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Marketplace Find? Check Used Furniture for Bed Bugs First
Family-run, licensed and insured pest control in South Florida.
$50 OFF your first service + FREE inspectionNew customers · No code needed · No expirationThe best time to check used furniture for bed bugs is in the seller's driveway, before it goes in the car, not after it's in your living room. A great deal on a couch or a headboard from an online marketplace can be exactly what it looks like. But bed bugs travel in used furniture, and they have nothing to do with how clean the last home was. Five minutes with a flashlight tells you a lot. Here's what to look at, which pieces are riskiest, and what to do if you have doubts.
The 5-minute check for used furniture and bed bugs
Bring a flashlight and an old credit card. Then:
- Seams, piping and tags. Run the light slowly along every seam, the piping on cushion edges, and around tags and zippers.
- Under the cushions. Pull every cushion and look at the deck underneath and the undersides of the cushions.
- Frame joints and screw holes. Bed bugs hide in tight cracks, so check where wood meets wood and any holes in the frame.
- The back of headboards and the underside of bed frames.
- The card trick. Slide the credit card along seams. It can push hidden bugs out.
You're looking for small rust-colored or dark spots, like marker dots, tiny pale eggs stuck in seams, shed skins, or live bugs. Adults are flat, oval and reddish-brown, about the size of an apple seed. Take a photo of anything that looks off. The bed bug page has pictures.
Second hand furniture and bed bugs: which pieces are riskiest
Not every secondhand piece is the same risk. From most to least:
- Mattresses and box springs. The most hiding spots and the hardest to check well.
- Upholstered couches, recliners and chairs. Deep seams, fabric and a frame you can't see into.
- Headboards and bed frames. Joints and screw holes, especially in wood.
- Solid wood or metal pieces without fabric, like tables or dressers. Easier to check, but still look in drawers and joints.
If you can't check an upholstered piece or a mattress well, pass on it.
If you have doubts
- Leave it. There will be another couch.
- If you already bought it, keep it in the garage or outside, away from living areas, until it's been inspected.
- Call us. We'll inspect a single piece, like a used couch, as well as the whole home.
Sealing a piece in plastic or leaving it outside for a while isn't a reliable way to clear it, so don't count on waiting it out.
If bed bugs already came in with it
- Don't move it from room to room, and don't sleep in another room. That can spread them further.
- Don't throw it out yet. Carrying it through the home can scatter bugs, so let us inspect first.
- Skip the foggers and bug bombs. They don't reach bed bugs hiding in cracks.
- In a condo or apartment, tell management right away, since bed bugs can spread between units.
Not sure the bites are bed bugs? See bed bug bites vs. mosquito bites.
What treatment looks like
Bed bug treatment starts with an inspection to confirm bed bugs and see how far they've spread. Then we treat the infested rooms, furniture and hiding spots, focusing on where bed bugs actually live. Eggs can hatch after the first treatment, so a follow-up visit is typical, and we'll tell you how many visits your home is likely to need. Our guide on how to prepare for bed bug treatment covers the prep, and if you've just traveled, see bed bugs after a cruise. Bed bug work is priced after the FREE inspection.
For the rest of the year, our general pest plan is $125 per quarter, about $42 a month, and monthly or custom schedules are quoted after the inspection. For plan customers: "If pests come back between visits, so do we, at no extra cost." There are no long-term contracts and no cancellation fees, just a simple service agreement. We're family-run and licensed, with 30+ years in the business, and hablamos español. Browse more guides.
Used furniture questions
Can you get bed bugs from a used couch?
Should I ever buy a used mattress?
Do you inspect just one piece of furniture?
What do bed bug signs on furniture look like?
Bought it already? Let us take a look.
Get $50 OFF your first service plus a FREE inspection. No code, no expiration. Call or text anytime: 833-845-9284.
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