Bed bugs: confirm before you treat

Signs worth checking

• Live flat, reddish-brown bugs around mattress seams, bed frames or nearby cracks.
• Dark fecal spotting, shed skins or pale eggs in harborages.
• Bites that appear after sleep can be a clue, but they are not diagnostic.
• New activity after travel or bringing used furniture into the home.

What to do first

1. Reduce clutter around the sleeping area without moving infested items through the home.
2. Inspect mattress seams, the bed frame, headboard, nearby furniture and cracks with a bright light.
3. Bag washable textiles before moving them; use laundering and heat steps appropriate to the item.
4. Use encasements or interceptors when appropriate to improve monitoring and reduce hiding opportunities.
5. Do not start random pesticide treatment until you have a credible identification and a plan.

Why professional help is often efficient

Bed bugs hide deeply, can spread between rooms and are easy to transport accidentally. CDC notes that early detection and eradication can make infestations easier to control. For a confirmed infestation, especially in multi-unit housing, professional treatment is often the most reliable route.

Avoid making the infestation harder to treat

• Do not move unbagged bedding or furniture from an infested room into clean rooms.
• Do not discard furniture impulsively without considering how it will be wrapped, marked or transported.
• Do not rely on total-release foggers as a shortcut for hidden harborages.
• Do not sleep in a different room solely to escape bites if that is likely to spread the infestation to a new sleeping area.

Monitoring after treatment

Use interceptors, inspections and a consistent sleeping-area setup to look for new evidence. Bed bug control can require repeated treatment cycles because eggs and hidden bugs may survive an initial action. A professional plan should explain how follow-up is measured.

Travel prevention

When staying away from home, inspect sleeping areas before unpacking, keep luggage off the bed and consider checking luggage and clothing before bringing items back into sleeping areas. Bed bugs spread largely by hitchhiking in belongings.