Hanging Scale Luggage

Hanging Scale Luggage

Bed Bug Populations Surge, Is it Too Late to Stem the Tide?

In my job as a sales and marketing manager and as a licensed pest control technician and field representative, one of the functions I perform is researching pest related news around the USA.  I spend a large number of hours on this research, so I have a pretty good handle on which pests are making news and which ones are of concern to people.  The number one pest, as counted by the news articles I've seen, is the common bed bug, Cimex, lectarius.  These unsavory creatures have, to date, not been proven to transmit disease from one person to another, but they do spread fear, embarrassment, discomfort and misery. 

 By the early 1950's bed bugs were nearly eliminated from the North American continent as a result of the widespread use of DDT.  Their numbers were so decimated that generations raised after that time thought they were a myth, perpetuated in a nursery rhyme.  Unfortunately, bed bugs are very real.  The banning of DDT and the marked increase in international travel, have rapidly given us a resurgence of these nasty pests.  Their increase started slowly at first, sort of like the front side of a bell curve, but then accelerated and intensified.  We now appear to be on the steep and rapidly rising back side of the curve, with no idea of when the population will peak or when the curve will flatten out.  The number and variety of places they now infest is quite astonishing!  First re-discovered just a few years ago, in US hotels and motels, they now infest apartments, homes, movie theaters, hospitals, retail clothing outlets and offices, as well as public and university libraries.  They can be picked up in taxicabs, busses, trains and aircraft.  They're even on cruise ships!  They will eventually be found anywhere humans are.

 The current curative measures work fairly well in eliminating these pests but they are time consuming, labor intensive and expensive.  A typical control program for a home under 2,000 square feet treatment can involve multiple visits by technicians and cost $600 to $1,000 to treat.  That's if the infestation is mild to moderate.  Heavy infestations can be more involved  with a much higher price tag.  When conventional means are used, effective treatment requires taking apart beds and furniture for treatment of all surfaces when possible, removing belongings from the structure for fumigation, dry cleaning of draperies, cloth wall hangings and clothing that cannot be laundered or hot laundering and drying of washable clothes.  Carpet edges must often be lifted and treated underneath.  Wall voids should also be treated in areas around the bed or bedroom.  In many cases articles such as upholstered furniture, mattresses, electronics and the like cannot be treated sufficiently and must be replaced altogether.  Mattresses cannot generally be treated but there are mattress and box spring encasements available on the market that are bed bug resistant and do a good job of keeping any bugs confined inside until they starve to death.  There are also some encasements available for sofas and some other upholstered furniture.  Some populations of bed bugs are becoming pesticide resistant.  Fortunately, alternative measures are available.  When practical, smaller spaces, such as apartments or student dorms can be heat treated with most belongings still inside, but this is a costly process.  At times entire structures must be fumigated a time tested and effective, but expensive method.

 It seems obvious that, in the case of bed bugs, the proverbial ounce of prevention may be worth 5 pounds of cure.  Preventing a bedbug infestation in your home requires vigilance on your part.  You can't depend on anyone else.  If you rent, your landlord will not be able to protect you.  He or she cannot determine where you travel, what you bring back from those travels, who visits your home or what they might bring into your home.  Although some state or local regulations may, I think unfairly, require that landlords are responsible to pay for treatment, they are not required to replace your non-treatable belongings or furniture and you may end up paying large sums of money for new items.  You are the only one with any chance at preventing an infestation in your home.  Measures you can take are as follows: If you go to a hotel place your luggage on the luggage rack, not the floor or the bed.  Bed bugs don't do well trying to scale the rack's metal legs.  Before you unpack check the room.  Pull back the sheets and check the mattress for bed bugs or any brown or black spots that might be bed bug feces.  Look for molted skins.  Check areas around the bed, behind the headboard, the drawers of the night stand and other furniture.  Look under the bed.  Think like a bed bug.  What tight little places are there where they would be likely to hide.  If you see any signs of bed bugs take yourself and your luggage out of the room, notify the management and insist on another room.  Check that room out as well.  Something you can do prior to booking a hotel is look up one of the online bed bug registries for that locale.  If there are reports of activity in that hotel select another one.  When you get home from travelling, re-check your luggage before you enter your home.  Be sure there are no bed bugs before you bring it in.  Be careful of who comes in to your home to visit.  Bed bugs can be carried in on clothing or other belongings, from and infested home.  There are other measures you can take but I won't go into them here.  For more information I suggest going to the UC Berkely website and looking up articles by entomologist Gail Getty.

