Bed Bugs After a Hotel Stay: What to Do in the First 24 Hours

Short answer

If you think you brought bed bugs home from a hotel, keep your luggage in the garage or bathtub, dry all clothes on high heat for 30 minutes, vacuum the bag and check its seams, and inspect your bed over the next two weeks. Acting in the first day can stop a few hitchhikers from becoming a full infestation.

How do bed bugs travel home from hotels?

Bed bugs travel home from hotels by crawling into luggage, clothing and work bags left on or near the bed. They hide in seams, zippers and folds, then come out at your home to find a new place to feed. They do not fly or jump, so they rely on people to move them.

Gillette sees a lot of travel for work. Crews move between hotels, motels, man camps and rentals near job sites. That makes bed bugs a real risk for anyone who travels often, even if the room looked clean.

What should you do the moment you get home?

The moment you get home, keep your bags off the bed and carpet. Unpack in the garage, laundry room or bathtub, and put clothes straight into the dryer.

1. Leave luggage in the garage or a bathtub, not the bedroom.
2. Put all clothes, even clean ones, in the dryer on high heat for 30 minutes.
3. Vacuum the suitcase inside and out, especially seams and zippers. Empty the vacuum outside.
4. Check the suitcase seams with a flashlight for small brown bugs, eggs or dark spots.
5. Store the suitcase in a sealed plastic bag or bin away from bedrooms.
6. Shower and change into clean clothes.

Heat is the key. Bed bugs and their eggs die at high temperatures, which is why a long, hot dryer cycle works better than washing alone.

How do you check your bed for bed bugs?

Check your bed for bed bugs by looking at the mattress piping, the corners of the box spring, behind the headboard and in the nightstand drawers. Look for live bugs about the size of an apple seed, tiny white eggs, pale shed skins and rust or black spots.

• Use a flashlight and a credit card to scrape along seams
• Lift the box spring and check the fabric underneath
• Check screw holes and joints in the bed frame
• Look behind the headboard and along the baseboard by the bed
• Place interceptor cups under the bed legs to catch bugs climbing up

Keep checking for two to three weeks. Eggs take about a week or more to hatch, so a clean check on day one does not mean you are clear.

What should you avoid doing?

Avoid bug bombs, foggers and moving to another bedroom. Foggers do not reach the cracks where bed bugs hide, and they can push bugs into walls and other rooms. Sleeping on the couch just gives the bugs a new place to settle.

Also avoid throwing out furniture right away. A mattress with bed bugs can usually be treated and covered with an encasement. Dragging it through the house can spread bugs along the way.

How can frequent travelers stay ahead of bed bugs?

Frequent travelers stay ahead of bed bugs by making a short routine part of every trip. Check the hotel bed before you unpack, keep bags off the bed and floor, and heat-dry clothes the day you get home. It takes ten minutes and saves weeks of treatment.

• Pull back the sheet corner and check the mattress piping with your phone light
• Use the luggage rack, or keep your bag zipped in the bathroom
• Pack clothes in large zip bags so they stay sealed in the room
• Keep a hard-shell suitcase for work trips; it has fewer seams
• Use interceptor cups under your own bed legs as an early warning

If your crew rotates through the same hotels, tell the front desk if you find bugs. A quick report helps the next guest and gets the room treated.

When should you call a bed bug exterminator?

Call a bed bug exterminator if you find a live bug, eggs, shed skins or spots on your sheets, or if you wake up with new bites in lines or clusters. Early treatment usually takes fewer visits and fewer rooms.

A bed bug exterminator Gillette WY can confirm the bug and use heat, steam or targeted treatments to wipe out bugs and eggs. If you live in a duplex or apartment near pest control Central Gillette, ask about checking the units next door too. Our household pest control Gillette WY plan does not cover bed bugs, so they need their own treatment.

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