Wondering how to avoid bedbugs when traveling and while staying in hotels?
Learn specific steps for checking a hotel room for bed bugs. This FAQ on searching a hotel room (from New York State Integrated Pest Management’s bed bug FAQs) is brief and excellent. NYSIPM also provides a printable Travel Card on this topic (click for a PDF) which you can carry with you. This CBC Marketplace report on bed bugs is long (15 minutes or so) but is a must-see for learning about bed bugs in general and learning how to search a hotel room for bed bugs.
And you have to know what bed bugs and their signs look like. You can look at our photos of bed bugs page and signs of bed bugs here, and at photos of fecal stains on a hotel headboard and hotel mattress here.
Keep your luggage on the luggage rack (not bed or floor); first carefully check to see the luggage rack is free of pests (look at it from top to bottom, and under the straps). Check the mattress, headboard, frame and pictures (as much as possible), following these instructions.
For more helpful tips, click to download this PDF of this comprehensive article by entomologists Steven Kells and Jeff Hahn of the University of Minnesota, which describes the steps you should take if you’ve been exposed to bed bugs (but is also helpful on how to search for and avoid them in the first place).
Before you book a room, Google your hotel’s name and “bedbugs” and “bed bugs”; if you haven’t chosen one yet, look them up on tripadvisor.com. There, customers review hotels. If they had bad service, a small, outdated room, or (gasp!) bedbugs, you’ll hear about it. If you see one nasty report, of course, take it with a grain of salt. But multiple bad reviews, or reviews which repeat a particular critique, can be bad news. I have used tripadvisor many times and find the reviews useful not just to reassure me there are no bed bug reports at a hotel, but also to find good, moderately priced hotels, and a real insight into what rooms and service and location are like. Their highest ranked hotels are not always expensive and I have been very pleased when I have chosen them.
Some sufferers suggest purchasing a bottle of Kleenfree and using it in your hotel (spray mattress, etc.) I personally would not do this; Kleen free kills bed bugs you can see–if they’re sprayed directly. But it does nothing for bed bugs who are hiding, as they tend to do. (If you can see bed bugs, you should not be in the room! Leave! Insist on a bed bug free room, and take precautions when you get home to make sure you did not bring bed bugs home.)
You might want to use hard-sided luggage, if possible without zippers. Bedbugs love cloth and they are so thin zippers won’t necessarily keep them out. To be extra safe, seal your items in an XL ziploc bag inside the suitcase; in the hotel, keep the ziploc sealed. (If it isn’t air-tight, it is not bug-safe.) I like travel Space Bags, which zip and then roll to eliminate excess air. It means you can pack a lot more stuff in a smaller case, which makes the case heavy but easy to manipulate. Or you can leave some room in a larger case for bringing things home.
Another option is to seal your entire suitcase, garment bag or other luggage item in a BugZip. This is specially-designed for the purpose of sealing in luggage during your hotel stay. There are also drawer liners which you can use if you want to pack items into a hotel or cruiseship drawer.
You can click below to buy BugZip encasements via North Shore Care; enter coupon code BBFREE for free shipping! Note: because we have an affiliate advertising relationship, part of your purchase goes to support the running of this site, at no additional cost to you.
Ottawa PCO David Saunders suggests leaving luggage in your car and then doing laundry offsite before going home (source).
When you get home, visually inspect your suitcase and contents. Do not unpack your suitcase on the bed. Choose a light colored table or even the tub, so you can see what you’ve got. Do it quickly, in case there are any bed bugs inside. Remove all clothes into XL ziplocs and seal them until they can be washed and dried on hot or dry cleaned. You should do this when you come home from a trip whether you’ve encountered bed bugs or not. If you have encountered bed bugs, seal the suitcase up in a bag and throw it away.
If you haven’t seen signs of bugs, just unpack directly into a washing machine (wash and dry on hot hot hot). Deal with the case, too: you may not see young bed bugs. If you have some kind of bedbug approved pesticide, use it. Kleen-free (linked above) sprayed all over the suitcase is a good option. Or sealing it in a bag and freezing it for a few weeks might be an option for some.
Most of all, don’t stay home. The world is a beautiful place. You can get bedbugs without leaving your home if someone else’s home is attached. So get out there and enjoy the world. But be careful out there.
You can also see this section on bed-bugs.co.uk or this discussion on Metafilter.
You can see photos and links to purchase other recommended items like XL ziploc bags and Kleen Free on our Useful Stuff page.
Non-FAQ portion of the post:
As someone on Bedbugger yahoo group said, “You know the woman on that box has a bedbug problem, if she carries her ice skates and football in a sealed XL ziploc bag.” We do have fun on the Bedbugger yahoo list. And nothing says fun quite like enormous re-closeable plastic bags.
I try not to think of the landfill. The alternative: repeated spraying with not-so-effective pesticides to eradicate these monsters, also hurts the environment, so avoiding bed bugs is a green thing to do, even if you need to use a few plastic bags in the process.
If you have tips for avoiding bedbugs while traveling, please leave a comment and tell us!
