A few days ago, as I was browsing through recent tweets from friends, I came across one that really got me freaked out and itching all over. A woman I know (who happens to be expecting) was rather stressed out because she’s going to have to move from her home for at least several weeks due to a bed bug epidemic. One of her former neighbors was apparently not much of a housekeeper and was actually evicted eventually because the place was becoming a pig sty. Unfortunately for the neighbors in the apartment complex, the ex-tenant not only left behind a bunch of junk, but a major bed bug infestation. So now everyone has to have their apartments heavily fumigated because getting rid of bed bugs is not an easy task.
The re-emergence of bedbugs across the world has become a real problem…and for anyone that travels frequently, there is a real concern that you might end up bringing some home with you. It doesn’t even matter how neat and clean the places are you visit; bed bugs can strike just about anywhere. Going off to college soon? Bedbugs might have already moved in before you get there. In fact, they can live up to 18 months without feeding. Think you’re safe in the hospital? You might want to double check that mattress because these pesky bugs have even popped up there.
Watch the first half of this video from CBC (about 10 minutes long) that talks more about bedbugs and also gives more detail about how to spot them in your hotel room.
Now if you’re starting to freak out and itch all over just thinking about bedbugs…and starting to wonder if that mosquito bite on your arm is indeed a bed bug bite — the chances are fairly slim. It may be that you picked up a solitary bug somewhere…but the chances are still higher that you just got stung at random by a mosquito.
If you have bedbugs, you will see them crawling around on your mattress, hiding in the seams along the edge and leaving droppings (black) and eggs (white) on your bed. Adult bed bugs are about as long as a pencil eraser (3-5mm) but thinner (1.5-3mm) and reddish-brown in color. Actually, they’re similar in size to an apple seed. You’ll also likely see small blood stains where you crushed them while rolling over or just bled a little after they stopped feeding. Nice, right?
When you’ve been bitten by them, you’ll generally see a string or collection of bites because they will feed on you several times from the same area. (Are you totally grossed out yet?) The welts that result will be red and very similar to mosquito bites. They don’t jump at all so if they manage to reach you, it’s because they crawled there.
Since we’ll be traveling in a few weeks to Hamburg and staying in a hotel, I thought it might be wise to take a few precautions to make sure we don’t come home with any new guests. The bedbug problem doesn’t seem to be quite as huge right now in Germany, but with everyone hopping on and off planes all day across the world, you can see how it wouldn’t take long for something to get started.
If you have identified bedbugs in your home, start with your sheets and throw them in the dryer for about 20 minutes at the highest heat setting (it needs to be above 120°F). Bed bugs cannot withstand the heat. You can also steam clean your mattress and carpet (try doing 3 sessions within one week and adding lavender oil to the water) to help eliminate their feces and eggs. Other places to look for bed bugs would be around wooden bed frames, the box springs, on and behind your headboard, behind posters, under loose wallpaper, in the drapes, behind wall sockets and in floor or ceiling moldings. No place seems to be safe from these things and it’s likely going to be a long, expensive journey full of extermination sessions to get rid of them.
The following recipes are from The Herb Gardener and won’t kill off an infestation…but they should help keep bed bugs at bay while you’re traveling (although there is some controversy about just how well this works). Use the following spray on the bed linens, mattress, bed frame, headboard, and even on the floor around the bed and your luggage. Be careful about what you spray it on, because it could result in staining. And extreme caution should be used around small children or pregnant/nursing women.
Bed Bug Spray Recipe
- 1 cup water
- 10 drops lavender essential oil
- 10 drops rosemary essential oil
- 10 drops eucalyptus essential oil
- 3 drops essential oil of clove (optional)
Place in a fine mist spray bottle, and shake well before using.
