Does hard shell luggage prevent bed bugs?

Hardside Suitcase To avoid these pests from latching on to your bags, the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene says that travelers should “use hard-cased luggage if possible,” noting that, “it is more difficult for bed bugs to attach to rigid materials than to fabric.”

Use hard-cased luggage if possible. It is more difficult for bed bugs to attach to rigid materials than to fabric. Pack your clothing in re-sealable plastic bags. Plastic bags are available in up to 22-gallon sizes in hardware and other stores.

ThermalStrike Heated Luggage is the world's only luggage that kills bed bugs. The technology is built-in. Simply connect the luggage to the cable, plug it in, and set the timer to begin automatically treating your belongings. All heating and safety components TSA and FAA compliant.

To prevent bed bugs from getting into your belongings, try the following: Elevate your luggage, as well as other personal belongings. Always inspect the luggage rack carefully for any signs of bed bugs. Keeping your suitcase off the ground and away from the bed is a great way to keep these critters out.

Bed bugs do not like to climb or stay on smooth plastic materials. Placing small items in plastic containers or in sealed heavy-duty plastic bags will prevent bed bugs from infesting the items. In an infested home, placing clutter in plastic containers will make bed bug elimination efforts easier.

"They are attracted to warmth, carbon dioxide, and blood. The major way they are going to probably get to your luggage is transferring from you to your clothes, and finally into your luggage." And bed bugs can sense that same carbon dioxide on your dirty clothes even after you've taken them off.

However, in more than ninety percent of cases bed bugs spread with luggage. The little bloodsuckers have an uncanny knack of hitching a lift in suitcases, handbags and lap-top cases. Once introduced into your property, the bugs conceal themselves in the smallest of cracks and crevices and await a chance to feed.

Wash everything on a high temperature or sanitary cycle for at least 30 minutes. Placing everything in the dryer on the hottest setting for 30 minutes will also kill bed bugs and larvae. Immediately after you're finished putting clothing in the washer, tie up and throw out the empty garbage bag in an outdoor trash bin.

You may have them for a while, but may not notice them until weeks, or even months later. Bed bug eggs take anywhere from six to 12 days to hatch, and the adult life span can be anywhere from six months to a year. That's why it's important to know these early signs of an infestation.

While not overly effective, the most useful essential oils for deterring bed bugs appear to be blood orange oil, paraffin oil, silicone oil, and spearmint oil.

Top 10 Scents That Keep Bed Bugs Away

So what is the main cause of bed bugs? Travel is widely recognized as the most common source of bed bug infestations.

Bugs hate the smells associated with repellency, such as lavender, citronella, vinegar, peppermint, and geranium. These oils are considered a natural way of driving away bugs from your home without harming you, your family, and other animals.

“Spray down your suitcases (both inside and out) with 91% isopropyl rubbing alcohol,” Wong says. “In lieu of rubbing alcohol, you can also use a garment hand steamer to steam your luggage, which will kill bed bugs and their eggs.”

Throughout your stay, keep your luggage off of the floor—“bedbugs like to crawl around on the floor and walls,” Clark says. And keep your dirty clothes separate from your clean ones by putting them in a plastic bag. (Don't toss them on a fabric armchair, either—bedbugs love those.)

Most times, clothing, bedding and furniture from a home with a bed bug problem can be treated and do not need to be thrown away. If you decide to dispose of items, they should be carefully sealed in a plastic bag or container first so the bed bugs don't spread.

Do continue to sleep in your bedroom after identifying a bed bug infestation. If you move rooms or start sleeping on the couch you run the risk of contaminating these other areas of your home. Similarly, avoid taking your bedding from the location of the infestation to other rooms of your home.

Myth: Bed bugs won't come out if the room is brightly lit. Reality: While bed bugs prefer darkness, keeping the light on at night won't deter these pests from biting you.

Bed bugs will not go away if you sleep in another room. Instead, they will follow you and create new colonies wherever you move.

Bed bugs are natural hitchhikers, so it's likely that if you encounter an infestation, you could bring bed bugs home with you through your luggage or other belongings. Initially, once you learn you have been exposed to bed bugs you must not panic. Not everybody who encounters bed bugs will necessarily bring them home.

While it's possible just a few hitchhikers found their way into your home after scuttling onto a piece of luggage after a hotel stay, or clinging to an overnight guest's clothing, if you find any, there are probably more. Bed bugs are not solitary creatures, and they live in large groups.

If you suspect that you might have bedbugs, it's a good idea to check your mattress and bedding for rust-colored spots — this is what bed bug excrement looks like. Another sign could be shed exoskeletons that look like coffee grounds.

Pyrethroids are synthetic chemical insecticides that act like pyrethrins. Both compounds are lethal to bed bugs and can flush bed bugs out of their hiding places and kill them.

Other studies have shown that peak season for bed bugs runs from June through October. Bed bugs appear more prevalent in warmer months likely due to an increase in travel and hotel visits during spring break and summer vacation, as well as college students moving into dorms at the beginning of the school year.

Experts believe the recent increase in bed bugs in the United States may be due to more travel, lack of knowledge about preventing infestations, increased resistance of bed bugs to pesticides, and ineffective pest control practices. The good news is that there are ways to control bed bugs.