Bed Bug Hotel & Motel Industry Tips

Bed Bug University

Travelers and Hotels with Bed Bugs

Understand that individuals that travel regularly are at a higher risk of getting bedbugs than those who do not travel as much. Most homeowners who get bed bugs have one thing in common- they have recently traveled and brought the bugs back home with them.

TIPS for Hotel, Motel and Hospitality Industry

Train your housekeeping & maintenance staff to know signs of early bed bug infestations. These folks can help make or break your establishment in preventing structural infestations.
The hospitality group should adopt a routine inspection process to assist in this early detection. Understanding that bedbugs are excellent hitchhikers and people or their personal belongings will help them to travel from place to place, room to room, floor to floor.
If you wait for a customer to complain of being bitten it may not be an early infestation as we know that there are a certain amount of people who are bitten without a reaction or even those who are bitten, but are hesitant to complain as they may be unsure, etc. When a client complains staff should take the complaint seriously and investigate the room.
When an infestation is found cleaning staff and maintenance involved in breaking down the room should have a change of clothes in their locker to prevent taking these pest homes with them.
Having a pro-active, well planned monitoring program to detect bed bugs early is far superior to having no program.
Managers should realize that keeping a room out of service due to an infestation will not “starve out” a bed bug problem. Some will move to other rooms while others will lay in wait for long periods of time without feeding.
Apartment managers should consider what Mr. Paul Bello* has stated, “A reliable bed bug program that delivers acceptable results can NOT be had for $75 per door. Again, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!”
Anyone who is actually out there doing correct, intense bed bug eradication knows that it is hard work and is taking the job very seriously. It’s very labor intensive and costly to do it correctly and have a bed bug free apartment or complex.
As a hotel manager, how is one to discuss bed bugs with guest without raising a red flag that the hotel may be infested? It can be a bit tricky, but being honest with your guest and having a strong pro-active inspection, treatment and follow up are key to retaining happy, confident customers.
On a side note, Mr. Bello recommends using professional mattress encasements that are bed bug certified such as those produced by Mattress Safe. Many may wonder why bother as these do not prevent bed bugs, but they do help those in housekeeper spot new evidence early on.

Bed Bug Mattress and Cover

One of the biggest questions that is asked: “I have bed bugs on my bed, do I need to throw away my mattress and box spring?” In short, if your bed is still in good condition you should have it treated and then place a true bed bug certified mattress encasement on it. Search Google for a certified encasement or check out Mattress Safe’s website.

If a bug or egg is left on the mattress this encasement will seal them in and starve them out and if you travel a lot then any new bed bug infestations will be easier to see on a smooth white surface which does not have buttons and seams. People looking to save money have asked if they can just buy a large industrial roll of plastic and wrap, wrap, wrap their mattress and box spring to starve out the bug. The answer is: yes, if wrapped correctly this can work, but have you ever tried to sleep on plastic which is underneath your bed sheets? It may be noisy and uncomfortable. Whatever mattress encasement you select be sure that it is tested bed bug proof and clearly states Bed Bug Proof on the label. This label will mean that it has been tested and no bed bugs can enter into the encasement nor can any bed bugs escape from the inside of the encasement or the zipper. Be mindful that even correct type encasements can get cut and tears and if that happens they would need to be replaced to continue to work correctly.

*Mr. Paul J. Bello, author of “The Bed Bug Combat Manual”. Mr. Bello is a certified entomologist and a former student of the renowned Dr. Austin M. Frishman of University of New York, Farmingdale campus, and is well known for his extensive work within integrated pest management.

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