How do you get bed bugs? These tiny blood suckers are great hitch-hikers, meaning you can pick them up visiting a neighbor’s home, staying at a hotel, or buying a couch at a thrift store.
Knowing how bed bugs spread from home to home, room to room, and right to your mattress can reduce your chances of an infestation.
Bed bug infestations are difficult to manage, and treatment can be expensive. A severe infestation can temporarily force you out of your home. Check out our section below where we ask the experts, for more insights into these pests.
How Bed Bugs Enter Your Home
A single bed bug can cause a severe infestation in your home. Bed bugs will cling onto anything that transports them to new locations. If you’re traveling, an easy way to pick up a bed bug is in a hotel, motel, or college dorm room.
If the place you’re visiting has bed bugs, then a single bed bug can get on your clothes, in your luggage, or inside your purse. Bring those items back to your home, and you bring with you the bed bug.
Visiting thrift shops, shopping at yard sales, or buying used furniture are other ways you may accidentally bring a bed bug to your home. These blood suckers may infest used items, such as clothes, couches, or mattresses, without you knowing it.
You may even contract bed bugs from other people’s homes. If your neighbor happens to have an infestation in their home, they may carry a single bed bug when they pop over for a visit. You may even attract a bed bug while sitting on your neighbor’s couch. Your child may bring home a bed bug on their clothes or bedding after a sleepover at an infested house.
Crowded living conditions in apartment complexes are another cause of bed bugs spreading. If the neighbors you share a wall with have bed bugs, their infestation may become your problem.
What is the First Sign of Bed Bugs?
The first sign of bed bugs is not a bite. Bed bug bites can be easily mistaken for common rashes or other insect bites (See: Bed Bug Bites or Mosquito Bites?), and some people may show no sign or have any reaction to a bed bug’s bite.
Here’s another reason why an insect bite is not enough to assume you have an infestation: According to the University of California Agriculture & Natural Resources program, bed bugs can go between 20 to 400 days without feeding.
There can be many signs of a bed bug infestation in your home. Finding an actual bed bug is a significant sign, because if you find one, there are bound to be many more.
To accurately identify a bed bug, it’s essential to know what one looks like. (And don’t be confused by other bugs that look like bed bugs.) Otherwise, you’ll pay for an expensive bed bug treatment that doesn’t target the pest infesting your home.
Other signs of bed bugs include eggs, feces, or molted skin. Bed bug eggs are about the size of a pinhead, are pearl-white, and stick to surfaces. Bed bug fecal matter is partially digested blood and will appear in clusters of tiny spots. Their feces soak into surfaces and leave behind a black dot, almost like ink from a marker tip.
Bed bugs shed their skin and leave behind a translucent skin shell. The shell looks like an actual bed bug, but empty. These left-behind skins appear in different sizes, depending on the life stage of the bed bug.
Finally, be on the lookout for any blood spots, mainly when checking your bed. Crushing a bed bug in your sleep will cause the bed bug to burst and leave behind a small bloodstain.
How Fast Do Bed Bugs Spread?
There is no universal speed at which bed bugs spread. Every infestation is different. Infestations do take time to grow before they become large in numbers. Below are factors that can help determine an estimated rate of infestation and ways these pests may be spreading within your home.
Bed bugs…
Reproduce like rabbits
The bed bug that will cause the worst spread damage is a female that has recently mated. A single mated female with regular access to blood meals can cause an infestation without a male present. Although the female will eventually run out of the male’s sperm, bed bugs can mate with their offspring to further the infestation.
The Virginia Cooperative Extension has a detailed description of how bed bugs produce and multiply in numbers via reproduction. After a single blood meal, a female will produce 1-7 eggs per day for about 10 days. To lay more eggs, she’ll need another blood meal. In total, she will lay between 5 to 20 eggs per blood meal. In her lifetime, which is about one year, she will produce approximately 140 eggs.
Keep in mind that a female can lay her egg anywhere in the room. One day she may lay eggs in your mattress, and the next, she may leave her eggs in your bedside table drawer. Within nine days, 90% of her eggs will hatch, doubling the bed bug population every 16 days.
