Can an air mattress get bed bugs? Air mattresses can indeed be infested with bed bugs, despite misconceptions. Precautions and preventive measures are essential for bug-free sleep.
If you’re experiencing bed bug problems and you’re looking for a temporary mattress alternative, an air mattress is a great option. After all, bed bugs are hard to get rid of, and it may even take as long as 400 days before you can completely eradicate a colony of bed bugs from your bed.
Since an air mattress is filled with, well, air, there’s no chance that bed bugs will thrive and live in those beds, right So if you want to discover the shocking answer and also want to know how to kill bed bugs, continue reading!
Can Air Beds Get Bed Bugs?
Do air mattresses get bed bugs?
Generally, an air mattress is less likely to get bed bugs as compared to foam mattresses.
This is due to the following reasons:
Type of Material Used
The most common type of material used for an air mattress is PVC and Vinyl.
Both of these are puncture-proof and feature a thin plastic film that bed bugs can’t bore in easily.
Air Filling
Foam mattresses have a porous and soft layer that bed bugs can easily hide in.
You can’t find this in an air mattress.
From its name, the inside part of this mattress is hollow and only full of air so that that bed bugs will have limited hiding space inside it.
Slippery Sides
Unlike other bugs, bed bugs don’t have wings, so they crawl into the bed.
Unfortunately for them, it will be difficult to climb an air bed because of its slippery sides.
This is especially true with air beds that have plain flat sides.
Ease of Maintenance
Air mattresses are the easiest mattresses to clean, so you can easily prevent and address potential bed bug invasion.
However, these mattresses are not spared from bed bug invasion.
From time to time, bed bugs get into air beds due to the following reasons:
Flocked Sleeping Surface
To make the sleep surface as comfortable as possible, most manufacturers add a soft flocking layer on top of the PVC material, which provides bed bugs a surface to drill on and hide in.
Large Seams
The wide seams of an air mattress are also great hiding places for bed bugs.
How to Tell if Your Air Mattress Has Bed Bugs?
Can bed bugs go on an air mattress? Even though it’s not common, there’s still a chance that bed bugs will get into an air bed.
The most common sign of bed bug invasion would be red bite marks all over your body, especially on your back or sides.
The bites of bed bugs are similar to that of mosquitoes, so you can easily spot them.
If you’re suspecting a bed bug infestation, you should inspect the crucial parts of your air beds – the top flocked layer, valve, and the headboard (if your bed has one).
Here are some of the other telltale signs to look out for:
Dark Spots
Take a look at their potential hiding places like the crevices of the air bed and the seams.
If there are tiny dark spots, your bed most likely has bed bugs.
The spots are either their fecal excretions or dried blood.
Musty Smell
Bed bugs leave behind a musty smell in the places they hide.
So if your bed has a musty smell, you have a bed bug problem.
But if the musty smell is already surrounding your bedroom, you have a severe bed bug issue that you need to resolve right away.
Bed Bug Eggs and Shell
If you’ve noticed white and opalescent eggs and shells in your mattress or all over your house, these indicate the presence of bed bugs.
In addition to inspecting and treating your mattress, you must also take the time to check out all of your other furniture since bed bugs are also most likely to hide in them.
How to Get Rid of Bed Bugs
Now that you know the answer to this question: can bed bugs get in air mattress, it’s time that we learn how to get rid of bed bugs in your air bed.
Here are the ways on how to do that:
Wash your beddings
If you keep on waking up to bed bug bites, there’s a high chance that they are in your beddings too.
That’s why you need to wash everything – pillowcases, comforters, bedsheets, and even your pajamas – right away.
The first thing you need to do is remove them from your bed as soon as possible and place those in a plastic bag and seal the bag immediately to prevent them from escaping and contaminating other parts of your home.
To ensure that you’ll completely get rid of the bugs, set the washing machine to the highest heat setting possible.
Vacuum your bed
To get rid of the remaining bed bugs in your bed, you will have to vacuum it without your sheets on.
Please take note that you’ll have to use a vacuum with a pest control system.
In addition, it must have a high-quality HEPA filter to prevent the allergens from the bugs contaminating the air in your room.
Steam your room’s carpet
Another surefire way to eliminate bed bugs is steaming since they are sensitive to high temperatures.
Don’t just use any type of steamer or even opt for carpet cleaning equipment.
Instead, you should use a high-quality industrial steamer that can deliver higher temperatures.
Bathe your pets
One of the most typical bed bug hosts is animals.
If you sleep with your pets, they might be the ones that brought bed bugs to your mattress.
Therefore, you should bring your pet outdoors to prevent further contamination.
Begin the grooming process by thoroughly brushing your pet’s fur and using an anti-parasite pet shampoo to bathe him.
To ensure that there will be no bed bugs left, you may also have to cut your pet’s hair short.
In addition to bathing your dog, you may also need to clean and disinfect all of his belongings—bed, towel, collar, leash, and many more.
Use bug sprays or dusts
These are two different pesticides that work well against bed bugs.
However, it’s recommended that you use a combination of both since the bed bug spray effectively reaches small nooks and crevices while the effects of dust last longer and is recommended for easy to reach surfaces.
Frequently Asked Questions
Aside from the question: can bed bug go on air mattress, you must have many other questions about handling bed bugs on air beds.
So here are the answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about this issue:
How to prevent bed bugs?
Here are some of the steps you can take to minimize the risk of bed bugs:
- First, change and wash your sheets regularly.
- Avoid using a bare foam pillow.
- Instead, get an encased or zippered cover for your mattress.
Are bed bugs dangerous?
Bed bugs don’t have toxins that can make you sick.
However, they may pose a few health risks, like rashes, allergies, and other skin issues.
Where else can I find bed bugs?
The other places in your home where bed bugs might hide are in your furniture, bed frames, sofas, chairs, pipes, wires, cribs, and playpens.
You might also find them in your cabinets, cupboards, luggage, and dressers.
Should I throw my air mattress once it’s been infested with bed bugs?
An air mattress that bed bugs have infested is still salvageable.
You just need to closely inspect your mattress to make sure that there are no left and that the process of eliminating bed bugs is completed successfully.
Also, you have to ensure that all the bed bugs in your room have been removed before putting back the mattress.
If the mattress is already old and severely infested, throwing it away is your best option.
How do I dispose of the infested air mattress?
Getting rid of an infested mattress is not as easy as throwing it in the garbage.
First, you need to take the necessary precautions to prevent contamination.
Here are the steps you need to take to dispose of it properly:
- First, slash the mattress into small pieces.
- Then, wrap the slashed mattress in a plastic bag to prevent the bed bugs from escaping.
- Label the plastic bag with a note indicating that it’s infested with bed bugs.
Final Words
Can an air mattress get a bed bug?
An air mattress is less likely to get bed bug compared to foam mattresses, but the possibility will always be there.
If you’re suspecting a bed bug infestation, you should inspect air mattress.
The good news is that preventing and getting rid of bed bugs in an air mattress is much easier. It is much more difficult to bed bug control in traditional beds.
However, remember that prevention is always better than cure, so you should wash your beds properly and inspect them regularly.
If your bed is already infested with bed bugs, don’t fret.
Just follow all the tips that we’ve shared with you, and you can eliminate bed bugs in no time.
