HOUSTON — With Spring Break almost a week away for Houston ISD and several other school districts in the area, it's important to think about the unwanted guests waiting to come home with you from vacation – bed bugs.
Once your home is infested, it can take weeks or even months to treat the problem – and that treatment could cost hundreds or thousands of dollars.
According to Health.com, there are some things you can do to avoid bringing the costly pests home with you.
First, experts say you should put your luggage in the bathroom as soon as you walk into your room. Bed bugs don't like tile and there are fewer places for them to hide in there.
You should never put your suitcase on the floor or on the bed to make sure your luggage avoids direct contact with the tiny bugs.
Once your luggage is off the ground or safe in the bathroom, you should inspect the hotel bed. Bed bugs are experts at hiding, but they will leave behind spots that look like mold in the form of red or black spots. If you find evidence of bed bugs, alert hotel staff and request another room that's at least two floors away from your original room as it's easy for the bugs to travel to adjacent rooms.
If you do all this and the pesky bugs still hitch a ride home with you, you can find "bed bug cookers" online, although they tend to be a little pricey. You put your luggage inside and after a few minutes at 120 degrees, the bed bugs are dead.