Travel through walls
Bed bugs can slowly spread from room to room through cracks in the walls. The width of a bed bug is about the same as the thickness of a credit card. Any crack that your credit card can fit through, a bed bug likely can enter.
Hitch a ride on you
You unknowingly spread bed bugs within your home. If your bed is infested, a bed bug may hitch a ride on you to the couch in your living room. Furniture with seams or cushions makes a great hiding place for these pests. Even your office chair may be home to an infestation. Bed bugs may cling to your clothes, the sheets as you carry them to the laundry room, or even a miscellaneous household item such as a remote control.
Crawl from room to room
Bed bugs can’t jump or fly, but they can crawl along surfaces as fast as an ant. Though not as helpful as hitching a ride, crawling to a new hiding place is another way these pests spread their infestation.
Ask The Experts
- What is the biggest misconception people have about bed bugs getting into the home?
- What advice do you have for people visiting motels or hotels on how to prevent bringing a bed bug back to the house?
- How can homeowners safely bring clothes from a flea market or thrift shop into the home to help avoid bringing in bed bugs?
- What are some other tips you have for homeowners on keeping bed bugs out of the house?
1. What is the biggest misconception people have about bed bugs getting into the home?
One of the biggest misconceptions is that bed bugs are associated with unclean conditions. Bed bugs are present in different areas because their hosts are nearby.
2. What advice do you have for people visiting motels or hotels on how to prevent bringing a bed bug back to the house?
When people are traveling, we suggest that they put their luggage case in the bathtub or shower upon arrival. This is because bed bugs are not able to climb smooth surfaces very well.
Then, they should conduct a visual inspection for bed bugs in the bed, the surrounding area, and in cracks or cervices around the bed area. Under the lamp or clock on the nightstand would be good to check as well.
3. How can homeowners safely bring clothes from a flea market or thrift shop into the home to help avoid bringing in bed bugs?
Often times, flea markets and thrift shops are aware of the potential that incoming items may have bed bugs.
A thorough inspection of anything you are purchasing will help ensure that you are not intentionally acquiring bed bugs. Washing and drying any clothing with hot water and high heat will kill any bugs on the clothes.
4. What are some other tips you have for homeowners on keeping bed bugs out of the house?
My tips for homeowners for bed bug prevention are to:
- Know what bed bugs look like
- Know their signs
- Conduct inspections for them when traveling or purchasing second-hand items.
These tips can help you avoid them while traveling or when thrifting.
1. What is the biggest misconception people have about bed bugs getting into the home?
People worry most when they are traveling, but bed bugs can be readily acquired via everyday activities. Secondhand furniture, especially used bed frames, box springs, mattresses, sofas, and bedside tables may introduce established and breeding bed bug populations to your home.
Bed bugs may be acquired while riding public transportation, visiting the library, or waiting in a medical office. Visitors to your home may bring infested personal items such as backpacks and purses.
Bed bugs may enter your home on their own if you live in a multi-unit dwelling (such as an apartment building or hotel) that includes shared walls and utility conduits).
2. What advice do you have for people visiting motels or hotels on how to prevent bringing a bed bug back to the house?
Do a five-minute inspection of the room before unpacking. Pay special attention to the bed platform, the headboard, the bedside tables, the luggage rack, and any artwork or wall hangings near the bed. Look for bugs and their signs. If you see anything at all, request a different room.
After you clear the room with a quick inspection, avoid placing belongings in drawers or cubbies: keep folded clothes in your luggage or on hangers in the closet and keep soiled clothes in a sealed bag.
Consider keeping luggage in or near the bathroom on a tiled surface (more difficult for bed bugs to traverse).
Review this travel inspection tutorial video. Back at home, promptly wash and dry all travel clothing using the hot setting. Store luggage in the garage or a closet far from bedrooms; consider storing luggage in a sealed bag.
3. How can homeowners safely bring clothes from a flea market or thrift shop into the home to help avoid bringing in bed bugs?
Household washers and dryers will reliably disinfest clothing items, killing all bed bug life stages (even eggs), provided the “hot” settings are employed.
4. What are some other tips you have for homeowners on keeping bed bugs out of the house?
Know what bed bugs and their signs look like, know where bed bugs may be found, and be vigilant. Review the UC IPM “Bed Bugs” Pest Notes.
