Bedbugs!!!

[TheVTCGuy]

Oh, I need your help guys...

I spent this week out in the middle of the Arizona desert (flying drones). I stayed at a Best Western hotel in Goodyear, AZ, mainly because it is close(est) to our work site. No, not a five-star, but very convenient and I have stayed there a couple times with no issues. Last night I wake up to get a drink of water, turn on the light, AND SEE TWO BEDBUGS WALKING ACROSS MY SHEET!!!!

I immediately took pictures, sent it to my corporate, showed the night manager, then I threw away every single piece of clothing I had with me, except for what I am wearing for my flight home, which I will throw out when I arrive, and left.

I posted the pictures and descriptions on every social media I know, and my corporate threatened Best Western with a lawsuit.

I don’t really see or feel any bites... maybe, or maybe it’s paranoia, but the issue is.... MY BELOVED TUMI CASES!!!! I understand bedbugs can get in to suitcases and travel with you home (and everywhere). I am tempted to just dump them... but we are talking about $1,500 worth of product.

Does anyone have any experience with bedbugs and luggage? Anyway to ensure all the bugs and possibly eggs in my suitcases are eradicated?

What a nightmare. When I get home tonight, the bags are staying outside in my storage, but I have trips next week and need them.

What a nightmare...

[GoingPlaces]

I wouldn't toss the Tumi's. Any way to inspect them? If you froze them for 24 hours that would certainly eliminate any unwanted guests. This of assuming they would fit in a freezer.

[brandrea]

Geeze Paul what a bummer

Can you have your clothes and bags dry cleaned or disinfected or something

[Danny83]

Spray your stuff down with rubbing alcohol and water mixture. Dont stay at a BW again lol

[77T]

Terrible - it’s unlikely they laid eggs in the luggage unless you stored your bags on the bed overnight.

But check with your local exterminators. Some have fumigation lockers where you can take your luggage and have it fumigated overnight. It is the only way short of a diy using a plastic drop sheet and fumigator cans.

Either way, you’ll need to bag the Tumi’s for up to 2 weeks. The egg is approximately 1 mm in length and is comparable in size to two grains of salt. Within two weeks, eggs hatch and immature bed bugs begin immediately to feed.

For your next trip(s), hit a Costco and buy cheap spares for the time you’re awaiting the embargo to end.


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[Abdullah71601]

Freeze them. Bedbugs don't survive temps below 0. Freezers can be set to minus 20. Put your expensive kit in the freezer overnight.

[Vamp]

VTC, I own a pest control company. PM me for my info if you'd like to talk.

[The Libertine]

Fumigate, maybe in a closed room?

[Roleyalldayonme]

Just call the bed bug exterminator, they will eradicate the problem.


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[bdex75]

Gross, yes.

Throw away all your clothes and luggage, no.

Must be something about the heat as the one time I saw them in my hotel was in Scottsdale. Lack of freezing weather I reckon.

PM the member that is in the pest control biz. There are better alternatives than burning all your stuff.

I noticed I was bit up in the morning. Alerted the front desk and they gave me bags for all my clothes that were on the bed. Brought them home and put right in the deep freeze for a week. Sprayed the suitcase with some concoction I found on the web and had no issues since. But my legs were torn to shit from the bites. Thought it was some sort of allergic reaction to the detergent at first. Then I saw the buggers.


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[Yoda_Eating_Pizza]

Sorry to hear about your predicament, I understand what you're going through. We encountered a bedbug at the Hilton Tokyo Bay. Captured it, photographed it, documented it, then presented it to management. We didn't throw out the clothes, but did go through every single object in every bag with a fine toothed comb. Luckily, when we pack, a lot of our stuff is sealed in Ziploc bags of all sizes (I'm OCD like that).

In my previous life, I used to work in an urban entomology laboratory. Heat or cold will kill bedbugs. Like others said, you could freeze them. They must be kept frozen for at least 4 days.

At least one company here uses thermal eradication. For small items, they quarantine the items in bags or containers, then pump them with air at 120F.

Clothing can be put in a dryer. It will kill the bugs & eggs as long as it reaches at least 120F. Most modern dryers can attain this heat.

[SMD]

You can buy a device that you put your luggage in when you come home from a trip. You leave it overnight and it heats up and kills anything that may be inside. Doesn’t damage your belongings or the suitcase.

[AzHadEnuf]

I can’t see any other option than you sending me the bags Paul.

[Phrank]

Have your luggage steam cleaned, or if you have a your own steam cleaner, thoroughly sweep the luggage inside and out, insert the steam wand into pockets or anywhere they can get.

