedbugs.
Need Help Getting Rid of Bed Bugs? Try The Bed Bug Removal Hotline
Essential Oils Bed Bug Repellent
Essential oils are perhaps one of the most effective repellents as they can be used in a variety of ways. These include use through ionizers, which disperse the oil into their air, on the skin, or applied to furniture. The most potent oils for this include:
• Cinnamon Oil
* Lavender (which also promotes sleep)
• Rosemary
• Eucalyptus Oil
Other Homemade Remedies
Rubbing Alcohol
Careful, it’s flammable and evaporates quickly. There are better methods of bedbug removal, but a quick spray on an infested area can be a quick fix.
Baby Powder
Dries out and absorbs odors, most effective for ridding the smell of bedbugs after an infestation.
Black Walnut Tea
Place the tea bags in between your mattress and box spring.
Diatomaceous Earth
Dries out the bugs, stopping them in their tracks.
Dryer Sheets
Rub the furniture legs and frame, like essential oils, the bugs may be repelled by the scent.
Petroleum Jelly
Apply to the bed frame/legs of your bed
Other Methods
Here are some other useful tips.
Put double-sided tape on the frame and legs of your bed. This will catch any critters trying to crawl into the bed with you.
Don’t sleep with your bed on the floor. This makes it harder for the bugs to get to you. This includes pet beds as well. Make sure the bed is not flush with the wall.
There are devices called “interceptors.” These work to collect the bugs before they crawl up the legs of the bed frame. They look like small dishes that are placed under the legs of the bed frame.
When wrestling with bedbugs, the most important rule of thumb is cleanliness. Cleaning not only makes bedbugs easy to spot, it kills them as well. A vigilant eye is your most effective method for dealing with bedbugs naturally.
