Here’s Why Bed Bugs Don’t Run Away in Heat

This is probably one of the most common questions I hear. “Won’t the bed bugs run to the next room if I use heat treatment?” I am going to tell you that I am, hands’ down, the expert on bed bugs, heat treatment and how fast they run away. I’m also the expert on cockroaches as you will soon see.

Bed Bugs and Cockroaches both have the same Thermal Death Temperature, i.e. 45C. They will both die in a test tube situation at this temperature. A cockroach takes about an hour to die, while a bed bug will die within about 15 minutes. The hotter it gets, the faster they die. The difference between bed bugs and cockroaches is how they react to the heat.

Let me tell you what happens when a cockroach feels the substantial rise in temperature. They don’t wander around wondering what’s going on. They say, I’m getting the heck out of here, now. First off, they head for their super highway – the water pipes. They will squeeze through the cracks where they probably came in under the sink where the drain pipe is located. If they can’t find the super highway, they will head for the cracks under doors. They can probably feel the slight breeze that small gap provides them to escape. And finally, even if you have put tape over your door to seal the cockroaches inside, those little devils are survivors and will start chewing their way through the tape.

The difference between bed bugs and cockroaches is how they react to the heat.

I have personally watched bed bugs die before my eyes as the thermometer starts to rise. Hey, that kinda rhymes.

Here’s what happens when a bed bug begins to realize that it is suddenly like the tropics in their usually temperate habitat. The bed bugs will notice that at around 41C that it’s getting toasty and may start to crawl out of their hiding spots to find out what the heck is going on. Once out of their hiding spots, the temperature will keep rising to reach the fatality temperature of 45C. Here’s the difference to cockroaches: bed bugs get slower and slower as the temperature rises. They will eventually be unable to hold onto whatever surface they are attached to and start to fall off. The hot air dehydrates their bodies and they shrivel up into brown specks and blow away.

I believe the first half of this video is the perfect example of how fast the bed bugs are running around in circles and not really running for the hills to escape. They are dazed and confused. As the video progresses and it zooms in on a single bed bug, it clearly demonstrates the demise of the blood sucker. The temperature in the room at that moment was 47.5C, just about the minimum.

The other difference between cockroaches and bed bugs is that cockroaches have the equivalent of teeth. When talking about insect jaws, you are talking about the mandibles and Maxillae.

Mandibles are found on most insects, like cockroaches and is the part that tear apart the food into smaller pieces so the insect can then pull it into their throats.

The Maxillae is basically These are secondary chewing parts, like teeth, that further grind down the food into smaller and smaller pieces so they can be pulled into the digestive areas for nutritional purposes.

This means that cockroaches can chew their way out of most situations, including being trapped inside a room that has tape sealing the cracks.

Whereas bed bugs do not have any form of mouth or teeth. They have what is technically called a proboscis, just like a mosquito. This is a tube for sucking blood and for depositing an anesthetic under your skin so you won’t notice them biting. Bed Bugs are a lot better at biting you without you noticing, even when you are awake.

This means that bed bugs cannot escape by chewing their way through the tape or walls.

Okay, you have your bed bugs crawling out at 41C to check the weather and then they start loose control of their bodies and finally shrivel up and die at 45C. The problem is that not all bed bugs come out or are hiding in places where they are not getting hot enough. Here lies the reasoning for me to recommend that you leave the bed bug heaters running for a minimum of eight hours in any room you know has bed bugs. You have to get everything in the room over 45C, not just the bug that is strolling around, but also the ones who have decided to seek shelter from the blistering heat by hiding under a box or bag. In a large infestation, like the one in the video, you are going to see a lot of bugs come out of hiding, but not all of them do.

It is so important to prepare the room for a heat treatment as the key to success is for the air to be able to flow and penetrate everywhere bed bugs like to hide. Preparation includes moving all the furniture away from the walls at least 15 cm to allow the air to circulate to the baseboards, a favourite hiding spot for bed bugs. You will need to open the dresser drawers and closet doors and flip up your mattress to allow the entire bed frame to be exposed, which is usually their favourite nesting grounds.

The terminal death temperature of 45C is just the beginning. My experience has taught me that you want to go into the room during the treatment and look for cold spots using the temperature sensor gun. You can then aim the heater to these areas, like the closet or behind curtains to blast the heat. As a bare minimum, I like customers to achieve a minimum temperature of 50C. Ideally, our equipment is designed to go to a blistering 60C which means you will kill the bed bugs faster.

I hope this clears up the fake news that heat treatments don’t work because the bed bugs will run away.

We are always happy to answer your questions and find the right equipment to fit your unique situation to kill bed bugs in a single treatment so you can Sleep Tight Tonight.