Ever wonder how bed bugs get in your house and end up on your couch? These reddish-brown insects known for feeding on human and animal blood can hide in furniture and bedding. These pests can hide in your couch cushion, seams, or crevices and infest other areas of your home too. Once bed bugs are in the house, they can cause skin rashes, allergies, or itchy bites. These pests may be almost invisible to the naked eye but an annoyance to you and your family. So we've put together this article on bed bugs in couch cushions, pillows, and crevices and what to do about an infestation.
Signs of a Bed Bug Infestation on a Couch
If bed bugs in couch cushions and crevices are an issue you want to look out for, some telltale signs these pests are in your home include bites, live bugs, dead bugs, shed skin, fecal stains, blood, or the presence of other pests in your home:
- Clustered, itchy, red skin bites on your face, arms, legs, or neck. You may have wondered if bed bugs can live in your hair and the good news is that they prefer exposed skin while you sleep.
- Live bugs, dead bed bugs, or shed skin on your couch cushions, seams, or near your couch
- Blood on your couch
- Brown fecal stains
- Other tiny, black bugs in your bed can indicate that bed bugs are going to invade next
While you can look for these signs on your couch, keep in mind that a bed bug infestation can also occur on your bed or other furniture around your house.
Getting to Know Bed Bugs
Bed bugs are small, reddish-brown insects that are about the size of an apple seed. Adult insects have slightly elongated bodies but are flat and oval-shaped. Bed bugs have two antennas, six legs, and a mouthpiece designed to suck blood from animals and humans which leaves itchy, red, and sometimes bloody bites.
Bed bugs in couch? You can usually find this pest:
- In the folds and seams of cushions, so inspect them carefully.
- Detachable parts, covers, or crevices of the couch.
- A couch's legs or frame.
- Underneath the couch or sofa and even the spring coils
Checking for Bed Bugs
If you're not sure if bed bugs in couch are an issue but suspect that you've got these pests around the house, you can follow this guide:
- Remove detachable parts, linens, and protective covers from the couch and inspect these items first.
- Use a flashlight to clearly check the seams, wrinkles, and crevices of a couch.
- Use a trap and place it near the sofa or couch and check on it, later on, to see if there are any bed bugs.
- Inspect the mattress and bedframe of your couch if you have a sofa bed.
To prevent a bed bug infestation, it's crucial to regularly inspect your couch and other furniture.
Causes of a Bed Bug Infestation in a Couch
Bed bugs in couch or on your sofa can happen because you've accidentally brought them inside, they found a way in through the wall, window, floor, or roof, termites brought them into your home, previous extermination attempts failed, secondhand items or your house is messy and cluttered:
- Bed bugs can get into your house and onto your sofa through cracks, crevices, fissures, and holes in walls, floors, windows, or the roof.
- If you've traveled or come home from a motel, hotel, hostel, apartment, or condominium, the bed bugs could have attached themselves to your belongings which is why they're on your couch.
- Secondhand items that have been infested with bed bugs could be why you still have these pests in the house.
- Homeowners that use extermination methods incorrectly can lead to bed bugs populations surviving and thriving on your couch.
- Pests like termites could have introduced bed bugs to your couch and other areas of your home. This may include cockroaches, carpet beetles, dust mites, mosquitos, termites, fleas, or ticks.
If these bugs are found on your couch cushion or in its crevices, you need to take the necessary actions to get rid of them. You may need a guide on how to use a certain pesticide, insecticide, or herbicide for other types of bugs.
Prevention and Control Measures
Knowing the exact location of your bed bug infestation is not enough, you need to learn how to control pests in the living room and prevent these insects from spreading to other areas of your home. To prevent bed bugs in couch from happening in the first place:
- Make sure that all furniture, clothing, and personal items are in good condition before bringing them into your house. Pay special attention to pillows, handbags, and luggage because that's where infestations usually stem from.
- Wash any sofa coverings, fabric, or pillowcases with hot water in the washing machine and dry them with high heat to kill off any bed bugs.
