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Before anyone ever ends up with bed bugs in the first place, they get in through the front door somehow. In apartments and motels, it’s possible for bed bugs to spread themselves from one room to the next over a long period. But the vast majority of the time, they get help–from you. By nature, bed bugs aren’t wanderers. They’re hitchhikers. They’re happiest when we do all the dirty work for them. That’s why the best way to deal with bed bug outbreaks is to prevent them from ever happening in the first place. And to do that, first you have to understand: How do you get bed bugs?
As we’ve said, bed bugs are hitchhikers, so it makes sense that traveling is THE major source of bed bugs. Usually, travelers pick up bed bugs in the hotels or hostels where they stay. Keep in mind, bed bugs aren’t like lice–they don’t want to hang out on your body. While they’ve been found in the clothing currently being worn by someone, chances are that the bed bug was there before the item of clothing was put on.
We know that bed bugs tend to infest mattresses and pieces of furniture. Consequently, the majority of bed bug cases start when you walk into your room at a hotel, motel, or hostel, and set your luggage, purse, or loose clothing on a bed or a chair. If you want to be as safe as possible, don’t set anything down. Instead, look for a metal luggage rack, or a closet with hangers where you can hang your luggage and bagging. If you use a closet, look around the corners of the closet, as well as on the hangers themselves, and make sure that they’re clean. Then, hang your things in the closet. If a closet isn’t available, or you can’t hang up your luggage, find a clean, smooth, easily inspected surface. A bathroom counter, the lid of a toilet , or even the bathtub will work well, as any bed bugs will be immediately noticeable.
Once you have your belongings safely stowed, check the furniture. Pay special attention to the bed, the headboard, and any upholstered chairs. Strip the bed and look in the seams of the mattress, check under the mattress, and where the bed meets the wall. Then check over the furniture, especially couches and chairs. Look in any nook or cranny in or behind a cushion or chair arm.
Look for evidence of bed bugs, eggs, shed skins, or bed bug poop. Sometimes, their feces are the easiest to spot, as they aren’t terribly picky about where they go to the bathroom. Bed bug feces is usually dark brown or even black, and can look like a small dot, or a smear if something has brushed against it.
If you see ANY sign of bed bugs, don’t stick around. Collect your belongings–which, if you’ve checked carefully where you set them, should still be bed bug free–and place everything back in your car, if available. If you’re traveling without a vehicle, take your belongings to the office, and find a clean area in which you can set them down. Ask for a manager, and report what you’ve found. If you are at a hostel or small motel, it’s advisable to find another business entirely at which to stay. If it’s a large or higher end hotel, the manager should be inclined to handle the issue to your satisfaction. Do NOT stay in or near a room with bed bugs.
But the best way to avoid bed bugs is to do research ahead of time. See our page on avoiding bed bugs for valuable tools that will come in handy when you’re planning your next vacation.
If you discover that you’ve stayed in a room with bed bugs, please see our page on how to kill bed bugs on clothing and other items.
Sometimes, you aren’t the one who brings unsavory strangers home to stay the night. When your mother flies across the country to visit, or your neighborhood buddies walk over for poker night, they may unknowingly be bringing bed bugs from their home to yours. Visitors who are staying for a few days tend to more easily transfer bed bugs, as luggage bags are a major culprit for bed bug transportation. However, even a coat or purse belonging to somebody with an infected household can carry bed bugs or their eggs.
Obviously, it’s probably not socially acceptable to make all visitors stand in your super-duper 120 degree heat tank for five minutes before they step into your home. This is where social awareness comes into play. Encourage your friends and family to keep an eye out for bed bugs in their own homes. Help others understand that a problem too important to ignore, and that it’s their responsibility to ensure that they don’t act as a taxi service for bed bugs. Just as it’s rude for somebody to come to work with a bad cold, it isn’t thoughtful to ignore the signs of a bed bug infestation, and end up creating a bedbugtastrophe.
Bed bugs love Craigslist. It’s just about the best thing ever, as far as bed bugs are concerned. There’s a reason why college dorms across the country–and apartments in college towns–regularly get raging infestations that look like Bed Bug Woodstock. Bed bugs can hitch a ride on just about every secondhand item that you could possibly sell on Craigslist. Many a thrift-minded individual has succumbed to the siren’s song of a used mattress or piece of particle board furniture bearing a hand-lettered sign reading “FREE,” only to discover that things which are free can come at a steep cost.
If you absolutely, positively cannot help but scavenge for discounted and free furniture, do a careful visual inspection first. If there’s absolutely any sign of bed bugs, bed bug eggs, or bed bug poop, immediately head in the other direction. And never buy used mattresses, as it’s impossible to be 100% sure that a mattress is free of bed bugs. Even if the outside is perfectly clean, small cuts or tears can allow bed bugs to hide out of view. Many a home has been ruined by a Trojan Mattress.
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