Bed Bugs can be a menace and a cause of many sleepless nights
. While you may have made all the possible provisions to maintain a bug free bed at home, you have minimal control of these things when you travel. Here are certain things that need to be considered as precaution while you are sleeping on unknown beds:
1. Before you unpack your clothes, make sure you check for bed bugs. Request a change in room at the hotel as soon as you suspect that your bed is infected.
2. To be able to check for the bugs, you need to pull back the bed sheets and look for them through the seams. You can also look out for small spots of blood on the mattress.
3. Also look at the edges of the box springs and the headboard.
4. Do not ignore the furniture pieces in the hotel room. Especially the upholstered furniture needs to be checked. It is a known fact that bed bugs are commonly found in wood and fabric as against other materials.
5. It is strongly recommended that you dont put any of your baggage or clothes on the bed before you inspect the room for the same exact reason. The last thing you want is to infect all your clothes with bed bugs while you are on a holiday.
6. In case your clothes have been infected, it is recommended that you put those in a separate laundry bag where you can directly throw them into the washer to ensure that the bugs do not escape and infect your other clothes.
7. Wash your clothes on the highest and toughest setting possible and as an added caution, you can also send them to the dry cleaners.
8. If the bed bugs have infected the clothes you are wearing right now, undress only on a hard floor and not on a carpet which they also infect.
9. Items that cannot be thrown into the machine, such as your suitcase etc., can be vacuumed or hand washed. Use a really tough scrub to ensure than no eggs are also nesting in any nook and cranny.
In addition to travelling, you must be taking the same precautions and care when you are dealing with new furniture that comes into your home. Especially if you are purchasing used furniture ensure that you are not bringing any unwanted bugs which can make your home a living hell. Sufficient care and cleanliness is all you need to create a bed bug home.