Bed bugs — khatmal — travel in luggage, second-hand furniture, packed goods and shared laundry. They are not a hygiene problem: spotless homes and five-star hotel rooms get them just as often as crowded ones.
They feed at night and spend the day hidden in seams and cracks within about two metres of the sleeping surface, which is exactly where an inspection should focus.
The ten-minute mattress inspection
- Strip the bedding and take a bright torch. Daylight is not enough.
- Run along the piping seam on all four mattress edges, then the corner protectors and the label pocket.
- Lift the mattress and check the box spring or plywood base, especially screw holes and the frame joints.
- Unscrew or tilt the headboard and check the back face and wall bracket — the single most common hiding spot people miss.
- Check the bedside table drawer runners, the seam of any upholstered chair in the room, and behind loose wallpaper or a wall-mounted switch plate near the bed.
What you are looking for
- Live bugs: flat, oval, reddish brown, about the size of an apple seed when adult.
- Dark ink-dot spots along seams — digested blood, which smears if wiped with a damp cloth.
- Small rust-coloured smears on bedsheets, usually near shoulders and legs.
- Pale translucent shed skins and tiny white eggs glued into seams.
- A sweet, musty odour in a heavily infested room.
Bites are the least reliable sign
Bed bug bites often appear as itchy welts in a line or small cluster on arms, shoulders, neck and legs. But reactions vary widely — some people show nothing at all for weeks, and bites are easily confused with mosquito or mite reactions. Confirm with physical evidence, not bites alone.
What to do before a treatment
- Do not shift the mattress or furniture to another room — that spreads the infestation.
- Wash bedding, curtains and clothing from the affected room at 60°C and dry on high heat.
- Bag items you cannot wash and keep them sealed until after the second sitting.
- Vacuum seams and the room perimeter, then seal and dispose of the vacuum bag outside the house.
Why treatment is always two sittings
Bed bug eggs are resistant to most residual chemicals. The first sitting kills active bugs and nymphs; the second, 14 days later, catches everything that hatched afterwards. Skipping the second sitting is the main reason a bed bug treatment fails.
RPS bed bug treatment starts around ₹2,500 for a 1 BHK and includes both sittings, with a warranty of up to one year.
Need this handled professionally?
RPS Pest Control has served Mumbai, Navi Mumbai and Thane for over 15 years with CIB-approved treatments, same-day service and written warranties.