When hotel guests face hygiene issues they report it to the housekeeping staff or request a room change but if they detect bed bugs or pests, they are most likely to switch your hotel and never return. Even a single online mention of a pest infestation can drive potential customers to competitors. Today every traveler checks online hotel reviews before reserving a room and a single pest sighting can make people lose confidence in your hygiene standards, putting your credibility and goodwill at stake. Mike Fischer, who specializes in Las Vegas pest control can relate to these issues. Bed bugs are known set up shop in high traffic tourist areas. Negative publicity triggered by a pest infestation is the last thing any hotel owner would want.

4 Bed Bug Inspection Rules to Prevent Negative Publicity

Training your housekeeping staff on how to identify the early signs of a bed bug infestation and treat any potential pest threats proactively will protect both your reputation and the health of your guests. Here are 4 easy steps to check a hotel room for bed bugs:

1. Examine Every Nook and Cranny

   A common myth surrounding bed bugs is that they infest only beds but the fact is that bed bugs can be found everywhere from cabinets and shelves to cracks and crevices. So, when checking a hotel room for bed bugs, the housekeeping staff should also check carpets where they meet walls, skirting boards, furniture joints, door seals, drawers, lamps, along the seams of picture frames, sofa covers, and the zips of chairs.

2. Investigate Complaints

   Every customer complaint whether it is made in person or through an online review, must be investigated immediately.

3. Be on the Lookout

   Bed bug eggs are a common sign for spotting an infestation so your housekeeping staff should check for eggs that are laid in batches of 1-5 eggs every day. These eggs are approximately 1mm in length and have a grain like texture that is milky white in color. These eggs can be easily found in furniture joints, skirting boards and between the cracks and crevices present in floors and walls.

4. Follow Your Senses

   The excrement of bed bugs is easy to spot as they defecate on mattresses leaving behind black stains. Any suspicious looking stains on the bed linen or the surrounding areas are enough to indicate that your hotel is infested with bed bugs. The feces and pheromones discarded by bed bugs leave behind a sickly scent that is unpleasant so follow this strange odor and find out if the rooms are infested.

   A routine inspection will facilitate timely identification of pests and enable your staff to take action in time.

6 Effective Bed Bug Prevention Tips to Protect Your Hotel’s Reputation

• Use a vacuum cleaner fitted with a HEPA filter to eliminate all visible bed bugs and dispose them carefully while ensuring they do not escape.
• Seal all the holes, cracks, and entryways to prevent bed bugs from getting in or going out.
• Cover all the mattresses in encasements and put infested items in sealed bags for treatment.
• Heat treatment is highly effective in getting rid of bed bugs. You can use a hair dryer for hard-to-reach areas and whole-room heating treatments to eliminate bed bugs from every nook and cranny.
• Spray pesticides in the affected areas while ensuring the application does not poison the staff or guests. Hiring a professional for this purpose makes perfect sense.
• You can also schedule a fumigation treatment for your entire property with a licensed pest control agency but since the treatment uses lethal chemicals, it is considered to be a last-ditch effort.

From bed bugs and roaches to rodents and rats, hotel rooms and commercial kitchens invite several unwanted pests. Only an effective pest control program will effectively eliminate all types of pest infestations and offer proactive protection from future infestations. If pests are detected hotel owners need to hire a commercial pest control service provider that is fully-equipped to identify, assess, eliminate, and prevent pest infestations in a prompt and discreet manner.

Whether your hotel rooms are infested with bed bugs, your kitchen is flooded with roaches or your exterior is swarmed with termites, Take Care Termite and Pest Control in Tracy, CA has you covered with an integrated pest management approach. To schedule a bed bug inspection that ensures incomparable service and offers lasting protection from hazardous pests, call us at (209) 832-7300.