Bug infestation of your home can cost thousands of dollars if not treated right away. The most common critters of late are bed bugs. These parasites have been around for thousands of years, but have made a substantial comeback in the last decade. 80% of bed bugs are believed to be in hotels and motels.

To prevent an infestation you can follow these steps and check your hotel room yourself within 5 minutes.

Luggage

You’ll want to leave your luggage at the door or outside. If the room has bed bugs… you don’t want them hopping a ride on your luggage. You should also keep your bags off the floor and bed.

The Closet

If the closet or armoire is closest to the door you can check that out first. Because they hide in dark crevices you’ll want to see if the door tracks, shelving or hangers have any signs. Look for fecal spots, small dark sand-like droppings that occur in patches, translucent eggs and empty moulted exoskeletons.

The Bed

They’re called bed bugs because their preferred habitat is nearby or inside of bedding or other sleep areas. I know the idea of tearing down a perfectly made bed ruins the hotel experience, but having peace of mind is well worth it. Pull back the sheets and look for bed bug skins, carcasses, or fecal spots on the mattress. Because they only feed on blood, tiny pinpricks will appear on the sheets. Oh, and if there’s a dust ruffle, be sure to inspect that – it’s a very common hiding place for bed bugs that is often overlooked. Lift the mattress and boxspring and inspect folds, seams and crevices. If you see any little black smudges then there are bed bugs in your room.

The Headboard

If you can’t move it and look behind it. Snag some hotel stationery and slide it behind the headboard several times. The bed bugs will cling to the paper if they are there.

The Nightstand

Open drawers and check cracks and crevices. If there are books or magazines, flip through the pages and bindings. Make sure you inspect all the screw holes, joints and inside the drawers.

The Furniture

Lift up the cushions and look closely at all of the seams.

Are You in the Clear?

Websites like Tripadvisor or even Yelp, can help tell you if your hotel has a bed bug problem. You can also check out bedbugregistry.com, an online database that tracks reported bed bug infestations in hotels and apartments. Don't stay there if people are saying they've seen bed bugs. 1 in 5 people have had an encounter with bed bugs. We do understand that even the best prevention against these parasites can still result in an unexpected emergency. If you live in Arizona or Nevada, applying for an Online Installment Loan or simply giving us a call at 866-948-2631 could relieve the financial pressures of fumigation.

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