Bed bugs – they will hide in any nook and corner they can find. Bedding, furniture, electronics, clothes, you name it; even your footwear is not safe. All the bed bugs need is a dark and secluded place to multiply and thrive.

The only solution left for you is to get rid of the entire infestation, as the bed bugs will keep coming back until you have killed the last one.

There are a whole lot of other questions that you should know the answers to before you get to the ways to get rid of bed bugs from your shoes.

Can you find bed bugs on your shoes?

Usually, you won’t, if the shoes are used frequently. That is because the bed bugs don’t like to stay on objects that move.

A mite or a flea won’t mind as they hold onto a hair, but not with bed bugs – bed bugs don’t have that ability, and thus, they will avoid anything that’s on the move.

That means, even if there’s a bed bug on the outside of your shoes, it will run away as soon as the shoe is picked up or put on.

This leads us to the next question –

Can bed bugs live in shoes?

No, bed bugs won’t jump onto your shoes if you are wearing them, but of course, if the shoes are in an idle position for long, then, beware.

There’s a list of requirements that the bed bugs have for any place they like to live, and your shoes tick up all of those boxes.

• Where you sleep, the harborage of the bed bugs will be near you, preferably, within five to six feet of your bed.

• The place has to be dark, say, underneath your bed, or it can be in your wardrobe, if that’s where you keep your footwear.

• Most of the time, the shelter of the bed bugs will be made of fabric. This is because it makes it easier to cling onto the fabric.

• In some cases, you will also see that the bed bugs like to hide in the cracks and crevices of the shoes – this space is often between the shoe’s body and tongue or say, between the shoe’s body and insole.

Usually, the bed bugs choose to live in those shoes that are not moved around much or say, wear them. If you keep a pair of shoes under your bed, and you never wear them, rest assured, that will be an ideal place for bed bugs.

However, even if you keep a pair of shoes under your bed, but you wear them regularly, then the bed bugs won’t have the time to set up their home. One or two may sit inside, and you can shake them off when you pick up your shoes to wear.

And now, we come to the main question –

How to get rid of bed bugs in shoes?

The best way to get rid of bed bugs in footwear is to do away with heat. Bed bugs can’t bear temperatures that are high than 122 degrees.

But of course, there are various other ways to get rid of bed bugs from your shoes.

Let’s get to know a few of them, shall we?

Footwear in the washing machine

One of the most effective ways for ridding bed bugs from your shoes is to put them in the washing machine. But of course, take note of the material of the shoes first, and whether, you can put them in the washing machine.

Materials such as nylon, polyurethane, cotton, polyester, PVC – are washable by machine. Plastic and rubber, too, can be put in the washing machine; this means, almost all shoes are washable by machine.

However, shoes that are made of suede or leather, can’t be put in the washing machine. Also, if the shoes are embellished or have silk or satin, then, it’s best to avoid washing the shoes. Both suede and leather absorb water, so, leaving leather shoes to soak in water in the washing machine will ruin them. Experts recommend that before you decide to wash your shoes in the washing machine to get rid of bed bugs, always check out the care tag first.

Putting shoes in the washing machine – is one of the best ways to rid bed bugs from your footwear, as it can get up to the required heat. It will kill the bed bugs and the water too will drown any other bed bugs that may have otherwise survived.

Here’s how you should proceed to launder your footwear –

• Prepare your shoes to be put in the washing machine – if the shoes are muddy, consider scrubbing the loose dirt on your shoes. However, this step doesn’t matter if you simply want to get rid of bed bugs from your shoes.

• Put the shoes in a mesh laundry bag or the shoes may get damaged. If the shoes have laces, they may come loose and can even break your washing machine, if they get snagged.
  
  If you don’t have a mesh laundry bag, you can make use of an empty tied-up pillowcase.

• Also, remember to never put the shoes alone in the washing machine – they will bang inside the washing machine. You can put some towels or clothes, alongside the shoes.

• For at least, say, six minutes, set the washing machine to a hot setting. This will kill all the bed bugs in the shoes, including the hidden ones.

Once washed, the bed bugs on the shoes should be dead. But the thing is, there may still be eggs on the shoes, so, consider using a bought or handmade tea tree oil spray to kill and repel any bed bugs that may hatch in the shoes.

Footwear in the dryer

If you can’t put your shoes in the washing machine, then, in the dryer they can go. The function of a dryer is literally the same as that of a washing machine minus the water. Any dryer can kill bed bugs in the shoes as any dryer can get up to the required temperature.

Make sure that the shoes don’t get damaged, if you plan to put them in the dryer – consider lining the inside of the shoes with fabrics or say, towels to help the shoes dry quickly.

