This year’s brutal winter has many Monmouth County families planning spring break trips to warm, sunny vacation spots to escape New Jersey’s deep freeze, if only for one blissfully warm week! If you’re one of many Ocean County families planning to head south for the kids’ spring vacation, a word of warning. Bed bug infestations have been recently reported in Florida and remain a threat anywhere you go.
Known Seasonal Activity
These apple seed-sized insects that feed on human blood are a year-round problem but seem to be more active when temperatures are warmer. Bed bugs hitchhike into hotels in guests’ luggage. If you are unlucky enough to be the next guest in that room, you may be exposed to these obnoxious pests and bring a few home.
Bed Bug Prevention Tips
Use these tips to limit your bed bug exposure:
• Put your luggage in the bathtub while you check your room.
• Check the bed (sheets, mattress, springs) and room (baseboards, behind headboards and pictures, air duct openings, inside drawers) for bed bug signs: live bugs, molted exoskeletons, blood smears and black fecal dots.
• Keep suitcases, backpacks, bags, etc. off the bed, stuffed furniture and the floor. Keep your suitcase on a luggage stand or hard table. Hang backpacks in the closet. Bring plastic trash bags to hold items that must go on the floor.
• Don’t unpack your things into bureau drawers. Keep them in sealed plastic bags in your suitcase.
• If anyone wakes up with insect bites, report it to the hotel manager immediately and ask for a new room in a different part of the building.
When you return home, watch for bites and other bed bug signs. If you suspect bed bugs, call Allison Pest Control’s bed bug exterminators NJ for a free pest inspection.