Yes, we know it isn’t a pleasant topic to discuss, but with our clients traveling literally to the ends of the earth, protecting oneself from bedbugs and other creepy crawlers is an important subject.
Bedbug protection is important even when traveling domestically. Recent news reports have shown that you don’t have to travel to the other side of the world and stay in run-down hotels to encounter the little creatures. Bedbugs have been discovered even in upscale hotels in major U.S. cities.
Bedbugs and other insects can not only cause trouble where you are traveling, but they can “hitch a ride” home with you through clothes and luggage. According to a recent newsletter from the company HomeTeam Pest Defense, adult bedbugs are “small, flat insects about the size of an apple seed and are mainly found in mattresses and couches…they don’t carry disease or live on humans but they do bite and feed only on blood.”
How can you protect yourself from bedbugs?
HomeTeam suggests three things. First, inspect any mattresses that you use while traveling. You are looking for brown or red spots indicating blood or bedbug debris. Second, hang clothes and place luggage on a luggage rack, not on the floor or near a bed. Third, wash all clothing after a trip in hot water.
We would also suggest some additional protective measures. Use the compression bags (the plastic travel bags that you put clothes in to get rid of all the air and save space) for all of your clothes. If your clothes are not hanging up then keep them sealed in the bag. You should also bring along an extra compression bag or two to use as you dirty your clothes.
Also, keep your suitcases, backpacks, etc. zipped-up when not in use. Finally, to reiterate HomeTeam’s recommendations, be sure to wash all clothes when you get home—even the ones you didn’t dirty. You probably will want to keep the clothes sealed in the bags until it is wash time.
Hopefully if you follow these simple tips you can leave bedbugs and other insects where they belong—away from you!