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How to prevent bed bugs before opening a hostel

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Hostel La Vista started this discussion 10 years 3 months ago

Hi Everyone,

We're opening a small hostel in the next couple of months in Belize and would like some tips on preventing bed bugs from ever becoming a problem. Specifically, I would like advice on mattress covers (brand/type). I will probably buy them in the U.S. and bring them over here. All of our mattresses are new, so this is strictly a preventative measure. I know there are covers made specifically to keep bed bugs out, so if anyone could give some specific recommendations, that would be wonderful.

Thanks so much,

Hostel La Vista

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slushysnow

10 years

Hi!

We use mattress protectors which basically enclose the entire mattress and close with a zip - they're brilliant! They don't have a specific brand (and we're based in Aus anyway so I'm sure it'd be different no matter what) but if you can get this sort I highly recommend them - they're like a very fine gauze with a zip and are pretty hard-wearing.

A few other tips (you probably know these already but hey)...

- don't let guests use their own bedding/sleeping bags - this helps slightly to prevent spread.
- metal bunk beds - a lot less places for bedbugs to hide in these (at least in the bed)

Finding out where your guests have come from can help as well - for example if they are coming from a hostel which is notorious for bedbugs you can ask them if they have bites etc.

If you do get bedbugs and need to get rid of them, a steam cleaner is a brilliant investment when combined with insecticides. Steam is one of the absolute best ways of killing bedbugs and their eggs.

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Hostel La Vista

10 years

Thanks so much for all the tips! We already had wooden bunk beds made, so there's nothing we can do on that front, but we'll definitely be sure to take note of all the other tips. Hopefully this will never become a problem in the first place!

If anyone on here has a specific recommendation on a brand or type of anti-bed bug mattress cover that we could buy in the U.S., that would be much appreciated!

Thanks

Hostel La Vista

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Marcuo

8 years

varnish wood beds with thick layer

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Rucksack Brian

8 years

varnish wood beds with thick layer

Marcuo, have you tried this out? Some hostels have told me that they sealed up all cracks in wooden beds with silicon and put thick layers of lacquer or varnish to seal the wood itself. I’m curious if anyone has done this before in infestation and how much difference the effort made.

If bedbugs can’t get into the bed frame they will certainly get into the mattresses or hide somewhere else in the room (nightstands, behind lightswitches and power outlets, in decorations, between floorboards, etc) Still, it’s good to take preventative action so we don’t make it easier for them.

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NathanielMillett

7 years

Bed bugs can make a good night's rest impossible. Keep in mind that the most important item to encase is the box spring since it has the most hiding places and is the most difficult to treat. I would recommend you to try contacting the mattress manufacturer to suggest you a mattress cover, if they have any tips regarding this. If you want, you may get in contact with a bed bug exterminator, because last month my brother was also dealing with bed bug issues in his hotel room, so he had immediately called up a Pest Control Hamden CT company, where he went through a bed bug infestation and they also able to provide you tips on how to get rid with bed bugs, because bed bugs can harbor deep in the hollows of mattresses with holes.

Pest Control Hamden CT

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