Returning Home & Preventing a Bedbug Infestation!

[LuisaR]

I have just returned from the CF. I had the unfortunate experience of being bitten by bedbugs - face to toes.
They featured a lot on my short journey, as a few pilgrims experienced them along the way too.
We all saw our attackers! I spotted mine whilst lying in bed the following morning, but people I spoke to in Santiago were woken up at 2.30am in Triacastela so the whole room decided to leave and walk to Sarria in the pouring rain at 3am….and then they took the longer route by accident…

Everything I owned went into a tumble dryer on high heat, but despite this, I’ve now returned home to London and have been anxious about letting them into my house.

I left a few things in Santiago - anything that was really old (like my walking boots) were disposed of in Santiago this morning.
Everything that made it home is now outside my front door. Unfortunately I don’t have outdoor space to leave anything out long term. Other suggestions have been to put my rucksack into the freezer (not big enough) or into bin liners and leave in the boot of the car (I don’t have one).

I’m carrying in clothes from my bag and putting them straight into the wash/dryer. Not sure what to do with my rucksack. It’s not in great shape after being blasted in the high heat tumble dryer in Triacastela, (inner plastic of main straps are not quite right, zip toggles have gone wrinkly) and along with potential bedbug contamination, it might be time to say goodbye….

 

[David]

Horrid!

 

[LuisaR]

Horrid!

Yes! Fortunately the bedbugs didn’t ruin a wonderful camino…but I’m paranoid they will ruin my apartment!

 

[henrythedog]

On return from my first Camino just over ten years ago having discussed (but not reported) bedbugs, Mrs Htd had me remove all my clothing in our barn (we lived in rural isolation, thankfully), wash myself under the dog shower and everything combustible except my passport, credencial and compostela (which were subsequently microwaved) was incinerated.

A woman of very certain opinion, Mrs HtD.

 

[EricJR]

Mrs Htd had me remove all my clothing in our barn (we lived in rural isolation, thankfully), wash myself under the dog shower

Why do I get the impression this isn't the only time she's made you do that ?!!

 

[jsalt]

Not sure what to do with my rucksack.

To be on the safe side, put your backpack in a plastic garbage bag, spray lots of anti-bug spray into it, and seal it tightly. You can at least then take it into your apartment . . .

 

[henrythedog]

Why do I get the impression this isn't the only time she's made you do that ?!!

One learns not to complain. The upsides outweigh the occasional external cold shower and night in the dog-bed.

 

[peregrino_tom]

Hi Luisa, this sounds like a horrible situation. Once bed bugs get you they can really play with your head too. So hang on in there!
I suggest that only by being ruthless about your possessions can you truly exorcise the fear of them getting into the flat - even if that's now actually a low risk. I think you should repeat the dryer routine in a launderette for everything still outside your door. If there's things you can't heat-treat and you can't inspect fully because of nooks and crannies, throw them out. And if the rucksack doesn't survive a second heat dryer in the launderette then so be it. So be ruthless to get complete peace of mind, and then build yourself back from there. Good luck!

 

[J Willhaus]

Yes, black garbage bag in the hot sun for several days or you can put it in a freezer if you have one for at least 72 hours.

I left my pack in our pickup truck this winter after a bedbug encounter. It was -20 F for several days. No sign of them when I brought my pack in after 3 days.

 

[t2andreo]

You could always consider the "nuclear option" - dispose of anything directly - while it is still outside your home, already in a bin bag.

I suggest examining every item very closely - outside. If it cannot be "fixed" using Jill's suggestion above, or cooked in a laundrette dryer at high speed without ill effect - then chalk it up to the Camino Gods and just "let it go."

My assessment is that the cost and effort to eradicate them, should they get into your home, likely exceeds the value of the items. You already described a "cooked" rucksack. If it were me, I would not take the chance of a home infestation,

Hope this helps.

Tom

 

[Becky 59]

Yes, black garbage bag in the hot sun for several days or you can put it in a freezer if you have one for at least 72 hours.

I left my pack in our pickup truck this winter after a bedbug encounter. It was -20 F for several days. No sign of them when I brought my pack in after 3 days.

Actually, I need to contradict the freezer treatment. A professional exterminator told me about using an industrial -40 degree freezer on bedbugs: they initially looked dead, but revived from hibernation after an hour.
HEAT melts the outer covering (shell, essentially) of the bug: 1 hour at 125 F or 50C. Inside a black garbage bag in a hot car on a hot day might do it; tie the bag tightly so they can’t escape.

 

[Marcus-UK]

I’m carrying in clothes from my bag and putting them straight into the wash/dryer. Not sure what to do with my rucksack. It’s not in great shape after being blasted in the high heat tumble dryer in Triacastela, (inner plastic of main straps are not quite right, zip toggles have gone wrinkly) and along with potential bedbug contamination, it might be time to say goodbye….

It is a little bit too late now but if you go on another Camino.... A way to cut down on bed bug attacks is to use a liner sheet that has been soaked in permethrin inside a plastic bag. This is the sort of thing the military do with sleeping bags when deploying overseas.

