Bed Bugs are the number 1 source of pest control problems in hotels in the Philippines. This is why Hotel operators are constantly at risk of both accumulating and spreading bed bug infestations, due to the high amount of human traffic they receive on a regular basis.
Nevertheless, hotel operators are far from helpless. They can help protect their hotels from bed bug infestations through the simple act of education.
Training your housekeeping team on how to check for bed bugs in a hotel allows your business to act early on any potential pest threats, protecting both hotel guests and brand reputation.
As the old adage says, prevention is better than cure. So we must do everything we can to prevent the entry and proliferation of bed bugs.
To detect the presence of bed bugs in a hotel room, your housekeeping staff must follow these six (6) basic rules. With these, they can easily identify bed bugs in a hotel before it becomes an issue.
1. Inspect the entire room
A common misconception about bed bugs is that they can only be found on bed frames and mattresses. Bed bugs will hide in small cracks and crevices near the bed, in skirting boards or bedside cabinets.
Aside from the bed, housekeepers should also check:
- along the seams, inside covers and around the zips of sofas and chairs
- where furniture, skirting boards and carpets meet the wall
- along the seals of doors and drawers as well as the joints
- around ornaments such as lamps and picture frames
2. Listen to your customers
Customer complaints, whether they be face-to-face or on online review sites about finding insects bites, can often hint that you might have bed bugs in your hotel.
Although it is difficult to ascertain that it is due to a bed bug bite, as everybody reacts differently to them, any concerns from customers around bites should be investigated immediately.
Insect bites could point towards a potential bed bug infestation. Squash these pesky bugs with the help of your pest control provider in the Philippines.
3. Check for bed bug eggs
Bed bug eggs are a common sign of an infestation. When checking a hotel room for bed bugs, housekeeping staff should remember to look for bed bug eggs as well as live bed bugs.
Bed bug eggs are laid in batches of between 1 and 5 eggs each day. They are approximately 1mm in length and are a grain-like milky white color. Bed bug eggs are usually laid singly or in clusters within cracks and crevices, such as the joints of furniture and between floors, walls and skirting boards.
4. Examine stains
After a bed bug has fed they will often defecate in the immediate vicinity. Their excrement can be found in the form of dark/black stains located on the mattress and surrounding areas.
Housekeeping staff should be on the lookout for any suspicious-looking stains around these areas to help identify bed bugs in hotels.
5. Keep a keen sense of smell
Pest management in the Philippines is mostly started thru investigation and observation. The discarded exoskeletons, feces and pheromones emitted by bed bugs produce an unpleasant, sweet, sickly scent. Detection of this scent could indicate you have a large bed bug infestation in your hotel.
Your housekeepers should be aware of this and investigate the problem if they discover an unpleasant, strange odor in a hotel room.
At Entech Integrated Pest Management, understanding the client’s needs and expectations and forging strong partnerships are the values that form effective and efficient pest control in the Philippines. With our long years of industry know-how, we will devise a customized plan to protect your investment: a business, a home, or a brand’s reputation
Need professional pest control help and advice? A quotation for pest management services?
Learn more about Entech’s pest control services here. You can also reach us via our Contact Us page.