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cloth…http: //www.irvs. com/catreslt. php?CatNo= 10 This is a site for hard cased luggage….Hard cased luggage is making a comeback now…because of bedbugs…Hard cased luggage does not have zippers..and does not have “bug friendly” cloth …If you travel I highly suggest you throw away the black cloth luggage and buy a hard cased luggage in a color in which a bug is more easily detectable…and never leave your luggage open overnite in a hotel room…seal it shut…Deb
Thanks Deb! I have a link to some of those hard cases at Irv’s above.
XL Ziplocs hang easily from the trouser hangers that have two clips. Whenever I can avoid using luggage, I’ll just bring a Ziploc and hang it, rather than using the luggage rack.
Great FAQ!
Never store your luggage on the extra bed in the room, if there is one. Try and keep your closed suitcase on top of a desk or dresser which is away from the wall…It doesn’t hurt to bring a spray bottle of Bed Bug Terminator or BedLam or Kleenfree along with you and spray around the room…Someone suggested putting the luggage in the bathtub for the overnite…I think this actually is good advice.
These comments were left by others
on the FAQs page:
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LTP
Jan 30th 2007 at 5:31 pm
I don’t have a problem (yet) but am getting scared reading all this stuff. I travel only a couple of times a year for vacations, but my husband travels more frequently for business, and I can’t trust him to do the necessary inspections and take precautions in every hotel room. If I even mention this subject, he is going to accuse me of being paranoid. Besides, if people can get bedbugs just from going to work, or going into someone’s house, or riding in a plane, etc., it sounds like we are all “doomed.” If I do regular inspections and cleaning of the beds and bedding (once a week?), is this sufficient to prevent an infestation from getting out of control?
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Bugalina // Jan 30th 2007 at 6:06 pm
Itp–please read our FAQs. Your husband should buy hardcased luggage–it is being made now esp. because of the bed bug epidemic..he should never put his clothes into the drawers of the hotels–he should do a thorough inspection of the room..and he should not leave his suitcase on the bed and hes should keep the suitcase closed at all times when he is not going into it, esp. at night–tell him my exterminator treated many people who brought them home after a business trip..Even the most seasoned people who are in the extermination business now do a thorough check of their rooms–also you should use the large ziplocks for his clothes..When he returns home from a trip you should spray Bed Bug Terminator all around the luggage and all clothing should be washed on hot temps. immediately–or bagged for drycleaning immediately–inspect everything..carefully–tell him that if you get them it will cost thousands to get rid of them–an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure–I would do my best to educate him. Bugalina
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ltp // Jan 30th 2007 at 6:22 pm (edit)
Thanks, Bugalina, I did read the FAQs and saw the recommendation to use hard-sided luggage; he’ll be thrilled with having to replace the soft-sided suitcases we spent hundreds of dollars on (yes, I see the need; convincing him is another story).
And I did see the warning about putting clothes into hotel room drawers. Is it also unsafe to hang them in the closets? What about coats, shoes, etc., that won’t fit into the luggage along with everything else (unless there’s a special suitcase just for them!) Or toiletry kits, which we usually keep in the bathroom? Books, magazines, and other items that we either bring along or purchase on the trip?
What do you do if you can’t do laundry immediately (e.g., when you arrive home late at night, which we usually do)? What about clothing that can’t tolerate washing and drying at high temperatures?
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S. // Jan 30th 2007 at 7:18 pm (edit)
LTP, if your clothing can’t be washed and dried on hot, you need to dryclean it.
I wouldn’t want you to be needlessly paranoid, but if you want to be intelligently preventative, clothing coming home from a business trip is probably the best place to start. Either a) put it directly into the washer, or b) put it into an XL ziploc.
The XL ziplocs are a bedbugger’s best friend because unlike garbage bags, they are both airtight and clear. If you keep an XL ziploc bag next to your hamper, dirty clothing can come right from the suitcase and be zipped up into it. Later, when it is convenient for you, you can either wash it, or take it to the drycleaners.
I am dealing with bedbugs right now, and we have two ziploc “hampers.” One is for washable, the other is for drycleanable. It’s obviously getting very expensive to dryclean everything after just one use, but we are right smack in the middle of an infestation and we feel this is the best plan of action for clothing.
But for you, I don’t think you need to bag all your clothing, or wash EVERYTHING right away. But post-hotel suitcase contents? Bagging before washing/drycleaning makes good sense. If something is in your pants pocket or shirt sleeve, you don’t want it journeying out into the rest of the house.
Also, it makes me sad that your husband would immediately assume you were being paranoid. But then again, sometimes we all freak out when we find possible things that could go wrong. Anything could go wrong at any time. But this is something that you can help prevent with a little awareness. You are just being aware.
(Paranoia is worrying about bedbugs so much that you never leave the house. Awareness is getting information so that you don’t put your suitcase on the hotel bed, and you know how to identify bedbugs right away in case you did get them).
I’ve dealt with my boyfriend/family/landlord all thinking I was paranoid, at least until they understood the scope of the problem. It feels bad when others don’t think you are credible.
Maybe instead of telling him stories of things you’ve read, you could refer him to this blog. Or better yet, to a “credible†source like the NY Times article (â€ÂEverything you ever wanted to know about bedbugs– there’s a link to it at the bottom of the Wikipedia entry on bedbugs).
But I’m glad to hear from people like you. The whole country needs to up its awareness. Thanks for being proactive, and keep asking questions! You’ll find this is a very supportive community.