 All of these methods are effective in treating an identified infestation and hopefully preventing some infestations, but do nothing to provide a long term solution.  As the numbers of bed bugs and the places they infest grows, so will the difficulty and complexity of prevention by current means.  It seems reasonable to me that a better solution is needed.  We need a broad and far reaching approach aimed at more easily destroying and preventing these pests from spreading.  I certainly don't advocate bringing back DDT but, perhaps, something with a similar effect on these bugs, without the risks or environmental effects that DDT had.  May be an effective, long-lasting, Cimex specific, insect growth regulator could be the solution.  Perhaps we can look at natural bed bug pathogens or parasites.  If things get bad enough we may have to resort to chemical means.  It seems obvious to me that, if we don't develop a powerful method for control and prevention, we will end up with bed bugs and the chronic suffering that they bring, as part of normal life.  I, for one, see that outcome as unacceptable.

About the Author

Harry Case is Sales and Marketing Manager for Pest Control Center, Inc. in California and is a licensed pest control "Field Representative."  He has been in the Structural Pest Control industry since May of 2005. Harry also has 16 & ½ years experience as a licensed Pest Control Operator in the related field of Landscape Pest and disease Control in the state of Washington.

Travelon Stop And Lock Luggage Scale $9.95 This Travelon Stop and Lock Luggage Scale comes in handy for those looking to avoid overweight fees. Compact and portable luggage scale to 75 lbs. Hang luggage on hanging hook and remove. Dial stops and locks at weight for easy reading. Reset to zero with a simple twist and your ready to weight another bag. Use tape measure to check overall dimensions.

Portable Fishing Luggage Digital Hanging Scale with Hook $14.99 Description:This Digital Hanging Scale great for weighing in family, kitchen, shop, fishing, luggage or other outdoor activities.Portable size with a hand strap, high accuracy, high performance/price ratio.Digital Luggage Scale is easy to use.Stainless steel hook for durable to use.Automatic calculation with digital readout when weight.Portable Digital Scale with TARE function.Temperature display function.Kg/Lb/oz switch option.LCD display: 4 digit display.Maximum weight of 20kg, plus or minus20g.This Digital Fishing Scale powered by 2 x AAA batteries (not included).Size: ~8.4(L) x 5(W) x 1.6(D)cmWeight: 96.9gPackage Contains:1 x Portable Digital Hanging Scale1 x User Manual

10KG LB Fishing Luggage Postal Digital Crane Hanging Scale $15.99 Description:Portable, easy to take with you anywhere.Digital Hanging Scale perfect for weighing items that are difficult to place on a platform scale.Put the scale at a vertical position without weight in hookPress the ON. After 5 seconds return to zero. Now this Luggage Digital Hanging Scale is ready for weightHold key: when the hook in goods and the display will show the weight vale of foods. For easy readingMode key: press the key to change the different weight unitTare key: The function had been specially designed for weight substances that require to be put into a container. First put empty container in the hook and press the TARE key the display will return to zero.kg/lb/air temperature. unit changeThis Fishing Digital Hanging Scale auto shut off in 90 secondsThis Postal Digital Hanging Scale powered by 2 AAA batteries (batteries not include)Specifications:Max Weight: 10KGMin Weight: 20gSize: 90 x 54 x 20mmWeight: 81g

