Ep.11 Don't Let the Bedbugs Bite: Strategies for Keeping Your STR Pest-Free
- STR Central
- May 4, 2023
- 2 min read
Short Summary
Do you find yourself unsure of effective measures to address pest infestations? Discover the power of effective pest control in this episode to take back control of your properties and ensure a pleasant stay for your guests.
In this episode, you will be able to:
Master the skill of handling bedbug infestations in short-term rentals for happy guests and stellar reviews.
Discover the power of diatomaceous earth in keeping your properties pest-free effortlessly.
Implement inconspicuous snap traps to keep your rentals rodent-free and maintain a pleasant experience for your guests.
Master the art of proactive communication in challenging pest-related situations to maintain trust and satisfaction.
Unlock location-specific pest prevention techniques to maintain a seamless experience for guests across properties.
“If you're cleaning your space frequently and keeping it clutter-free, that means that cleaners are going to notice it quicker and figure it out.” - JJacquie Mosher
Dealing with Bedbugs
Dealing with bedbugs in short-term rentals can be a significant concern for property managers and hosts. These tiny pests can cause discomfort to guests and may lead to negative reviews or even potential liability. Quick identification and decisive action are essential in managing these infestations while ensuring guest satisfaction remains a priority. A proactive approach with routine inspections and monitoring for bedbug presence will minimize the risk of more serious infestations. In the episode, Jacquie sheds light on how to handle bedbugs effectively by determining their gender and age with the aid of pictures provided by the guest. This information is crucial, as it enables hosts to take the appropriate measures, such as moving the guest to another space and utilizing perimeter treatment with diatomaceous earth. Jacquie also highlights the fact that bedbugs can come from various sources and stresses the need to address any potential entry points.
Handling Infested Mattresses
An infested mattress can be a challenging issue for hosts to manage, as the need to address cleanliness and comfort concerns can sometimes conflict with the desire to minimize costs and waste. It is important for property managers to recognize that handling infested mattresses may require a combination of treatment methods and preventative measures to ensure continued guest satisfaction. As explained by Jacquie, removing a mattress may not always be necessary. Instead, using bed bug encasements to protect the mattress and washing all affected bedding could be effective in containing the infestation. Ensuring thorough routine cleanings can help prevent future incidents, and property managers should be sensitive and responsive in dealing with any guest complaints related to infestations.
Link and Resources
Subscribe for free episode bonus materials: https://www.thestrinsiders.com/
Join the conversation with Tracie on Facebook: https://www.fb.com/groups/strcentral
Follow Jacquie on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/5starbnb/
Video of bedbugs:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JAOTJxYqh8
Transcription
00:00
Tracie Fowler
Welcome to The STR Insiders Podcast. We share tips for achieving your STR goals. AHA. Moments, funny stories, and all the latest gossip of this STR life. Listen in as we keep it real and maybe a little sassy, celebrate successes, and own all the mistakes we've made along the way. Whether you're new to real estate investing, new to short-term rentals, or a seasoned pro, there's something here for you. Jackie is an STR property manager who consults with individuals looking to grow their own property management firm. Tracy owns STR consulting and media firms that provide education to investors who want to learn all about STR investing. For more information, please visit www.thestrinsiders.com. Welcome, everyone, to episode eleven of the STR Insiders podcast.
01:01
Tracie Fowler
Today we're talking about host horrors and the things that you're scared of. Today we're going to dig into bedbugs and spiders and mice Oh, my.
01:08
Jacquie Mosher
Awesome. EW.
01:12
Tracie Fowler
We need the little sheep icon.
01:18
Jacquie Mosher
That's right. When Tracy sends me gross things on Facebook, I respond with the sheep icon because it's an EW. It's an EW.
01:26
Tracie Fowler
Yes. I learned something new this week. Thanks for that.
01:29
Jacquie Mosher
You're welcome.
01:29
Tracie Fowler
New emoji education.
01:32
Jacquie Mosher
I love it.
01:34
Tracie Fowler
We're going to talk about some of the things that I think, and this is what I think you said to me is before you dealt with it, that bedbugs were one of these things that are just like this ominous cloud kind of thing where I don't know when it's coming, but I know it's going to happen. And what am I going to do? What's the fallout going to be like?
