This month’s newsletter article is coming to you early—in time to get it to residents before their holiday travel. The best bed bug management program is one that is preventing people from bringing home bed bugs. So act fast and get this information out!
People often ask whether there is a bed bug season—a time of year when they are the worst. The answer is yes, but not because of temperature. Pest control companies get the most calls about bed bugs during the times of year when a lot of people have recently traveled. For multifamily housing, bed bug “seasons” include Thanksgiving, winter holidays, and spring break. Everyone should be on high alert these times of year so that bed bugs infestations are prevented. Where prevention fails, you should have an inspection protocol in place that finds infestations before they grow and spread.
Bed bugs are hitchhikers, meaning if you go somewhere that has bed bugs, they may stick with you on the next leg of your journey. There’s not too much we can do to keep from visiting places with bed bugs or hosting people who (unknowingly) bring bed bugs—everyone’s at risk. Prevention involves taking care of your belongings while traveling and when you return home. I realize these recommendations make life on the road a little inconvenient, but I can assure you that getting bed bugs would be much more inconvenient! Here’s what to do—in a newsletter format.
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Bed Bugs—the gift that no one wants
Are you traveling for the holidays or having people come over to your house? If so, learn what a bed bug looks like and how you can keep them from infesting your home.
Bed bugs are small insects that get their food and water from people—they suck blood. Because we are their food, they like to hide near where we will be resting every day: beds, sofas and recliners. At night they fill up on blood and then crawl around looking for a place to hide and digest. If they end up hiding on a piece of luggage, they could end up in another home.
Avoid getting bed bugs from a hotel or host’s home.
Once you know where you’ll be sleeping, put your luggage in the bathroom and go look for bed bugs. Bed bugs like wedging themselves in cracks and crevices that are the thickness of a credit card.
Use a flashlight and look for shed skins, fecal spots and the bugs themselves on and around the following:
- Sofa
- Recliner
- Bed (and box spring and frame including the headboard)
- Bedside table
- Baseboard
- Pictures hanging on the wall
Pay attention to the hiding spots in these areas:
- Along seams, in folds and under tags
- Where pieces of wood meet each other and the screw holes
- Where furniture or decorations touch the wall
If you find bed bugs, ask for another place to sleep—a room in another area of the home or hotel. If you are staying at a hotel and find bed bugs, report it at www.bedbugregistry.com.
During your stay keep your luggage and other belongings away from where people sleep, the bathroom works. If you want to be really careful, keep everything in a tied plastic bag and only open it when you need to get something out.
Prevent hitchhiking bed bugs from getting off bags in your home.
Bed bugs don’t usually travel directly on the clothes people are wearing. It’s more likely that they will be hiding on bags. If you are a host, have your guests do this when they get to your house…if you have been traveling, do this when you get home:
- Unpack everything (including your coat) directly into the dryer and run the machine on high heat for at least 30 minutes. 120°F will kill all life stages of bed bugs. Since the items won’t get wet, even delicates and dry-clean only items should be fine. If you have dirty laundry, wash it first and then dry it on the highest heat setting the fabric can stand. If you’re traveling, prepare for this laundering by sorting your laundry into plastic bags before you return home.
- If possible, unpack the rest of your things on a light colored, uncarpeted floor. You’re more likely to see any escaping bed bugs before they have a chance to hide. Use a flashlight to look carefully for bed bugs on any items that can’t be put in a dryer—including your luggage.
- Store your empty luggage in a tied trash bag until your next trip.
For detailed information on how to inspect for bed bugs, see the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’s fact sheet: www.vdacs.virginia.gov/pesticides/pdffiles/bb-identify1.pdf
If you find bed bugs in your home, call (INSERT WORK ORDER #). You will not be charged for pest control if you follow preparation instructions and let the Pest Management Professional do his job.
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