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The initial answer to “Can Bed Bugs Live In Basements” is, yes they can. Basements are perfect for many pests because they are usually dark and often filled with lots of great little spots for breeding grounds. However, they do eventually need a host which can be humans, pets, or vermin.
Can Bed Bugs Live in Basements?
When you think of basement-dwelling critters, the bedbug isn’t one that usually comes to mind. Bugs that prefer a moist and damp background include the roach, water bugs, silverfish, and spiders. If you are wondering, “Can bed bugs live in basements?”, you should know that bed bugs are hearty critters that can live anywhere in your home; they only need a host for food.
The bedbug can dwell in places that make them inconspicuous, as they love to hide during the day. Bedbugs live in basements because there is someone or something that lives there that acts as their host. They will only go places where they can easily find a meal, such as your bedroom or living room.
If they are in the lower level of your abode, it’s because they’ve found comfort in a mattress or other furniture where a host is nearby. Any furniture in your home and basement can be a place for a bedbug infestation. Quick action will need to be taken if you discover this.
Bed bugs live in basements and reproduce at alarming rates. Soon, a small problem can turn into a full blown infestation in a matter of days. Each female bed bug can lay up to 500 eggs in her lifetime. She has been able to feed on blood to produce eggs, so as soon as she has access to blood, she can produce around 1-7 eggs daily.
Those eggs will be ready to hatch in 6-10 days. So what starts as a straggling bug passing through can quickly become hundreds in a couple of weeks. You can see why time is of the essence when dealing with this intrusive pest.
Why Are There Bedbugs in My Basement?
Bed bugs can crawl anywhere they like, but the most common reason they dwell in the lower level of your home is that they’ve found some old clothing, furniture, or a nice mattress to set up shop. Once they make themselves at home, they will invade every corner of the basement. They’re very invasive pests, and they will take over and make your life a living nightmare.
Most homes in New Jersey are expected to use the basement as an extra dwelling space. There might be bedrooms, a man cave, a family room, and probably a laundry facility located in these areas. The bed bug has one thing on its mind: blood.
They must have a host to survive, as they cannot reproduce without nourishment. There’s some slight possibility that they enter your basement from an adjacent home, but the chances of this occurring are slim. Never underestimate the traveling potential of this aggressive critter.
They can scramble to the upper levels of your home without any difficulty. They will use the floors and walls to crawl around and find new places to dwell. They need a spot to lay eggs, feed, and mate, and any comfortable surface will do.
If you get bed bugs living in your basement, your upstairs isn’t safe either. It will just be a matter of time until one of them hitches a ride on some clothing or even on you, and they will make their way to the upper level. The females are the scavengers, as they’re the ones that scout new places to dwell.
Once she mates, she will want to get as far away from the males as possible. She wants a safe location to lay her eggs, as she doesn’t like the males to get close. She will seek a new space for her growing brood.
The female is most likely the one that will enter the upstairs area. She will climb up the walls and find a place to nest. Though it might seem like a great distance for a bug to forge from the lower to upper levels, these tenacious insects will stop at nothing to get to an area they feel is safe.
Identifying a Bed Bug Infestation in Your Home’s Lower Level
Now that your skin is crawling just thinking about bedbugs living in your basement, you’re probably wondering how you will detect their presence. First, until the infestation reaches enhanced levels, it’s hard for you to identify an issue if you don’t have any specialized equipment. One very beneficial thing is UV light.
You can quickly get these online for around $10-$20. They will help you see the bugs and the fluids and traces they leave behind. Be warned; these lights will show you things you didn’t think possible.
In fact, it’s great to have these lights to take with you on vacation. They will illuminate things you wouldn’t usually see in a hotel setting. If the hotel is changing sheets and doing its best to keep things clean, the UV light will let you know.
Can bed bugs live in your basement? Yes, and sealing off the basement will keep them from spreading. Remember, these pests hate the light, and they prefer to come out at night. Any cracks where they can hide should be evaluated, as no area is safe. If you shine a UV light around you will be able to watch them scurry.
Killing Bed Bugs in Your Home
It’s a weird feeling to have little bugs in your home. Researching information and taking precautions to get rid of bed bugs can be helpful. The good news is that there are many different ways to get rid of bedbugs.
It will help if you choose treatment options based on the best needs of the people inside the home. If you have people in the house with breathing problems, you need to be selective about the chemicals you use in your abode. Also, pets and younger children are a significant consideration in the pesticides you choose.
Alcohol
Alcohol is relatively inexpensive and can be purchased at just about any store. Spraying an alcohol/water solution on their body will destroy their outer shell and leave them unable to survive. Keep in mind that this solution will help the issue, but it’s unlikely to completely eradicate the problem.
