u/Anonymousanon4079

On Friday night we checked into a quality inn to visit a sick family member. We worked on our storage unit since it's in our hometown and we are trying to clear it out, but we were careful to avoid any creepy crawlies and didn't take anything in the car with us, just moved things to an on site dumpster. I noticed one bite on my ankle and thought nothing of it.

On Sunday, we noticed 3 on my leg, but they were more like welts, in a line up one leg. My partner had 3 bites. We searched the room and found an earwig and what appeared to be a bird mite. The mattress was filthy and while there were some speckles in the seams, it really seemed impossible to tell. We didn't go outdoors much that day, only going on a drive and staying indoors before returning due to severe weather.

The bites didn't look that similar to bed bug bites and we were assured by a family member that they've dealt with bed bugs and those bites seemed different. The hotel wouldn't let us change rooms so we cleaned what we could and gave up, feeling defeated and with nowhere else to stay.

On Monday, yesterday, I had 7 bites in a row on my leg. 3 in a circle on my stomach. My partner had 5 bites. At that point, we decided the risk was too high and we couldn't identify the issue. We bought loose fitting clothing at a Walmart 7 hours into a 12 hour drive home. When we got home, we stripped in the doorway and left everything but the sealed Walmart bags of clothes in the car. We showered and changed and put what we were wearing on high heat for 40 minutes.

No new bites today, luckily. But we've got 2 suitcases and 3 backpacks in the car since we had to work remotely during the trip. It's mild today but 85 and sunny tomorrow.

My plan so far:

Go out today and grab all of the electronics, any carbonated drinks, and sealed food. Then put all of the clothes in black trash bags under the hatchback glass and the backpacks and emptied duffle bags in black trash bags under the front on the dash.

Then around 4, taking the trash bags with clothes and running them through the dryer in small loads for 30-40 minutes and moving the backpacks and duffle bags to the hatchback glass in the back of the car. Delicates would go in smaller black bags on the dashboard.

I finish leave on Thursday and will have to take the car to work. Unsure how the heat will be working out at that point, Id take a sealed bag of clothes into work, change in the bathrooms, and put the clothing from the drive back outside on the dash in a sealed baggage. When I get home, I'll change out of my clothes as soon as I'm back and shower and nuke those in the dryer as well. It'll be 90 and sunny that day.

By Friday, it'll just be bags and the car upholstery itself and it'll be on day 3 but with scattered storms. There will be a few hours of sun and 90+ degrees. Once I'm home from work, the plan is to vacuum and steam all of the luggage and backpacks.

At that point, I'll sprinkle diatomaceous under the seats and in the stitching and creases of the upholstery. I'll leave it until Sunday evening and vacuum.

I know all of this is rather extreme but we absolutely cannot handle any infestations at this point. Any further advice you'd give based on my plan? Also, car has temperature regulation, so while I've seen people blast heat, it would simply cause our car to regulate back to 90 with cooling.