How To Get Rid of Bed Bugs in Walls

Bed bugs are a nightmare for any homeowner. These bugs come out at night and bite you while you’re sleeping, hiding away again by morning. Despite their name, bed bugs don’t just live in and around beds — they can live all over the house (yes, including your walls), though usually live within 10 feet of where you sleep.

It’s important to track down bed bugs wherever they are because they can be a very difficult pest to get rid of completely. They breed quickly, so just a few bugs left behind after treatment can breed into a new population. To get rid of them, you need to identify signs of an infestation, use the right treatment methods, and prevent future infestations.

Bed bugs also spread really easily through clothes, luggage, and furniture, even investing your walls. If you suspect you have a bed bug infestation, don’t wait — act immediately! We’re here to help you learn how to identify and get rid of bed bugs hiding in the walls.

Can Bed Bugs Live in Walls?

Yes, bed bugs can live inside walls and behind your walls. Bed bugs can live almost anywhere as long as they can find a crack or a crevice to get into. These cracks give bed bugs a safe place to rest during the day so they can feed at night. They can live in any type of wall, whether it be made of wood, plaster, or brick.

A wall void can be a pretty sweet setup for a bed bug to invade if they have an easy way in and out. The most common way they move in and out of your wall would be through an electric outlet opening or from a crack where the wall meets the floor.

The most important thing for a bed bug is the cracks and crevices, so you’re more likely to find bed bugs in walls made of a series of panels, drywall, or walls that are a bit older and worn down. A freshly laid brick wall may not have enough hiding places for many bed bugs to live, but a fifty-year-old wooden wall could be crawling with them.

How To Tell if There Are Bed Bugs in the Walls

It’s difficult to tell just by looking if there are bed bugs in the wall — in fact, it’s not really possible. You’re better off looking for evidence of bed bug activity and examining your walls to see if they could harbor the bugs.

The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) advises using a credit card to confirm whether a crack is the right size for a bed bug since bed bugs are about the same width. Try taking a credit card and see if you can swipe in between your floor and the wall near your bed. If so, then there’s a chance you have bed bugs living back there.

You can also look for the typical signs of a bed bug infestation around your walls. Look for small blood stains or droppings on your bedding and headboard, as well as little bits of feces and shed skins in and around your bed and near any cracks and crevices in the wall and floor.

If you have signs of a bed bug infestation and the walls have suitable cracks, there’s a good chance they’ve set up shop there.

How To Kill Bed Bugs in the Walls

Killing the bed bugs within the wall alone isn’t the wisest plan of action, even if they are living inside. Bed bugs are likely to be living in other places in your room as well, so treating walls should only be one part of your overall strategy for getting rid of bed bugs. Take these steps to get rid of beg bugs in your walls.

1. Find All Areas Affected in Your Home

Before beginning treatment, you need to thoroughly inspect your home to identify all areas affected by bed bugs — not just your walls. Inspect your furniture, bedding, and personal belongings in every room. Pay close attention to cracks, crevices, and other potential hiding spots. Knowing the extent of the infestation will help you select the right treatment plan.

2. Contain the Bed Bugs

To prevent bed bugs from spreading further, you should do everything you can to contain them. Seal infested items in plastic bags or airtight containers until you can treat them (or throw them away). Use bed bug-proof covers (vacuum bags) on mattresses and box springs to trap any remaining bugs and eggs. Isolating infested areas will make your bed bug control treatments more effective.

3. Prep the Areas for Treatment

Before you apply any bed bug treatment methods, prepare the affected areas by removing clutter, vacuuming floors and couches thoroughly, washing bedding and clothing in hot water, and drying on high heat. Seal any cracks or crevices in the walls to eliminate potential hiding spots. Proper preparation helps you be more successful in eliminating bed bugs from your walls and home in general.

4. Treat For Bed Bugs

Another good insecticide for in-home use is CimeXa dust. This is nontoxic dust similar to diatomaceous earth in that it works to kill bed bugs physically instead of chemically. The dust damages their exoskeletons, which causes death by dehydration.

My best tip for treating bed bugs inside a wall void would be to use CimeXa dust and a duster with a rubber tip, like the one pictured below.

You can easily work this narrow tip into cracks and crevices like those under the wall or into a wall void after taking off an outlet cover.

Unlike a liquid spray, a duster can puff the dust up into the air since it’s so light. By temporarily getting a cloud of dust airborne back in the wall void, you can cover a lot of areas, including many of the bed bugs potentially living back there.

Common Questions About Bed Bugs, Treatment, and Prevention

Read on to understand more about bed bugs and how to treat and prevent their infestations in your walls and elsewhere.

