Bed bugs are small, flat insects that can easily hide in tight spaces, especially near sleeping areas such as mattresses, bed frames, sofas, and cracks in furniture. They feed on blood and are often hard to spot early in an infestation because they are so small and can stay hidden for long periods.
Having bed bugs does not necessarily mean your home is unclean. They can travel in luggage, secondhand furniture, or clothing and belongings from an infested place. That is why getting rid of them starts with confirming they are present and finding where they hide, then treating the problem properly instead of spraying pesticide at random.
Scientific name: Bed bug (Cimex lectularius), an insect that feeds on human blood.
Size and color: Flat, oval, brown, and wingless. It turns reddish after feeding and is visible to the naked eye.
Where it hides: In mattress folds, bed frames, headboards, sofas, and furniture cracks near sleeping areas.
How serious it is: It causes bites, itching, and lost sleep. Having bed bugs does not mean your home is dirty.
Best time to act: At the first sign, such as blood spots or dark specks. Inspect carefully, then treat thoroughly and re-inspect.
How to Identify Bed Bugs
1. What bed bugs look like:
Adult bed bugs are flat and oval, brown, and may look reddish after feeding. They have no wings, and adults can be seen with the naked eye, but finding them can be difficult because they hide in cracks and tight spaces.
2. Where to find them:
Start by checking the edges and folds of the mattress, then underneath it, the bed frame, joints and screws, and the headboard. Bed bugs can also hide in sofas, cracks in furniture, carpet edges, and other areas near where people sleep or sit.
3. Signs of infestation:
Signs that may point to bed bugs include seeing the insects themselves, small dark spots near their hiding places, shed skins, or small pale eggs inside cracks. Skin marks may appear after sleeping, but they are not enough on their own to confirm bed bugs, because other causes can produce similar symptoms.
Where do bed bugs come from?
Bed bugs usually spread from place to place on belongings. Common sources include travel luggage, secondhand furniture, and clothing or bedding from an infested location. Infestations can also spread between units in some buildings.
This is why bed bugs can appear even in clean homes. Cleanliness and tidiness reduce hiding places and make the insects easier to find, but they do not prevent bed bugs from entering if they arrive from an outside source.
How to Get Rid of Bed Bugs
1. Inspect the affected area:
Start with the bed or the place where signs appeared, and carefully inspect the mattress, bed frame, and surrounding furniture. Knowing exactly where the insects are makes treatment more precise and effective.
2. Reduce hiding places:
Remove unnecessary clutter around the infested area, and avoid moving items from room to room at random so the insects do not travel with them.
3. Treat clothing and bedding:
Wash and dry suitable items according to their care instructions. Heat, when used properly as part of a control program, helps, but do not rely on putting a mattress or furniture in the sun alone as a guaranteed solution.
4. Clean cracks and edges:
A vacuum cleaner can help remove accessible insects from mattress edges, bed joints, and cracks in furniture. Dispose of the vacuum contents afterward in a way that prevents the insects from spreading again.
5. Use a suitable bed bug insecticide:
You can use a registered insecticide intended for bed bug control, following the dose and directions on the product label. Available options include Optigard Flex and Tempo SC. Always confirm the registered use of each product and follow the label instructions.
Orkida bundles and international-brand products also available for treating bed bugs:
- Professional Bed Bug Control Bundle: Orkida's complete bundle for infestations spread across more than one room.
- Economy Bed Bug Control Bundle: Orkida's bundle for an early infestation or a single room.
- K-Othrine Partix by Envu (formerly Bayer): an insecticide for bed bugs, ants, cockroaches, and beetles, 1-liter bottle.
- POLTI Italian steam machine: treats mattresses and sofas with steam, without spraying any insecticide on them.
You will find all the options in the bed bug insecticides section. Do not spray insecticide on bedding or pillows.
6. Re-inspect after treatment:
Do not treat the disappearance of visible insects as proof that the infestation is over. Re-check the places where bed bugs were found and watch for any new signs, as there may be hiding places the first treatment did not reach.
Why Can Bed Bugs Come Back After Spraying?
One of the most common reasons bed bugs return is treating only the visible areas and leaving other hiding places untreated. The mattress may be treated while the insects remain inside the bed frame, in cracks, or in a nearby piece of furniture.