Travel Luggage Suitcase Digital Scale 44KG Hanging (CEG467) $23.99 HighlightsWith a set of lightweight Digital Luggage Scale you can weigh all of your cases to make sure they don't exceed the maximum baggage allowance - and they're small and light enough to pop in your handbag.A lightweight set of Digital Luggage Scales, bringing an end to excess baggage charges.A portable design so you can slip into your luggage for use on return journeys.Choose to have your reading in either lbs, Ozs or kgs.The maximum weight the scales can hold is 44kg.The weighing process is easy - attach the strap to your object and lift, wait a few secondsand read the weight.Temperature display.Auto Shut in 60 seconds if no operation.SpecificationRequires 2 x AAA Batteries (not included)Size: 13 x 7 x 2.2cmProduct weight: 200g

Lewis N Clark Balanzza Ergo Digital Scale $24.95 Weigh your luggage before check in with the Balanzza Digital Luggage Scale. Lift, wait fr the beep and set it down. Avoid extra charges at check-in.

AMW 44 X 0.1LB YELLOW HANGING SCALE $39.71 The NEW SRSeries Digital Hanging Scale from American Weigh is the perfect companion for fishing trips. With a retractable handle and a hook which stores behind the scale the SRSeries is also super portable. Use it to check your luggage weight before incurring heavy fines at the airlines. Retractable Handle Backlit LCD Display Hold Feature Hook can be folded up behind the scale. Powered by 2 AAA batteries (included)

AMW 11 X .01LB YELLOW HANGING SCALE $39.71 The NEW SRSeries Digital Hanging Scale from American Weigh is the perfect companion for fishing trips. With a retractable handle and a hook which stores behind the scale the SRSeries is also super portable. Use it to check your luggage weight before incurring heavy fines at the airlines. Retractable Handle Backlit LCD Display Hold Feature Hook can be folded up behind the scale. Powered by 2 AAA batteries (included)

Digital Luggage Scale with Hanging Strap (100Lb / 44Kg Max) $17.75 - Weight your luggage before going on holiday or ideal for fishing, posting etc.- Easy to read digital display- Switch from KG to LB - Very Sturdy Canvas Belt Loop- Strong and convenient handle- Capacity: 100Lb / 44Kg Max

AWS LUGGAGE SCALE 110 X 0.2 LB $34.04 AWS presents and delivers state of the art scales as well as traditional scales at the most affordable prices. Most any type of digital scale you can think of, AWS carries. AWS can help you find the scale that fits your needs and your budget. American Weigh is your source for quality, design, and function. The LS-110 hanging luggage scale features a sleek handle-shaped design that makes weighing your baggage a cinch. The auto-hold feature helps lock the weight on the display once stable, allowing you to view the display with ease. Don't risk extra fees from the airlines for overweight baggage. 110 pound capacity. Great for weighing luggage. Adjustable strap can accommodate any handle size. Back-lit LCD display. Includes two long-life lithium batteries.

7 in 1 50Kg Digital Fish Hook Luggage Hanging Weighing Scale $17.62 - Low battery alarm - Tare function - Weighting modes: G, LB, KG, CA and T - Power: 2 * AAA Batteries (included) - Blacklit LCD display.- Tape function.- Water-proof design.- Automatic weighing locking/Manual locking.- Operation Temperature: 5 to 35 C.- The 7-in-1 multifunction fishhook scale for home, travel or office.

Travelon Ergonomic Digital Scale $30 Features: Save on overweight and oversize baggage fees, Weighs luggage to 75 lbs. Backlit digital read-out is easy to read and locks into display until cleared, Use top handle for lighter-weight items and side grips for heavier items, Includes tape measure, Hook tucks away, and requires 2 AAA batteries (included).