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Bugalina // Jan 30th 2007 at 7:25 pm
If you think replacing your luggage is expensive, wait until you get the bill from the exterminator..I would be cautious about hanging them in the closet–I would put plastic bags over them when hanging –you can buy clear plastic lawn and leaf bags and bring them along with you..and double cover your hanging clothes with them–.you can spray some Bedlam or Bed Bug Terminator into the closet..( always inspect the closet ) around the corners–You can put your shoes into the large ziplock bags…and keep them in a small suitcase–Buy clear plastic zippered bags for your toiletries and keep them in the bathroom zipped. Buy disposal books and magazines–the less you bring home with you the better–the less you buy the better—rule number one with bed bugs is NO CLUTTER–If you pack all of your clothes into securely zipped plastic ziplocks–bring extras along for your soiled laundry–and when you get home..put all of the plastic bags from your suitcase, into doubled large contractor bags–and then place your empty suitcases into doubled large plastic contractor bags–secure them tightly with cable ties and either leave them outside or if this is not possible put them into a tub for the overnite..spray around them with Terminator or BedLam–then in the morning , while still in the tub–take the smaller ziplocked bags ( which should have been packed into catagories.)..launder whites, launder darks, etc..and wash accordingly immediately upon opening–throw the plastic bags away into a waiting large plastic bag–.as for the dry cleaning clothes–inspect them while in the tub or take them outside–as for traveling with delicate clothes that can’t be laundered on hot–I wouldn’t do it, travel with clothes that can handle hot water and/or a hot dryer¦..and before I book a hotel I would check it for reviews on trip advisor to see if they have had any bed bug complaints.Upon making my reservation I would tell the hotel that I am aware of the bed bug problem..I have done this myself¦tell them you want a room that is bed bug free¦This is extreme behavior¦but I am someone who got bed bugs from luggage¦so..I only wish I would have been able to do what I am telling you to do¦Bugalina
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ltp– just to put things in perspective, we hear a lot of stories of people who are bit in hotels. Some of them get home and do not bring the bugs, and some of those do so without any precautions whatsoever. Needless to say, I am not recommending that, just trying to put things in perspective.
You should be aware of the problem and follow the precautions in the FAQs. But don’t panic: even in a hotel with active infestations, it is often the case that a few rooms are infested and most not. You need not feel like you can’t go into a hotel. A few hotels have a big bed bug problem and this will be reflected by multiple complaints from customers on sites like hotelchatter.com and tripadvisor.com, where customers can review their hotel stays.
The other thing I want to say is that I have heard hundreds and hundreds of stories of people with bed bugs– and some of those (in the minority, actually) from people who picked them up in their hotels. Of these, I don’t think I’ve heard one story from someone who knew how to look for bed bugs and did so, kept their stuff in ziplocs inside the suitcase, and carefully washed and dried clothes / inspected suitcase thoroughly, after coming home.
Personally, I would choose luggage that is light-colored, hard if possible, and as unfussy as possible, so it can be thoroughly searched. I would not, however, throw it away after every trip. (I would throw it away if I thought I had just encountered bed bugs, yes.) I would not personally carry a bed bug spray to a hotel–they are effective only on bugs you can see, and if you can see bugs, you should not be in that room.
I personally use travel space bags and will in future also use hanging space bags (for garment bags) when I travel, and these do zip and then vacuum seal. But I used travel space bags in my pre-bedbug days, because I like packing a lot into a small suitcase, instead of the same amount in a huge monster case. They really do compress things. I agree with S. about washing things when you get home.
So you should follow the precautions described in the FAQs (checking your hotel on tripadvisor.com as Bugalina suggests, to see if it has reviews that mention bed bug experiences, searching the bed before settling into the hotel, washing your stuff when you get home), but don’t panic!
Everyone, thanks for all of the great info and reassurance. My next vacation is scheduled for April, so there is plenty of time to plan and to shop for new luggage and stuff (wasn’t sure what was meant by “travel space bags” but I Googled it and found them at the Container Store).
However, my husband has an overnight business trip next Monday, and although I might have a chance to run out and buy one small hard-sided suitcase for him to use, I think it will take longer than a few days to convince him of the seriousness of this problem.
What are the minimum precautions that I must get him to take? Inspecting the room (not that I expect him to know what to look for); using hard-sided luggage, keeping everything inside it, and keeping it on a luggage rack well away from the bed; and “quarantining” everything, followed by proper washing, when he gets home (I can take care of that). What else? There are some other things he will have with him, including his work laptop (in a cloth case), a cell phone that he will probably have to leave out for a while to charge, and a “white noise” machine that will be set up near the bed all night. (And don’t say he has to do without that last item; on his last trip I forgot to pack it for him and he gave me hell about it.)
I’m also wondering how reliable information from the hotel is likely to be. If you call and ask them if they’ve had problems, will they be honest with you? Is it advisable to ask to speak to a manager, since if you call you will probably get someone in the reservations department, and that person may not even be aware of problems there?
