One of the commonest ways in which an individual can get a bed bug infestation is from a facility that many people use, such as a hotel. If you are going on holiday or regularly stay in hotel rooms, it’s conceivable that you may end up picking up a few of these bugs and then travelling home with them. With time, this will lead to a serious infestation in your home, particularly if you delay having the problem definitively solved once you notice it.

This means that if you are interested in avoiding such problems, you would need to approach the use of hotel rooms in a different way altogether. Some of the simple yet effective things you can do include:

Choose a high quality hotel

In many cases, the quality of the hotel will affect the chances of picking up some of the bed bugs from it. High quality hotels tend to be more careful about issues to do with hygiene, and will go to greater lengths to avoid embarrassment due to the presence of any pests. Of course, this does not mean that you definitely can’t get bed bugs in a high quality hotel. It only means that if you choose to stay in one, the chances of getting the pests will be lower.

This means that when you are planning a trip, you should always consider the quality of the hotels you opt to stay in. This does not necessarily mean that you should spend a lot of money for quality; there are some with very good ratings and which are affordable.

Check the bedding before settling in

Once you get to a hotel room, you should make a point of first checking it for the presence of bed bugs before doing anything else. Most people recommend that you should keep your luggage in the bathroom before doing this. The reason for this is that since bathrooms have a lot of light and very few nooks and crannies, the chances of finding any bug there is minimal.

The most important place to check for bed bugs is the bed. To do this, you will need to pull off all the linen, and lift the mattress of the bed. Check the corners of the bed frame as well as any other tiny spaces for the presence of the actual bugs, or their eggs. Other telltale signs of a bed bug infestation include small blood stains on the bedding. You may also see a number of dead bed bugs as well. If you notice any of these, you should alert the hotel staff immediately. You can ask for another room instead of staying in that one, or go to another hotel altogether. Whatever you do, you should follow the same procedure before settling in or unpacking your luggage. If you have to move to a different room, always try to make sure that it’s at least two floors away from the room with the bed bugs.

If the bed is clear, you can then check the rest of the room including the furniture close to the bed. The key is to check the hidden parts of the furniture.

Keep your luggage in elevated areas

If you are suspicious of the presence of bed bugs, you should not put your bags or clothing on the floor. Instead, you should put them on areas such as dressers or tables. It becomes more difficult for the bugs to travel from wherever they are in the room to the luggage, which reduces your chances of transporting them back home. You should also avoid laying out your clothing on the bed for longer than you have to.

The role of a plastic wrap

Another way to prevent entry of bed bugs into your luggage is by wrapping it in plastic. There are some plastic wrap products that you can simply zip around your suitcase, creating a barrier that can’t be penetrated by the bed bugs. This is also useful in reducing the risk of infestation during transit. Remember, there are times when the bed bugs can infest your luggage during transit, such as in the cargo hold of a plane.

Have your clothes thoroughly laundered when you get back home

If you have been staying in a series of hotels and then come back home, you may be apprehensive about the presence of any bugs in your luggage. To ensure that there are none, you should make it a policy to have all such clothing thoroughly cleaned as soon as you get back home, and even before you settle in. Remember to check your suitcase as well, since it could harbor a few of the bed bugs particularly in the corners. You should wash your clothes in hot (not warm) water, since high temperatures are known to kill the bed bugs.

By keeping the above in mind, you can reduce the risk of picking up a bed bug infestation from a hotel. However, if you have unfortunately invited those bed bugs back home, you can always get professional bed bug services in Richmond Hill to get rid of them.