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1. Smell: Bed bugs emit “alarm” pheromones in response to being threatened or disturbed. These pheromones produce certain odours that may smell slightly sweet or musty. The smell is described as somewhat similar to raspberries, coriander, or almonds.
2. Bites: Bed bugs are considered nocturnal insects that prefer to feed on our blood while we sleep. Therefore, their bites typically appear on skin that is exposed during the night. The most common places where people get bitten are the arms, hands, and legs.
3. Blood stains on sheets: After a bed bug becomes engorged with blood, its original flat, seed-like appearance changes into a round, bloated form resembling a tiny football. If you suddenly move or shift your body in your sleep, you might inadvertently crush or squeeze a bed bug that just finished feeding.
4. Faecal Marks: Tiny, dark brown or black spots around the size of a pen tip. Compared to the bloodstains that we described above, bed bug fecal marks (also called “faecal spotting”) are much smaller and darker. These small, dark spots resemble an ink dot from the tip of a pen or marker. Their average size is about 2 to 4 times larger than a fullstop at the end of this sentence. Faecal marks come from bed bug droppings, which consist of digested human blood. The digested blood appears dark brown or black in color and, because it contains iron, will give off a faint, rusty smell that contributes to the overall unpleasant odour of a bed bug infestation.
5. Eggs: Pregnant female bed bugs lay between 1-7 eggs per day, which typically hatch in the next 7-10 days.In terms of appearance, bed bug eggs are about 1 millimetre long, pearly white in colour, and ovular in shape. They resemble tiny grains of rice that are miniaturised to the size of a pinhead.Eggs are visible to the naked eye, but they can be difficult to recognise unless you know what you’re looking for. At the end of each egg is a hinged cap, which is where the newly hatched beg bug emerges from. Bed bug eggs that are more than 5 days old have a darkened eye spot — however, this can only be seen under a microscope 
6. Shell Casings: If you find bed bug shell casings, also known as husks or shed skins, there’s a very high probability that you have bed bugs. Abandoned shell casings are a reliable early sign of a growing bed bug infestation. Shell casings are translucent, hollow outlines of juvenile bed bugs, and they’re often easier to find than the bed bugs themselves. They can be found anywhere that bed bugs hatch and breed — check mattress seams, upholstered furniture, and in holes, cracks, and crevices within wooden furniture.

If you already suspect you have bed bugs and you discover yellowish, translucent shells in common bed bug hiding places, then you should consider a professional pest control inspection as the infestation may be beyond home remedies.
Manor Carpet Clean are registered pest controllers and hold current and relevant licences to handle and use pesticides. These treatments should be used as a last resort. More information here