It sounds like your’re married to my husband! He insists on the white noise machine…I give him the Hefty 2.5 gallon one zips and lots of the large ziplocks. I give him plenty of extras…I can’t control what he does in the room, although he , unlike your husband, has experienced the monsters, so he does take many precautions. Put every small electronic into its own ziplock. Tell him when he repacks to put everything into plastic bags and seal them as per instructions above. You can only do what you can do, but the biggest no no is to unpack his luggage on your bed at home., DON”T DO THAT ! That’s why I said to confine the luggage in a bathtub and take all bags out of the luggage…leaving the luggage itself into a double sealed plastic construction bags. When you are finished with all of the contents you can confront taking the luggage itself and very carefully inspecting it while in the tub…spray it first with BedLam or Terminator and you can get a small stiff brush and scrub around the seams to dislodge any eggs…vacuum it thoroughly and take two new plastic bags, clear lawn and leaf if possible, because it allows you to see inside and cable tie it securely and keep it storaged like that until its next use, preferably in a garage. As for the white noise machine…when my husband comes home, It take his small electronics and put them directly into my freezer, leave them there for two days and then take a can of compressed gas duster (from Staples) I take them outside and spray them in every possible screwhead and hole with the compressed gas. and then bring them inside, wipe them down and pray….again I remind you that I got bed bugs from luggage..and I have been on the blog since April and i would say that at least 40 percent of the people traced their bed bugs to a stay in a hotel or from traveling. Others buy used furniture and then the rest moved into or live in bldgs. with infestations. Of course no hotel management is going to admit to bed bugs, but, I mention it to let them know that I am an educated traveler and I think it might make them give me a room that has passed a recent inspection …its all russian roulette but anything you can do to reduce your odds , you should do…Bugalina
The hotel absolutely does not have to tell you about bedbugs, and almost certainly won’t tell you. Hotels are taught to “deflect and not disclose” as a way to deal with bedbug questions.
I’m beginning to think almost all hotels have had bedbugs, though not in all rooms. Your goal thus is to get into a room that doesn’t have a history of bedbugs. You can do two things: (1) Check in as early as possible. The rooms suspected of possibly having bedbugs are frequently known and rented out last. If you are a late-arrival, you might get the bedbug room if no other rooms are available. And (2) Let them know that you get a very serious “reaction” to insect bites (yes, like horror and rage!). You don’t have to mention bedbugs, just keep threatening them with possible reactions you might get if the room has an infestation “of any kind.” Scare them into giving you an insect-free room.
Another tip is to travel as lightly as possible. I don’t stay in hotels that much, but I pack my older underwear, socks, and t-shirts on such trips and then simply throw them away before I get home.
I always do the packing and unpacking, whether it is a trip for both of us or just for him. Putting luggage on the bed has always been forbidden, just to keep the bed covering clean. So no issue there.
However, I don’t think he will let me put his cell phone, etc. into the freezer (doesn’t it damage the electronics?). He will need to take it to work the next day anyway, so it’s really not an option.
I’m not sure what you’re referring to as “plastic construction bags” — can you please clarify?
I’ve been researching some of the products mentioned in this blog and have seen recommendations to use Kleen Free instead of or in addition to (instructions vary) laundry detergent when washing clothes and linens. Does this have any benefit? For example, is it an option when washing clothes in warm rather than hot water? I don’t think there is a single thing I own that would not be shrunk three sizes, not to mention faded, by washing and drying them as hot as is recommended.
The comment from Parakeets is very good…listen to what she says…I have put my cell phone into the freezer and it didn’t hurt it but I don’t have a fancy one..I have put the white noise machine in the freezer and it doesn’t hurt it…even overnite can be potentially helpful…in the very least inspect it thoroughly..They make large 3-4 mil ( this is the heavy weight) contractor bags..bags contractors use for cleaning up construction sites…they are large and heavy…but the clear lawn and leaf bags allow one to see if there is any activity inside…not 100 percent but seeing inside is better than not being able to..I have heard that Kleen Free’s enzymes have a killing effect when used for laudry but its only hearsay…I do not know for sure… I cannot help you about your finer clothes….only you can determine your priorities…I go along with Parakeets…less is better…and I would try to travel with things that can withstand a hot wash and dry…Have you read the FAQ’s on the Blog ?
Parakeets is giving excellent advice..you don’t have to say the word bed bugs, but you can say that you are extremely allergic to insect bites..and she is right about the check in time…Bugalina
These aren’t “fine” clothes, really, just plain cotton shirts and pants. For vacations I suppose I could just go to Target or K-mart and buy something cheap and disposable. But for my husband’s business trips, he needs to look presentable — not a suit-and-tie sort of thing, but at least nice dress shirts and pants, which can’t stand up to the hot wash and dry (and cost too much to throw away after each trip).
We’ve always tried to check in as close as possible to the earliest time allowed for that, just in case the room was unsatisfactory for any reason. My husband won’t always have that option, and sometimes he doesn’t get to choose the hotel where he stays.
Even after taking all of these precautions, if there are bugs in your room, doesn’t it seem likely that you will get dressed in your room, pick up a bug there just by sitting on the couch or something, and then take it into your car where it will travel home with you?
