The Unwelcome Sleepover Guest

Now that we are in the middle of summer, your children want to spend as much time with their friends as possible before school begins. Children love to have sleepovers with their friends, but little do they know that sometimes sleepovers can be harmful. There can be some cases where sleeping over another family’s house can lead to a bed bug infestation. Bed bugs have been an epidemic on the rise that is occurring across the United States. No parent wants to hold their child back from having summer fun due to bed bugs. However, parents also want to protect their family from a bed bug infestation. Thankfully, there are a few tips and tricks to help avoid bed bugs when your children are heading to sleepovers.

Have Your Children Bring Their Own Sleeping Gear

When you send your children to a sleepover, your child has to be prepared to avoid bed bugs. Sending your children with their personal sleeping gear is necessary. Do this by having them bring their own sleeping gear, such as a sleeping bag. This can help prevent any further contact with any household surfaces. In addition, send your children with a small pillow that can be placed inside of the sleeping bag. In the morning when your children wake up, have them roll up the sleeping bag and put it directly into the storage carrying bag. Keeping everything sealed in the storage bag will decrease the chances of bringing bed bugs back to your home. 

Send a Laundry Bag

Your children will need a laundry bag to place their dirty and/or contaminated clothing into when they wake up in the morning. Make it aware to your children that it is important to place all of their worn clothing into the bag and seal it shut until they come home. Educating your children can be an important first step in preventing bed bug infestations after sleepovers. Then for extra precaution, when your children come home from their sleepover, you can throw all the items that were inside the laundry bag directly into the dryer or spray them down with 90% alcohol. When bed bugs spend 25 minutes at 109 degrees, they will not survive. This adds further protection from bed bugs entering your home. Both of these options are great alternatives to killing bed bugs before they have a chance to multiply and become an infestation. 

Enter Home Through Garage

When your children come home from their sleepover, make sure they enter the house through the garage. Having your children come through the front door will give the bed bugs easier access to your home. Next, place their dirty laundry into the dryer on high heat. Drying their clothes on high heat can help terminate the bugs before they can enter your home. Bed bugs cannot survive the extended period of high heat. Have clean clothes waiting for your children, so they can change as soon as they get home. Once they have clean clothes on, they can go inside the house.

If your children will be participating in any sleepovers this summer, take precautions to avoid bed bug infestations in your home. Infestations from sleepovers are unlikely, but it does provide a way for bed bugs to hitchhike from one point to another. If you believe your child brought bed bugs home from a sleepover or you saw a bed bug in your house in Cleveland, OH call Bed Bug BBQ at (216) 221- 1227 for a FREE bed bug inspection. We specialize in bed bug heat treatments, which is non-chemical.