Bed Bugs Removal

How Bed Bugs Travel (and How to Avoid Bringing Them Home with You)

If they weren’t so profoundly annoying, a bed bug’s ability to travel long distances would be impressive. Unlike other insects, bed bugs can’t jump from person to person or have wings, but don’t think that will slow them down.

Bed bugs are survival experts; they are extremely small, with an adult bed bug measuring in at less than 1/8 of an inch, and they can withstand very high and very low temperatures. What’s more, while a bed bug can feed once per day, it can also go months without eating at all. Combined, these skills make bed bug removal highly challenging, even for professionals.

Once bed bugs make their way into your house, they will waste no time making themselves at home. A female bedbug can lay several eggs per week and over 250 in their lifetime, so early bed bug removal is crucial, or you’ll quickly find yourself with a bed bug infestation.

Bed bugs feed on blood and like to stay as close as possible to their food source – you – and will often live near the bed. However, they can also be found in sofa cushions, the folds of curtains, underneath wallpaper, and around electrical outlets. And while bed bugs are often associated with travel, hitching a ride home with unsuspecting travellers isn’t the only way these pests like to get around.

Places You Can Pick Up Bed Bugs

Hotels, motels, and temporary accommodation for travellers are hotbeds for bed bugs. But even if you have no plans to travel, you can still unknowingly bring bed bugs into your home. That’s because bed bugs have an uncanny ability to hide in things like clothing, backpacks, and purses anytime you’re sitting still enough. So, where could you be picking up bed bugs?

  • In a taxi
  • At a movie theatre
  • On the bus
  • In an airport
  • From used furniture or clothing
  • From a hotel, motel, or temporary rental (like an Airbnb)

Steps you Can Take to Prevent a Bed Bug Infestation

The key to keeping your home bed bug free is to travel safely, remain vigilant, and take steps to stamp out an infestation as early as possible with prompt bed bug removal.

  • When travelling, quickly scan problem areas for bed bugs. These include:
    • Mattress, mattress cover, bedframe, and bedside table.
  • At a hotel, always use a luggage cart to keep your belongings off the floor
  • Regularly vacuum your home and keep the area around your bed tidy
  • Keep your mattress covered with a mattress protector
  • If you use a shared laundry, keep items in a bag, remove them promptly from the dryer and fold them at home.
  • Repair loose fixtures, outlets, and mouldings and seal open cracks and crevices

You’ll also want to keep watch for early signs of an infestation, including:

  • Reddish stains on your sheets or mattress
  • Eggshells or moulted skin
  • Poppy seed-sized dark spots (excrement)
  • Bed bug bites, small red marks that might be itchy or blister
  • Live bed bugs

If you suspect you might have a bed bug problem, immediate action and professional extermination is the only sure way to eliminate it.