[Travelair007]

Paul,
My mom just went through that and at her age, she was panicked and worried. The solution was pretty simple. Since you’ve thrown away all the clothes, put your Tumis in a sealed large garbage bag and spray them with some bed bug killer you would get from Home Depot. There are some pretty good brands out there that won’t ruin or stink up your luggage.

Let the luggage sit in those bags for 48-72 hrs then remove and wipe down a few times with warm water and a tiny bit of soap.

It did the trick for her.

I also recommend a bed bug mattress / box cover since you’re a seasoned traveler. You want to ensure your bed never gets infected.

Good luck man! It’s stressful

[Burlington]

Not a good experience - what is the hotel doing to make things right ?

[Brenngun]

Paul, A nightmare but don't use chemicals to resolve. Freezer for a week will kill them and any eggs if they are there. Nice thing about using temperature is you don't end up with residual chemical smell or traces.

[GradyPhilpott]

My personal experience is that you should look into professional assistance.

It's not worth having an infestation in your home.

I'm not suggesting that you throw anything away, but trying to address the problem yourself is an iffy business and there's no room for error.

I've had plenty of friends who have faced this problem and they all eventually had to go with the professionals.

[1st amg]

Apparently, bed bugs will not feed on alcoholics as their blood is not tolerable. So, maybe time to take up a new hobby! Sorry, about your troubles. Call the pros, do not try to eradicate them you self with over the counter products you can buy. You need help. Good luck.

[joli160]

That's a nightmare. I would have dumped everything what has been in that room and present the bill to the hotel

[cruise_bone]

I thought that you couldn't see bedbugs unless under a microscope. Perhaps the 2 bugs that you saw were something different?

I was also under the impression that ALL hotel beds have them and you can't do anything about it. The level of bedbugs surely varies between hotels, but isn't it something we all experience, whether we know it or not?

[antbkny]

That sucks!

[2ltdjorn]

Likely an over reaction. They are manageable. I’m a nurse practitioner, we see them fairly often in our line of work. Just call exterminator and bag the stuff... suffocate them from oxygen.

[AK DeepSea]

Relax dude.

Heat also kills bed bugs.

You won’t die from their bites.

Most people show no signs of being bitten so you may have bites all over and just not reacted.

[TheVTCGuy]

SO, thanks for the ideas and to Vamp for his professional opinion. It seems the key to killing (the eggs, that’s what I am worried aout, there are no actual bugs crawling around my clothers or suitcases) is HEAT. At least up to 120 and they (including the eggs) die instantly. The only two items of clothes I didn’t throw away in Arizona went through about two hours in the dryer, and several trips through the washer on hot water setting. The only other item is a coat, which will go to the dry cleaners this morning, that is supposed to also be an effective method of killing any eggs. That leaves my two suitcases and again thanks to Vamp, I have to get them hot somehow. Putting them in a bag in the hot sun is supposed to work but unfortunetely, this is the one time of year even in SOCAL that is not going to work. I have looked on line and people have used hair dryers and heat guns, which is my plan. I have a lazer thermometer so can make sure every square inch of my suitcase gets to over 120, and unlike sprays this won’t leave any residue. I think my heat gun puts out 200 degrees so can’t hold it closer then about four inches, but monitoring with the lazer-reader I think will work. I’ll let you know.

Oh, and am I over-reacting? Yeah, probably, I dont even have any evidence I was bitten or that there are eggs in any of my belongings, but I prefer to be on the safest possible side and take every precaution against allowing a possible infestation of my home of bloodsucking parasites. Call me crazy.

[TheVTCGuy]

Originally Posted by AzHadEnuf

I can’t see any other option than you sending me the bags Paul.

Why didn’t you say something!? I could have just left them there with you in AZ?

Originally Posted by Phrank

Have your luggage steam cleaned, or if you have a your own steam cleaner, thoroughly sweep the luggage inside and out, insert the steam wand into pockets or anywhere they can get.

This is also a possibility, I am looking in to renting a steamer. I won’t mind using it but apparantly again, it’s the heat that kills them.

Originally Posted by Travelair007

Paul,
My mom just went through that and at her age, she was panicked and worried. The solution was pretty simple. Since you’ve thrown away all the clothes, put your Tumis in a sealed large garbage bag and spray them with some bed bug killer you would get from Home Depot. There are some pretty good brands out there that won’t ruin or stink up your luggage.

