Comments on: Bed bugs in Patagonia, can’t use dryer, with backpack: what to do?

By: lil_bit_obsessed

lil_bit_obsessed — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 01:24:40 +0000

p.s. i realize having access to a dryer while traveling is touch and go… but if you have already soaked it in boiling water, you can use a dryer as a backup method when you are in a place that does have one? (aka. home, but before you go to your house)

By: lil_bit_obsessed

lil_bit_obsessed — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 01:22:10 +0000

travelbug,
i have a large 80 L expedition pack, which i’m assuming is probably similar to what you are traveling with?? i soaked mine in a tub of steaming hot water for about a half hour, allowed it to hang dry (hanging from the shower bar), and then once dry i took it to a local laundromat and placed it in one of the oversize dryers for well over an hour on high heat (from bone dry, note). i JUST managed to squeeze it into the dryer, and as far as i can tell, it hasn’t done any damage to the pack. with the thick thick hip bands on the larger expedition packs, it’s hard to know if the hot water and dryer heat is enough, but i have my fingers crossed that it has been safely de-infested (if it was ever infested to begin with, i’m not sure…)

By: willow-the-wisp

willow-the-wisp — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 04:45:20 +0000

that’s tough. Your traveling and so you could have gotten them anywhere… I’d think that boiling water would kill–but I’m not positive. An hour of boiling water kills just about anything and everything. I’ve put some of my packpacks into the dryer … The cheaper ones melted slightly. But I’m guessing you mean packs so large that they won’t even fit into the dryer.
Good that they are doing so much at the hostle–you seem very proactive.
91% rubbing alcohol supposedly kills on contact. I’ve used that to at least keep them at bay. You need to use a spray bottle and caution becasue of flammability though. Most of this you probalby alreeady know.
Best I’ve learned about the bb is that it takes months to get rid of them because of the 5 molts and the small size–and the fact that you can rarely see them.
on return trips–can you maybe put the packs into heavy duty duct tape sealed shut–can you mail your stuff back home at the end of your trip–after it is sealed up like that?
Just some suggestions you might not have thought of.
Best wishes
willo-the-wisp