01:56
Jacquie Mosher
I feel like every evening I would literally say prayers that I would never have to deal with bedbugs when I was smaller or when I just had my own Airbnb. I had my own Airbnb for a couple of years, and then when I had a couple more, I was like, I pray this day never comes. It came, guys. And it came a couple of times.
02:15
Tracie Fowler
That's what she said. And you survived.
02:17
Jacquie Mosher
It wasn't as bad as I thought. Actually, I have no fears when dealing with bedbugs. Now I know exactly what to do. I know exactly what to look for, and I feel like I have the tools in my belt to handle the situation promptly and efficiently and get back to normal business.
02:33
Tracie Fowler
Good. I'm sure that lots of people are thrilled that you're going to share all your insider tips today about bedbugs. I even recently watched a video that substantiates the way that you approach it. So from science, not just from Jackie.
02:55
Jacquie Mosher
EWWW. You'll have experience from Jackie over here and science over there with Tracy. I love it.
03:00
Tracie Fowler
I'll be sure to put the link into the show notes so that if today's discussion isn't quite enough bedbug for you can watch the video. But fair warning, it's gross. But that's what bedbugs are. They're nasty little parasites. What happens when a guest finds bedbugs, and I'm sure reaches out to you, Jackie? So, what does that look like?
03:26
Jacquie Mosher
First and foremost, I ask if they have any pictures. That is always super helpful because you want to identify how old the bedbug is and what gender. These are two things that I find to be extremely helpful in knowing if this is a serious problem or not as serious as a problem.
03:42
Tracie Fowler
How can you tell the gender of a bedbug?
03:45
Jacquie Mosher
It is the shape. It's that they're pointy at the bottom. And you can google it. There are really great pictures. You can also Google how to tell the age of a bedbug, and usually, that's by the color and the size. If you find a young bedbug, that is not the best-case scenario. That means that eggs were laid very likely ten days before, and that means you already have some infestation starting.
04:08
Tracie Fowler
What's the ideal scenario? An adult male.
04:11
Jacquie Mosher
An adult male is the best scenario. If you find an adult male, this is the thing. People are traveling from all over the world. They could come from New York City. Which New York City is famous? Being infested with Bedbugs. They could bring a carrier with them. Just because they bring one bedbug with them or two bedbugs with them does not mean you have a problem. It does not mean the end of the world. And that is the most likely scenario. When you are in there cleaning your Airbnb every day and you're aware of how well your Airbnb is kept, that's the most likely scenario that you're going to deal with. That's probably almost every single time that I've dealt with bedbugs. That's the situation. Every single time but one.
04:51
Tracie Fowler
Yeah, basically, the guest that's staying, or maybe the one right before that, brought in a couple of bedbugs on their luggage. A couple of things that I know about bedbugs, the closer your location is to an airport, and this is true for hotels, the more likely you are to have bedbugs because they're brought in mostly through international travel. The other thing that's a little scary is that a lot of planes, cargo bins, where you put your carry-on luggage, have bedbugs, so you literally could have picked it up in the plane on your way to your destination. Just something to pay attention to that you may not have known. They're easy to get without you having a dirty or unsanitary space.
05:38
Jacquie Mosher
Yes.
05:38
Tracie Fowler
One of the things that Jackie, when we talked about it before, you mentioned that made a lot of sense is you have someone in your space multiple times a week cleaning all the time, so it shouldn't get to an infestation. You mentioned except one time, so what's that one time where it wasn't just one or two boys that snuck in?
05:58
Jacquie Mosher
So we had a longer guest. They stayed maybe ten days, which is longer for my typical guest, I find that I make more money if I have shorter stays. So, two to three days are the sweet spot for me. But yeah, ten days they stayed. Probably brought a female bedbug in with them. On the first day during that time, the bedbug-infested the headboard of the bed. Still a very small situation, like not a very serious situation. Whenever I find a bedbug, or whenever we have a bedbug reported, we immediately get the guest out of there and we immediately get over there because we don't want the bedbugs to get throughout the home. This is why the number one mistake people make, is they think I'm going to remove the mattress from the space and that will remove the bedbugs from the space.