That is why success does not depend on how much insecticide you use. It depends on determining the extent of the infestation, reaching the hiding places, and following up after treatment.
How Do You Protect Your Home from Bed Bugs?
When traveling, avoid placing luggage directly on the bed if you suspect an infestation, and inspect your bags when you return if needed. It is also advisable to inspect secondhand furniture thoroughly before bringing it into the home, and to keep the area around the bed tidy and easy to inspect.
Acting early on any suspected sign helps control the problem before it spreads to other places.
Are Bed Bugs and Dust Mites the Same Thing?
No. The two are often confused, but bed bugs are different from household dust mites. Bed bugs are blood-feeding insects whose adults are visible to the naked eye, while dust mites are microscopic and do not feed on human blood.
That is why it is important to identify the pest before choosing a control method or product.
How to Inspect Your Bed Systematically
- Strip and wash the bed sheets, then check every fold of the mattress with a bright flashlight. A thin card slid through the seams helps.
- Flip the mattress and check its base, edges, wood joints, and screws.
- Check the bed headboard, the bedding, and behind frames near the bed.
- Extend the inspection to sofas, upholstered chairs, carpet edges, and nearby electrical outlets.
- Note the places where you found signs so you can re-inspect them after treatment.
Do Bed Bugs Transmit Diseases?
Authoritative health sources do not indicate that bed bugs transmit diseases through their bites. Their bites do cause itching and lost sleep, and the skin can become inflamed if scratched. If you have severe symptoms or signs of infection, see a doctor. To learn what the bites look like, see our article What Bed Bug Bites Look Like.
How to Avoid Bringing Bed Bugs Home from Travel or Secondhand Furniture
- Inspect your hotel or accommodation on arrival, starting with the mattress and headboard before opening your bags.
- Keep luggage away from the bed and sofa, on a luggage rack or hard surface if possible.
- Wash your travel clothes in hot water and dry them on high heat when you return.
- Inspect secondhand furniture and furnishings thoroughly before bringing them into the house.
When Do You Need a Pest Control Company?
If the infestation is widespread, comes back after treatment, or you cannot find where the insects are hiding, it may be best to call a specialist to assess the level of infestation and set up a suitable control program.
You can call on the Orkida pest control team to inspect the infestation and determine the right way to deal with bed bugs.
Orkida tip: Do not make your first step spraying the entire room when you see bed bugs. Start by identifying where the infestation is and where the insects hide, then treat it in an organized way and follow up on the area after treatment. Finding the source of the infestation matters more than spraying a larger area with insecticide.
How Bed Bugs Harm Your Health and Sleep
The biggest harm from bed bugs is not disease but daily discomfort: repeated bites that cause itching and redness, lost sleep, and anxiety about sleeping in your own bed. In some people, a stronger allergic reaction or skin inflammation may develop from constant scratching, and a mild infection can occur if a bite becomes contaminated by fingernails. Material damage includes stains on bedding and mattresses and furniture that has to be thrown away. An untreated infestation multiplies faster, so the earlier you start treatment, the less the damage.
Bed Bug Eggs and Life Cycle
A female bed bug lays very small eggs, whitish-yellow and about one millimeter long, and glues them in cracks, mattress folds, and behind the headboard. The eggs hatch within a few days to about two weeks, depending on temperature, and small translucent nymphs emerge. Each nymph needs a blood meal before every molt and goes through five stages before becoming an adult. This cycle is why an infestation can return two weeks after treatment: insecticide usually does not kill all the eggs, so treatment and inspection are repeated after 10 to 14 days, as in the steps above.
For more details, also read: What Bed Bug Bites Look Like and How to Tell Them Apart and Why Bed Bugs Suddenly Appear.
Frequently Asked Questions About Bed Bug Signs
Can I see them with the naked eye?
Yes, adults are visible to the naked eye, but hiding in cracks makes them hard to spot early in an infestation.
Will bed bugs go away if I clean the house thoroughly?
Cleaning helps, but it is not enough on its own. Bed bugs hide in cracks and need thorough treatment and re-inspection.
Can bed bugs live without food?
They can survive for several months without feeding, so leaving a room empty is not enough to end the problem.
For more on why bed bugs get in and how to eliminate them, see the bed bug guide; to tell them apart from other insects, see the fleas article; and browse the Pest Library for other guides.