You can also buy a shoe bag, which you can hang on the dryer door. It will keep the shoes in place and will stop them from clanging around as the drum cycles.

Don\’t put shoes that are made with plastic in the dryer. The temperatures get hot enough to melt it.

And what about the leather shoes?

Under no condition should you put leather shoes in the dryer? The dryer will dehydrate the fibers in the leather surface of the shoes, which in turn, will lead the shoes to break, crack and age.

Footwear in the heater

Consider paying for heat treatment, if you can’t put your shoes either in the washing machine or the dryer. Get in touch with an exterminator, as this is not something that you can do by yourself.

It requires specialist equipment – it will heat the whole house to 122 degrees—much higher in some cases, though, take note that it will take several hours to reach the required temperature throughout the house.

The only guaranteed way to kill them is to kill them with heat.

Putting footwear in bags or boxes

Consider putting the shoes in sealed bags or boxes, until the bed bugs die. This is not much effective, but this is the first method that many people try out in the first instance.

The only issue is that the bed bugs take a long time to die, in some cases, it can take more than a year, even if they are in complete isolation.

The bed bugs are small, so, they don’t need any air and they won’t suffocate. They also don’t need to drink like humans, and as the bed bugs are tiny, they can get sustenance from just one meal, plus they can survive without eating for a year.

The only exception is that the bed bugs can’t survive in extreme temperatures. In the peak of the summer season, if the temperature is to exceed 122 and stays there for 1 to 2 hours, many of the bed bugs will die.

The bag would have to sit under that temperature for a long time, for the heat to get to the shoes; the very same applies to the cold of the winter nights.

Making use of Dichlorvos Strips

Dichlorvos strips are like tiny air fresheners, except they don’t make the air smell fresh. They give off the smell of insecticide and are commonly used to protect stored products from insects.

Best used in a sealed environment, like a bag or a bin, consider throwing one of these strips in the sealed bag or bins, and it might kill the bed bugs.

These strips are mostly intended to repel infestations, and won’t kill an entire infestation. If, however, the bed bugs are hidden well enough, then they won’t come into contact with the air and the chemicals, so they might survive.

Dichlorvos strips also aren’t supposed to be used by homeowners or consumers and are intended for use by pest management professionals.

However, they aren’t a ‘restricted use pesticide,’ meaning that it is legal to purchase them. If you do decide to use them, or products like them, follow the instructions on the label to the tee.

What to do if nothing works?

If nothing works, then, throwing out the shoes in the trash is the only way.

Usually, it’s easy to get the bed bugs out of the shoes, as there are not many hiding places in shoes, but say, if they have laid eggs somewhere in the shoes, then, they can restart the whole infestation, so, it’s better not to hold onto bug-infested shoes, no matter how favorite they are of yours.

Is there any way to stop bed bugs from getting in the shoes?

Sure, why not?

There are steps that you can take to stop the bed bugs from getting in your shoes.

• Don’t keep your shoes anywhere where the bed bugs can easily reach them. Keep them out of the bedroom if possible. Also, the space under the bed is a big no-no.

• Consider spraying your shoes with a homemade or purchased bed bug spray. The spray will kill bed bugs on contact, plus, they will learn to avoid anywhere that’s been sprayed to survive.

• Consider keeping your shoes in bags or boxes. Keep them in large, plastic bins with a lid that you can seal shut. Bed bugs might be able to crawl into cracks, but they can’t get through a sealed plastic lid. You can also sprinkle a little diatomaceous earth around the lid to keep them away.

• Put the shoes in a sealed bag or bin with some pest control spray or strips, such as Nuvan (dichlorvos) strips. Keeping your shoes in a sealed bag with these will prevent bed bugs from coming near them, and the chemicals that stick to the surface will repel them for weeks.

Now, that you know how to stop the bed bugs from getting in your footwear, what to do, if the said bed bugs are from your room?

Even if there are no bed bugs in your shoes, there’s no telling when those pesky intruders raid your room; and before long, they will nest in your shoes.

• Heat treatment – You can use heat treatment to get rid of the bed bugs from your room. Sure it is expensive, but this method is highly effective.

• Pesticide spray – You can also call a pest control company, and have them spray your home to get rid of the bed bugs.

• Box spring encasements – These are wrapped around your mattress or box spring, they zip up. They completely encapsulate the mattress and as such, nothing can get in or out. Since bed bugs usually live in your mattress, this can immediately stifle most of the infestation.

When it comes to your footwear, if they are infested by bed bugs, know that they won’t go by themselves, you will have to take steps to remove them.