Research has found that washing and drying clothes for bed bug disinfestation in a hot wash kills both adult bed bugs and nymphs as well as their eggs. To protect fabrics and living spaces from contamination, it is recommended to bag infested clothing as it is transported to the washing machine.

Heat Kills

Bed bugs can be difficult to kill and even more difficult to control. They are extremely resilient, able to adapt and survive in almost any environment. Thankfully, there is one thing that can reliably kill them: extreme heat, as washing laundry at 60 degrees kills bed bugs and their eggs. That’s why washing clothes and bedding at the highest temperature settings is the best way to effectively manage a bed bug infestation.

The ideal temperature to kill bed bugs is 119 degrees Fahrenheit for adults and 131 degrees Fahrenheit for their heat-resistant eggs. For this reason, it’s crucial to carefully sort and separate your laundry prior to washing to ensure that all affected items are exposed to the correct temperatures. This will help to minimize the risk of re-infestation of your home or apartment.

Start by separating the clothing and bedding that has been infested by bed bugs. This includes any bed sheets, pillowcases, blankets, or other fabrics that touch the floor. Once you’ve sorted your items, put them into plastic bags and carefully tip the bagged laundry into the washer. Remember to take care not to transfer the bed bugs from the bags to other items in your laundry.

Next, wash your items on the hottest water setting (remember to check the label instructions) and follow that with a hot dryer cycle. You may need to repeat the wash and dry cycles twice in order to ensure that all of your items are kept above the thermal threshold for over 90 minutes. You should also carefully inspect your clothes and bedding for any signs of surviving eggs, which will look like tiny, dark rusty dots on the fabric. If you notice any, then repeat the wash and drying cycles until all eggs have been killed.

Destroys Eggs

Bed bugs are incredibly resilient, and even the best pest control experts can’t kill them all. This makes reducing clutter to better spot them, inspecting and treating common gathering spots, vacuuming frequently, and washing infested clothing all part of a comprehensive approach to eliminating these pests. Now new research from British scientists demonstrates how important it is to effectively disinfest laundry using heat.

In the study, scientists tested several methods for killing bed bug eggs and nymphs. They found that a long hot wash cycle at the maximum temperature recommended for the fabric was 100% effective at killing nymphs and eggs. They also discovered that soaking in cold water for 24 hours (with no detergent) killed adult bed bugs but did not kill their eggs.

The researchers recommend that people start by bagging their clothes — not just the infested items but all of their laundry — before moving it to the washing machine. The bags should be sealed to prevent the leaking of nymphs and eggs into other parts of the house.

Next, the clothes should be sorted by level of treatment and moved to the washer as quickly as possible. The bags can be resealed, or they can be carefully tipped into the washer to minimize the chances of the bed bugs or their eggs escaping.

In addition to high heat washing, a good quality dryer set on the hottest setting for at least 30 minutes will also destroy the nymphs and eggs. The drying process also helps to kill the nymphs and eggs that may be hiding in seams, creases or other tight spaces. This can be a particularly useful technique for disinfesting clothes that are not suitable for hot washing or dry cleaning.

Destroys Adults

While washing and drying linens in extreme temperatures kills adult bed bugs, it won’t stop new ones from entering your home. Infestation prevention requires reducing the number of hiding places, which means removing clutter and vacuuming frequently. Using special bed bug covers for mattresses and box springs can also keep new pests from gaining access to you while you sleep.

When it comes to laundry, there are certain fabrics that can’t be washed in hot water or dried at high heats. Those include silk, suede shoes or boots, lingerie and stuffed animals. While freezing can kill bed bugs, it requires very low temperatures and a very long time to reach that level. Home freezers can’t reach those temperatures and may not be big enough to contain bulky items like stuffed animals.

If you must wash those types of clothing or if the infestation has been bad, experts suggest putting them in a large, tightly-sealed plastic bag and transporting them carefully to your washer. Carefully tip the bag over the clothes into your washing machine and add regular detergent to the load. Wash the load on the hottest temperature setting that won’t damage the fabric.

Alternatively, you can use the same process to clean dry-clean only clothing, such as wool or cashmere sweaters. It works because the chemicals in laundry detergent change the surface tension of water, which floods into the spiracles bed bugs use to breathe and drowns them. The treatment can be repeated for any remaining bed bug eggs and adult bugs that are found. The best way to get rid of a serious bed bug problem is to contact a professional pest control company that specializes in treating infestations. They can identify the origin of your infestation, treat it and help you prevent future problems.

Destroys Nymphs

The high heat from a hot water wash can kill all life stages of bed bugs. The extreme temperatures are also lethal to the eggs of the pests, destroying their future potential to reproduce.

Washing bed bug infested clothing and linens can help reduce the population of these insects in your home. However, this method is not a cure-all and should only be used in combination with other strategies to ensure that the pests are eliminated.

When washing infested laundry, sort the garments by level of infestation before placing them into the washer. This prevents the bugs from accidentally mixing with unaffected items in the machine. Next, add the hottest water possible for the fabrics (120 degrees Fahrenheit or higher) and detergent and start the cycle.

The heat of the wash kills and destroys all bed bugs and their eggs in the fabric of your clothes. It is important to dry the clothing on a hot cycle as well, which can be done in a dryer that is certified to kill bed bugs or with a regular home dryer that is set on the highest heat setting.

It is also important to keep the infested clothing and linens separated from other clean clothes and items, as bed bugs may be hiding in the creases and folds of your clothing. When the laundry is dry, store it in sealed plastic containers or bins until you need it again.

While do-it-yourself freezing can kill bed bugs, this strategy can be difficult to execute on a large scale. A 5.5 lb batch of clothes can take 8 hours to reach the killing temperature in the center of the pile. This is why it is better to trust your infested laundry to a professional bed bug control company who can offer a complete, effective treatment of your entire home.

Destroys Lives

Bed bugs are very good hitchhikers and can easily be brought into a home in a purse, bag, suitcase or backpack from hotels or other places where they are endemic. The pests hide in creases and crevices during the day, but come out at night to search for and bite warm-blooded humans and other creatures.

Fortunately, if you discover a bed bug infestation, washing your clothes and linens in a high-temperature wash can quickly eliminate the pests. The combination of the heat in the washer and the heat in the dryer is sufficient to kill the bugs at all stages, including eggs, nymphs and adults. In addition, the treatment doesn’t use chemicals or harmful substances so it is a safe option for households with children, pets and those with sensitivities to toxins.

To make the most of your washing machine’s power, pre-sort your clothes and bedding according to fabric type, temperature and washing instructions. This allows you to target the most heavily infested items and ensure that your clothes are washed in the correct water temperature and for the proper amount of time. A 30-minute wash cycle at 140 degrees Fahrenheit is sufficient to kill all stages of bed bugs.

If you cannot wash your clothing at home, bring the infested items to a laundromat or other public laundry facility in sealed plastic bags. Avoid bringing the items in baskets, on tables or anywhere they can be easily picked up by other patrons. When the washing is complete, carefully transfer your laundry to a dryer set to the highest temperature setting that will not damage your fabrics. Then, carefully fold and place the items in a fresh bag to prevent spread of bed bugs and other germs.