Skip to Content

Does Dawn Dish Soap Get Rid of Bed Bugs? (Explained)

Bed bugs are a small kind of insect. They bite the human skin to satisfy their need for food. They hide in delicate and small places of bed and come out at night. Today we are going to discuss if dawn dish soap gets rid of bed bugs or not.

Does dawn dish soap get rid of bed bugs?

One can use dawn dish soap to get rid of bed bugs. Dawn dish soap can be applied as a solution by mixing it with hot water. Then the solution can be put into a spray bottle. The surfactants and irritants of the dawn dish soap can break down the outside shell of bed bugs.

Dawn dish soap is most famous for washing dishes. But many consider it as the best soap on the market. The thing that makes dawn more popular day by day is its ability to wash out grease.

Dawn dish soap is also very versatile and can be used in several sectors beside washing dishes. It can be used to get rid of bed bugs.

But you cannot get rid of bed bugs by applying dawn dish soap in an ineffective way. The bed bugs need to come in direct contact with the applied dawn dish soap. Otherwise, the trick will not work.

When the dawn dish soap is applied on the shell of the bed bugs, the chemicals of the dawn dish soap damage the shell. After that the internal organs of the bed bugs are exposed, and the bed bugs are neutralized successfully.

You can put your dawn dish soap in a spray bottle and spray it directly on the bed bugs. This method will give you instant result.

4 reasons why dawn dish soap gets rid of bed bugs

There are many reasons why dawn dish soap gets rid of bed bugs. Some of them are:

Chemical components of dawn dish soap:

Dawn dish soap is a versatile soap in many ways. Mainly because of its uses and components. The makers of dawn dish soap have not made all the chemical components of the dawn dish soap public.

But it possesses surfactants and irritants that is for sure. These irritants and surfactants are strong enough to destroy the outside shell of the bed bugs effectively.

Because of that, the internal organs of the bed bugs come under threat.

Scent of dawn dish soap:

Dawn dish soap contains citrus scent. This citrus scent comes from the lemon component of the dawn dish soap.

Bed bugs absolutely dislike lemon and its citrus scent. You can even apply lemon juice directly on the bed bugs to get rid of them. This is how much threatened bed bugs feel by citrus scent and mainly lemon.

Eating habit of the bed bugs:

The bed bugs are not a regular eater. They eat irregularly. This makes them very vulnerable. They also do not drink at all.

That is why as soon as their outside shell starts breaking down after coming in contact with the dawn dish soap, they start evaporating away.

The mixture of the solution:

You can mix dawn dish soap with hot water and make a solution. This solution will absolutely get rid of the bed begs on direct contact. The bed bugs can not fight against the effective mixture of dawn dish soap and hot water.

How to get rid of bed bugs using dawn dish soap?

There are several steps involved when it comes to using dawn dish soap to get rid of bed bugs. They are:

Create a solution:

Applying raw dawn dish soap will not be effective enough. That is why you will need to create a chemical solution by mixing dawn dish soap with hot water. Hot water will increase the flowing power of dawn dish soap.

Dawn dish soap and hot water are perfect for each other when it comes to using it on bed bugs. You will have to create a balanced solution by mixing dawn dish soap and hot water.

You will have to mix one hundred and twenty-five millilitre of dawn dish soap with one hundred millilitre of water.

Apply the solution:

Next, you will have to put the dawn dish soap and hot water solution into a spray bottle. You will need to spray the solution directly on the bed bugs to make sure that the extermination process is a success.

You will have to make sure that your solution reaches all the corners and hidden places of your bed and room. The solution will naturally drown the beds and get rid of them. This solution will also wipe off the eggs laid by the bed bugs.

Add vinegar to the solution:

You can add vinegar to solution of dawn dish soap water and hot water to help you in the cleaning process. Vinegar will play a key role when it comes to get rid of the marks left by the solution in the extermination process.

What kind of soap do you use to get rid of bed bugs?

There are some characteristics that a soap needs to have to get rid of the bed bugs. They are:

That contains surfactant and irritant:

Dish soaps containing surfactant and irritant can easily be used to get rid of the bed bugs.

For example, dawn dish soap contains Sodium lauryl sulfate, Sodium laureth sulfate and a few other surfactants and irritants.

Most of the soaps contain surfactants. That is why any soap containing surfactants can be used to get rid of the bed bugs.

That contains lemon:

Lemon possesses citrus scent that the bed bugs can not stand at all. They absolutely dislike citrus scent that comes from the lemon juice.

And most of the dish soaps and detergents have lemon juice as one of their components. That is why any soap containing lemon juice can be applied to get rid of the bed bugs.

That works as a solution:

Dish soaps need to be created into a solution with the help of hot water. Hot water increases the flowing ability of dish soaps.

That is why dish soaps that can work perfectly with hot water is most suitable for getting rid of the bed bugs. Dish soap and hot water solution needs to be put into a spray bottle and poured directly on the bed bugs.

Particular kinds of dawn dish soap:

Dawn dish soap is the best choice for getting rid of bed bugs. But not all of them are suitable for the process. Three X ultra-blue and platinum dawn are two of the best varieties of dawn dish soap that can be applied to get rid of bed bugs.

What is the main cause of bed bugs?

There are many causes responsible for the nests of bed bugs in our home and other places. Hotel and common living places are the main thresholds of the bed bugs.

Bed bugs can get on our body without us noticing them and can travel from one place to another laying eggs and feeding on our skin.

Bed bugs are almost invisible to eye. They take advantage of their size and structure to hide in plain sight and create a nest.

And it is not necessary that bed bugs with hide in dirty and unnoticed places. They will hide wherever their food source is.

Busy places like hotel, airport and public transport are the hub for bed bug infestations.

These places contribute to the infestations of bed bugs. Old furniture is another source of bed bug infestation. Old furniture contains a lot of bed bugs and their eggs.

Schools, colleges and other educational institutions are also the perfect place for bed bug infestations. People carry bed bugs unknowing from these places to their home and help in creating bed bugs infestation.

What smells do bed bugs dislike?

There are many smells that the bed bugs absolutely dislike. These smells can be used to get rid of bed bugs permanently.

These smells can be applied in various ways to stop bed bugs infestation at home and other places. Here are some of the smells that bed bugs dislike:

  • Smell of lavender oil
  • Smell of rubbing alcohol
  • Smell of pepper powder
  • Smell of lemon juice
  • Smell of rubbing alcohol
  • Smell of cinnamon
  • Smell of neem oil
  • Smell of blood orange oil
  • Smell of peppermint
  • Smell of diatomaceous earth
  • Smell of tea free oil

Final thoughts

Dish dawn soap can be used effectively to get rid of bed bugs. It can be applied as a solution with the help of hot water. The solution has to be applied on the bed bugs directly. The outside shell of the bed bugs will break down and their internal organs will start evaporating in the process.