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Going home soon... Quarantine/monitoring tips?
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LBP
junior member
Joined: Nov '10
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Posted 2 years ago
Wed Nov 17 2010 18:55:19
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So I'm going to be going home from a multi-week trip to my childhood home and Japan as mentioned in another thread of mine (at http://bedbugger.com/forum/topic/prevention-in-general-hotel-and-unusual-circumstances). As I predicted, there really wasn't any way to do luggage-based prevention with all the people, luggage, and distractions we had (and I really didn't do as good a check of the rooms as I could've - I couldn't even check the room the other half of our group was staying in at all - and we stayed in many rooms total!).
I've been at my childhood home for six days. When I get home, I have some contractor-type garbage bags ready in my bathroom that I can just put my suitcase and backpack in (I plan to put them in two layers of bags). I'll change out of the clothes I arrived in in the tub and toss my clothes into the dryer for an hour.
My questions:
1) What about my non-clothing stuff (books, video games, computer)? Any precautions to take?
2) Where do I put the bagged luggage? I could just leave it in the tub, but that means taking it out every time I want to shower, and I only have the one bathroom. One possibility is the storage closet on my balcony; it shares a wall with the rest of the apartment, but at least the floor is concrete.
3) I plan to leave the stuff there (wherever "there" is) for a month (when I next have to travel, back to childhood home for Xmas), then check it. Trouble is, both bags are black with deep pockets. What's the best way to do the check?
4) Any monitoring tips during that month? I put off getting the passive monitors mentioned in my other thread... Is it the best way? Is there another?
Thanks in advance!
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oldtimer
Joined: Apr '07
Posts: 6,718offline
Posted 2 years ago
Wed Nov 17 2010 20:39:34
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Hi,
I would do the following if you are uber worried and want a step by step guide.
At home:
Open suitcase and pack items sealed in either a BugZip bag or Ziplock bags. Once sealed they will remain bedbug free until you unseal so no need to worry about non clothing items getting infected during the journey.
Seal suitcase in a few layers of pallet wrap or saran wrap for the journey.
While traveling:
Check areas around you as much as possible but avoid looking suspicious at the airport by checking under everything and check the seat before you sit down on the plane.
Upon arrival at destination:
Outside of home remove the protective layers of wrap and place in bin / recycling
Place bag inside of the property.
Step into pre arranged smooth sided plastic box container placed just inside the front door.
Remove outer layer of clothes and place in dissolvable laundry bag and wash at 60 degree centegrade or equiv or PackTite or place in hot dryer for extended time. Other items decon as appropriate in FAQ's or seal in ziplock bags until they can be dealt with.
Move your nag to the bath and leave there until you are happy the sleeping and sitting area has been inspected and is clear.
To help this see the linked video which is of me inspecting a hotel room in chicago when I was over for the bed bug summit:
[+] Embed the video Get the Video Widget Once you are happy the location is clear then unpack your bags.
Once you are unpacked take the bugzip bag and place your luggage in that while it is in the property and you know it will be safe till you do the return trip which is just a repeat of the process in the opposite direction.
If you are worried about items left at the location while you are away then seal them in the box you used when you arrived or in layers of pallet / saran wrap.
If you are worried about live bedbugs in the location before you return to it I would advise that you have someone there run a bedbug beacon for the 10 days before your return. Each cycle will run for 5 days without recharging the reaction and you get the best capture from day 2 onwards.
A passive would be another options, if the area is going to be occupied by someone while you are not there. Passives work best in occupied locations because they rely on being model refugia with a behavioural induced detection system based on faecal traces and cast skins. We will never say that they will capture all bedbugs because frankly only a fool would claim 100% of anything in bedbugs but given taht I have clients whoes housekeeping staff regularly identify just a single bedbug in the room caught before it has time to colonise I am happy with the results. I would always say that any detection should be follwed by a thorough inspection after all if you brought them in via something unusual like a book you will only really deal with the issue when that item is found.
I beleive I have some pictures of an infestation that occured in a property in London with traditional Japanese beds and matresses bases. It does change the pattern of the infestation if you are sleeping on these mat bases rather than a traditional stuffed/sprung/foam mattress. If you are interested I will see if I can dig them out and put them in a PDF.