Who knows…its all russian roulette when it comes to bed bugs…as for your husbands clothes..have him bag them in plastic and then upon his arrival home take them all to the Dry cleaners asap. I have a good friend whose son went to UMASS…all 3 years he was there there were bed bugs in the dorms he was living in…he never transported them home …how lucky was she…..he never told her about them..but after my infestation he told his Mother about the bed bugs in his dorm…he’s a sloppy boy, like most, and could have easily transported them home…but it didn’t happen…the most important thing to do is to tell the desk clerk what Parakeets said about bug allergies…and to inspect the room upon entering…see FAQ above for links on how to inspect a hotel room for bed bugs…remain on high alert..Bugalina
Thanks again, Bugalina, I’m probably driving everyone crazy with all my questions (it’s something I do a lot), but hopefully other people will read this and find some questions that they may have had.
Should I assume that home dry-cleaning products (e.g., Dryel) are not effective and professional dry-cleaning is necessary? Is there a risk from taking clothing, with or without suspected bugs, to a dry cleaners or commercial laundry? From what I’ve seen, they just throw everything into a hamper and it may be several days before the clothes are cleaned. If I have clean clothes waiting to be picked up, could bugs from someone else’s dirty clothes get onto them?
Still another recommendation I’ve seen, steaming clothes or other items that can’t be washed. Any information on whether this works?
I can’t comment on Dryel..although I have thought about whether or not it would kill any bugs or eggs…I also have thought about “cross contamination” now that this bug epidemic seems to be getting worse and worse. I wouldn’t feel comfortable bringing my clothes to a dry cleaners in neighborhoods that are heavily infested. But I am very very fearful now. As for commercial laundrymats..now must exercise caution..I think a good clothes steamer is probably a wise investment. There was a woman back in May whose home was infested and she used a clothing steamer on her clothes…she lived in a single family home and eventually defeated they bugs. So yes, I think a steamer is a good investment….Bugalina
Bugalina, it is absolutely not true that 40% of people on this blog got bedbugs from travel.
Let’s see:
No: BuggedinBrooklyn? Parakeets? Me? Bugzinthehood?
Yes: you (but not via your own hotel visit–you suspect your traveler guest brought them in–a traveler, I note, who was apparently taking no bed bug precautions, not looking for them, or trying to prevent bringing them home, if found).
Possibly: Jess. But she really does not know and there are other possible causes.
I am not sure about S.’s original infestation or Bugglylicious, and I don’t want to leave any of our regulars out.
I emphasize emphatically that MOST of us did not get our bed bugs from hotels (and, I would add, NOT directly from used furniture). Most hotel rooms do not have infestations. The vast majority of hotel visitors are not bitten by bed bugs and even fewer bring them home.
I repeat: in the hundreds of bed bug stories I have heard, not one single person has said they checked for bed bugs, saw no bed bug signs, used basic precautions, checked their suitcases, felt no bites in the hotel, and nevertheless came home and infested their homes. In cases where people bring the bugs home, they were generally not looking for them, or if they did find them, did not know how to prevent bringing them home. If you see signs of bed bugs, or encounter bed bugs, you need to take different, more extreme steps.
If ltp wants to take extreme precautions, that’s fine, but I do not want readers to come to our site for balanced information and find hysteria. I am staying in a hotel next month. I chose the one that did not have bed bug reviews on tripadvisor.com, over the one the conference planners chose, which had 5 bed bug reviews (yowza!). I will visually inspect the room before settling in, and I won’t put my luggage on the bed. I will visually inspect on coming home.
This is all “awareness” as S. so wisely pointed out. I can see why those of us who have encountered bed bugs would be extra cautious. But by no means do I think that the general public should be panicking, throwing away suitcases after one use, traveling with pesticides in tow, or expecting every room to be infested. (Yes, if we do not halt the spread of bed bugs, this will one day be the case, but it is FAR from true now.)
I appreciate everyone’s participation, but as the editor of the site, I feel a responsibility to visitors that we are indeed balanced and not spreading hysteria. The truth is serious, but overreacting is possible, and does not help solve the problem. In fact, it detracts from the information we’re providing, and turns off some people who would otherwise follow our suggestions.
nbom..I said…the blog…meaning the first bedbugger…and I can site many people that got their bed bugs from traveling..and at least one of the people you mentioned…and maybe two..both told me that they may have gotten them from a hotel…if you note I said Since April…I meant the bedbugger blog…
nbom I never told anyone to throw their suitcases away…I said to quarantine them..please read my post more carefully…also I always prefice it my saying that I am “scared” of reinfestation I said to consider the source…also I think traveling with a bottle of Kleenfree or Bed Bug Terminator isn’t hysterical…I was given that advice from an exterminator…and from an entomoligist who works for a major extermination chain…please reread my post…Bugalina
This is the blog. The yahoo group is a yahoo group, it is not a “blog” in any sense of the word, and calling it the blog confuses people. If I could do it over, I’d have chosen a completely distinct name for this blog, but once I realized that was a good idea, it was too late. The “About Bedbugger” linked at the top of our main page makes it clear this site is related to the Yahoo Bedbugger Group only in that some of us met there, and a few of the FAQs were composed by others from that group (as stated where relevant). Most people on this blog have never joined the Yahoo group of the same name. And I’d guess that most people on the yahoo group rarely read this.
I appreciate your perspective, and I encourage people to share their own experiences if I have mischaracterized them.
I see that you do not recommend throwing away suitcases, though I have seen others mention that idea on the yahoo group. I am glad you don’t agree. As far as the fact that your fears of reinfestation lead to more extreme precautions, that is not unreasonable. But this FAQ is not being read only by sufferers. Most readers of this FAQ are people who have never encountered bed bugs. We have a duty not to spread panic. So I do stand behind what I said otherwise.