- Exercise caution when you're staying in other lodgings like a hotel, apartment, rented condominium, or hostel. Check for bed bugs when you arrive!
- Try not to buy a mattress and box spring secondhand because these are the usual pieces of furniture that have pests
- Keep your home clean and clutter-free. Bed bugs can easily hide in mountains of clothing, piles of paper, and other pieces of furniture.
If you're going to get rid of bed bugs yourself, we recommend vacuuming or steaming which are non-toxic methods:
- Adult bed bugs, eggs, and larvae can be physically removed from surfaces like beds, floors, walls, and the couch with a vacuum.
- Learn how to use a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter and use a smaller attachment to get into the crevices of your furniture to get rid of bed bugs in couch
- Steam mattresses, box springs, and other components of your bed and sofa effectively kill bed bugs.
We don't recommend using pesticides or insecticides if you're dealing with bed bugs in couch. If vacuuming and steaming don't work, contact a professional exterminator immediately.
Bottom Line: Bed Bugs in Couch
Bed bugs in couch are a common issue that homes all over the U.S. deal with. Due to their small size and reddish-brown color, bed bugs can be pretty hard to find which is why you need to be vigilant if you suspect that these pests are in your house. If there are any signs of a bed bug infestation, you can use a DIY approach such as vacuuming or steaming your sofa and its parts or reaching out to a professional pest control business instead. If you're choosing to call a professional exterminator, make sure to inquire about follow-up services and treatments to make sure that none of your furniture is infested by these pests again.
FAQs on Bed Bugs in Couch
How can I keep bed bugs from taking over my couch?
You can prevent bed bugs in couch from becoming a problem by making sure that every chair, piece of furniture, clothing, or personal item is in good condition before bringing it into your home, washing sofa covers, pillowcases, and other fabric with high heat in the washing machine, not buying secondhand furniture, and cleaning up dust and debris around your home.
What choices do I have for dealing with a bed insect infestation in my couch?
You can use a vacuum, heat treatments, or call an expert to deal with bed bugs in couch or around your house. You can also use an insect trap, tape, or diatomaceous earth to kill bed bugs.
How much does treating a couch for bed bugs cost?
The treatment of bed bugs on a couch will depend on how bad the infestation is as well as the technologies or products that a pest control professional will use. It is best to reach out to exterminators for an accurate quote.
Can a qualified exterminator assist in getting rid of bed bugs in my couch?
Yes, professional exterminators do have the training, tools, and experience required to handle bed bug infestations around your home and on your couch. Professionals can easily remove bed bugs from a couch cushion, wood legs, the seam, and other parts of your furniture.
How can I get rid of contaminated furniture?
We recommend consulting a pest control specialist for advice regarding how to properly dispose of contaminated furniture. You may also want to refer to the state or area rules and regulations so that you dispose of pest-infested tables, chairs, and other furniture correctly.
How can I tell if my couch has bed bugs in the early stages of an infestation?
You can tell that bed bugs are in a bedroom or on furniture if you see live bugs, dead bed bugs, shed skin, blood, or fecal stains.
What can you tell me about bed bugs' biology and behavior?
A little, reddish-brown insect known as a bed bug ingests both human and animal blood. Once they have contaminated a space, they can be difficult to eradicate because they hide in cracks and crevices, frequently in furniture and bedding. Beg bugs can survive in a wide range of temperatures and go long periods of time without feeding but prefer to do so at nighttime.
What impact do bedbugs have on mental health?
A bed bug infestation that's gotten out of hand can be embarrassing, and stressful, or cause anxiety, and lack of sleep. Some homeowners may even feel guilty for having a bed bug population in their homes.
Where do bed bugs come from and what is their history?
Bed bugs can travel from place to place but have been assumed to have originated in the Middle east thousands of years ago. These pests can be traced back to the prehistoric era as they have been cited in Greek literature and discovered in Egyptian tombs.
Bed bug populations were controlled with the introduction of different chemical products but the recent increase in infestations means that they were not completely eliminated. In fact, bed bugs have become more resistant to herbicides, insecticides, and pesticides over the past few years.