Hope taht explains things in a logical way and that it answers all the questions.
David Cain
Bed Bugs LimitedIn accordance witht he AUP and FTC I must declare that I have a vested interest in the passive bedbug monitor as the inventor but as described in the post above it is one tool and not always the most appropriate tool. I beleive the information I have given to be fair and accurate.
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LBP
junior member
Joined: Nov '10
Posts: 107offline
Posted 2 years ago
Thu Nov 18 2010 0:32:14
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Good stuff, but as I mentioned, the trip is done, and I'm actually heading home. Unfortunately, a lot of the tips, while good, weren't things I could really do, especially as I was traveling with several other people who'd see even the least of them as overly paranoid.
Also, a lot of it involves buying and prep that I either can't really do or don't really have access to before I have to go. I know I should've thought of all this before I left, but it didn't occur to me that it'd be so involved. More fool I am, I guess.
Anyway, keep 'em coming!
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LBP
junior member
Joined: Nov '10
Posts: 107offline
Posted 2 years ago
Thu Nov 18 2010 6:48:30
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Oh, and I found in the store a bedbug killer spray product called Beds (or bBedsS - I couldn't tell from the logo) Catchmaster Bedbug Spray. Is it any good?
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LBP
junior member
Joined: Nov '10
Posts: 107offline
Posted 2 years ago
Fri Nov 19 2010 20:36:18
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OK, new questions, now that I'm home (of course, answers to my OP questions are always appreciated, still):
I've quarantined my backpack and baggage (including paper stuff inside both) in the place I described above, and am in the process of tossing stuff into the dryer.
1) Are plastic/metal objects, like electronics, bedbug-dangerous in any way?
2) What about my wallet, with all my debit cards and such, and my watch? Neither is particularly safe to decontaminate by any convenient method I know, and they're the major things breaking my quarantine.
3) I want to use the backpack in exactly 13-14 days. Is that period of time safe for checking?
4) Speaking of checking, both bags are black, with deep pockets. How do I best inspect them?
5) Since the storage closet is outside, this may be relevant: it may get below freezing at night. Is this relevant for when to check and be assured?
Thanks!
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LBP
junior member
Joined: Nov '10
Posts: 107offline
Posted 2 years ago
Mon Nov 22 2010 2:26:21
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Bumping... Could really use the help.
My main concerns are the question about the backpack (the question about the cold connects to it) and the general inspection when the quarantine period is up.
Thanks...
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oldtimer
Joined: Jan '08
Posts: 1,170offline
Posted 2 years ago
Mon Nov 22 2010 6:56:41
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Hi,
As many threads on the forum indicate cold outside is not a reliable method of decontaminating for bedbugs.
David
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LBP
junior member
Joined: Nov '10
Posts: 107offline
Posted 2 years ago
Mon Nov 22 2010 7:00:56
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I'm not concerned about decontaminating. I want to know if the cold will affect its life cycle - for example, I can normally check my bags in two weeks. Will the cold make it so that their life cycle is set back, and I can miss signs or whatever that would normally be evident if the weather was better?
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LBP
junior member
Joined: Nov '10
Posts: 107offline
Posted 2 years ago
Wed Nov 24 2010 5:16:59
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Bump (partly because those below freezing temps I mentioned are here, and what else is there to do)?
I could really use some help on my unanswered questions. I know there's more I could've/should've done beforehand, but I have to do what I can now.
My main questions are the inspection issue (and how the cold might affect inspection, NOT decontamination, as I hope my previous posts made clear), especially with the 13-14 day timeframe with the backpack and the deep pockets in both pack and suitcase, and the monitoring issue. (I look at every little bug-like speck I see VERY closely...)
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Bluemoon71
newbite
Joined: Dec '10
Posts: 13offline
Posted 2 years ago
Mon Dec 6 2010 20:26:29
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I would suggest the passive monitors. At $20 each, I think they are a great deal! I'm not sure what to tell you about inspecting your stuff. That is one of the reasons that I bought a packtite - luggage and all of its contents are too difficult to inspect carefully enough if you didn't take precautions before you left. Sorry I couldn't be of more help.
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