I don’t feel like you guys are spreading panic, you are just telling it like it is. I would much rather go through a lot of trouble to prevent them coming in to my home, rather than the thousands of dollars in treatment when I get infested. That hotel room my husband stayed in last week where he got bitten and was able to catch 3 bugs is absolutely infested. We took extreme precautions when he came home. Yes, luggage in the garbage, down coat and goretex shell in the garbage (it’s not dry cleanable and can only be laundered in cool water.), many other things were thrown out. Why-the bugs were crawling up the walls from behind the wall to wall carpeting and out onto the floor. The manager of the hotel has since told us he had to discard the beds because the box springs were full of bedbugs. I have a brand new home, I’m not bringing them in here. We ruined my husband’s business casual clothes with hot water wash and dry-they all shrunk up. None of the dry cleaners I’ve talked to in my town would take any of his clothes for fear of contaminating another customer’s things. I felt obligated to tell them his belongings had been in a room infested with bedbugs. Extreme precautions-that’s me.
freakin’out,
my hats off to ya for being so honest to the dry cleaners.
I wonder if you can get a buisness deduction on your tax return for the loss of clothes???
Sorry all, I corrected my email address (forgot to put the underscore, if anyone tried to contact me…that’s why you didn’t get me, but it’s there now)…so… I think I got my bed-bugs from my ex boyfriend. He had them in an apartment building where he works in his own management office in upper Manhattan… he absolutely saw the infestation in a tenants’ apartment, and helped the tenant, was in the apartment physically, and the tenant probably in his office. Seems clear to me that shortly therafter we were being bitten! Smitten, and bitten I tell ya… but smitten no more. Still bitten though…just a laugh in this late time of night. Smile! I don’t tell anyone about the bugs. I get my clothes dry cleaned, AFTER I put them in the drier, if they can go in the drier. I get my shoes repaired AFTER I spray them with Steri-Fab. I go to my office, and put my coat on MY OWN CHAIR (not in the coat closet), and hope for the best. It’s not something I brand on my forehead, or wear like the scarlet letter. I just try and be thoughtful and careful without telling people. I just try to have a normal existance, have a laugh every now and then. BL
I travel sometimes, maybe on a plane twice a year. My sister once had me totally paranoid a few years ago about head lice. We flew to Florida together and she put a paper towel on the head rest of the plane and fell asleep while in flight. The paper towel moved or something and she was flipping out. Imagine if I told her now about this blog and what people are saying? She would freak.
Electronics in the Freezer: I just read some of the comments, and I feel compelled to say that if you DO put electronics in the freezer, put them in heavy guage plastic baggies first to keep the moisture out!
freakin’ out,
This thread is for two kinds of people: those who were exposed to bed bugs in a hotel room (like your husband), and so should absolutely take extreme precautions, and also those who are simply travelers to hotels. Most people are in the latter category and should take reasonable precautions. It is those people (like ltp) that I do not think should panic. This is an important distinction.
I think the difference between panic and reasonable caution is this: if your husband was exposed to bed bugs for certain, then throwing stuff away (unwashable stuff, suitcase) is cautious, and reasonable .
Someone said on a thread a while back that they’d throw out a suitcase after being in a hotel without any evidence of being exposed to bed bugs. That’s panic.
(That person wasn’t Bugalina, as has been clarified, and the person in question now no longer feels that way, but I’ll leave it for her to tell another time.)
nobugsonme, I posted a question the other day (1/31/07 at 8:03 am) about what the minimum precautions should be. My list was as follows: inspecting the room; using hard-sided luggage, keeping everything inside it, and keeping it on a luggage rack well away from the bed; and “quarantining†everything, followed by proper washing, upon returning home. Does this pretty well sum it up, or am I missing anything?
Another question, if anything manages to make it into my house despite the precautions, how soon would the bugs make themselves known?
At the Bed Bug Symposium in Wash. last Oct. It was noted that bed bugs have been found underneath the fabric “strappings” that are found on luggage racks. So I would take time to inspect under them. This is why carrying a container of BedLam or Bed Bug Terminator comes in handy..one could spray it on and around the strapping on luggage rack. As for your second question, I think there are variables on that..Bugalina
ltp– the point of the FAQ (the post above your comments) was to describe the precautions I’d recommend.
I think what you describe would be the minimum–with the exception that hard-sided, in my opinion, is not necessarily going to make a huge difference (some hard sided cases have zippers, for example, and the smallest nymphs can get through zippers), and if by quarantining, you include carefully and promptly inspecting carefully as you unpack.
I always use travel space bags and I think they do add some security.
As faw as the second question: that’s a problem: they might start biting right away. They might wait a week to feed, and so if there were few, this might be hard to notice. But I have read in reputable sources (one of the fact sheets we link to from a university, I would guess) that people can take 2-3 months to start reacting to the bites. Some people, of course, never react to the bites (and they believe they are not bitten, though the jury’s out on whether they aren’t bitten because they are less attractive hosts, or if they are bitten and don’t react to the bites). Anyway, worst case scenario, it could be several months before you discover your problem. It would still probably not be a huge infestation if only a bug or two came home, and a swift treatment plan might not be too difficult. But it’s hard to say.
