Bed Bug Treatment Prep: A Room-by-Room Checklist

What are the house rules before you touch anything?

Three habits protect you in every room. They sound minor and they cause most of the trouble when ignored.

• Do not carry items from the infested room into clean rooms. Bugs ride along.
• Do not spray, fog or wipe furniture with alcohol first. Those moves scatter bugs and cloud the inspection.
• Keep sleeping in your own bed unless told otherwise, since moving rooms gives bugs a new home.

If you are unsure whether you have bed bugs, get a bed bug inspection before prepping. There is no point hauling laundry for something else.

How do you prep a bedroom for bed bug treatment?

The bedroom gets the most work, because that is where the bugs live. Work in this order so nothing gets put back into an area you have not finished.

1. Strip the bed and bag the bedding where you stand. Carry the bag directly to the washer.
2. Empty nightstands and dressers. Clothes go into bags for laundry, and small items go into sealed bins.
3. Clear the floor under the bed. Nothing should be stored there during treatment.
4. Pull the bed a foot or so from the wall and take pictures, mirrors and curtains down.
5. Leave the mattress on the frame unless we ask you to lift it. Do not drag it through the house.
6. Hold off on mattress encasements until we tell you the time is right.

Our bed bug preparation service covers this room by room for people who cannot lift or sort heavy loads.

What about the living room, closets and other rooms?

Bed bugs favor places where people sit or sleep, so rooms with couches, recliners and guest beds are on the list. We tell you which rooms apply to your job.

How do you handle laundry for bed bug prep?

The dryer kills bed bugs, and the washer mostly rinses. Run washable items through a full dryer cycle on the hottest setting the fabric allows, and give it at least 30 minutes. EPA and university extension guidance point to the same threshold.

Move dried items into new, sealed bags or lidded tubs, not back to a drawer. Keep them sealed until we say it is time to open them. Delicate items that cannot take heat can go into a sealed bag, and you can ask us how to handle them for your method.

What do you do with items that cannot go in a dryer?

Shoes, handbags, books and electronics make up most of this group. Ohio State University Extension lists a high-heat dryer cycle, at or above 130 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes, for clothing and bedding, and many hard items can ride in the dryer for that time if the material allows. Anything that cannot take heat goes into a sealed bag or lidded tub and stays in the room until we have looked at it. Ask before you toss anything.

Should you throw out furniture before treatment?

Usually not. EPA advises throwing out furniture only if the bed bugs cannot be safely eliminated from it. A discarded couch leaves hiding places behind it, costs money and may carry bugs down a stairwell. If a piece does have to go, EPA says to make it unusable by ripping the covers and removing the stuffing, then mark it so no one else takes it.

What should you do the day before and the morning of treatment?

A short timeline keeps the work from piling up. Adjust it to the dates we give you.

• Two days before: start laundry from affected rooms, and buy bags and lidded tubs. Wash and dry in small batches so the dryer is never overloaded.
• The day before: finish the dryer cycles, seal clean items, clear floors and pull furniture from the walls.
• The morning of: vacuum the mattress seams, baseboards and carpet edges, then seal the vacuum bag tightly and put it in an outdoor trash container, as EPA advises. Arrange for pets and any family members who need to be elsewhere.
• During the visit: stay out of the treated rooms until the technician says it is time, and keep sealed items closed.
• After the visit: leave bagged clothes sealed until you are told the date, and keep your interceptor cups clear if you were asked to place them.

If the timeline looks like too much, split it. Prepping one room well beats prepping three rooms halfway. Tell us what is left undone when we arrive, since a partial prep can still go forward with a plan for the rest.

How does prep change for an apartment or a different method?

In a shared building, tell the landlord or manager about the date. Carry bags through hallways sealed, go directly to machines and never fold laundry on a shared table. Our apartment bed bug treatment page explains who needs to be involved.

Method changes the list. Heat treatment asks you to remove or protect heat-sensitive items, and Aprehend has its own protocol that does not always call for bagging everything. A residual course follows the longer path of repeated visits. Wait for the instructions for your method before you rearrange the house.