Picture this: You sit on a friend’s infested couch for five minutes. A bed bug crawls from the cushion onto your pant leg. Ta-da, you’ve got a free passenger.
Or maybe you toss your gym bag on a hotel floor, and a bug climbs inside. Later, you move that bag to your bedroom floor. Congratulations—you just created a local shuttle service.
The irony is that clean clothes are actually safer than dirty ones. Worn clothes have human scent, which attracts bugs. A fresh, laundered shirt smells like detergent—not dinner.
Can you just wash them away? (Spoiler: mostly yes)
Good news: heat kills bed bugs. A hot dryer cycle—30 minutes on high—will annihilate any stowaways. Eggs, nymphs, adults—they’re toast. (Pun absolutely intended.)
But here’s the catch: washing alone might not do it. Cold water won’t kill them, and even warm cycles aren’t hot enough. The dryer is your real hero here.
So if you’re paranoid after a trip, don’t just throw clothes in the hamper. Bag them, then tumble dry on high. Then wash. Then dry again. Yes, it’s a chore, but it’s cheaper than a full exterminator visit.
Better Safe Than Sorry: How to Kill Bed Bugs on Clothing | LaJaunie's
