Bed bugs are everywhere, even in Kansas City, so how do you protect yourself from bringing back bed bugs when you are away from home, on vacation or visiting friends and relatives? Milberger Pest Control has tips to identify bed bugs and how to keep from bringing them to Kansas City with you.
Bed bugs are small, reddish-brown bugs that can grow up to the size of an apple seed. They are attracted to people and animals, not dirt and grime. They bite people and animals to eat blood. Bed bugs, even in Kansas City, move from place to place in luggage, clothes, boxes, and used furniture – or through small cracks in apartments. They only come out at night but leaving a light on won’t stop them from biting. Bites cause large, itchy bumps on some people. Other people don’t have any reaction to the bites.
When checking into a hotel, there are many ways to look for bed bugs, and this can also help when you are back home in Kansas City. Signs to look for include small, reddish spots on the sheets or mattress, round, dark spots that look like ink, and tiny eggs, eggshells, and pale, yellow skins.
Once you’re in your hotel room, it’s best to put your luggage on a luggage rack away from the wall or in a dry bathtub. Don’t put it on the bed. Packing a flashlight is a good idea, so you can look for bed bugs hiding in the mattress, box spring, and bed frame; check under the mattress and in the seams, folds, or edges of the mattress; and search other furniture near the bed, like the nightstands. If you see any of these signs, call the hotel desk or tell your host right away.
Once you get back to Kansas City, take extra care with your luggage and look for bed bugs. Keep your travel clothes separate from other laundry. Wash them in hot water right away. Vacuum your luggage to get rid of any bed bugs that may have hitched a ride back to Kansas City with you. Take the vacuum outside and empty the contents into a plastic bag that seals tightly. Throw the bag away in an outside garbage bin.
If all else fails, and you find bed bugs in your home, the answer in Kansas City is to call Milberger Pest Control at (816) 761-1313 in Missouri and (913) 384-6760 in Kansas.