Do Bedbugs Make Noise in Richmond?

The question comes up because bedbugs are active in the dark, and people who suspect them start to notice every sound in the bedroom. Old houses with timber floors and sash windows make a lot of small noises at night. Almost none of them have anything to do with bedbugs.

Why They Are Silent

A bedbug is a small, flat, wingless insect. It has nothing to rub together to make a sound, no wings to hum, and it is too light to make a noise walking across fabric or wood. It moves slowly and quietly from its hiding place to the sleeper, feeds for a few minutes without the person noticing, and goes back. That quietness is the whole reason they are so good at living alongside people.

What People Hear Instead

When someone tells us they can hear them, the noise usually turns out to be one of these:

• Timber floors, joists and stairs creaking as the house cools overnight.
• Mice or rats in the ceiling, under the floor or behind a kitchen unit, which do scratch and scurry.
• Birds, squirrels or wasps in the roof space or eaves.
• Beetles or other insects in old wood, which can make a faint ticking.
• Pipes and radiators ticking as the heating goes off.
• The rustle of the mattress protector, duvet or pillow as you move.

Some of those are worth dealing with in their own right, and a noise in the loft or the walls may need a different kind of pest control. We deal with bedbugs; if you are not sure what else we can help with, ask when you ring.

The Feeling of Something Crawling

Many people who fear bedbugs say they can feel them. That is understandable but misleading. A bedbug feeding is usually not felt at all, which is why bites are found in the morning rather than noticed at the time. The tickle or crawling sensation most people describe is the skin reacting to anxiety, dry air, a loose hair or a crease in the sheet.

That does not mean the worry is wrong, only that the feeling is not evidence. If the sensation is keeping you awake and you have found nothing, a pharmacist or GP is a sensible person to talk to as well.

Signs That Actually Help

Quiet as they are, bedbugs do leave things behind. Look in daylight, with a torch, along the places they hide:

1. Check the piping and seams of the mattress for small black or brown spots, which are dried droppings.
2. Look for pale, empty skins in the same seams and in the joints of the bed frame.
3. Check the pillowcase and sheet for tiny rust-coloured smears.
4. Look behind the headboard and along the skirting nearest the bed.
5. If you find an insect, put it in a sealed bag or jar and keep it for us.

The London guide to places bedbugs hide that get missed is worth reading if the obvious spots look clear. If you find something and want it confirmed, an inspection starts from £120 and settles it either way. Bites can be misleading too; bedbug bites or mosquito bites explains why.

Why It Matters for Treatment

Because nobody hears them, bedbugs are often found late, after they have spread from the mattress into the frame, the headboard and the edges of the room. That is one reason treatment covers the whole bed and its surroundings rather than one spot. Treatments start from £220; see the Richmond page for how heat and chemical compare in a busy house.

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