As an aside, the worst worst-case scenario is actually a household where no one reacts to the bites. This is unlikely if you have multiple people in the home. However, when people report not knowing they had bed bugs until they saw them all over the walls, it’s not that they don’t mind the bites–these people usually are not aware of being bitten. You can imagine how this can cause the problem to spread, since an infestation has to get very bad before such a person would notice it.
It’s my understanding that men are less likely to react to bites than women (and in many couples where only one person thinks they’re being bitten, it’s the woman, though this is not always the case, and plenty of men suffer from bites too.)
I’m a man, I get bites.
after seeing only two new bites yesterday, it seems I got a total of 6 new bites from that 5 min rest on my couch.
hmmm, I gues that’s why I was so tramatized from that night.
anyway, just wanted to say that I’m a man who suffers from getting bitten.
buggedinbrooklyn
nobugsonme, I understood the point of the FAQ. I was merely trying to verify that I had a correct understanding of the recommendations, condensed to as few words as possible, so I can communicate them to my husband prior to his business trip next week. The simpler the instructions, the more likely that he will follow them.
On the luggage issue, it seems that hard-sided suitcases may still have some advantages. My soft-sided luggage has lots of pockets and compartments, both inside and outside, where something could hide. Some types of hard-sided luggage have just a big, open, smooth space inside (and nothing on the exterior), which should make them easier to inspect.
ltp My hardcased luggage has no side compartments and no zippers..no seams or piping..I remember seeing hard cased luggage advertised on the web..that specifically mentioned bed bugs…..I think it was Japanese made..Also I bought a lite Burgundy color…so its easier to see anything on it..Is it my imagination or does it seem that luggage is being made now in lighter colors ?
below is the link I found describing the hard cased luggage “protecting your contents from everything from bellhops to bed bugs”…looks like good stuff….
http://www.hideostore.com/detail.php?category_id=5&item_id=2&size_id=104
Thanks for the link Bugalina! I am curious about that case, though: it isn’t clear from the photo/description if it has a zipper. Also, if not, what is used to seal it or how tightly. It is possible to make a seal with more of a vacuum seal, but in other cases, there’s still a point of entry. Beautiful case, but I am skeptical about the description: I’d like to know how it is protected. This could simply be a clever phrase “protects your things from everything from bellhops to bedbugs” does not really offer any information I can use. A lot of people claim their stuff is bed bug-proof (including sleep sacks and mosquito nets that we can see are not), so I want to know how. Pretty too, but expensive.
ltp– when I said hard cases would not necessarily help, I mean just that: it depends on the case and how you use it. It sounds like you’ve got good advice ready to go for your husband… and let us know if you think of anything else that would work!
Bugged–You’re one of the men I was referring to who do get bites. It’s more women than men. When we hear of a couple where one person is bitten, it’s usually the woman. But sometimes the other way round, and sometimes both.
I have Samsonite hard cased luggage..there are no zippers, nor pipings , nor seams..I think with Bed Bugs there are No 100 percents..only a lessening of the odds…these suitcases definitely have less places for bed bugs to lay eggs/ and /or hide..the closings on them are sealed with plastic rims..no guarantees but Less hiding places , with more exposed viewing surfaces.
Well, I brought up the subject with my husband this morning and got exactly the reaction I expected: yeah-whatever-eyes-rolling-in-exasperation. No, that won’t happen in the places we go to. Yes, I know what to look for. Right.
I guess it will take an infestation to convince him. It will be an expensive “I told you so.” I wonder which will happen first, that or the house burning down because he’s ignored my warnings for the last 10 years or so that our clothes dryer is not properly vented. At least if the latter happens, we’ll be covered by insurance.
Itp…All you can do is your best…be vigiliant..Hopefully it will never happen to you…I am dealing with a 19 yr.old college student..they are high on the list of “weak links”…and he is impossible…I take whatever precautions with his luggage that I can…by the way, you can take some inexpensive, proactive steps, on your own, in your home or apt, nothing drastic. That’s what the exterminators do. I asked them how they are not freaked out about always being exposed to bed bugs and they told me that they pre treat their homes. I am not recommending any serious extermination, just a few inexpensive things that might be helpful. Bugalina
ltp–
This tends to be a typical reaction: most people aren’t worried until they encounter bed bugs (or know someone who does).
Maybe you could negotiate with him as far as what happens with his stuff when he comes home. It isn’t such a big deal if he sleeps in a room with bed bugs (if he really doesn’t believe they’re out there), but once he brings the bag home, maybe he’ll allow you to treat it as you like for 24 hours?
Bugalina,
The bag you have sounds promising. I hope anyone choosing a hard case suitcase for this purpose would check it carefully. My hard case has a zipper and I would not recommend it.
Bugalina, do you know the specific model of your luggage? Most of the Samsonite luggage I’ve found online is Silhouette (there is a new line out now, Silhouette 10, with closeout deals on Silhouette 9).
Also, can you point me to some information about the pretreament you referred to? (It might be somewhere on this site, but I’ve looked at so much info in the last week, I’m losing track of where everything is!)
nobugsonme, I can hold on to most of his stuff for as long as I want. For this trip he will be taking only a small duffel bag, along with his work laptop in a separate case. There are a few things that he will need the next morning, including his shaving kit (a leather zip bag), his laptop and cell phone, and his coat and shoes.