TAYLOR DIGITAL LUGGAGE SCALE $29.99 Avoid airport frustration with this personal luggage scale. The Taylor Digital Luggage Scale makes gauging luggage weight easy. Simply attach the Luggage Scale to the handle of your item, lift and then see the results on the easy-to-read 1.3x0.6-inch LCD display. This Luggage Scale is high-capacity and weighs up to 88lbs in 0.2lbs increments. The durable clasp and rugged nylon web material ensures a long-lasting product; this Luggage Scale has a 5-year warranty. A lithium battery comes included. UPC: 077784009222 Manufacturer's Part Number: 8120-447

Conair TS600LS Digital Luggage Scale $20.99 3 Conair Conair Corporation Digital Luggage Scale Kilogram LCD Not Applicable Pound TS600LS TS600LS Travel Smart Luggage Scale www.conair.com

ETA Digital Luggage Scale $24.99 This compact scale travels with you, weighing luggage up to 85 lbs. with digital precision Type: Travel Scales Color: Black Color Mapping: Black

Travelon Micro Luggage Scale $56.11 Avoid overweight luggage fees with this Travelon scale. This micro scale is possibly the smallest, most lightweight luggage scale available. Color options: Black, silver, red, greenWeight locks into three positionsRed light illuminatesOn/Off switchAuto-shut off after 60 secondsCapacity: 110 pounds

Samsonite Manual Luggage Scale - Black $9.99 Avoid overweight luggage charges with this scale that registers up to 80 lbs. The adjustable strap and comfort-grip handle make weighing your luggage simple.

Korchmar Hanging Toiletry Kit Brown $171 Korchmar's hanging toiletry kit is very convenient and excellent for business travel. Hangs from door with rubber covered brass hook. Top lining snaps loose to reveal large flat pocket. Washable nylon lining protects the bag from wet contents, etc. Features double snap pockets and zippered pockets.

Olympia Blossom 3 Piece Spinner Luggage Set- Lavender $349.99 Olympia's Blossum 3 Piece Luggage Set is a durable fashion collection constructed of a durable polycarbonate. Dual spinner wheels allow free movement in all directions. Highly-polished retractable push button with a reinforced handle provides great guiding for the smooth wheels. The interior fetaures hanging zipper pocket & buckle tie-belt. Removable TSA compliant 3-1-1 pouch provided in the carry-On. Built-in dual shoe pockets & extra mesh zipper pocket help separate your items. Divided zipper compartments create multi organized sections. Elegantly imprinted full interior lining.

Travelon Total Hanging Organizer Red $59.95 The Total Hanging Organizer helps make packing efficient and convenient. Fits in a 21" carry-on 3 mesh top compartments are breathable, keep clothes organized and visible. Hangs in closet or on hook - no need to unpack. Easy access, 2 way zippers provide easy opening and closing. Organizer zips closed and has top handle for easy carrying.

Travelon Total Hanging Organizer Black $59.95 The Total Hanging Organizer helps make packing efficient and convenient. Fits in a 21" carry-on 3 mesh top compartments are breathable, keep clothes organized and visible. Hangs in closet or on hook - no need to unpack. Easy access, 2 way zippers provide easy opening and closing. Organizer zips closed and has top handle for easy carrying.

Baggallini Hanging Cosmetic Bagg Ripstop Nylon Lime $39.95 This hanging cosmetic bagg is perfect for travel or everyday use. Features four clear zippered pockets, a detachable bottom pocket for short trips and easy packing, a back pocket ideal for lingerie, and a swivel hook for hanging. This bagg is made of Baggallini's lightweight water-resistant fabric.

Samsonite Electronic Luggage Scale - Black $24.99 Avoid overweight luggage charges with this scale that features a backlit electronic display for accurate readouts in grams, kilograms, pounds or ounces.

Heys USA microSCALE Luggage Scale $29.99 The microSCALE is the world's smallest luggage scale. Type: Travel Scales Color: Blue Color Mapping: Blue Gender: Unisex

Travelon On Your Weigh Luggage Scale $29.99 Digital Luggage Scale Type: Travel Scales Color: Silver Color Mapping: Metallic