Will Bed Bugs Follow You If You Move?
Bed bugs can turn every moment in your house into a waking nightmare, and that’s no exaggeration. Not only are their bites uncomfortable, but you cannot eradicate them easily, and they reproduce quickly. It’s even worse to deal with bed bugs when you are about to move. So, will bed bugs follow you if you move?
Bed bugs will follow you if you move to a new house without first eradicating them from your old house. That’s why you must hire an exterminator, wash your clothes and linens, and get rid of furniture that is still infested with bed bugs. Pack everything in airtight containers and check it all for bed bugs before you seal the container.
Make sure to check your pets for bed bugs when you move, as the pests can hide in an animal's fur and lay eggs. Follow along as we highlight the steps you must take to protect yourself and your new house from bed bugs when you move.
Do Bed Bugs Follow You When You Move?
Bed bugs can follow you when you move, and that’s a problem for many homeowners with bed bug infestations. They can cling to your pillows, linens, and mattress and survive the trip to your new house. Bed bugs can live for over a year if they have a consistent food source, so they may linger even after you’ve gotten rid of most of them.
Once they reach your new house, the bed bugs may start to reproduce. That’s the worst-case scenario, as the situation could quickly grow into an infestation. Female bed bugs can lay up to 500 eggs while they’re alive, and as many as 7 eggs per day.
The eggs are small, hard to detect, and hatch within a week in most cases. Because of that, you must eradicate the bed bugs before you move, or the problem will continue at your new house.
How To Move Without Bringing The Bed Bugs With You
The only way to move without bringing bed bugs with you is to exterminate them. It can be a stressful process, especially when you’re in the middle of moving, but it’s necessary. Let’s look at the steps you must take to ensure you don’t bring bed bugs with you when you move.
1. Hire An Exterminator
The best way to ensure you don’t bring bed bugs with you to your new house is to hire an exterminator. It can cost up to $4,000 to exterminate bed bugs in a large house, but the average cost is $2,000. That said, you can spend up to $500 or under for a standard insecticide treatment in a small house.
Fumigation may be necessary if you have a bed bug infestation that is out of control. In that case, you can expect to spend as much as $600 per room for fumigation. Luckily, you won’t have to spend nearly that much if the infestation is in its early stages in most cases.
While this can be a huge inconvenience before moving, it will help both you and the next homeowner or tenant. For example, a buyer may back out of the sale if they find out that your house is infested with bed bugs. Otherwise, they may simply require you to hire an exterminator before you move out.
2. Wash Your Linens And Clothes
Once you’ve hired an exterminator and aired the space out, you must wash your linens and clothes. Run your washing machine and dryer on high heat to make the biggest impact. Extreme heat can kill bed bugs and their eggs.
Specifically, heat of 140 degrees or higher can kill bed bugs. Inspect your clothes and linen, place them in air-tight plastic bags, and seal the bags. That way, any bed bugs that could have survived won’t be able to get into the bags and make their way to your new house.
Many homeowners even lay their sheets on their beds and vacuum them. The suction is strong enough to quickly remove the bed bugs. It’s also a good idea to vacuum your mattress, as bed bugs commonly hide on them.
3. Inspect Your Furniture
The last thing you want to do is bring a couch or mattress to your new house that is riddled with bed bugs. Carefully inspect your furniture to check for bed bugs and eggs. Unfortunately, the best option is to get rid of the furniture if it is still infested with egg clusters and bed bugs.
Cover the furniture with plastic wrap and leave a large sign that lets people know there are bed bugs. This will stop people from coming across it and bringing bed bugs into their homes. You can also leave the furniture out for “large item collection” so your waste management service will pick it up.
In that case, you must wrap the furniture up as well as possible to make sure the bed bugs can’t escape and attach to the waste management workers. Make sure the sign is visible, so the workers see it and handle the furniture carefully.
4. Check Your Pets For Bed Bugs
Do you have any pets? If so, you must carefully check their fur to make sure there aren’t any bed bugs or eggs on them. Use a fine comb and slowly inspect their fur and skin section by section.
This will also give you the chance to check your dog’s skin for bed bug bites. Apply an affordable bed bug bite treatment cream like PetArmor to treat the bites. You don’t have to worry about your dog spreading bed bugs if you find no signs of them in their fur.
5. Clean The Furniture At Your New House
Clean the furniture once you unload it at your new house when you move. Check again for eggs and bed bugs one more time, then vacuum your mattress, chairs, and couches. Immediately bring furniture outside if you find bed bugs before they spread throughout your new house.
6. Change Clothes When You Arrive
Change your clothes before you sit on any furniture at your new house. Place the clothes in a plastic bag and seal it in case there are any hidden bed bugs or egg clusters. Next, take a quick shower and change into a fresh set of clothes.
This will ensure that bed bugs won’t spread throughout your new house in case they latched onto your body when you left your old house. Now, you can comfortably unpack and get settled in your new house without worrying about spreading bed bugs everywhere.
Summing It Up
Bed bugs can latch to your clothes, furniture, and linens and come with you to your new house. You can avoid this if you hire an exterminator and carefully clean your clothes and furniture. Inspect your furniture before you move, and seal your clothes in airtight plastic bags. Take a shower, change clothes, and separate them in an airtight bag from the clothes you’ve unpacked at your new house in case they contain bed bugs.
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Nick Durante is a professional writer with a primary focus on home improvement. When he is not writing about home improvement or taking on projects around the house, he likes to read and create art. He is always looking towards the newest trends in home improvement.
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