Let the luggage sit in those bags for 48-72 hrs then remove and wipe down a few times with warm water and a tiny bit of soap.

It did the trick for her.

I also recommend a bed bug mattress / box cover since you’re a seasoned traveler. You want to ensure your bed never gets infected.

Good luck man! It’s stressful

That mattress cover is a good idea!

Originally Posted by Brenngun

Paul, A nightmare but don't use chemicals to resolve. Freezer for a week will kill them and any eggs if they are there. Nice thing about using temperature is you don't end up with residual chemical smell or traces.

I’d love to, but afraid my freezer is not that big, and don’t really know anyone that would help me out with an industrial freezer

Originally Posted by GradyPhilpott

My personal experience is that you should look into professional assistance.

It's not worth having an infestation in your home.

I'm not suggesting that you throw anything away, but trying to address the problem yourself is an iffy business and there's no room for error.

I've had plenty of friends who have faced this problem and they all eventually had to go with the professionals.

I completely agree Grady, but the searching I did on line doesn’t show anything with any of the exterminator companies, I even called a couple this morning. They said they could come out to my home and spray my bed, but didn’t have anything to offer about putting suitcases in a bag or box. But I wouldn’t mind paying for a professional job.

Originally Posted by 1st amg

Apparently, bed bugs will not feed on alcoholics as their blood is not tolerable. So, maybe time to take up a new hobby! Sorry, about your troubles. Call the pros, do not try to eradicate them you self with over the counter products you can buy. You need help. Good luck.

That’s it! I need to start drinking

Originally Posted by cruise_bone

I thought that you couldn't see bedbugs unless under a microscope. Perhaps the 2 bugs that you saw were something different?

I was also under the impression that ALL hotel beds have them and you can't do anything about it. The level of bedbugs surely varies between hotels, but isn't it something we all experience, whether we know it or not?

I hope you are incorrect about them being in every hotel bed! But I can tell you they ARE visible, and trust me, I saw bedbugs. Look on line. They were small, maybe half a finger-nail, and maybe it’s my OCD, but they were definitely there and definitely bed bugs. I will look up a picture from bedbugs.com that was taken by another guest in the same hotel (Wish I had read this BEFORE I went there ) of the exact same bugs I saw and killed.

[GradyPhilpott]

Originally Posted by cruise_bone

I thought that you couldn't see bedbugs unless under a microscope. Perhaps the 2 bugs that you saw were something different?

I was also under the impression that ALL hotel beds have them and you can't do anything about it. The level of bedbugs surely varies between hotels, but isn't it something we all experience, whether we know it or not?

Bed bugs are definitely not microscopic.

I think you must be thinking of dust mites.

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[TheVTCGuy]

GROSS alert, here is the “After” Picture I took when I killed one of the bugs, sorry I was too freaked out to get a “before”. They were about the size of half a fingernail and that blood is probably mine. Ewwwwww.....

[Brew]

This is the most horrific thread on TRF! Nightmare fodder!!

[Phrank]

Originally Posted by TheVTCGuy

Why didn’t you say something!? I could have just left them there with you in AZ?



This is also a possibility, I am looking in to renting a steamer. I won’t mind using it but apparantly again, it’s the heat that kills them.



That mattress cover is a good idea!



I’d love to, but afraid my freezer is not that big, and don’t really know anyone that would help me out with an industrial freezer



I completely agree Grady, but the searching I did on line doesn’t show anything with any of the exterminator companies, I even called a couple this morning. They said they could come out to my home and spray my bed, but didn’t have anything to offer about putting suitcases in a bag or box. But I wouldn’t mind paying for a professional job.



That’s it! I need to start drinking



I hope you are incorrect about them being in every hotel bed! But I can tell you they ARE visible, and trust me, I saw bedbugs. Look on line. They were small, maybe half a finger-nail, and maybe it’s my OCD, but they were definitely there and definitely bed bugs. I will look up a picture from bedbugs.com that was taken by another guest in the same hotel (Wish I had read this BEFORE I went there ) of the exact same bugs I saw and killed.

My wife is a nurse, she deals with them frequently, there are special "coasters" for the legs of a bed where they meet the floor, that prevent them from getting into a bed if they haven't been directly introduced.

Also, the residential units heat water up to temperatures between 150° and 300° Fahrenheit (66-149° Celsius). The one we have gets the steam up to around 245° F...will kill anything.

These units aren't to expensive, also kills dust mites, mold, tons of stuff, she blasts everything in the house couple of times a year....couches, chairs, some carpets, have to admit, good practice to get into.