Just a question to go along with hotel rooms. My husband and I are driving to a wedding in another state and will be using a hotel room for a few hours prior (to freshen up and get dressed) but we are leaving soon after the wedding to drive home. We will not actually be sleeping in the room during the darkness. Of course I will use precautions with our luggage but I was just curious if the BBs roam around alot in the broad daylight or do they usually wait till the lights are out (darkness)?
I’d say that bedbugs tend to hide until dark but we know that they do appear during the day under certain circumstances: the population is large, there are chemicals present which have caused them to move, the host is unavailable at night, etc.
You’re aware and will take precautions, you’ll be fine.
Hey,
Im currently travelling around the world and have been staying in (what we thought) was a wonderful apartment in Melbourne for two months. However, it is infested with Bed bugs and myslef and my boyfriend are getting eaten alive! The olny thing keeping us going is the fact we know we are moving on next week. The thing is im really worried we are going to carry the little critters with us to our next destination. We are going to do all the obvious and wash and dry all our clothes and sleep sheets etc, but we both have back packs and after reading the posts above about only taking hard luggage im abit worried. Does anyyone know a way to deal with this?? Ive heard that if we put them in a black bin liner and leave them out in the sun it will kill any bugs on there?? The tip about the zip lock bags is brilliant though, im definalty getting afew of those!! I just want to get away from the evil bugs and have a nights sleep where im not someones dinner!!!!!!! …….
Hi Debs,
Two travelers in Argentina had a similar problem and no access to washing machines or dryers (which is even worse than just dealing with backpacks!) Anyway, the two relevant threads might help.
Click the “Forums” button or go to: bedbugger.com/forum/
Then scroll down to the search box and type in “backpacks” and click “search the Bedbugger forums.”
Heat needs to be at a core temperature of at least 120 F (some say 140 F) for more than four hours. It is possible that wrapped in a bag in the sun (sealed in a bag in a hot car might be even better if you can get ahold of one), but you should check the temperature. Alternatively, freezing for a week at well below 0 F should work, according to some accounts. But it really does need to be below 0 F, and I am not sure exactly how cold or how long. I’d do your best. Remember the other stuff needs to be dried on hot for more than an hour. You might try that with the backpacks–I can’t say they won’t be harmed, but you’d be surprised at what some people have gotten away with. Lots of people have dried soft luggage. It is not ideal, but your concern is justified–people have claimed to have moved bed bugs in the clothes they were wearing, in purses, etc.
Hi debs … if you can afford it can you buy new backbacks? I’ve thrown backbacks into driers and let them roll on high–if they have metal in them of course that’s probably not going to work. canvas bags dry pretty well–don’t forget to do your shoes!
good luck
Debs
Also check out the post from today 5/18 that starts with “Dr. Michael Potter’s…”
for information on putting stuff out in the sun.
I keep seeing little notices in article after article (usually focussed on the hotel industry) blithely assuring everybody that, while bed bugs can be a nuisance, they are not generally believed to carry any diseases. WRONG! After reviewing some info. in past issues of Discover and other science/health publications, I went to emedicine, from Web.MD., and found that bedbugs transmit Chagas disease, which can be fatal, as well as being possible carriers of hepatitis B. Anyone care to comment on this disconnect?
Hi TOF, the reason is that experts disagree about what the evidence and studies show. There is always some public health official ready to say there is no evidence of transmission.
The articles I assume you are referring to are these:
3.28.07 eMedicine Bedbug Bites.
See also this and this.
Sorry, there is a reply above this one that will be rescued from spam later.
But one of the links doesn’t work. To get the Medscape article, either google “Bed Bugs Bounce Back – But Do They Transmit Disease?” or “bed bugs hepatitis vector”
Got it, Nomo.
Per the most recent info from CDC bed bugs do not transmit disease
and while chagas which is a blood borne diseases has been vector
linked to Reduviidae (assasin bugs)which while related to bed bugs
they are not bed bugs and are a different Genus and Species.
Be glad, aren’t bed bugs bad enough without spreading disease.
Some times I think people are disappointed that they are not worse.
I don’t really understand that except for their misguided perception
that it will get more attention. Any one heard of Lyme a tick borne
disease. And they still restrict control measures and materials.
Well, let me respectfully explain.
I’m not qualified to say whether there is a tick-borne Lyme epidemic in this country comparable to the bedbug epidemic. What I do know is that the typical bedbug sufferer’s dismay and objection to the dismissal of bedbugs as a public health concern by public officials arises from the correct perception that such dismissal is the first obstacle to the development of comprehensive control and eradication policies. (This should need no further explanation, but I would be happy to elaborate if necessary. As a quick example, consider that no public health concern = no collection and tracking of infestations data.) Secondarily, such dismissal is an affront to the sufferer in that it is often used as a rhetorical device to invalidate the actual experience of having bedbugs. See, for example, Dr. Jerome Goddard’s “no big deal” pronouncement.
Classifying bedbugs as a public health concern would not necessarily change the status of prohibited pesticides, which would be an example of the control measures and materials you allude to, but it is a necessary first step.