Bedbug Control Coombe

Why an Empty House Does Not Starve Them

It is tempting to think a week or two in hospital will leave them with nothing to feed on. Bedbugs can go a long time between feeds, so an empty bedroom simply waits for you. When you come home, tired and moving slowly, they are still there.

The other risk is the bag. A hospital bag packed from an affected bedroom can take them onto a ward, and nobody wants to add that to a recovery.

So the aim is simple: have the bedroom treated, or at least under way, before admission, and pack the bag in a way that keeps it clean whatever stage the treatment has reached.

Choosing a Treatment That Fits the Date

With a fixed date, heat treatment is often the easier fit. It is usually one visit, most of a day, and it kills eggs as well, so there is no follow-up to arrange while you are away or recovering. Heat-sensitive items such as medication, aerosols and candles come out of the room first; keep your prescribed medicines with you on the day.

Chemical treatment is usually two, sometimes three visits about 10–14 days apart, and each visit needs bedding stripped and the floor cleared. If there are several weeks before the stay, the course can be finished first. If not, it can straddle the stay, but someone needs to let us in and do the preparation.

Packing the Hospital Bag

1. Wash and tumble-dry on hot the nightwear, underwear and dressing gown you plan to take.
2. Pack straight from the dryer into a clean bag that has not been stored in the bedroom.
3. Choose a hard-sided case if you have one, and check its seams and zip first.
4. Keep the packed bag out of the bedroom, in the kitchen or hallway, until you leave.
5. Leave soft extras at home, such as your own pillow or a throw from the bed.

The guide to bagging belongings has more on bags and sealing.

Coming Home to Recover

Recovery often means more time in bed than usual, which is exactly when a missed bedbug makes itself known. Keep an eye on the mattress seams for the first few weeks back, or ask a family member to.

If treatment was finished before you went in, the room should be ready. If a chemical course is still running, ask whoever is helping at home to keep the treated edges clear and not to move the bed. If a family member is setting up a bed downstairs for your recovery, do not bring the old bed down from the treated room to do it.

When you ring about a Coombe home, give us the admission date first. The Kingston borough page covers the wider picture.

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