Should I Drill a Hole In my Wall to Treat for Bed Bugs?

If bed bugs are in your walls, they were able to get there through a crack, so you shouldn’t need to drill any additional holes to treat for bed bugs. Bed bugs also have to come out of the wall to feed, so If you are treating the whole room, the bed bugs in the wall should eventually die as well, even if you can’t get your treatment into every nook and cranny.

Rather than drilling into the wall, treat around the floorboard with bed bug interceptor traps and keep your bed away from the wall to make it harder for bugs living in the wall to feed at night.

Will an Ultrasonic Pest Repeller Make Bed Bugs Leave My Walls?

No. These devices don’t work. This has been documented extensively in studies across different insect species.  Don’t buy these devices, and if you already have, feel free to toss them in the trash.

Can a Heat Treatment Kill Bed Bugs in The Wall?

Yes. While heat treatment is inconvenient and expensive, it should kill bed bugs everywhere in your home, including the walls. Know that the wall voids need to be kept at a very high temperature in order to kill any bed bugs in there. Just make sure to check with the pest control specialist doing the treatment, as they can more specifically answer your questions and concerns about heat treatments (and chemical treatments, too).

How Long Can Bed Bugs Live in the Walls?

Bed bugs do need to emerge from the walls in order to feed to reproduce, so they can’t stay hidden in the walls forever. Without feeding, bed bugs in a wall can live for anywhere from 20 to 400 days, depending on temperature and humidity.

Can Bed Bugs Live in Electrical Outlets?

A bed bug is unlikely to live inside an actual live electrical outlet. A bed bug is more likely to live in the void where the outlet sits. This is something you can check while inspecting and treating for bed bugs, though; just remove the plastic covering. You can apply CimeXa dust to this space, too, since it’s safe for electrical components. Just don’t put the dust directly in the outlet itself.

Can Bed Bugs Travel Through the Walls of an Apartment or Hotel?

Yes, this is how bed bugs spread through buildings to infest multiple units. Bed bugs are small enough that they can crawl through the same gaps that wiring and plumbing go throughout a building, so if you live in an apartment building, it is imperative that you inform your landlord the instant you suspect you may have bed bugs so they can take action to protect the rest of the building.

How Can I Prevent Bed Bugs from Coming Through my Walls?

Unfortunately, if bed bugs are around, they’ll find a way into your room. You can’t really prevent them from coming through walls because they are able to go through extremely small cracks. The best thing you can do is treat your spaces with CimeXa around any suspected cracks and crevices the bugs may be traveling through and use interceptor traps.

In addition to CimeXa, here are some other steps you can take to prevent bed bugs from coming through your walls:

• Seal any cracks or openings in walls, floors, and ceilings with caulk or plaster
• Install door sweeps and weather stripping to prevent bed bugs from entering under doors
• Regularly inspect and vacuum high-risk areas, such as bedrooms and living rooms
• Avoid bringing second-hand furniture or items into your home without thoroughly inspecting them first
• Wash all clothing in hot water and dry on high heat after staying in hotels or elsewhere overnight
• Get annual treatments from your home from an exterminator

Can Bed Bugs Chew Through a Wall?

Thankfully, no. Unlike other pests like carpenter ants or termites, the mouths of bed bugs aren’t designed for chewing through solid material. The only way bed bugs enter and exit through walls is through existing cracks or holes.

Can Bed Bugs Crawl Up Walls?

Yes. Like most insects, bed bugs are great crawlers. They crawl up and down walls and bed frames to access your bed at night, especially if your bed is touching the wall. So, one way to minimize how well the bed bugs can access you at night is to move your bed away from the wall. However, this is not foolproof, so you should be treating for bed bugs as well.  

When to Hire a Pest Control Company For Bed Bugs

If you suspect a bed bug infestation in your walls, you need to act fast to stop the problem from getting worse. While DIY treatments can be effective for minor infestations, larger or more widespread infestations usually require a professional pest control service. If you’ve tried DIY methods without success, or if the infestation has spread to multiple rooms or areas of your home, I strongly recommend hiring a pest control expert to help you eliminate the bed bugs in your walls and throughout your home.

Final Thoughts on Bed Bugs in Walls

Getting rid of bed bugs in walls requires a strategic, multi-faceted approach. Start by identifying signs of an infestation, then use the appropriate treatment methods, and finally, finish by implementing preventative measures. For small infections, you can eliminate bed bugs from your walls and keep them from returning. However, if the infestation is severe or if DIY methods won’t work, don’t hesitate to seek the help of a professional pest control expert or exterminator to completely eradicate the bed bugs from your home.