How Long Do Lice Live on a Mattress

Lice get their sustnance from human blood and can go without feeding for 1-2 days. So if there are lice on a mattress surface and a person doesn’t sleep there for up to 2 days, then technically, the lice would die. But as with most parasitic infestations, it’s not that simple because the mattress will probably have thousands of lice eggs that can take 7-10 days to hatch—meaning that a new infestation of lice will continue to hatch every couple of weeks until these itchy parasites completely inhabit the bed.

Lice can’t live on the mattress without having food, and they are unlikely to lay their eggs on the mattress either because the eggs won’t hatch without a human body’s warmth. But very often the lice and their eggs might fall off the hair shaft onto the mattress, affecting how long the lice live on the mattress. If the mattress is continually used and left untreated the lice could potentially continue living on a mattress indefinitely. Their continuous and overlapping lifecycle makes it tricky to get rid of them completely, but the tips in this article will help you completely eliminate all lice and nits from your mattress.

Key Takeaways

• To get rid of lice on a mattress you should clean all bedding on a hot wash cycle and thoroughly vacuum the mattress surface to remove lice and eggs.
• Lice can survive for about 2 days on a mattress if they don’t have contact with humans whose blood they drink for sustenance.
  
• Lice eggs or nits can survive for 10 days on a mattress, without the warmth provided by the human host.

Lice Lifecycle on a Mattress Explained

If the lice’s food source, which is human blood, is not interrupted their life cycle will continue and new lice will keep hatching every day. You’ll need to simultaneously kill all the active lice and any eggs that may be on the mattress to ensure there is no recurring infestation later on. Mattresses are an investment, especially if you have one of the high-end ones that are rated the best mattresses in Canada, so you’ll want to clear the lice infestation instead of disposing of the mattress. So let’s take a closer look at the complete life cycle to understand how long lice live on a mattress and how to treat a lice infestation. 

Lice eggs, or nits, typically hatch 6-10 days after being laid by the females. A newly hatched louse is called a nymph and it will immediately feed on its human host after it has hatched. From days 10 to 17 the lava will molt three times as it grows, and at about day 17 or 18 it will reach full maturity. At this stage, the males and females will seek each other out to mate. Two days after mating the female will lay the first six of its eggs, thereafter it will continue to lay 6 eggs every day until it dies, and the cycle continues. Lice typically live for 30 days but can live for up to 50 days if conditions are favorable.

Pro Tip: Wear a hair net, latex gloves, and face mask when eradicating lice from a mattress and bedding. Steam cleaning is an effective chemical-free way of getting rid of lice.

Thoroughly Wash and Comb Hair To Prevent Reinfestation

The first step to get rid of lice is to thoroughly wash your hair with lice treatment shampoo and comb out all the dead lice and nits with a fine-toothed metal comb. You may need to repeat this process two or three times to ensure your head is completely lice-free. 

Shampoos that are specially designed for treating lice have chemicals that smother the lice and nits, and the fine comb provided will help get every critter off every hair shaft and follicle. Lice typically thrive close to the scalp so though some people recommend using a hair straightener on high heat to kill them, this usually doesn’t work well and can cause severe damage to the hair and scalp (1). 

Wash All Bedding and Pillows On a Long, Hot Cycle

Check the washing instruction labels on the bedding to determine the highest temperature that you can use when washing these items. If you have bedding with white linen fabric and no embroidery or embellishments, then you can wash these on the hottest cycles which is usually about 90° on most domestic washing machines but don’t do this too often as it can wear the fibers down quicker and cause tears. Dyed linen fabric should not be washed in temperatures higher than 60° because they will fade. A long 40° wash cycle should be sufficient to kill the lice. 

If you have specialty bedding like one of the best weighted blankets in Canada, then take extra care when cleaning it so that you don’t damage its inner and outer materials when cleaning it. Most colored cotton bedding that is made from viscose, cotton linen,  bamboo cotton, and 100% cotton can only handle a maximum temperature of 40°, so don’t set it any higher. For added surety that all the lice have been killed you can place the bedding in the dryer after washing, hang them out in the sun for 6-10 hours, and then use a steam iron to get out the wrinkles—after which you’ll have the freshest cleanest sheets. 

Place the Mattress in Direct Sunlight

Obviously, you can’t put your mattress in the washing machine or dryer, but there are ways to rid it of lice. If you have a steam cleaner, you can use the upholstery nozzle to clean the entire mattress surface as well as all the seams and edges. 

