How Bedbugs Come to the Home

Used Furniture

• Always remember, when you buy furniture that someone else has used in his home, you don't know what is included with that furniture. Bedbugs can hide within a mattress, chair or couch and you might never see them until it's too late. Inspect all furniture before you buy it to ensure it is not infested. Look for small brown spots or stains anywhere on the upholstery. This is the sign of bedbug excrement and means you should walk away quickly.

Travel

• If you travel often, exposure to bedbugs is a reality for which you must be prepared. When you stay in a hotel room that has bedbugs, the pests crawl into your luggage or clothing, looking for a warm place to hide. When you come home, they quickly move from their storage place to the preferred habitat of a mattress. To prevent this, always launder clothing in hot water after returning from hotels, and keep your luggage on stands and off the hotel floor.

Person-to-Person Transfer

• If a person has bedbugs in her home, she may unwittingly carry them with her when she goes out into the world. For instance, a bedbug might hitch a ride on a person who takes the bus to the theater. Along the way, a few bugs might jump on to the bus seats, while a few more burrow into the theater chairs. Then, the next people who use those seats will pick up a few extra tenants in their clothing, to be deposited at their homes.

From The Neighbors

• If you live in a condo or an apartment building, it is conceivable that you could acquire a bedbug problem after the neighbors go on vacation and bring bugs back with them. The insects will travel through a building's insect-sized pathways, following wiring and pipes inside the walls and moving from one suite to another. Even if you don't personally travel much, you still need to keep an eye out for bedbugs because they can show up through methods such as this.