06:43
Jacquie Mosher
The infestation is not always in the mattress, number one, but number two, when you are pulling something through the space that could potentially have bedbugs in it, they're going to be hopping off of that. And will Infest other areas, you're going to spread the problem throughout your space.
06:56
Tracie Fowler
I feel like we need a little sheep-like sound periodically because as you're talking and I'm envisioning bedbugs bouncing off the mattress, as the mattress gets dragged through the space, I'm making these faces and all I'm thinking is, EW. So, we yell sheep, EW. EW. It's awful. They're so disgusting.
07:13
Jacquie Mosher
This episode is not for the faint of heart, and I'm usually easily grossed out, too. I'm there with you, Bu.
07:22
Tracie Fowler
To your point about mattresses, first of all, hopefully, all of us in hospitality are using encasements, and that is like zippered bedbug encasements.
07:31
Jacquie Mosher
Yes. Yeah. I've never had bedbugs infest a mattress which is awesome. Just goes to show with those pillow protectors and those mattress protectors, you are keeping it to a minimum, to where the bedbugs could infest. If you're cleaning your space frequently and keeping it clutter-free, that means that cleaners are going to notice it quicker and figure it out.
07:54
Tracie Fowler
One of the things that surprised me when I started learning about bedbugs is they're virtually flat when they're not feeding, and they can live a long time. Extreme heat or extreme cold are some of the ways that you can kill them, but that's not typically available in your bedroom.
08:11
Jacquie Mosher
It's true.
08:11
Tracie Fowler
They can fit anywhere underneath baseboards and inside outlets. It's crazy how small they are. Instead of dragging the mattress out, you can put an encasement on it at that point if you have bedbugs on the mat.
08:25
Jacquie Mosher
That's something I've recommended to another host who found out their mattress was fully infested. I actually told them to put diatomaceous earth inside the encasement, like powder the encasement, put the encasement over the mattress, and obviously first have the exterminator come and do his thing. In addition to that, if there are eggs that could potentially hatch after that exterminator leaves, do that. Of course, have your exterminator come again after eggs could have potentially hatched about ten days later to do another treatment, which is what they'll recommend. Again, when you find out there's a bedbug, the first thing I do is get the guest out, get them relocated, and put them up in a hotel. If they report you to Airbnb, you could get in serious trouble. But also, that's just kindness. That's like treating people well.
09:11
Tracie Fowler
How would you want to be treated? Like, I'm not going to stay in a bedbug because like I'm sure I would have a crazy allergic reaction to bedbug bite.
09:19
Jacquie Mosher
Totally get them out of the space. You get into space and take diatomaceous earth, go around the perimeter of the room and dust underneath the bed, and keep your situation contained.
09:35
Tracie Fowler
It's like you're creating a perimeter to contain the infestation while the exterminator is coming. Right. I think that's such a smart approach.
09:44
Jacquie Mosher
If they lay eggs and those eggs are going to hatch in about ten days and your exterminator is going to come in, he's going to want to treat the areas where the bedbugs are infested. So, if they're infested in multiple areas, it can be a harder problem to treat because the exterminator is trying to figure out where they are. Almost every single time I've had an exterminator come in because we keep our places so clean and neat, the exterminator says, found very little evidence, or I found even the headboard time he was like, I think they've only been here for a couple of weeks. I don't think it's a major problem. As long as he gives you the clear, you can continue to operate if he thinks it's not a serious situation and that you're putting your guests at risk.
10:25
Tracie Fowler
Well, because at that point, you're basically waiting for an egg hatch cycle. Right. There are not exactly any live bugs in space. You're just being really preventative in having him return to capture any potential hatch cycle.
10:41
Jacquie Mosher
Exactly.
10:42
Tracie Fowler
I had no idea that you could handle it that quickly. Once they've come in and inspected and or treated, what is your next step? Does it sit empty for the next ten days or what's the process?
10:55
Jacquie Mosher
Well, usually when you catch something so quickly and you're able to identify this came in from the last guest or the guest before, maybe the exterminator is going to tell you don't have a problem. You likely don't have eggs in your space. You could, so we're going to spray and be cautious, but you don't really have a problem. I still go above and beyond and have them treated again in ten days, of course. I think it's important to put that diatomaceous earth under the bed. I do that even just slightly routinely, like, even if I don't have bedbugs, because anything that's going to hit, I mean, what is Diatomaceous Earth?
