Bed bugs

[markg0vbr]

If I went off to a different room, they'd likely start wandering out of my bedroom to find food and perhaps spread the problem. Yes, they'd likely come into contact with the insecticide and die but the risk of having them move to different rooms and maybe one or two surviving to start all over again isn't worth thinking about.

They're not always in the bed to start with either - they live in cracks and tight spots so are just as likely to be hiding in the electrical sockets, behind pictures on the wall, under skirting boards, in books on bookcases etc and will emerge to climb back up into the bed when you're asleep. I used to wrongly imagine that they simply lived in your mattress and you could just get rid of it to cure the problem.

some times when i get to a job, people have thrown there old bed out and are having a new bed delivered.
i do the treatment then put down fly paper under the feet / casters of the bed to stop the "people eaters" getting back on the bed, in the old days you would see beds standing with there legs on bowls of water for the same thing.

 

[Maz]

Hang on, goo. Are you having an allergic reaction to them, or is this a phobia? Either way, no offence, it does sounds horrible.
They're probably in most household, I'm guessing, or maybe I'm wrong about that?

 

[Yellow Fang]

Maz, I think you might be thinking of bed mites.

 

[Telemark]

euuuuuww! And I thought the harvest mites that are endemic at the allotment in the summer months were bad .... (there are some lovely close-ups and stories on google if anybody wants to do a search)
A quick shower and putting all clothes into the washing machine on return mostly seems to do the trick, but at least they are not "transferable" and set up home in your house/bed! And they die in a couple of days ...

 

[goo_mason]

Can't stop scratching after reading that!

How can you tell you've got them if you never see one g_m? ... do they bite leaving red blotches?

I've seen (and squished) plenty of them since I realised I had them. The ones that had fed on me in the previous night left a hell of a mess when squashed - my own blood smeared everywhere. Bleurgh :-(

You can tell you have them because you start finding mysterious smears and spots of blood on your bed sheets - I first thought it was bleeding spots until there were some big smears and I had no nasty spots that could have caused them. The smears are caused by you squishing the bugs in your sleep as you roll onto them. You might also notice black spots on the sheets that look like someone's poked them with a black felt-tip, or you find little black spots on the wooden bedframe or the white plastic of your plugs and plug sockets - these are the bugs' poo. You'll also likely see them eventually - I did. Both in the bed and crawling across the sofa towards me a couple of times - the first time, I just thought it was a small beetle that I'd carried in on my cycling kit.

They do bite and leave itchy red blotches with an obvious puncture mark in the middle, though you never feel them bite you as their saliva is an anaesthetic. Most people don't react badly to the bites, though if you google bed-bugs you'll see that some people react very badly and end up looking a mess.

Apparently you can end up being anaemic if the infestation is big enough.....

 

[goo_mason]

Hang on, goo. Are you having an allergic reaction to them, or is this a phobia? Either way, no offence, it does sounds horrible.
They're probably in most household, I'm guessing, or maybe I'm wrong about that?

You're thinking of dust mites, which are microscopic and in everyone's houses. Bed-bugs grow to about 5mm long and are voracious vampires.

This should give you an idea:
View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_e6eooUXr8&feature=related


and this:
View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfKCcSPCOQo&feature=related


or this:
View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qx751dNw7Q&feature=related

 

[goo_mason]

as you know i am a contract killer.
you should have a revisit booked in for a month to six weeks after the first treatment, with monitoring to see if you need a third treatment.

Yep - revisit is booked in for a month's time.

 

[Maz]

You're thinking of dust mites, which are microscopic and in everyone's houses. Bed-bugs grow to about 5mm long and are voracious vampires.

This should give you an idea: http://www.youtube.c...feature=related

and this: http://www.youtube.c...feature=related

or this: http://www.youtube.c...feature=related

Little sons of bitches! Hope you get it sorted soon, goo, I really do, so you can rest easy again.

 

[Archie_tect]

Might be cheaper and quicker to move out and blitz your whole house!

Good luck g_m, sounds awful.

 

[jonesy]

I think you should nuke the entire site from orbit, it's the only way to be sure.


View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCbfMkh940Q

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

<br />I think you should nuke the entire site from orbit, it's the only way to be sure. <img src='http://www.cyclechat.net/styles/default/xenforo/smilies/icon_wink.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' /><br /><br /><a href='
View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCbfMkh940Q
' class='bbc_url' title='External link' rel='nofollow external'>http://www.youtube.c...h?v=aCbfMkh940Q</a><br /><br /><br /><br />

Nah - apparently they just grow bigger with nuclear fallout as has been seen at Chernobyl

 

[viniga]

I had the unfortunate experience of them when I was at university. My digs was used as a hotel during the summer months. It took a while to work out what was going on, still remember thinking I was dreaming when I woke and saw one on my pillow staring back at me... nasty little buggers. The landlord got in some guy who sprayed the room and the bed was changed, Like you, I had to wash and tumble dry all my clothes - didn't have a problem after that. I put bowls of water under the bed legs for several weeks... and I scratched a lot.

Sleep tight
And don't let the bed bugs bite
If they bite
Hold them tight
And they won't come back again another night
​

Apparently the hold them tight reference in this old rhyme refers to ropes under beds that could be twisted tight to kill bed bugs by squashing them...

Sweet dreams,

Viniga

 

[Randochap]

The same thing is happening on this side of the pond as well. Seems to be a global phenomenon. Touch wood, so far.

 

[661-Pete]

I think you should nuke the entire site from orbit, it's the only way to be sure.

Ahem.....

...as if nothing short of taking off and nuking your house from orbit will eradicate the blighters.

Nah - apparently they just grow bigger with nuclear fallout as has been seen at Chernobyl

I think I should refer this one to my son, who's just been to Chernobyl. No kidding!

 

[Yellow Fang]

I was telling my mate, the pest controller, about an extraction fan/dehumidifer/ventilation/heat exchanger device I'd been shown yesterday. The main point of it was that energy-efficient, airtight buildings still need to be ventilated properly. One of the benefits is that you can set the humidity level. Under 45% humidity, dust mites die. My mate was wondering if it could be used with bed bugs too, although bed bugs are bigger, and probably not so susceptible to drying out. My mate was also saying that he advises his customers to wash all their clothes and linen at 60 degrees Centigrade and then dry them in a tumble drier.