- Tonight: sleep in your own bed (moving rooms spreads them), bag and hot wash all bedding at 60°C, and vacuum the bed and floor edges.
- This week: seal the mattress in a full-zip encasement, deal with pillows and duvet, and steam seams and joints.
- If bites continue after 2 weeks: book professional heat or insecticide treatment.
- Then: keep the encasement on for 12 months and keep checking for 8 weeks.
Bed bugs are one of the most stressful things to find at home, and the internet is full of advice that makes it worse. The good news: bed bugs do not spread disease, and a calm, step by step approach works. This plan is built from UK public health and pest control guidance plus what we hear every week from customers who have been through it.
Get your personalised bed bug plan
Which best describes your situation right now?
Before you start: 3 things that make bed bugs worse
2. Bug bombs and foggers. They do not reach where bed bugs hide and can drive them into walls, sockets and neighbouring rooms.
3. Throwing out the mattress straight away. Dragging it through the house drops bugs and eggs on the way. A new mattress on an untreated base gets re-infested.
The 8 step plan
Step 1: Confirm it really is bed bugs
Itchy marks are not always bed bugs. Carpet beetle larvae, fleas, dust mite allergy and scabies are all commonly mistaken for them, and each needs a different fix. Look for the physical signs first: dark ink-like dots in mattress seams, rusty spots on sheets, shed skins, eggs or live bugs. Our 10 minute mattress check walks you through it.
Step 2: Bag and hot wash everything from the bed
Put sheets, pillowcases, duvet covers, throws and clothes from the floor straight into bin bags in the bedroom, tie them, and carry them to the washing machine. Wash at 60°C, then tumble dry on high for 30 minutes. Items that cannot be washed can go in a hot tumble dryer for 30 minutes, or in a sealed bag in the freezer at -18°C for at least 4 days.
Step 3: Vacuum slowly and empty it outside
Use a crevice tool along mattress seams, the bed base, headboard, skirting boards and carpet edges. Empty the vacuum or remove the bag straight into a sealed bin bag outside.
Step 4: Seal the mattress in a full-zip encasement
This is the single most useful thing you can buy. A six-sided encasement traps bugs and eggs already in the mattress so they starve, stops new bugs moving in, and leaves them nowhere to hide on the bed. It needs to stay on for at least 12 months. Read our 7 tests a bed bug encasement must pass before you buy one.
Step 5: Deal with pillows and the duvet
Bed bugs settle in the filling, not just the cover. Either encase pillows and duvet as well, or wash the whole pillow and duvet at 60°C every week for at least 4 weeks, then monthly. Most pillows and duvets cannot take a 60°C wash, so check the label.
Step 6: Steam the hiding places
A steam cleaner kills bugs and eggs on contact. Move it slowly, about 2 to 3cm per second, along seams, bed frame joints, headboard buttons, skirting and furniture joints. Steam does not reach deep inside things, so it is a supporting step, not a cure on its own.
Step 7: Book professional treatment if bites continue
If you are still getting new bites after 2 weeks of steps 1 to 6, or you have found bugs in more than one room, call a professional. Heat treatment usually takes one visit. Insecticide treatment usually needs 2 to 3 visits, 2 to 3 weeks apart, because eggs hatch after treatment. Many UK bed bugs are resistant to shop-bought sprays. See what bed bug treatment costs in the UK.
Step 8: Keep checking for 8 weeks
Eggs hatch in about 6 to 10 days and a new adult can breed within about 6 weeks. Check the bed weekly and keep the encasement zipped. If you go 8 weeks without bites or new signs, you are very likely clear.
What kills bed bugs, and what does not
| Method | Works? | How to use it |
|---|---|---|
| 60°C wash | Yes, all stages | Bedding, clothes, washable pillows and duvets |
| Hot tumble dryer | Yes, all stages | 30 minutes on high heat, even for dry items |
| Freezing | Yes, all stages | Sealed bag at -18°C for at least 4 days |
| Steam | Yes, on contact | Slow passes over seams and joints |
| Full-zip encasement | Traps and starves | On the mattress for 12+ months, never opened |
| Professional heat or insecticide | Yes | For the whole room; follow the technician's prep list |
| Shop sprays and powders | Partly | Only as directed on the label; resistance is common |
| Bug bombs, foggers, essential oils | No | Avoid; they scatter bugs or do not reach them |
The kit that does the heavy lifting
Bed Bug Mattress Encasement
Full zip, all 6 sides, closes to an end stop. Traps and starves bugs in the mattress.
Bed Bug Protector Set
Mattress, 2 pillows and duvet sealed together. No weekly 60°C washing of the fillings.
Sealed Steel Bed Frame
Replaces a divan or upholstered base full of seams and staples. Nothing for bed bugs to hide in.
Frequently asked questions
Can you get rid of bed bugs yourself?
A small, early infestation confined to one bed can often be controlled with washing, vacuuming, steaming and a full-zip encasement. If bugs are in more than one room, in furniture, or you are still getting bites after 2 weeks, professional treatment is the reliable route.
How long does it take to get rid of bed bugs?
Typically 2 to 8 weeks with treatment. Keep checking for 8 weeks after your last bite, and keep the mattress encasement on for at least 12 months.
Can bed bugs survive a washing machine?
Not at 60°C, and not in a hot tumble dryer for 30 minutes. Cool washes alone may not kill eggs, so finish with a hot dry.
Are bed bugs dangerous?
They are not known to spread disease in the UK. Bites can be very itchy, and scratching can lead to infection. If bites blister, spread or look infected, speak to a pharmacist or GP.
I rent. Whose job is it to get rid of bed bugs?
Tell your landlord or letting agent in writing straight away, especially in flats where bugs can move between homes. Responsibility depends on your tenancy and how the infestation started, so check your agreement and, if needed, your local council's private housing team.
Start with the bed tonight
The full-zip encasement is step 4, and the one that keeps working for the next 12 months. Free next-day UK delivery on orders over £149.
Shop the bed bug encasement Protect the whole bedWritten by Richard Williams, founder of iDustMite, former NHS worker, guest speaker at the Allergy UK Show in 2025 and 2026, and adviser on over 1,000 one-to-one bedroom consultations. Reviewed October 2026.
