Buy your ticket, pack your bags, and leave some extra food out for the cat because it’s spring break! Nothing would feel better than some tropical sunshine as we wait for the weather to thaw and the season to finally change for good. Make sure after vacationing this spring break you bring home only memories, not pests! Rose Pest Solutions has tips to keep bed bugs from hitchhiking home with you.
You know who else loves a good vacation this time of year? Bed bugs! Those little buggers love to travel and just like you, they’re bloodthirsty for an inexpensive trip to a new place. Rose Pest Solutions will make sure that you can not only identify bed bugs, but that you also know just where to look to help keep them out of your life. Knowing what to look for is this first step of prevention.
What do Bed Bugs Look Like?
Despite what some people think, bed bugs ARE visible with the human eye. Check out the image below featuring an adult bed bug for size comparison.
“Bed bugs are extremely elusive and difficult to eliminate,” said Curtis Rand, V.P. of Operations for Rose Pest Solutions. “Not only can they survive up to 7 months without feeding, they can also brave temperatures from near freezing-122 degrees Fahrenheit.” “If you have bed bugs, you need professionals.”
Rose knows that bed bugs aren’t just particular to your fluffy mattress, these parasitic opportunists hide along any cracks where a meal source (You) may frequent. The diagram below shows other common areas bed bugs will usually be found in an infested room.
Where to Look for Bed Bugs
Bed Bug Prevention Tips
A quick 15 minute check can help you avoid the catastrophe of a bed bug infestation. Follow these tips and know you can rest at ease during your vacation knowing you’ve prevented a possible risk.
- Thoroughly inspect the entire hotel room or rental before unpacking, including behind headboards, and around the bottom of cushions and seams of other furniture.
- Pull back bed sheets and inspect mattress seams and box springs, particularly the corners, for pepper-like stains or shed bed bug skins.
- Use a large plastic trash bag or a protective cover to store your luggage in during your stay.
- Do not place luggage on upholstered surfaces. The safest place is typically in the bathroom in the tub, the middle of a tile floor or on a luggage rack after it has been thoroughly inspected. (Do not use a luggage rack if it has hollow legs, where bed bugs may hide unseen)
- If any pests are spotted, notify management and change rooms or properties immediately. If staying in a hotel, be sure your new room is not adjacent to the possibly infested room.
- When you return home, inspect and vacuum your suitcases thoroughly before bringing them into your home. Consider using garment hand steamer to steam your luggage, which will kill any bed bugs.
- Wash all your clothes-even the items not worn-in hot water or dry on high heat.
Learn more about Rose’s detection devices and the methods used for treating treating bed bugs. Education is the first step of prevention.
