There’s no place like home for the holidays and every college kid has been counting the days to head home to their own bed and the comfort of sacking out on the couch to watch TV and relax. For years parents have welcomed them home with delight, but this year they might be bringing home some unwanted guests.
Bed bugs are the latest concern for colleges and now for the families welcoming their students home for the holidays.
The reddish brown bugs are between one-quarter and three-eighths of an inch long and resemble an apple seed according to Rick Miller of the Clark County Combined Health District. They primarily feed at night on human blood. They can be found in the cracks and folds of furniture, clothing, walls and under the perfect condition of 70 to 90 degrees, they can reach adulthood in a month or two. The female lays up to five eggs per day and over 550 in her lifetime.
Miller explained that the bed bug does not jump, but rather runs very quickly. One student reported seeing the bugs climbing up the wall and that is how the residents of the apartment realized there was a problem. Another student reported having small red marks that were itchy like a mosquito bite.
We asked Miller how to handle the presence of bed bugs in belongings brought home for break by college students. He recommended not bringing anything into the house or garage. If bed bugs are found in a suitcase or backpack, it is best to just throw them away as treatment if often not successful. The best thing to do is spray things with 90 percent isopropyl alcohol.
Miller noted that you need to be careful of books and look for either bugs or dried blood spots. Books should be sealed in a plastic bag and not brought into the house. There is no recommended treatment for books except to throw them away. Freezing does not kill the bed bug so unlike other pests, this is not a treatment.
Clothing needs to be washed in hot water and then dried at the highest temperature for no less than 30 minutes. Many items cannot withstand this treatment and may be a loss as well. Bedding also needs to be laundered in the same manner.
Miller recommends hiring a professional exterminator if you find bed bugs as the chemicals are not safe for the average homeowner.
When asked if pets were a potential victim, Miller noted that no research has been done one bed bugs and pets.
The car is normally not a typical place of concern. The bed bugs tend to linger where people spend the most amount of time in bed or on furniture.
Heating items to 120 degrees is a solution, but you cannot put clothing or paper into such heat safely at home.
If you would like to read more about bed bugs and how to treat your home and belongings, you can visit the Clark County Combined Health District for tips at http://www.ccchd.com/ccchd/environmental/bed-bugs.html.
Anyone who has been unlucky enough to encounter bed bugs will not need medical treatment. Miller stated that the red spots should be itchy for a few days, but will subside.