11:32
Tracie Fowler
It's prehistoric microscopic organisms that have died. I love that you know that they're called diatoms, and you can look them up. If you want to do food grade there are different types definitely do food grade that's going to be safe around people and pets and everything nontoxic yes, it's such a great option for this. They're dead. It's like they're little, teeny tiny skeletons. It's like powder is what when you actually look at it's what you'll see, but at a microscopic level. It's little organisms that have died and left their little crusty shell. What happens is they have little sharp edges now. They're so tiny that it doesn't bother us. It'll dry out your skin if you put your hands in it, but really you don't notice it. These little bugs get little cuts in their exoskeleton and its silica based.
12:25
Tracie Fowler
These diatoms literally suck the moisture out of the bugs and so that's how they're dying.
12:31
Jacquie Mosher
It's true. And they'll instantly kill a bedbug instantly. If you're dusting that under your bed even routinely preventatively not so that a guest sees very light dusting. It's going to prevent any bedbugs from spreading throughout your space.
12:46
Tracie Fowler
Like you said lightly. Dusting is really important if you get into a situation where you're trying to prevent or deal with bedbugs or even other bugs that a diatomaceous earth affects. For me, the inclination is always more is better. It's like if I put more down then it'll do a better job. That's actually not true in this case because if you make a pile of it, the bugs will walk around it, they will try to find a way around it and completely avoid it. If it's a really light dusting, it just sticks to them when they walk through and that is what kills them. Don't do like I do and go and put clumps of diatomaceous earth thinking it's going to work better. What other bug and situation do you really love diatomaceous earth for?
13:34
Jacquie Mosher
Yeah. In Colorado, we have a lot of black widows. We've found just having so many amazing amenities at all. Our Airbnb is that they love to infest the inside of hot tubs. We have a couple of Airbnb where the basements are really well sealed. Black widows will get in there or window wells are always a great place for them to find a home. I think just being preventatively either with whoever's doing your yard work or even having cleaners when they're checking the hot tub, having them go around the perimeter of the hot tub and just being preventative against these pests that could potentially be dangerous for guests or even guests who aren't from areas who are familiar with black widows and even recognize them.
14:18
Jacquie Mosher
Dusting your window wells with them so that if they open a window, they're not dealing with a black widow that way. Just being preventative in the yards with it is great. It's good to know too that every time it rains the diet to matrix earth goes away that's right. Doing it routinely is great. I'm lucky I live in Colorado. It doesn't rain a lot here, so once a month, once every two months works for us. If it rains a lot where you are, you might want to have it done on a more routine basis.
14:44
Tracie Fowler
Make it part of your hot tub turnover process for your cleaners if you're in a wetter climate. Yeah, it's super cheap, like a big bag of it. I don't know, $10 - $15 bucks or something. I mean, it's just not expensive at all, and it's so easy to do. We also used to use it in carpets in houses before in sandy areas that were prone to fleas, like on the coast. Right. You could sprinkle it on your carpet and the same kind of thing. And the same for ticks. Some of those not-so-fun parasite-type bugs that really are terrible, it's great for all of that. I'm a huge fan of diatomaceous earth. I haven't used flea and tick prevention on my dogs in probably a decade.
15:34
Jacquie Mosher
Yeah, and it's great for the prevention of other bugs, too, like fleas. I actually stayed in an Airbnb that had fleas once, and I guess it was a pet-friendly Airbnb. I guess they allowed two dogs to stay in before, and I'm pet friendly, and I've never had a flea issue. We are in Colorado again, just keeping some diatomaceous earth under the bed, lightly dusted is a great way to kind of just catch all those pests that could be trying to survive in your Airbnb or your short-term rental.
16:05
Tracie Fowler
It's awesome. Anything else about bedbugs?
16:09
Jacquie Mosher
It's not the end of the world. Most of the time, it's just the last guest or the guest before that brought one or two in. You probably don't have an infestation. Don't freak out. Everything's okay.
16:21
Tracie Fowler
Just take care of the guest.
16:23
Jacquie Mosher
Get The guest elsewhere, go around the perimeter, and get an exterminator in that day. Yeah.
