How to Check for Bed Bugs After Holiday Travel
Published Updated
By John Stopka, Co-Founder & CEO · Reviewed by John Stopka
Every year, the week after Thanksgiving and the first couple weeks of January bring a certain kind of call into our office. Somebody in Paducah got back from visiting family in Nashville. A Bowling Green couple stayed two nights in a hotel for a ballgame. A college kid came home to Murray for break with a duffel bag full of laundry. A week or two later, they wake up with itchy red bumps in a line on their arm and start wondering what's going on.
Bed bugs don't come from a dirty house. They hitch rides. They crawl into suitcases, backpacks, coat pockets and the folds of clothes, and they ride home with you from hotels, airports, buses, relatives' guest rooms and even movie theaters. The holidays are prime time for it because so many of us are sleeping somewhere other than our own beds.
The good news is that a few minutes of checking on the road and at home can stop most of these problems before they start. Here's what we tell our own families before they head out.
What bed bugs actually look like
An adult bed bug is about the size of an apple seed. It's flat, oval and reddish brown, and it gets rounder and darker after it feeds. Young ones are smaller and lighter, almost see-through, and can be hard to spot unless you're looking closely with a flashlight.
You're more likely to see the signs they leave behind than the bugs themselves:
- Small dark spots on sheets or mattress seams, a lot like someone dotted the fabric with a fine marker
- Tiny rust colored smears on pillowcases
- Pale, papery shells they shed as they grow
- A cluster of bugs tucked into a seam, a headboard crack or the edge of a box spring
Check the hotel room before you unpack
It sounds like a lot, but this takes about five minutes.
- Leave your bags in the bathroom or on a hard surface when you first walk in. Don't toss them on the bed or a cloth chair.
- Pull back the sheets at the head of the bed. Look at the mattress seams, the corners and the tag area. Use your phone's flashlight.
- Look behind the headboard if you can. In a lot of hotels it's mounted to the wall, but you can usually peek around the edges. That's one of their favorite spots.
- Check the luggage rack. Use it for your bag instead of the floor or bed, but give the straps and joints a quick look first.
- If you see anything, ask for a different room, and ideally one that isn't right next door or directly above or below.
The same goes for a guest bed at a relative's house. You don't have to make it awkward. Just take a peek at the mattress corners while you're making the bed.
What to do when you get home
This is the step most people skip, and it's the one that matters most. Bed bugs that made it into your bag are waiting for a chance to move into your bedroom.
- Unpack in the garage, laundry room or another hard floored area, not on your bed.
- Run your clothes through a hot dryer for at least 30 minutes, even the clean ones you never wore. Heat from the dryer is what does the work, not the washing.
- Vacuum your suitcase, inside and out, paying attention to seams and zippers. Empty the vacuum outside when you're done.
- Store luggage away from bedrooms. A garage shelf or a basement is better than under the bed or in a bedroom closet.
- Bag up anything that can't go in the dryer and set it aside until you've had a chance to look it over.
Signs they made it into your house
If a few slipped past, you usually won't notice right away. Bed bugs hide during the day and come out at night. Over the next few weeks, keep an eye out for:
- Bites in a row or small cluster, often on arms, shoulders or legs. Not everybody reacts to bites, so one person in the house might have them and the other might not.
- Dark spots along the mattress seams or box spring
- Bugs or shells in the cracks of the headboard, nightstand or baseboard near the bed
One thing we want to be honest about: lots of things cause itchy bumps, from fleas to dry winter skin to spider bites. Bites alone don't prove you have bed bugs. Physical evidence like the spots, shells or the bugs themselves is what tells you for sure.
Why DIY usually falls short with bed bugs
We're big fans of folks handling small pest problems on their own when it makes sense. Mice in the garage, a few ants on the counter, a spider in the tub, all of that is fair game. Bed bugs are different.
They hide in tiny cracks, they spread from room to room, and store bought sprays and foggers tend to scatter them deeper into walls and furniture rather than finish them off. We've walked into homes in Hopkinsville and Mayfield where a family spent weeks fighting a small problem and ended up with bugs in three bedrooms and the couch.
If you find real signs, the best next step is an inspection. A trained set of eyes can tell you whether it's bed bugs, how far they've spread, and what it's going to take to deal with them. That way you're working from facts instead of guesses.
Traveling this season? A quick checklist
- Bags on hard surfaces first, never on the bed
- Five minute mattress and headboard check with a flashlight
- Use the luggage rack
- Unpack in the garage or laundry room at home
- Everything through a hot dryer for 30 minutes
- Vacuum the suitcase and store it away from bedrooms
We're right here if you need us
Liberty Pest Control serves families all over western and south central Kentucky, including Paducah, Benton, Mayfield, Murray, Hopkinsville, Bowling Green, Russellville and Franklin. If you got home from a trip and something doesn't look right, don't lose sleep over it. Send us a photo of what you're seeing or set up an inspection, and we'll help you figure out what's going on.
Call or text 270-564-8077.
When to call a professional
Bed bug treatment is quoted after the inspection and arranged by text or call, rather than online: the office will set it up. More on how we handle bed bugs is on our bed bug treatment page and our bed bugs page.
Keep reading: Bed Bugs in Kentucky: How to Tell If You Have Them.
Common questions
What do bed bugs look like?
An adult bed bug is about the size of an apple seed. It's flat, oval and reddish brown, and it gets rounder and darker after it feeds. Young ones are smaller and lighter, almost see-through, and can be hard to spot unless you're looking closely with a flashlight.
What should I check in a hotel room?
Leave your bags in the bathroom or on a hard surface when you first walk in. Pull back the sheets at the head of the bed and look at the mattress seams, the corners and the tag area. Look behind the headboard if you can, and check the luggage rack.
What should I do with luggage when I get home?
Unpack in the garage, laundry room or another hard floored area, not on your bed. Run your clothes through a hot dryer for at least 30 minutes, even the clean ones you never wore. Vacuum your suitcase, inside and out, paying attention to seams and zippers.
Do itchy bumps mean I have bed bugs?
Lots of things cause itchy bumps, from fleas to dry winter skin to spider bites. Bites alone don't prove you have bed bugs. Physical evidence like the spots, shells or the bugs themselves is what tells you for sure.
Sources
- University of Kentucky Entomology. Michael F. Potter. "Bed Bugs" (ENTFACT-636). https://entomology.mgcafe.uky.edu/ef636 (opens in a new tab)
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. "How to Find Bed Bugs." https://www.epa.gov/bedbugs/how-find-bed-bugs (opens in a new tab)
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. "Protecting Your Home from Bed Bugs." https://www.epa.gov/bedbugs/protecting-your-home-bed-bugs (opens in a new tab)