Look at the mattress seams before you put your bag down

You walk into a room where you will sleep, and the bag goes down on the bed. Bed bugs travel in luggage, clothes, bedding and furniture, the EPA says, and it says finding them early is far cheaper and easier than treating a problem that has spread.

When you arrive anywhere you will sleep, look at the mattress seams and the headboard before you unpack, keep your bag off the bed and the floor, and put your clothes in a hot dryer when you get home.

This page is for a hotel, a rental, a dorm, a shelter or a friend’s spare room, and for the moment you find something. If you already have bed bugs at home, the section on what makes things worse matters most to you.

What to look for, and where

Many people say to look at the bed first, as soon as you walk in: pull back the sheets and look at the mattress seams, the headboard and the covers before you put anything down. The EPA says to check the mattress and the headboard before sleeping, and to check the luggage rack too. North Carolina State University’s extension service says to start closest to the bed and work outward, because bed bugs gather nearest to the people they feed on, and to check the seams of the box spring and the bed frame as well.

The EPA says the signs are rusty or reddish stains on sheets or the mattress, dark spots about the size of a pen dot that can bleed into fabric like a marker (the bugs’ droppings), tiny pale eggs about 1 mm long, the pale skins young bugs shed, and live bugs. It says they hide near the piping, seams and tags of the mattress and box spring, and in cracks in the bed frame and headboard. They are flat enough that, in the EPA’s words, a crack that would hold a credit card could hide one. The University of Minnesota says adults are oval, flat, brown and wingless, about a quarter to three-eighths of an inch (5 to 9 mm) long. One person suggests a phone light in a dark room and a sticky lint roller run over the mattress, which they say catches bugs more easily than looking at the fabric.

Bites are a poor guide. The EPA says bed bug bites can look like mosquito bites, rashes or hives, and that some people do not react at all. The University of California says finding the bugs or their signs is the only way to confirm them. The EPA also says other insects, such as carpet beetles, are easily mistaken for bed bugs, and that a US reader who finds something can take a sample to a local extension agent, who can identify it at no cost.

If the mattress is inside a zipped cover, called an encasement, North Carolina State says that is a bed bug precaution and not a sign of a problem. It says not to open it, because it is hard to reseal properly, and to tell the management if it is torn.

Where to put your bag

North Carolina State says not to put luggage on the bed or on the floor near it. It says a folding luggage stand is not bed-bug-proof and should be checked, especially where the webbing wraps round the frame. Its other options are a white or light-coloured plastic bag, so you can see any insect, or the bathtub, because bed bugs find it harder to climb slick surfaces than fabric. Some people say the same: bag in the bathtub or on a hard surface such as the bathroom counter, not on the carpet. The EPA says to use the luggage rack rather than the bed or floor.

If you find signs

The University of California says that if you suspect bed bugs in a hotel, you should change rooms or hotels, and inspect your luggage before you leave. North Carolina State says to tell the owner or manager at once, and not to try to control it yourself, least of all with a pesticide, which could harm your health, make the problem worse and lead to legal trouble. Spraying also does not make you any less likely to take bed bugs home with you, it says. If you have already unpacked, it says to put clothes and other items back in your luggage or in plastic bags, seal the bags with tape or a knot, and put the luggage in bags too. If you are still worried about your body, it suggests a shower with ordinary soap and shampoo and a thorough comb or brush of your hair. It says not to put insecticide on your clothes, skin or hair, because bed bugs do not stay on a person the way head lice do.

The University of California lists hotels, homeless shelters, furnished apartments and dormitories as places at higher risk, and says the managers of such places need to train staff to spot bed bugs and act as soon as they find them. That is the reason to tell the staff or the manager rather than treat anything yourself.

When you get home

The EPA says to unpack straight into a washing machine, and that time in a dryer at high temperature is what kills bed bugs, while washing alone will generally not. North Carolina State says to open luggage only where you can see what comes out, such as outdoors, in a garage or in the bathtub, to put washable clothes into a plastic bag and then straight into the dryer, and to keep clothes in sealed bags until then, not in piles on the floor. Some people say a hot wash and a high-heat dry are an effective way to kill the bugs and their eggs. The EPA and the University of California say to store suitcases away from the bedroom, and the EPA says never under the bed. If your laundry is shared, the EPA says to carry it in plastic bags and take it out of the dryer straight into a bag, with a new bag for the trip home if you have an active infestation. One person warns that taking infested laundry to a shared laundry room can spread bugs to others.

What makes it worse

The EPA says the following can harm you, waste money or both.