You would have to spray it into the nests and on every bug in your home to be effective, and the chances of accomplishing this are slim. Sadly, alcohol is also harmful to you. It can easily splash into your eyes and make breathing difficult.
Another consideration is that alcohol is very flammable. There is much debate among scientists that bed bugs are now building immunity to alcohol, so if it works a little bit, it’s helpful, but you can’t expect it to take care of a significant issue.
Many other chemical sprays on the market are more effective and less toxic to you, but their ability to eradicate a massive situation is questionable.
Heat Treatment
The best way to eradicate an infestation is by using a heat treatment. Increasing the home’s temperature for over an hour will kill not only the bugs but also the eggs. These treatments are very time-consuming and come with a hefty price tag.
One consideration is that there’s a chance that these bugs will make it through the treatment, as they can go deep into the cracks of your walls to survive. Since you need to warm your home to around 140 degrees, your neighbors need to know your intentions.
These increased temperatures can have a significant impact on their dwelling too. If you live in an apartment building, such a treatment can be dangerous to surrounding apartments. There’s documentation that a lady perished when her neighbor was using a heat treatment, as she didn’t know to leave her space in time. The surrounding apartments should also be evacuated for the safety of the residents.
Why Do These Bugs Love Basements?
Though we’ve already discussed that bed bugs will go where there’s a host, they particularly like basements due to the low humidity. If bed bugs can’t find human blood, they seek out rats or mice. Bed bugs are interesting because they are photophobic, meaning they don’t like light.
Basements are typically dark, so yes is an easy answer to the question, Can bed bugs live in basements to hide and lay eggs? They run a greater risk of you finding them if they’re up in the main dwelling areas. In ancient times, bed bugs would dwell in caves and feed on bats, so the penchant for living in dark and damp spaces was born into them.
Additionally, they like to feed in the darkness too. Humidity levels are low in this area, which helps these bugs thrive. The bed bug cannot survive in high humidity.
The lack of moisture dries out their exoskeletons, and they will perish. The bed bug can easily find something else for nourishment in your basement if there is an absence of a human host. This area is prone to other types of bugs, and they’re not picky when hungry.
Spiders, consequently, love to dine on these critters. Many people see an increase of spiders when they have an infestation, so it’s a warning sign if you start to see many hanging around your basement.
Bed Bug Prevention
Ironically, the bed bug is quite hardy, as they can live for 3-5 months without food. This adds a whole other level of complexity when dealing with these pests. Here are some things you can do to help reduce the chances of an infestation.
- Set Bed Bug Traps
- Traps are an inexpensive method that can be beneficial. Should one lonely bug wander into your basement looking for a place to make its home, the trap can catch it before it reproduces. While these will be of little use in an infestation, they certainly will be helpful to get the stragglers that wander into your space.
- Wrap Unused Furniture in Plastic Sheeting
- Bed bugs like comfort and the finer things when looking for a place to lay their eggs. So they’re not going to come anywhere near plastic sheeting. Putting these protective covers over your unused mattresses and couches adds a layer of protection.
- Use an Alcohol Spray
- Spray down your clothes and furniture with an alcohol spray before putting them downstairs. This helps remove dust and any mites from the furniture and detour the bed bug. If there are any bed bugs on these items, they likely won’t survive.
- Be Careful About What You Bring into Your Home
- If you like to shop at thrift stores, yard sales, or antique shops, you need to clean anything before bringing it inside. You should also be wary of having such items in your car and use the alcohol spray. If the person who donated the items had a bed bug issue, their problem would quickly rub off onto you. All it takes is one female ready to lay eggs to give you an infestation that can be costly to eradicate.
- Killing Sprays
- Using a specialized spray made for these insects can be beneficial. The sprays are cost-effective and will kill the bugs and their eggs.
When to Call the Professionals
There are some bugs that you can handle yourself and be successful, but the chances of eliminating a bed bug infestation without professional help are slim to none. You can spend a lot of time and money trying to fight these pests only to see that they’re much stronger than you ever imagined. It’s best to involve a professional pest control team from the beginning, as they can take care of the situation correctly.
Our technicians have become experts in the matters of all things bed bugs. When your New Jersey home faces a threat from these vile creatures, call us to help. We will come in and evaluate the situation and develop a plan of action.
Since we’ve handled numerous infestations, we know what works best and what to avoid. If you find just one bed bug in your home, it’s one bug too many. Call us to help you kick these invasive creatures to the curb and take back your home.