You can find bed bugs in homes, offices, schools, and hotels, anywhere people congregate. No matter where you stay, from the most luxurious resorts to the cheapest motels, you will find them. If you enjoy travelling, make sure you don’t bring home bed bugs as a souvenir. Below is our guide on bed bug control in Vaughan to avoiding bed bugs in hotels and vacation rentals.
Pack Your Luggage Properly
If you stay in a hotel with bed bugs, the most significant risk isn’t getting bit (although no one wants that), but bringing them home with you and causing an infestation in your own home.
When packing, follow these tips to prevent bed bugs from getting into your home and belongings:
- If possible, use hard-sided luggage free of zippers: Bed bugs are attracted to cloth and small enough to squeeze through most zippers.
- When in your hotel room, keep all items sealed and as airtight as possible in large Ziploc bags. There is no guarantee of bed bug protection if the bag is not airtight. You can also use travel space bags, which are easy to roll in your suitcase and protect you from bed bugs.
- During your stay, keep your luggage off the hotel room floor by using a luggage rack, preferably a metal one. If your suitcase is left on the floor, bed, or dresser, bed bugs are more likely to infest it.
Check Your Hotel Room Properly
Upon arrival at your hotel, be sure to inspect the room before you bring your luggage in thoroughly. Before putting your personal belongings in the room, ensure that you thoroughly inspect the mattress, headboard, dresser(s), and nightstands. With the help of a flashlight, examine the seams and tufts of the mattress, as well as the corners and seams of the dresser and nightstand drawers, with great care. You can place your luggage in the bathtub while you search for your belongings if you need to take them inside with you as soon as you arrive at the hotel.
Check for the following during your inspection:
- Black spots on linens (excrement)
- Linens with blood spots
- Castings of light brown skin
- Actual bedbugs
You should request a different room or move to another hotel entirely if you find any of the above. Inspect your new hotel again.
Keep A Bed Bug Spray With You in Vaughan
Just in case you encounter bed bugs while travelling, we recommend packing some bed bug travel spray. These products cannot treat an infestation. In reality, they are for killing a token bed bug or two on your luggage. For an infestation, you are better off calling a bed bug removal company for bed bug control in Vaughan than trying to do it yourself.
Checking Out and Arriving Home
Take two last precautions to ensure that the only thing you bring home with you are the memories of your trip after you’ve enjoyed a (hopefully) bed bug-free vacation.
When Checking Out
- Place items back into your suitcase after thoroughly inspecting them for bed bugs.
- You can wash your clothing in hot water and dry it in a hot dryer, then pack your clothes directly into your suitcase in air-tight Ziploc bags. This will kill bed bugs.
- If your suitcase is full of potential hitchhikers, spray bed bug travel sprays around the outside.
Upon Arriving Home
- Take a quick look at your luggage before you bring it inside, perhaps on your driveway.
- As you remove items from your suitcase for the last time, scrutinize each item.
- Wash and dry your clothing on high heat immediately after unpacking. Launder your clothing in hot water and wash it in your washing machine.
- Be sure to spray the entire suitcase with bed bug spray as a final precaution.
If you find bed bugs in your home even after this, you should immediately get in touch with a pest removal company in Toronto.
Conclusion
Bed bugs are nasty, blood-sucking pests that can bring down the fun and enjoyment of any trip. Be prepared for these critters when you go out by following the steps mentioned above. If you think you’ve brought home the bed bugs with you, contact a pest control company immediately for bed bug control in Vaughan in your home, so it doesn’t turn into a full-grown infestation.