Video:Where Are Bedbugs in Hotels?
with Mark CaseyHotel bed bugs tend to be in particular places in the room other than the bed. Be sure to check the entire hotel room for bed bugs, but particularly in the places detailed here.See Transcript
Transcript:Where Are Bedbugs in Hotels?
Hi, I'm Mark Casey for About.com, and today we're talking about how to check a hotel room for bed bugs.
Check Upholstery for Bed Bugs
The most common place for bed bugs to be found is obviously the bed, which is where they got their name. But many travelers don't know that you can catch bed bugs before you even lie down. Don't sit on the upholstered furniture before checking it first, because you're just as likely to find bed bugs on your chair or couch as in your bed.
Protect your luggage as well by placing it on the luggage rack, not on the bed or furniture.Other than the bed, bed bugs most often hide in the folds of upholstered furniture, especially in the deep cracks and tight spaces where there is no light.
Check Corners and Seams for Bed Bugs
Another odd place is the curtains and drapes around the window. Once again, bed bugs like to hide in the folds and seams.They're also found in the grooves and crevices of the wooden fixtures near the bed. Check the headboard, bed posts, and any side tables for bed bugs, including the drawers, particularly if the wood is ornate with lots of places to hide.Of course, you're most likely to find bed bugs in the actual bed, but they probably won't just be lying on your sheets.
Bed bugs love to hide in the corners of the bed, where there are lots of folds and seams in the fabric to hide. The bugs will hide in the seams of the mattress, so look deeper than just the cover and sheets. Beneath the lip of the mattress or sandwiched in between the pillowtop there are lots of small spaces for a bug to hide. These are ideal spots, as is the space beneath the mattress entirely.
Look for Evidence of Bed Bugs
Just because you don't find them in one corner doesn't mean that there aren't bugs in one of the other corners of the mattress. If you still have no luck, do a surface check of the sheets to make sure there aren't any small brown dried blood spots from when the bugs had previous meals.
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