With its beautiful views of Central Park and designer decor—not to mention high prices of up to $4500 per night—you might think that a fancy hotel like the Ritz-Carlton would be immune to the scourge of bed bugs, but no! It seems Room 1005 is the center of a bed bug infestation which has caused some guests to check out in a hurry and many more to relocate within the hotel.
Unfortunately, they didn’t inform the staff member scheduled to clean the room before she went in—she found out by discovering the pest control professionals who had been called in to deal with the infestation while they were working. Let’s hope none of them went home with her!
The management describes bed bugs as “inevitable” and to a certain extent they are right. Hotels cannot control whether bed bugs enter their buildings with guests, but they certainly should be inspecting thoroughly and often.
Bed bug inspections can take many, many hours, especially in a building as big as the Ritz-Carlton, with its 596 rooms and suites. A bed bug inspection dog could do this job much faster than human inspectors, however. Here’s a video profile of a bed bug inspection dog from Texas:
Bed bug dogs are especially good for inspections of large buildings with lots of rooms, like hotels and dormitories, finding very small infestations before they can spread.
If you are traveling there are some things you can do to try to prevent any contact with bed bugs like checking the Bed Bug Registry before you make your reservations and inspecting your room. Here is a comprehensive post about how to avoid bed bugs when you are traveling.
If you discover a bed bug infestation in your home, apartment, office building or hotel, the best treatment is high heat like Thermapure heat. Raising the internal temperature of a room or an entire structure over 130 degrees for 2 hours kills bed bugs at all stages of their development in one treatment, without damaging furnishings, leaving harsh chemicals behind, or making you move out until pesticides have dissipated. From our offices all over California, Alliance Environmental Group can eliminate bed bug infestations in an area, a room or an entire structure with just one visit.
Bed bugs can be as damaging to your psyche as they are to your skin. Don’t let them get to you! Call Alliance Environmental Group and know that your bugs are gone and won’t come back!
Wendy Stackhouse is the Online Community Manager for Alliance Environmental Group and AirTek Indoor Air Solutions. She welcomes your comments! For more news and tips or to ask questions of our experts, Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter! For updates on indoor air challenges, Like us at AirTek on Facebook!
