Can Termites Get In Your Bed?

Most people are used to seeing termite colonies munching on wood. However, wood is not the only material termites can eat. These insects can eat almost anything made of cellulose… cotton mattresses and bed sheets included. Thus, don’t be surprised if one day you find a termite infestation on your bed!

If you sleep on a wooden bed, this is the first thing that will draw termites into your bedroom. From there, they will attack the mattress and bed sheets as long as these products contain cellulose. You can find cellulose in rayon, flax, and cotton, which are commonly found in beds and beddings.

As soon as you spot termites in your bed, you should find a way to get rid of them. Failure to do so will not only deny you a comfortable sleep at night, but your expensive mattress and bed sheets may also become damaged, and the infestation can spread all over your house, resulting in more damage to wooden furniture and structures.

Do Termites Eat Beds And Bed Sheets?

As we’ve established before, they do. In fact, termites can wreak havoc on wooden beds and bedding items.

Wood isn’t the only thing these tiny insects can feed on. As long as your mattress contains cellulose, termites will make tiny bites, resulting in pinholes on the mattress and bed sheets. Cellulose in fabrics such as flax, hemp, rayon, and cotton make bed sheets a tasty meal for termites. Thus, if they infest your bed, your mattress and bed sheets will not be safe.

It even gets worse if you sleep on a wooden bed. Termites will eat through the wood, and after a while, you will either hear hollow sounds coming from the bed or small pieces of wood will start to fall off. This can easily be avoided if you spot termites eating the bed early in advance and identify ways to manage this infestation.

Is It Safe To Sleep In A Bed With Termites?

Not unless you are unbothered when insects crawl all over your body as you sleep, you can go ahead and sleep on a bed with termites. This is, however, not recommended even though termites are not considered to cause direct harm or be dangerous to humans. These insects are not known to carry diseases, but they might cause allergic reactions or even asthma attacks if you live in a house that’s severely infested by termites.

Termites do not usually bite people and if they do, the bite is almost the same as that of a mosquito. Depending on your skin’s sensitivity, the sting may itch and leave a bumpy red mark and discomfort for a day or two. But it shouldn’t be a cause for alarm.

Also, termite droppings themselves are not hazardous or toxic and there is no potential threat of infectious disease from coming into direct contact with termite waste.

Nonetheless, knowing that termites have infested your bed, you won’t be able to get a good night’s sleep. As these insects might crawl on your body and possibly bite while you sleep, your rest is likely to be significantly disrupted.

In any case, if you notice termites on your bed, research ways on how you can get rid of them. And if there is a visible infestation in the bed, seek help from a professional exterminator and get accommodation elsewhere until the termites are fully eradicated from your bed and house. Remember, the sooner you deal with the termites in your bed, the more you prevent them from spreading to other furniture and structures.

How To Get Rid Of Termites From Bed?

There are many ways to get rid of termites from your bed, bed sheets, and mattress. They include:

Sunlight Exposure – Termites love a moist environment. Moisture is one of the conditions that attract them to your bed sheets in the first place. Exposing your beddings and mattress to at least five hours of hot, direct sunlight should help eliminate the termites by removing moisture.

White Vinegar – Spraying vinegar containing high amounts of acetic acid will eliminate termite infestation on your bed. Ordinary vinegar won’t get rid of termites as it only has 3% acetic acid. You will need higher concentrations of this acid if you want to kill termites.

Boric Acid and Borax – Boric acid is commonly found in laundry boric powder, this is an excellent product that you can use to chase and kill termites on your bed. Also, borax can kill the termites effectively when applied to the infested area. You can even use a spray of borax solution. The procedure needs to be repeated every 2-3 days.

Orange Oil – Rich in d-limonene, this compound sucks moisture from a termite’s body. You can spray it on your bedsheets and bed.

All the above are safe and effortless ways to get the termites out of your bed. And you probably have most of these ingredients available at home. It is however important to prevent the termite infestation from happening again. One of the ways is to avoid moisture buildup in your house as this creates the ideal environment for termites to thrive. You can also embrace the habit of washing your beddings regularly with boric acid powder.

Please note that the above methods are only applicable to termite infestation in bed sheets and mattresses. If the pests have already spread to the bed frame or other structures around the home, you must reach out to a pest control company for a professional termite treatment.

DIY methods are pretty effective only when the infestation is relatively small, but not a very good idea if you’re dealing with a large termite infestation.

Seek the help of termite control experts in Orange County, CA. Our team at Chem Free Exterminating has all the skills and knowledge to eradicate termites and make sure your house is absolutely safe. So pick up the phone and call us today!