Where Do Bed Bugs Hide in Your Home?
If you wake up to find itchy welts on your skin or blood stains on your sheets, there’s a good chance you have bed bugs. A question that we’re often asked is a simple one — where do bed bugs hide? There are actually several hiding spots where you can find these blood-sucking nuisances, so let’s take a look.
Mattress / Box Spring
Given their name, it’s probably obvious that the most common place for bed bugs to hide is your bed. In particular the mattress and box spring, because that’s where their blood meals spend a lot of time. Their favorite hiding spots in the mattress are the seams, but you might also find them grouped underneath. As for the box spring, they could be underneath or inside. This means you might have to take off the cover to find them. Also, you may want to check the bed frame and headboard as well.
Couch/Sofa/Chair
Bed bugs are also commonly found in couches/sofas and chairs. Due to the number of cracks and crevices in the wooden frame, they’re especially hard to locate. You may also find them in the seams of the cushions. If you think there may be some bed bugs in your couch or recliner, you’re going to have to dig a lot deeper. Chances are, if you have any hope of finding them, you’re going to need to flip the furniture upside down and look everywhere.
Clothes/Laundry
If you’re worried about having a bed bug infestation, then you should go through all of your clothes no matter where they are. Clothes and other laundry items such as linens and towels are the perfect place for bed bugs to hide. What often happens is that a bed bug will crawl into a folded piece of clothing and then get moved to a drawer or closet. Creepy, right?
Luggage
Whenever you go on a trip, you have to be especially careful because bed bugs can easily get inside your luggage. Although it isn’t too common for hotel rooms to have bed bugs, it’s always best that you don’t take the risk. When you arrive in a room, there’s no harm in giving it a quick inspection. The alternative is that you can carry mattress covers with you that are designed to prevent bed bugs from getting to you.
Backpacks
If you have students at home, this one could be a little bit disturbing. Not only do backpacks have a lot of folds and creases where bed bugs can hide, but people also tend to just throw their backpacks around and keep them wherever they land. Although a kid isn’t likely to pick up bed bugs at school. However, if they head over to a friend’s house, you should at least have them take a good look inside when they get home.
Moldings
Moldings are another very common bed bug hiding spot. It’s easy for the bugs to either sit along the molding or hide beneath it. When this happens, you’ll often find fecal matter in various spots along the molding. If you’re trying to look for signs of bed bugs, then you definitely want to move out the bed and check the moldings.
Electrical Outlets
A lot of people are surprised when they learn that bed bugs can hide within electrical outlets. This is why a lot of them get away with it. They’ll sometimes hide in the outlets is because they’re close to your bed, so those are the first ones you should check. With just a simple screwdriver and flashlight, you can take the faceplate off and get a good look inside.
Light Fixtures
It may sound weird to think that bed bugs could be hiding in your light fixtures, but it definitely happens. In fact, any spot in a light fixture or anywhere else your home where you can slide a credit card into is potentially a bed bug safe haven. If a light fixture are attached to the wall, you may want to unscrew it and look behind the plate.
Contact ProHealth Pest Control for Elimination of Bed Bugs
When you ask the question, where do bed bugs hide, you should basically consider almost everywhere they can squeeze into. If you think you have a problem with bed bugs, ProHealth Pest Control can visit your home for an inspection and then initiate a bed bug heat treatment as needed. Give us a call at (727) 310-0521 and we’ll get started today.
