[Shihan]

Today at work I had to perform a Bed Bug treatment. This got me to thinking with the increase in Bed Bug infestations in the last few years, that I would share a little info and give little tips for preventing an infestation.

With the Summer travels coming up and Meet and Greets getting ready to happen, I figure I will give one hopefully helpful thread.

Here are a few pictures of Bed Bugs from today's treatment.
Bed Bug on a mattress.


Bud Bugs and Fecal staining in seam of mattress.


They are not always in mattresses, they are in nightstands and other places as well.




Finding Bed Bugs in your home has nothing to do with being dirty. It only takes one Bed Bug hitching a ride on your clothing or suitcase to infest your residence.

They can live up to one year without a blood meal. It takes about four weeks to several months depending on the temperature and amount of food available for the development from an egg to an adult. They typically feed every three days. They are drawn out of hiding at night by the warmth of our bodies. It takes about 15 minutes for adults to complete their feeding and less for the nymphs.

When you travel and stay in hotels end even at houses remember this acronym S.L.E.E.P

Survey mattress and boxspring surfaces for signs of an infestation, such as spots on mattress seams, bed sheets and bed skirts.
Lift and look at all Bed Bug hiding spots, including underneath the mattress, box spring, headboard, and furniture.
Elevate your luggage on a luggage rack away from the bed and wall, Bed Bugs can often hide behind head boards and picture frames.
Examine your luggage carefully while packing and when you return home. Keep luggage off the bed and store it away from your bedroom.
Place all your clothing from your luggage immediately in the dryer for 20 minutes on the highest setting upon returning home from travel.

I hope you found this helpful.

Sleep Tight!

[freefall]

Thank you. That was very informative and fairly unsettling.

[dunerunner]

Shi! I am not to be liking you very much right now!!

[doctherock]

Thanks for the info Shihan.

[winds-of-change]

Thanks for that info. I will follow it to the letter during and after our Meet and Greet. I would HATE for them to happen in my house.

[c3shooter]

Thank you, Shi. Good info.

For those of us that LIVE in hotels, a thought- What is the dirtiest thing in your room? Besides your mind-

Answer- probably the TV remote or the telephone. They get handled by everyone, rarely get wiped down. Think about that next flu season. Next on the list is heat/ac controls, and light switches.

[spittinfire]

Thanks Shi. I'm not sure what all of our traveling plans are but I don't want to have to give you a call for this reason.

what kind of treatment does it take to get rid of them?

[JonM]

wow i didnt know any of that. thanks. and yeah ill second how the hell do you get rid of em if they do turn up??

[Rick1967]

Hi everyone. Many of you know that I am in the hotel business. I can second everything that Shihan said. But I would like to add something important. Bed bugs can not survive at temperatures above 115 degrees. If you leave your luggage in your car for a few hours in the hot sun...problem solved.

I can also tell you that it doesn't matter if you rent a $39 room at Motel 6 or a $250 room at a Sheridan. Everybody deals with this.

[M14sRock]

Great info Shi.