The other thing is never put your pack directly on a mattress/bed. This how bed bugs are spread from albergue to albergue etc. Buy a carabiner hook and hang your pack. It is more hygenic.

If you are friendly with a local vet. They have stronger bug killer than you can buy over the counter. You would need to take your stuff in a sealed bag to the surgery though!

 

[Becky 59]

STERI -FAB is the insecticide the professional exterminator recommended to me. It is available on Amazon , has good human safety studies. It is alcohol-based and requires soaking the article.

 

[J Willhaus]

Do-it-yourself Bed Bug Control | US EPA

Controlling bed bugs is complex. Using an integrated pest management (IPM) approach incorporates both non-chemical and pesticide methods. Success depends on the extent of the infestation, clutter on site, and resident participation.

www.epa.gov

Also tips from the EPA about home and bedbug issues.

 

[CanadianBarb]

Last fall when we saw a bed bug running out of my husband's pack (ugh), we cooked everything a few times other than our packs in the dryer, and then put everything in our infrared sauna at maximum heat (which didn't kill our packs but it gets hot enough I think) for three hours... yes they are resilient those little beasties...

 

[antepacem]

Yeah, I would throw stuff out. I know it sucks, and it's wasteful, but the cost of exterminating them from your home is WAY more than the cost of a new pack or new pair of shorts. Also you might end up sending even more things to landfill if it comes to an apartment infestation. On my first camino 11 years ago, I got bedbugs (it was one of the most disgusting experiences of my life). I nuked everything in the dryer AND continued to walk for another week in 40 C heat...it was so hot my coins burned my hands when I took them out of the top pocket of my pack. Even so, when I got home, I stripped down outside (it was dark haha), left everything out there while I contemplated, and ended up just throwing it all away. Still miss that pack, but oh well.

 

[t2andreo]

Yeah, I would throw stuff out. I know it sucks, and it's wasteful, but the cost of exterminating them from your home is WAY more than the cost of a new pack or new pair of shorts. Also you might end up sending even more things to landfill if it comes to an apartment infestation. On my first camino 11 years ago, I got bedbugs (it was one of the most disgusting experiences of my life). I nuked everything in the dryer AND continued to walk for another week in 40 C heat...it was so hot my coins burned my hands when I took them out of the top pocket of my pack. Even so, when I got home, I stripped down outside (it was dark haha), left everything out there while I contemplated, and ended up just throwing it all away. Still miss that pack, but oh well.

That's my I prompted the "nuclear option." It is crude, but effective at removing the little beasties from your home.

 

[lpaone01]

Yes! Fortunately the bedbugs didn’t ruin a wonderful camino…but I’m paranoid they will ruin my apartment!

The bedbugs are friends and are part of the experience.

 

[william thomas]

I have just returned from the CF. I had the unfortunate experience of being bitten by bedbugs - face to toes.
They featured a lot on my short journey, as a few pilgrims experienced them along the way too.
We all saw our attackers! I spotted mine whilst lying in bed the following morning, but people I spoke to in Santiago were woken up at 2.30am in Triacastela so the whole room decided to leave and walk to Sarria in the pouring rain at 3am….and then they took the longer route by accident…

Everything I owned went into a tumble dryer on high heat, but despite this, I’ve now returned home to London and have been anxious about letting them into my house.

I left a few things in Santiago - anything that was really old (like my walking boots) were disposed of in Santiago this morning.
Everything that made it home is now outside my front door. Unfortunately I don’t have outdoor space to leave anything out long term. Other suggestions have been to put my rucksack into the freezer (not big enough) or into bin liners and leave in the boot of the car (I don’t have one).

I’m carrying in clothes from my bag and putting them straight into the wash/dryer. Not sure what to do with my rucksack. It’s not in great shape after being blasted in the high heat tumble dryer in Triacastela, (inner plastic of main straps are not quite right, zip toggles have gone wrinkly) and along with potential bedbug contamination, it might be time to say goodbye….

Why not put rucksack + other suspect items in bin liner, spray in a good blast of fly spray, knot it and leave for a few days? Then rinse in hot shower & drip dry.

 

[Lizhk]

My re-entry routine is to leave a change of clothes at a friends place. She has a sauna. I leave every, shoes, pack, electronics, passport, etc. in there with the sauna turned on.
Failing a sauna, a dark plastic bag with the large non-dryer items and place in a sun spot, greenhouse? Or use a streamer and stream everything.

 

[SlowCamino2024]

Re: Bedbug Protection in the future....SO SORRY about your bedbug infestation. Friend returned from a first class holiday in Italy. She too, returned with bedbugs in her suitcase! (No backpack, hiking or Camino-type travel!) She had to invest in very expensive extermination in her small studio apartment in NYC!
For her upcoming travels she bought inexpensive plastic zip up protector bag that fits over luggage on Amazon or probably other sites. After all these bb stories i will do same for my backpack/carry on!