16:28
Tracie Fowler
I have to say that of the conversations that I have seen online or in different chat groups that I'm in, where a host had a guest reach out and say they had found a bedbug, that nine out of ten times it's not even a bedbug. You still have to call the exterminator in and get the inspection. If it's an Airbnb booking and it was prompted by a guest, Airbnb will actually reimburse you the inspection cost of the exterminator.
16:55
Jacquie Mosher
Really? I actually did not know that. Yes. I always love to have that documentation so that if a guest does report to Airbnb, we can show them immediately. Please don't shut down our listing. We had an exterminator out here, and they found that there was no problem.
17:11
Tracie Fowler
Well, and I will say that in that case, where the guest has not reported it to Airbnb, depending on the cost, it might be better for you to just absorb that cost, because if you say, it's like saying bomb on a plane. If you say bedbug to Airbnb, there can be a ripple effect that requires damage control. It may not necessarily be the best route, but if a guest does report it to Airbnb, then you're going to need to submit that report as part of your process to getting your listing unlocked and available for rental again, and they will reimburse you for the cost. If the investigation or inspection report says that you do not have bedbugs, that's something that's just a little benefit that Airbnb will do if you pursue it with them.
17:58
Jacquie Mosher
That's another great reason why to ask for pictures from guests, too, because almost every single time they've said we've had bedbugs, they've provided pictures, which was great. Having those pictures, you're able to see that it is a bedbug and identify it because so many people will think that you have bedbugs. And really it was just like a.
18:15
Jacquie Mosher
Beetle or something totally just to pop.
18:18
Jacquie Mosher
Back to the black widow thing, too. The number one recommendation for preventing black widows in your space is to make sure your space is well sealed. We're only dealing with black widows in basements and outside because your space needs to be well-sealed to keep all pests out. Mice love to sneak into spaces, and mice are actually something that we have come up with very routinely. Field mice in Colorado are very fast, and if you leave a door open and they can feel the heat, they will go running toward it.
18:52
Tracie Fowler
It's crazy little field mice hopping in while you're bringing your luggage in. Yeah, we're here for vacation, too.
18:56
Jacquie Mosher
I'm not from around here and I'm amazed by how fast these field mice are. It blows my mind. There was this one time I was outside of my house talking on the phone, and I put my purse down on the ground and a mouse hopped into my purse. I walked inside and put my purse down and saw the mouse hop out of my purse and threw a bowl across the room to catch it.
19:24
Tracie Fowler
Oh, my God. It makes all those cartoon movies about the mouse family seem so much more realistic after one rode in on your purse.
19:31
Jacquie Mosher
For real, I could not believe it. Hopped in my bag. That's the thing with these mice is when a guest sees a mouse, they immediately jump to the worst possible case scenario. Oh, my gosh, this Airbnb has an infestation. I don't feel comfortable with these dirty rodents around. Very likely they propped the door open while they were bringing their luggage in and let a few fields mice in. It's important to, first of all, approach your communications in a very productive way and reassure them this house is kept very clean. We would know if there's a mouse problem. It actually is a very common scenario in Colorado for field mice who are extremely small and extremely fast to sneak in while you're letting while you're bringing your luggage in or if you've propped the door at all.
20:18
Jacquie Mosher
Did you happen to prop the door open while you were bringing your luggage in or that thing, and ask those questions so that they're like, oh, okay, we probably just let one in and then react quickly and say, it's probably just one or two, but let's take care of it quickly. We'll send somebody over. We'll set some traps in some common areas where mice like to hide, and those mice will not be there anymore in a few days.
20:44
Tracie Fowler
If a guest sees a mouse and you have this conversation with them and they say, that's all great and fine, but I want to move, I don't want to stay here, does that happen? And how do you typically handle that?
21:01
Jacquie Mosher
It doesn't normally happen. There was one time when we had one guest want to relocate. We gave them a partial refund because they wanted to relocate. I think it's all about just trying to put yourself in their shoes and trying to understand where they're coming from and being kind. People are usually receptive and understanding and when you respond quickly to their concerns and maybe you give them a partial refund or maybe you give them a gift. When you show up to set up traps and you treat them with all the hospitality in the world, you're still going to achieve a five-star review. And we do this in Florida, too. With cockroaches,
21:36
Tracie Fowler
The state bird.
