I’m a pest control expert – you must do these 3 things or risk a gross infestation when you come back from holidays
A PEST control expert has warned that Brits must do three things to avoid a bedbug infestation when returning from holidays.
Stuart Halliday, 42, owner of Pest Control, says after two years of minimal travel, bedbugs are “going to go mental” this year as Brits dash off on holiday.
Bed bugs are small, blood-sucking insects that can be found in the joints of your mattress - adults are about 5mm long.
They crawl out at night and feed on human blood after biting through exposed skin.
Typically they are brown, dark yellow or red in colour, are flat and oval-shaped and are the size of an apple seed.
Although they aren’t dangerous, they can cause extreme discomfort and stress to those who are bitten by them.
And this time of year is the most common for them to latch on to your clothes, beds and belongings.
Stuart told The Sun: “This is the exact time people pick up bed bugs, right around this time.
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“During this time everyone's going to be jetting off to different countries, Spain, Greece and places like that.
“No one's been travelling for the last couple of years because of Covid. Now that we’re all hopping around to different places they’re going to go mental
“Whether it's a hotel, a B&B or a hostel if you’re not careful you’re gonna bring them all home with you.”
Stuart has now shared his top preventative tips to avoid you bringing the insects home as an unwanted holiday souvenir
DON’T UNPACK
When you come home, don't unpack your suitcase in your bedroom or into your laundry basket.
Bring it straight to the kitchen or wherever you have your washing machine.
This is because bedbugs will jump from already infected items to clean items.
If you leave your suitcase on your bed, bedbugs can jump from the case to your sheets and mattress.
WASH YOUR CLOTHES
Wash all of your clothes as soon as you return from abroad - even if they were never worn.
And if you suspect you’ve been infected, the first thing you need to do is strip your bed and wash the sheets and blankets in 60C water, before tumble drying for at least 30 minutes.
The bugs, which can reach half a centimetre in length, gravitate towards dirty sheets and garments as they like the smell of humans.
STORING YOUR SUITCASE
When it comes to storing your suitcase you want to make sure it’s not going to help the bugs spread.
Put your suitcases in bin bags. Put them in a loft or put them in the shed. Never put them in your bedroom.
Bedbugs are a contact only pest. You bring them in with your stuff or on your person.
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If you’re on the underground or on the bus, if you’re sat beside people or their stuff then you can pick up their bedbugs.
All of our suitcases are going to be sitting together in the hull of the plane when we jet off on holiday - meaning the bugs can have a field day.