Bitten by bedbugs at hotel
October 23, 2016 7:33 AM Subscribe
Help me deal without panicking
I have had a home infestation before so I am taking this pretty badly (on mobile and panicking hard so please excuse bad typing)
In town for travel two nights; woke up this morning and found bites on myself. Have been in this hotel before without incident AUGH
I have one more night in this hotel but don't know what to do - try to find a new hotel? Just ask for a new room?
So I am planning to essentially go home, strip in back yard, throw out everything except wallet phone and laptop. Happy to also throw out wallet after recovering cards and cash.
I have spouse and baby at home so I am really twisted up about going home like this.
Please advise.
I have had a home infestation before so I am taking this pretty badly (on mobile and panicking hard so please excuse bad typing)
In town for travel two nights; woke up this morning and found bites on myself. Have been in this hotel before without incident AUGH
I have one more night in this hotel but don't know what to do - try to find a new hotel? Just ask for a new room?
So I am planning to essentially go home, strip in back yard, throw out everything except wallet phone and laptop. Happy to also throw out wallet after recovering cards and cash.
I have spouse and baby at home so I am really twisted up about going home like this.
Please advise.
Best answer: I had this happen once. Here's what I did.
Tell the hotel. They should move you at once to a new room. Give them all of your clothes to dryclean at their expense. Take photos of the bites for your records. The hotel will probably try to deny it is bedbugs. In my case I have a very serious reaction to bites and saw one crawling on the bed (it was a BAD infestation). If you want to make yourself feel better in the new room, you can inspect the seams of the mattress for any evidence of bugs or blood.
Get a new suitcase. Tell the hotel you expect to be reimbursed for the suitcase. While you still have your old suitcase keep it in the bathroom or somewhere isolated from your cleaned clothes. That may be overly paranoid and Advil is probably right that just on the luggage rack is good enough, but I had foolishly kept my suitcase on the bed with the bugs, so when I got moved I just kept it in the bathroom until I got the new suitcase.
If the hotel gives you any trouble, talking loudly about your bad experience with bedbugs and showing them the bites in the lobby/reception is a good tactic to get your point across, before you go to social media.
It is very unlikely that you will take them home if you follow these basic precautions. I inspected and ironed some of my newly-bought things that had been in the old room when I moved to a new room, but there was no sign that any bugs had gotten anywhere near them, and I didn't take any home.
Don't panic, you'll almost certainly be fine.
posted by ch1x0r at 8:18 AM on October 23, 2016 [5 favorites]
Tell the hotel. They should move you at once to a new room. Give them all of your clothes to dryclean at their expense. Take photos of the bites for your records. The hotel will probably try to deny it is bedbugs. In my case I have a very serious reaction to bites and saw one crawling on the bed (it was a BAD infestation). If you want to make yourself feel better in the new room, you can inspect the seams of the mattress for any evidence of bugs or blood.
Get a new suitcase. Tell the hotel you expect to be reimbursed for the suitcase. While you still have your old suitcase keep it in the bathroom or somewhere isolated from your cleaned clothes. That may be overly paranoid and Advil is probably right that just on the luggage rack is good enough, but I had foolishly kept my suitcase on the bed with the bugs, so when I got moved I just kept it in the bathroom until I got the new suitcase.
If the hotel gives you any trouble, talking loudly about your bad experience with bedbugs and showing them the bites in the lobby/reception is a good tactic to get your point across, before you go to social media.
It is very unlikely that you will take them home if you follow these basic precautions. I inspected and ironed some of my newly-bought things that had been in the old room when I moved to a new room, but there was no sign that any bugs had gotten anywhere near them, and I didn't take any home.
Don't panic, you'll almost certainly be fine.
posted by ch1x0r at 8:18 AM on October 23, 2016 [5 favorites]
Best answer: If you have soft things that you want to keep, you can bag them outside and then toss them in the drier on high for an hour. (I actually checked my dryer with an instant-read theremometer and it got up to bedbug killing temperatures within about 20 minutes, and it's a very average drier). I have done this with clothes, bags, empty wallet, etc. I have done this with shoes securely wrapped inside a pillow case with other soft things to prevent banging on the dryer.
I have switched over to duffle bags for travel for this reason - if I am worried, I can toss the bag in the dryer.
posted by Frowner at 8:27 AM on October 23, 2016 [3 favorites]
I have switched over to duffle bags for travel for this reason - if I am worried, I can toss the bag in the dryer.
posted by Frowner at 8:27 AM on October 23, 2016 [3 favorites]
Best answer: I had a scabies/bedbugs infestation a few years back. All the advice above is really good, especially the metal rack - they can't climb that. You can also consider posting your experience on the Bedbug Registry so others know not to go to that location. Wherever you end up going (this hotel or another one), check the Bed Bug registry first to make sure you're not going to a place that's worse.