21:39
Jacquie Mosher
The state bird. We make it cute. We put signage up. This is the Florida state bird. Your place is treated routinely. These are the things we do to prevent them. You are in Florida; you could randomly see a cockroach or a mouse.
21:55
Tracie Fowler
What kind of traps and where?
21:57
Jacquie Mosher
Stay away from those sticky traps. Just don't people always think that they're kinder, but they are the cruelest traps. I mean, that mouse is going to get stuck, and the mouse is going to get hungry and the mouse is going to squeak and it's going to make everyone around that trap sad until that mouse starves to death because that's what those traps do.
22:18
Tracie Fowler
You catch all kinds of other things, too.
22:21
Jacquie Mosher
Oh, yeah, I caught a rattlesnake once in a garage on a sticky trap. Yeah, it was a fun day. We all screamed. Somebody took a shovel, scooped it up, threw it outside, or threw it in the trash can outside. The sticky traps are just not the way to go. Do the basic snap traps and then.
22:40
Tracie Fowler
Where do you think is the best place or places to set them? Because you don't want to put them where guests are going to see things, but you definitely want to put them in places where the mouse is actually going to go.
22:51
Jacquie Mosher
You want to make sure those traps are hidden in a place where guests aren't going to see them. Have your cleaners routinely check them. I actually think it's really preventative to just have traps in these areas anyway, even if you don't have a mouse. Like if a mouse sneaks in, you could potentially prevent a guest from ever seeing a mouse by just keeping them in these places. The best place to put traps is in the kitchen where rodents want to be, where the food is right. You're going to want to put them under appliances. My husband says the number one best place is under the oven drawer because you can pull that drawer out and easily check it, which you can instruct your cleaners to do.
23:30
Jacquie Mosher
A lot of crumbs fall under the oven or under your fridge or anywhere in the kitchen where guests aren't going to see it.
23:37
Tracie Fowler
I think when we talked about this before, that was one of the big tips was not leaving food out. It's the way to communicate to the guest, but also that this is part of your supply closet organization, is that you don't put snacks on the bottom level.
23:53
Jacquie Mosher
That actually comes from my experience in the food industry in general. Like, that's a code. You have snacks that you put out in your unit or even sugar for coffee or creamer packets. Whatever is food related, it has to be off the ground.
24:07
Tracie Fowler
I've always defaulted to putting cleaners and other toxic things on the ground level. I've always just kind of organized food and things above that. Because if your Bleach is to leak, what do you want it to leak on? Nothing. I want it on the ground level. That's always just been the way it worked in my head. After you know that you have a mouse and maybe it didn't come in the front door with the guests, what are the things you would do to identify entry and then prevention?
24:37
Jacquie Mosher
You're going to figure out where they're coming in and you're going to plug the hole, and then they're not going to come in anymore. You're going to try to kill all the mice that have made it in. You could save yourself an extermination bill by figuring it out yourself because it's usually pretty easy to figure out where they're coming in, depending on where they're nesting and that thing.
24:57
Tracie Fowler
Perfect. Well, I think that's all we've got for today on all the critter invasions. Hopefully, all of Jackie's wisdom will help you prevent and proactively manage and get rid of it as quickly as possible. Let us know what you think. Is it disgusting? Are you horrified? Did you make it to the end with us? Did we miss something that you do?
25:26
Jacquie Mosher
That works really well. Oh, yeah, I'd love to know.
25:28
Tracie Fowler
Yeah, absolutely. Tell us what you think and what you do that works. We'd love to hear from you.
25:33
Jacquie Mosher
I think what is important to know is it's not the end of the world. You've got this. Just tackle the problem and everything's going to be okay.
25:41
Tracie Fowler
Thanks, everyone, for listening to our episode on Bugs. Stay tuned because we're going to talk about natural disasters next.
25:52
Jacquie Mosher
If you enjoyed this episode, we'd be so grateful if you rated and reviewed it. Also, subscribe for more insider knowledge. We can help you get the edge in the STR world. You can find additional resources for your STR journey as well as our social media handles at The STR insiders.com.
26:14
Tracie Fowler
You this.
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