Very interesting bed bug advice, I've never seen before.

[snagglepuss]

I discovered BB nymphs in a library book (i actually squished a couple of them in the book without knowing what they were at the time) then last week I found some adults in my apartments. A complete nightmare. I've been doing a lot of reading hoping to get rid of them at this early stage without having to tell bldg management. The link is interesting advice I came across, i've not seen elsewhere basically it advises to wrap mattress in plastic and starve them.

In my case I think they first settled in my reading chair which I wrapped completely in plastic and packing tape. Luckily my bed is a futon which made finding several of them very easy. After vacuuming and laundering I placed intercepetor cups under each leg as well as two sided taped on each bed leg. Since then i havent been bit though i did just read that they do not not need to feed nightly which is really a bummer since its hard to judge whether my quick action has staved off an infestation.

I think i'll follow advice in the article and wrap my futon in plastic , however for those who have the same issue and don't like sleeping on plastic he offers an alternative.

I can't believe this has happened. If anyone has had the exprience of nipping an infestation in the bud I would love to know about it.



http://julesnoise.com/672-2/

[Paper Roses]

1. Since I am a great 'thrift shop' shopper, I worry about things like this.

Last edited Wed Dec 3, 2014, 06:55 PM - Edit history (1)

Not only bed bugs but awful things like lice. Anything I buy goes immediately into the washer w/hot water or is sprayed to death with bug spray.
I think I would faint if I ever found out that some creepy-crawly got into the house because I was stupid. Thanks for your post.

[snagglepuss]

4. My mistake was thinking it was harmless mite. My new philosophy is if you see

any bug lurking somewhere assume the worse

[KMA2U2]

9. Bed Bugs

I heard that some of the rental companies in my area are getting cited for having bed bugs in their furniture and bedroom items they rent out. Ppl bring back their items after they can afford to buy their own, or they move and no longer need them. They come up with bed bugs and either they don't notice them or didn't know what they were. They do now since they had been passed around from house to house. I had no idea there would be such things in the furniture I would buy. There are many places out there now who sell what they call, "Gently Used" furniture and bed items. I don't believe I know what a bed bug is, but I know one time I had, what we call in the south, weavels. They are teeny bugs that get into the flour and powdery cooking items if they are not sealed. They seem to come from nowhere, but I was told that they hatched from the eggs embedded in the cooking ingredients in the box because it is so humid in the south ideal hatching weather, they would hatch given air and heat. I keep all my powdery substances in the fridge now when I open them like instant mashed potatoes, my pancake mixes, flour, the cornmeal mix I use for cornbread and other things like that. So far, no weavels now. You want to go bonkers, pour some flour in a bowl and watch it move. I had nightmares for weeks.
Thanks Paper Roses.

[Curmudgeoness]

2. Oh my! A library book!!!

I am careful about thrift store purchases, and more lately everything from the new stores too. But I would never have expected to have to worry about a library book.

I have never had a bed bug problem, so I cannot tell you how much to do or for how long, but it sounds like you have come up with some great solutions and I hope that they work.

Some of the things that I have heard to do to protect from bringing them in (but never with a library book):

Put any cloth items in the dryer on a high heat for ten minutes to kill any bugs and eggs.
Put anything you cannot put in the dryer in the freezer for 24 hours. This will also kill bugs and eggs.

Good luck getting rid of them.

[snagglepuss]

3. I found out that many libraries fumingate for bed bugs. I think Public Health could

do a better job of educating people about their appearance, I had no idea they start out looking like harmless dots, only when full do they appear like mini-monsters.

[Curmudgeoness]

6. I may just start putting library books in the freezer

for a day when I bring them home, just in case. Better safe than sorry.

[snagglepuss]

5. Another BRILLIANT tip from another site

Tip 2: When you begin vacuuming always first vacuum up some diatomaceous earth. This is so that if you vacuum up any bed bugs, they will mix with the diatomaceous earth in the disposable vacuum bag, which will help kill them.



http://www.zappbug.com/bed-bugs-carpet-floors/

[KC]

7. With DE

make sure to wear a mask or don't breathe when putting the DE down. You definitely don't want to inhale it.
I have used it when we had a flea problem years ago. It works!