• Rubbing alcohol, kerosene and gasoline can ignite. The EPA says alcohol has caused numerous house fires when used on bed bugs. One person suggested alcohol on luggage after a trip, and another warned that 91% alcohol is a fire hazard; the EPA’s advice agrees with the warning.
• Foggers, or bug bombs. The EPA says a fogger’s spray must touch the bug to kill it and will not reach the cracks where bed bugs hide, so a fogger should not be your only method. It says to use one only with extreme care, only if bed bugs are on its label, only as many as your space needs, with pilot lights off and appliances unplugged, and to stay out for the time on the label. North Carolina State says research shows foggers are largely ineffective for treating items you suspect.
• Carbon dioxide, propane, helium or other gases to kill the bugs, even inside a sealed bag. The EPA says these can cause dangerously low oxygen or an explosion.
• A pesticide made for outdoors, used indoors. The EPA says this can make your home dangerous and uninhabitable.
• Buying pesticide from a street vendor or a flea market, or using it on your skin or on your bed, clothes or furniture if the label does not list them.
• Pool-grade or food-grade diatomaceous earth, as the FAQ explains.
• Heating the room with a space heater or a fireplace, which the EPA says has burned down homes.
• Spraying again and again whenever you see a bug. The EPA says this is unlikely to clear an infestation and can make bugs resistant.
• Throwing out a bed or couch before the problem is under control. One person warns that this can push bugs deeper into floorboards. The EPA says not to throw furniture away if you can safely clear the bugs from it, and, if you must, to damage it and mark it as infested so that nobody takes it home.
• Cardboard boxes. One person says they are a major risk and to switch to plastic containers; the EPA’s page on preparing for treatment says to get rid of cardboard boxes and use plastic ones.

Some people say a professional who uses a detection dog is more reliable and in the end cheaper than buying one product after another that does not work. The EPA says a company that does not follow integrated pest management may charge less but is far less likely to succeed, and that you should look for one with experience of bed bugs that gives a follow-up inspection and repeat treatments if needed. One person says a second treatment is needed because eggs hatch within about two weeks; the EPA says you may need to repeat its steps more than once.

If you have bed bugs now, the EPA suggests making the bed an island before any treatment, by you or by a professional: move the bed at least 6 inches (15 cm) from the wall, fit zipped bed bug covers on the mattress and box spring, tuck the bedding in so none of it touches the floor, put an interceptor under each bed leg, and keep nothing under the bed. One person recommends covers and interceptors for the same reason: they stop bugs reaching you at night even if some are in the room.

If you rent

In the US, the EPA says that once an extension agent or other expert confirms the bugs are bed bugs, you should tell your landlord if you live in an apartment, because nearby units should be inspected, and that you should keep notes of the dates and places where you find bugs. In England, Shelter says to tell your landlord as soon as you notice a pest problem, and that if they do not act you could get advice from the council’s pest control team, or complain to the council and ask for an inspection. Shelter says not to stop paying rent; if you pay for pest control yourself and want the money taken off your rent, try to agree a rent reduction instead, and you could claim compensation for disruption and damage to your things. This page could not check the rules for Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, so Shelter Scotland, Shelter Cymru and Housing Rights in Northern Ireland are the places to ask. A free legal-aid or tenant advice service is the door before you pay a bill or sign anything about who is responsible.

Bites

The NHS says bed bug bites can be raised and itchy, often in a line or a group, and on brown and black skin may look brown, red or purple and be harder to see. It says they usually clear up on their own in a week or so, not to scratch, that a pharmacist can advise on mild steroid cream or antihistamines, and to see a GP if they are still very painful, swollen or itchy after treatment or if the pain or swelling is spreading, which may be an infection. It says children under 10 and pregnant women should ask a doctor before using hydrocortisone cream. The NHS says bites do not usually cause other health problems, and that a severe allergic reaction is possible but rare: call 999 (UK) or 911 (US) if the lips, mouth, throat or tongue suddenly swell, breathing is very fast or a struggle, the throat feels tight, or someone faints and cannot be woken. The University of California says bed bugs have never been shown to transmit human disease. The NHS says it is very difficult to get rid of bed bugs yourself and to contact your local council or a pest control service if you think you have them.

Who this page is not for

If you already have an infestation and need a plan for treating it, this page gives you the things not to do and the people to call, not the whole job. If your worry is bites alone, the University of California says finding the bugs or their signs is the only way to confirm the cause. If you bought secondhand clothes or a mattress, there is a page here called Secondhand clothes: the bed-bug protocol. And if worry about bed bugs is taking over your sleep or your days, a doctor is the right person to tell; one person describes the distress as worse than the bites, and some people say the worry can last for years after an infestation. The check on this page takes a minute a stay.