1. What is the biggest misconception people have about bed bugs getting into the home?
Prof. Nair: My house is spotlessly clean, so I will never get bed bugs.
More: Bed bugs can fly into your home from a neighbor’s house.
2. What advice do you have for people visiting motels or hotels on how to prevent bringing a bed bug back to the house?
Prof. Nair: Always place all your luggage and personal items in the bathtub of your room when you enter. Inspect the room (or at least the bed if you’re in a hurry) for signs of bed bugs (fecal or blood stains or shed skins on mattresses, mattress covers and bedding, along sides of bed frame, on furniture or wall hangings; and along baseboards).
If you find any signs, try to get a different hotel or at least a different room.
Once the inspection is complete, try to place your items as far as possible on non-upholstered items of furniture.
When leaving, always pack clothes and items used during your stay separately in a plastic bag.
When back home, leave luggage outside. Unpack straight into the washer, or at least run your items through a drying cycle in your clothes dryer.
3. How can homeowners safely bring clothes from a flea market or thrift shop into the home to help avoid bringing in bed bugs?
Prof. Nair: Always inspect second-hand items of clothing as thoroughly as possible at the store. Be sure to inspect all over the outside and as far inside seams and folds, hems, and linings as you possibly can.
Once home, wash and dry items that are washable before using them. For items that cannot be washed, freeze them in your household freezer for 3–4 days, or leave them items outside the house for at least a week before using.
Prof. Gouge: Yes, but I avoid bed mattresses completely.
4. What are some other tips you have for homeowners on keeping bed bugs out of the house?
Prof. Nair: Get educated about bed bugs, their appearance in different stages, their biology, and their behavior. Gather information from credible sources, such as Cooperative Extension and universities. This goes a long way in recognizing and preventing bed bugs from entering your home.
Realize that bed bugs are real, and the cleanest home or person can accidentally get bed bugs.
If your home is infested, it is possible to eradicate them completely by following instructions from your bed bug service provider and cooperating with them. Do not carry out your own do-it-yourself treatments if you are undergoing a treatment protocol for bed bugs — this can interfere with the providers’ treatments and make them ineffective.
Once treatment is complete, always be aware of bed bugs and follow steps to prevent a re-infestation.
1. What is the biggest misconception people have about bed bugs getting into the home?
In my opinion, the greatest misconception about bed bugs is that they are related to or caused by a lack of cleanliness. Bed bugs can be a problem in a variety of environments, from luxury hotels to public transportation, and can be introduced into the home by several means, such as in luggage, on clothing, or in furniture.
2. What advice do you have for people visiting motels or hotels on how to prevent bringing a bed bug back to the house?
People visiting hotels can take several steps to prevent bringing bed bugs back with them. You can leave suitcases or bags in the bathroom or close to the door while inspecting the luggage rack and pulling back the sheets to inspect the seams of the mattress for signs of an infestation (live or dead bed bugs, cast skins, fecal “spotting”).
In general, try to avoid placing bags on upholstered surfaces, such as the sofa or armchairs, and instead opt for the luggage rack or tables.
3. How can homeowners safely bring clothes from a flea market or thrift shop into the home to help avoid bringing in bed bugs?
Temperatures above 122 degrees Fahrenheit kill all bed bug life stages, including eggs. Running secondhand clothing through a ‘high’ cycle on a clothes dryer is sufficient to kill any bed bugs on clothing.
4. What are some other tips you have for homeowners on keeping bed bugs out of the house?
You can store luggage in the garage and inspect the outside and inside of bags when you return home for any bed bugs. Clothing that was inside can be run through the clothes drying to kill any potential bed bugs as well.
When to Call a Bed Bug Exterminator
Getting rid of a bed bug infestation is a challenge. These pests are persistent, and it’s hard to know if you’ve treated all infested areas. Leave a single bed bug unscathed, and you could be looking at a whole new reinfestation.
When dealing with bed bugs, it’s essential to call a bed bug exterminator near you. A professional bed bug exterminator can offer solutions to help get these blood suckers out of your home.
Main Image Credit: AFPMB / Flickr / Public Domain