[Digit]

8. Thank you for the excellent advice

Anyone out there with lung disease needs to be very careful.

[NutmegYankee]

10. I lived through an infestation in college, and managed to wipe them out.

Just treat every wall at the trim with a Pyrethrin containing insecticide. Leave a 20 inch wide swath, then search all around where you saw them for little black dots near a crevice. While many people think mattress, they are more likely to live in wood crevices (bed frame or wall trim) than in the seam of a modern mattress. The black dots are their feces, with them usually doing their thing right outside their "home". Once you find, spray the crap out of that area.

[snagglepuss]

11. Yikes black dots are their feces?!

I found tiny black dots very far apart on papers piled on my table I picked them up with tape not knowing what they were. Fumigators were in once but I know they didn't spray the table. They'll b e coming again next week. This is so horrible. Could small be anything else?

[NutmegYankee]

12. Yes. They defecate little black dots.

How have things gone since last month?

[quakerboy]

13. A bit late now

But Heat and Cedar oil.

I was working with people in low income housing for a while, and bedbugs swept through periodically.

The insecticides don't seem overly effective, as the bugs have built a pretty hefty tolerance over the past 30 years. Most of the building managers/pest control didnt even bother spraying an insecticide. Move the furniture away from the walls, seal the room, turn on the heat, Send in a guy with a steam wand to boil the little buggies and their eggs, and on to the next room.

We used Cedar oil spray, and that seemed to work. At least they never came home with any of us.

[Politicalboi]

14. Hand held steamers are pretty cheap

And also the Diatomaceous earth will also help.

[TexasBushwhacker]

15. I agree about the hand held steamers

They are a great, non-toxic way to kill bed bugs. It takes time, but you really need to steam all of the furniture and mattresses, the carpet, etc. 90% alcohol in a spray bottle works well also and it evaporates quickly. You can add clove or cedar essential oil to it for extra power. Regular rubbing alcohol has too much water.

[NJCher]

16. story about steamers

I have one and use it frequently. I steam my counters, appliances, etc.

About four years ago, I renovated my kitchen. During the renovation, an old cabinet was brought in to determine its feasibility as an artistic touch. I felt uneasy about it, thinking "roach" the whole time. The cabinet didn't fly in the design and was discarded, but I swear when it came into the house, I saw a roach. I had a foreboding feeling. I asked that it be removed immediately, but it was too late.

About a week later, the renovation team pried off the top of my counter and found some roaches. I flipped out, just totally went berserk. I grabbed my steamer and steamed all the roaches I saw on top of the cabinet posts. I also steamed the baseboards and any other crack or crevice I could find.

After steaming them, I felt foolish. I said to myself that the steamer would never have killed all those roaches. I should have gone with a poison, I thought, but being an organic type, there were none in the household.

Weeks went by: never saw another roach, and there had to be at least 30 on top of the cabinet posts alone.

I heartily recommend steamers!


Cher

[TexasBushwhacker]

17. Those boric acid tablets or powder are fairly non-toxic

So is diatomaceous earth.

[NJCher]

18. Later

I put those around the baseboards.

Didn't know they came in tablets, though. Thanks for the info!



Cher

[TexasBushwhacker]

19. They're great to toss in pantries and cabinets

But obviously you wouldn't want to put them anywhere that children or pets could get them.

BTW, a natural treatment for fire ants - GRITS (or cream of rice or wheat). Pour them dry on and around the mound. The ants eat it and their bodies explode when the grits are exposed to the liquids inside.

[Maraya1969]

22. I was thinking of boric acid while reading this thread

I have those little pills all over and have never had a problem.

I think if you have a problem of bed bugs coming in through the baseboards you can always plug them up with Vaseline. That stuff works like a barbed wire electric fence with bugs.

[left-of-center2012]

21. http://julesnoise.com/672-2/

Oops! That page can’t be found.