Should I Throw Away My Mattress If I Have Bed Bugs?
If you’ve discovered that your mattress has bedbugs, you might wonder whether you should toss it. The first step is to thoroughly clean it. After you’ve done that, put it into a garbage bag and seal it. Then, wash it at the highest temperature suitable for the fabric. This will kill the bugs.
The next step is to dispose of the bed properly. You’ll want to check local regulations and find a service that will pick up your mattress. If you can’t do that, then you may want to consider hiring a junk removal company. Be sure to state clearly that you’re throwing the mattress away, and always put a strong plastic covering on it. This will prevent the bugs from spreading from one place to another.
In addition to mattresses, bedbugs can infest other pieces of furniture. Infiltrated items may include clothes, sofas, dog beds, and even wall hangings. Be sure to check all the surfaces in the room, including the box spring, headboard, and bed skirt. Look closely for small red or brown spots or fecal material in the mattress’s seams and folds.
Whether you’re infected with bedbugs or not, it’s important to prevent any infestation from escalating. You can do this by wrapping the mattress in plastic or by using duct tape over the zipper. If you don’t want to throw out the entire mattress, you can use a special mattress cover that will keep bedbugs from spreading and reproducing.