Check the bed for a bedbug cover. They zip all around the mattress. Good hotels should have this.
Check around the lining of the mattress (or the cover) for brown spots. Brown spots = bedbugs.
Check the light switches, check the baseboards, the headboard - people think they can't climb slippery surfaces, but somehow they can hide in the headboard (maybe wood has enough traction?).
Call corporate if you can't get anywhere with management. I called the corporate office when I was infested (in my case it was scabies and I didn't break out until 12 days later). I took pictures after the diagnosis, sent them to corporate with a litany of complaints and they refunded all of my medical bills. They should take care of it - the thread of social media is one thing that you have on your side.
Good luck!
posted by onecircleaday at 9:25 AM on October 23, 2016 [2 favorites]
Check the bed for a bedbug cover. They zip all around the mattress. Good hotels should have this.
Check around the lining of the mattress (or the cover) for brown spots. Brown spots = bedbugs.
Check the light switches, check the baseboards, the headboard - people think they can't climb slippery surfaces, but somehow they can hide in the headboard (maybe wood has enough traction?).
Call corporate if you can't get anywhere with management. I called the corporate office when I was infested (in my case it was scabies and I didn't break out until 12 days later). I took pictures after the diagnosis, sent them to corporate with a litany of complaints and they refunded all of my medical bills. They should take care of it - the thread of social media is one thing that you have on your side.
Good luck!
posted by onecircleaday at 9:25 AM on October 23, 2016 [2 favorites]
Best answer: Yes, the hotel should at the very least pay for cleaning of your clothes and even if they do you should make sure the clothes kept in plastic for the rest of your stay.
You could also go out and purchase some plastic garbage bags and pack all of your belongings in bag and carefully seal up the bags. Then when you get home don't come in the house but unpack your bags outside. Then thoroughly vacuum out your suitcase and then either bag up the vacuum bag and throw it out immediately or wash the canister in hot soapy water. Shake out all the clothes and immediately run them through the hot dryer several times (wash in hot soapy water if you can).
If you do all of that, then I don't think you'll need to throw everything out.
posted by brookeb at 12:07 PM on October 23, 2016
You could also go out and purchase some plastic garbage bags and pack all of your belongings in bag and carefully seal up the bags. Then when you get home don't come in the house but unpack your bags outside. Then thoroughly vacuum out your suitcase and then either bag up the vacuum bag and throw it out immediately or wash the canister in hot soapy water. Shake out all the clothes and immediately run them through the hot dryer several times (wash in hot soapy water if you can).
If you do all of that, then I don't think you'll need to throw everything out.
posted by brookeb at 12:07 PM on October 23, 2016
Response by poster: Thanks all. Great advice and I am somehow still sane.
(Not a “huge” infestation but not a tiny one either. Nine bites. Worst one is a singleton on my right wrist, which despite three Benadryls still has something of an itchy, painful ping pong ball. Others are clustered on my neck/jawline. I searched pillows and headboard but didn’t see anything; I did find what MIGHT be an old blood spot. But I guess if nothing else they sure do rotate out their linens frequently)
The hotel is not a fleabag (ha) but there was no manager when I went to complain. I presented my case and requests (new room, hotel does my laundry, hotel reimburses the new clothes + underwear + pajamas + luggage ) to the front desk. I did get the new room, which I figured was all the staffer could give me. But I am unexpectedly leaving WAY early in the morning (7 AM flight, FML) so I will not be able to present my case. Nevertheless I am fortunate in that I was able to replace so much on my own dime.
I took 100 gross photos of my bites just in case I need to go on social media. I’m going to send a strongly worded letter afterwards, I guess, plus 1) receipt from my new purchases 2) some kind of itemized losses. Who knows what they’ll give me, but I can’t let this slide.
Since I won’t be able to speak to anyone with actual authority and thus cannot request laundry before I leave, I bagged and trashed all the clothing + the luggage backpack that I brought. Also trashed my sneakers (keeping my leather flats).
New pack is elevated on luggage rack. Most of my remaining stuff is in bathroom.
Thanks everyone again.
posted by aperturescientist at 5:30 PM on October 23, 2016
(Not a “huge” infestation but not a tiny one either. Nine bites. Worst one is a singleton on my right wrist, which despite three Benadryls still has something of an itchy, painful ping pong ball. Others are clustered on my neck/jawline. I searched pillows and headboard but didn’t see anything; I did find what MIGHT be an old blood spot. But I guess if nothing else they sure do rotate out their linens frequently)
The hotel is not a fleabag (ha) but there was no manager when I went to complain. I presented my case and requests (new room, hotel does my laundry, hotel reimburses the new clothes + underwear + pajamas + luggage ) to the front desk. I did get the new room, which I figured was all the staffer could give me. But I am unexpectedly leaving WAY early in the morning (7 AM flight, FML) so I will not be able to present my case. Nevertheless I am fortunate in that I was able to replace so much on my own dime.