In addition, bed bugs will hitchhike in your bags and nestle down in your clothing. So the best way to avoid getting bugs into your clothing is to store everything in large plastic airtight bags within your luggage. You can also mix up dried herb sachets which you can leave in your luggage or any boxes you’re carrying to keep bedbugs from seeking out new frontiers. Each of the recipes below will make about 10 small sachets so feel free to cut the recipes down a bit. Then either fill them into muslin sacks, or if you have some spare pantyhose around, you can fashion sachets from that.
Bed Bug Herb Sachet 1
- 1 cup dried eucalyptus leaves
- ½ cup dried rosemary
- ½ cup dried lavender buds
- 10 large cloves
Bed Bug Herb Sachet 2
- 1 cup loose-leaf black walnut tea
- ½ cup dried eucalyptus leaves
- ½ cup dried lavender buds
- ¼ cup dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
Wow…I’m not even sure what to say to that…but it made me look a little closer at the four bites on my hands (99.9% sure they are mosquito bites). Eeek!
Yeah I get all itchy and creeped out just thinking about these things….and some of the videos I saw of infestations in mattresses and such – SO disgusting! Think I’m just going to have to take some of the spray along for peace of mind…and probably check the mattress too at our hotel. Ick!
With traveling in mind be careful even when on Cruise lines. Especially those of us that live close to ports and enjoy catching a three day cruise at the last minute. My parents went cruising and came home with some small, nibbly, uninvited guests.
These guests came home with them in their suitcases which were stored under their beds on their cruise ship. So beware these little nibblers can be found not just on land but also at sea!
Yipes! That is an excellent point though…and those little suckers have absolutely no where else to go once they get on the ship either. Hopefully they caught them quickly after getting home and were able to get rid of them before it was a major problem. Ick!!
Ew ew ew ew EW! I get itchy just reading this!
As a squatter and a very frequent host to, well let’s just say “crusty,” guests, I am super hyper paranoid about these little devils. Sooo thank you a hundred billion times for posting all of these natural remedies.
Eww..this would truly suck as it would feel like the safety and comfort of home is gone. I can’t imagine sitting here on my computer right now knowing that just around the corner in my bedroom is a community of bugs waiting to feed on me. Lol, its true too, they are very hard to get rid of.
I do a lot of traveling. I’ve always been paranoid especially when visiting a hostel. I mean imagine your in a room with 10 people. They can travel in backpacks so now you basically have 10 more chances to pick up a bed bug.
Bed bugs can be a serious health risk you want to make sure to remove your bed or consult with a professional pest control company before you spray your bed down with any chemicals.
Tiffany, where can I find those sprays in Germany? I am new here and the apartment is full of bed bugs, it will great if you could let me know the names in German and markets they are available in. Thanks in advance.
Jyo
Hi Jyo,
lavender = Lavendel
rosemary = Rosmarin
eucalyptus = Eukalyptus
clove = Nelke
I get my essential oils here from http://baccararose.de/ — you should be able to get all of these oils there. Just make your own blend to use it.
Bed bugs are called Bettwanze in German and I fear that if your apartment is infested you’re going to need to call a professional. The bed will likely need to be covered in an airtight cover for at least a year to kill them and you’re going to need to clean everything. As I mentioned above you can start with steam cleaning but you’re going to need to make sure you get it totally dry — so putting it outside on a sunny day may help. Clean anything and everything you can, keeping a look out for them. They will hide and nest everywhere.
As for the dried herbs, I’d suggest starting on ebay. I haven’t personally looked for most of these but it’s usually where I start when I’m looking for things like that.
Leo.org is your friend when trying to figure out what words are in German/English.
I found that laundry detergent and disinfectent like Lysol or fabuloso and hot water in a spay bottle works real well try for your self and let me know what you think thanks for looking
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Thanks for sharing all this info on bed bugs! Last night, I might have seen a bed bug or something on my bed, but when I took a second look, I didn’t see anything. If I start to develop any weird bumps, then I’ll be sure to make that bed bug spray as soon as possible. I definitely don’t want to deal with an infestation in my home!