Lice, like bedbugs, can’t handle heat, so cleaning methods that involve prolonged exposure will help get rid of infestations of bedbugs and lice. If however, your mattress has latex or memory foam in its composition, then do not place it in direct sunlight because this will destroy its structure, make it lose its elasticity, and become brittle. 

Vacuum the Mattress's Surface and Seams

A mattress should be regularly cleaned to ensure it stays in good condition and to get rid of dead skin cells and shed hair. It is also a good idea to thoroughly wash and vacuum mattresses used in children’s bedrooms, especially if there is occasional bed-wetting and you need to get the urine stains and smell out of the mattress. 

However, when getting rid of lice on a mattress, a thorough vacuuming will usually be enough, especially if the mattress was left outside in direct sunlight prior to vacuuming it. Any dead lice and eggs that are still on the mattress surface can be easily sucked up by using the upholstery nozzles and brushes. Be sure to pay close attention to the seams and fabric cording that runs along the mattress’s perimeter to make sure any stray lice and eggs are removed. 

Apply a Lice Repellant To the Mattress

Specially designed lice repellents can be applied to the mattress to prevent future infestations. They can be applied in a spray form or wiped on the mattress. Test a small inconspicuous area to ensure the solution doesn’t cause damage or discoloration on the mattress. If you notice that the spray is staining the mattress then wash it off immediately and dry the mattress fast to prevent any damage. 

Other more natural remedies like essential oils can sometimes work for minor lice infestations. Some of the essential oils that could work to repel lice include:

• Tea tree oil
• Lavender oil
• Peppermint oil
• Eucalyptus oil
• Neem oil

Place a Clean Mattress Protector On the Mattress

Lice infestations can cause diseases like typhus, trench fever, and relapsing fever which can cause severe headaches, fever, muscle spasms, and pain, so ensuring the lice have all been killed is important (2). 

Once the mattress is thoroughly cleaned and dried you can place a mattress cover over the mattress to prevent lice from getting to the mattress surface again. The best mattress covers for the job are the ones that have a zipper running along two-thirds of the cover so that the entire mattress is enclosed in the protective layer. If you have bought one of the best hybrid mattresses in Canada which sometimes come with mattress covers, then you should purchase an additional cover before leaving the dealer to ensure you have one for when the first is being cleaned and your mattress is continuously protected. 

My Experience with Preventing Lice Infestations From Recurring

When the kids came home one day with lice, all the bedding and their entire bedrooms had to be cleaned from top to bottom. Their mattresses were two of the best mattresses for side sleepers in Canada and we didn’t want to have to throw them out because they were still almost new. After washing and combing everyone’s hair the mattresses were placed outside in the sun and rotated every 2 hours to ensure all surfaces were exposed to the heat and light. 

The bedding was washed on a high-temperature cycle and tumble-dried to ensure all the bugs were dead. That evening the mattresses were vacuumed while outside to ensure no eggs, live, or nits accidentally migrated back inside. The mattresses were placed back on the beds and dressed with all the bedding including new mattress protectors. For the following two weeks, their hair was checked daily to make sure the infestation had not returned. 

It is important to note that while dealing with a lice infestation, it’s a good idea to wear latex gloves, a hair net or cap, and a face mask. These precautions will prevent the lice from adhering to your hair and skin or getting any nits stuck under your fingernails.

Summary of Things You’ll Need To Do To Kill Lice on Bedding

When To Consult Professionals About Lice Infestation

If you have regular infestations of lice, especially body lice which can cause diseases, that keep recurring even though you have followed all the cleaning and prevention methods then it may be time to call in some professional exterminators and dermalogical specialists to assist.  

Contact a doctor or pharmacist who can confirm that the infestation is lice and who can give appropriate recommendations for how to get rid of them. Some regions have lice clinics where professionals can help you with effective treatment to rid your home of lice infestations. In extreme situations, it may be necessary to go to a pediatric dermatologist who can prescribe oral treatments like oral ivermectin or malathion lotion to get rid of stubborn lice infestations (3). 

FAQ:

Conclusion

When you are trying to get rid of an infestation it is important to understand how long lice can survive on a mattress so that you perform the right cleaning method at the right time and kill all the lice that are at various stages in their life cycles. Because lice eggs can go longer without human contact their stage is typically the stage that is hardest to overcome. To completely eradicate your home of lice you need to do all the cleaning tasks laid out in this article to ensure they don’t come back again. 

Still have questions about how long do lice live on a mattress? Alex Savy, the Co-Founder and Chief Editor at Comfynorth has reviewed countless sleep products with over 4 years in the industry and can help you find what you’re looking for. Reach out through email at [email protected]. When emailing Alex, include your full name and phone number or email address.