I took 100 gross photos of my bites just in case I need to go on social media. I’m going to send a strongly worded letter afterwards, I guess, plus 1) receipt from my new purchases 2) some kind of itemized losses. Who knows what they’ll give me, but I can’t let this slide.
Since I won’t be able to speak to anyone with actual authority and thus cannot request laundry before I leave, I bagged and trashed all the clothing + the luggage backpack that I brought. Also trashed my sneakers (keeping my leather flats).
New pack is elevated on luggage rack. Most of my remaining stuff is in bathroom.
Thanks everyone again.
posted by aperturescientist at 5:30 PM on October 23, 2016
Best answer: Instead of trashing everything, it might be worth springing for a home heat treatment unit such as Thermal Strike. If you have Amazon Prime, it could even be waiting for you by the time you get back!
Bunji Spouse travels frequently for work, and after seeing some friends go through a harrowing bedbug scare, we decided to invest in the base model -- upon returning from a trip, everything now goes into garbage bags, which are then heated enough to kill any hitchhikers. The peace of mind has been well-worth the $139 (we also added a couple of remote thermometers in order to avoid having to open the bags to check temperature.)
Good luck!
posted by bunji at 5:57 PM on October 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
Bunji Spouse travels frequently for work, and after seeing some friends go through a harrowing bedbug scare, we decided to invest in the base model -- upon returning from a trip, everything now goes into garbage bags, which are then heated enough to kill any hitchhikers. The peace of mind has been well-worth the $139 (we also added a couple of remote thermometers in order to avoid having to open the bags to check temperature.)
Good luck!
posted by bunji at 5:57 PM on October 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: ETA at 3:30 AM: woke up feeling ... uh oh ...
This time I caught some in action. Screaming. Managed to photograph them before killing them.
Only 2 bites so far but they looked like they’d eaten so I’m sure more will pop up.
What a shithole of a hotel. Once could have been someone else’s fault, bringing them in. Twice is the hotel can’t be fucked to care.
Going to add a complete refund to my list of demands. And leaving my NEW pajamas here.
posted by aperturescientist at 12:27 AM on October 24, 2016 [1 favorite]
This time I caught some in action. Screaming. Managed to photograph them before killing them.
Only 2 bites so far but they looked like they’d eaten so I’m sure more will pop up.
What a shithole of a hotel. Once could have been someone else’s fault, bringing them in. Twice is the hotel can’t be fucked to care.
Going to add a complete refund to my list of demands. And leaving my NEW pajamas here.
posted by aperturescientist at 12:27 AM on October 24, 2016 [1 favorite]
Best answer: They're really hard to eradicate, as you know, and more hotels are facing this. I hope you get through to somebody who can take it on, but sadly it takes way more than an exterminator visit to clear them out, and probably only one guest with infested luggage to bring them back...
posted by acm at 9:06 AM on October 24, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by acm at 9:06 AM on October 24, 2016 [1 favorite]
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Very basic step 1: ensure that your suitcase is on the (hopefully present) metal luggage rack, and not in contact with walls -- bedbugs do not like metal, and this massively decreases the odds that any will crawl into your suitcase. It's very, very rare for them to travel on actual humans during the day unless it's a very big infestation; I realize that knowing this doesn't necessarily help keep from panicking. Bedbugs may be tiny but are also always visible to the eye (it is any eggs that won't be visible) so a careful physical inspection will find any bedbugs on clothing you are currently wearing or tossed on the ground. Washing stuff in hot water later will kill any eggs (of which the odds are there aren't any). Was this a lot of bites or just a few?
Step 2 is to get a different room (as physically far away in the building as possible) or possibly a different hotel, I'm not sure which is really better in terms of risk mitigation. Probably the latter for your peace of mind. Regardless of which you do I would throw a fit, basically; they will have a lot of incentive to try to deal with you to control what you say on social media / review sites, and hopefully at a minimum you can get out of paying for the 2nd night. From stories I've heard they may try to tell you it is something else that bit you, but here you have the upper hand in having personally experienced bedbugs in the past. I might try to do a quick inspection of the headboard to see if I could find any samples to show the staff, though probably not worth wasting a lot of time on.
Step 3 (may or may not be possible right now) is to try to keep in mind that in certain ways bedbugs are really a lot better than many insects you could encounter; they don't transmit any diseases, they don't make you sick in any consequential way (just itchy), they are individually quite harmless and usually extremely slow moving, and they don't really spread that efficiently. Also, one of the potentially consequential issues you may be worried about is a sort of social stigma -- I remember being terrified of even talking about them when I had my infestation, ~6? years ago. But I do think this has decreased quite a bit in the last few years, because they are relatively common. You shouldn't be afraid of talking about this, if you are.
posted by advil at 8:09 AM on October 23, 2016 [4 favorites]