People often ask me where bed bugs hide.
The better question is where they hide first.
Bed bugs like to stay close to the people they’re feeding on, especially during the early stages of an infestation.
The first places I’d inspect
If I had just arrived at your home, these are the places I’d check before anything else:
- Mattress seams and piping.
- Around mattress labels.
- Bed frame joints.
- Behind the headboard.
- Wooden slats.
- Bedside furniture.
Only once I’d ruled those out would I widen the search.
As infestations grow
The longer bed bugs remain undisturbed, the further they spread.
That’s when you may find them:
- Behind pictures.
- Under loose wallpaper.
- Around curtain fixings.
- In sofas and upholstered chairs.
- Around skirting boards.
- Inside cracks close to the bed.
In a few recent inspections across Surrey…
One thing we’ve noticed is that homeowners often focus on the mattress and completely overlook the bed frame.
On several occasions, the mattress was almost spotless, while the main infestation was tucked away inside the frame itself.
It’s a good reminder that bed bugs are experts at using the smallest hiding places.
My advice
Always start where people sleep.
Once you’ve inspected those areas thoroughly, work your way outwards.
A structured inspection almost always finds more evidence than randomly checking every corner of the room.