Eeek - I think I have bedbugs - OS Solution?

all_change

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

I read something not very long ago that a VERY high proportion of carriages on the London underground are infested and that is THE NUMBER ONE REASON why you should keep coats and jackets hanging up inside the front door and never, ever take them upstairs and put them in wardrobes.

This story seems to have been debunked at the time as a PR job by rentokil (see discussion here: http://www.badscience.net/2010/03/rentokil/).

That's not to say bedbugs are not a problem (I gather they are hard to get rid of), but I wouldn't put any faith in that particular story.

davetrousers

Put a bit of deet on his suitcase/bag whenever he goes away in the future.

Actiongirl_2

davetrousers wrote: »

Put a bit of deet on his suitcase/bag whenever he goes away in the future.

Great idea!!!

meritaten

When I was buying flea spray last summer I noticed that a couple of products claimed to eradicate bed bugs as well as fleas, mites etc. I know the smoke bomb did, and I am fairly sure that one of the aerosol ones did too. have a look in the flea killer dept of your local petshop - though the cans are expensive they are a lot cheaper than a visit from the 'bugman'!
one tip hun, during the day the little bugg(ers) tend to hide in the edge of the mattress, if you turn back the corded part you can find them if they are present. they will hide anywhere in the room though! good luck, we had this problem when one of the kids was small and we were given a second hand bed, we ended up burning it and using jeyes fluid sprayed liberally round the room! we had to burn the carpet too and I lived with bare floorboards for weeks before we finally were sure they had gone! oh and DD had to bunk in with us for that time!

Actiongirl_2

meritaten wrote: »

When I was buying flea spray last summer I noticed that a couple of products claimed to eradicate bed bugs as well as fleas, mites etc. I know the smoke bomb did, and I am fairly sure that one of the aerosol ones did too. have a look in the flea killer dept of your local petshop - though the cans are expensive they are a lot cheaper than a visit from the 'bugman'!
one tip hun, during the day the little bugg(ers) tend to hide in the edge of the mattress, if you turn back the corded part you can find them if they are present. they will hide anywhere in the room though! good luck, we had this problem when one of the kids was small and we were given a second hand bed, we ended up burning it and using jeyes fluid sprayed liberally round the room! we had to burn the carpet too and I lived with bare floorboards for weeks before we finally were sure they had gone! oh and DD had to bunk in with us for that time!

Thank you. Thats a good tip. The bugman could find no conclusive proof of them, although I had had a bloody good clean the day before so I may have got rid of the evidence...

We have a new (18mths) bed and divan and white sheets and expect they would be quite visible if they develop so I am just going to be extra keen on cleaning and maybe buy a can of what you suggest and squirt the skirting boards and behind the bed periodically!!!

BitterAndTwisted

all_change wrote: »

This story seems to have been debunked at the time as a PR job by rentokil (see discussion here: http://www.badscience.net/2010/03/rentokil/).

That's not to say bedbugs are not a problem (I gather they are hard to get rid of), but I wouldn't put any faith in that particular story.

Well, I can't tell you how relieved I am to hear that that story might not have been accurate. It means that I can take a seat on the Tube now. I've been so paranoid I've been standing ever since I read it. :T

all_change

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

Well, I can't tell you how relieved I am to hear that that story might not have been accurate. It means that I can take a seat on the Tube now. I've been so paranoid I've been standing ever since I read it. :T

I'd go further than "might not have been accurate"... the badscience article includes the phrase "No buses were studied, and no trains were studied either." I would recommend a quick glance at the article to see just how little reality was in the news story.

Glad you're feeling reassured!

OneBrightStar

I wish there was a simple spray which would get rid of them

Slugger

Have you noticed any blood spots in your bed? - Bed bugs feed and then poop before leaving your nice cosy bed! If after a few nights you haven't noticed any blood spots - this could be a good sign and it may be something else is biting you!

To get rid of bed !!!!!!s, you have to turn a bit detective.
Strip the bed completely - wash everything at as high a temp as poss - and if you dare tumble dry it (not very moneysaving!!).
Clean and hoover everywhere you can. These bugs just love dark spots - they can fit in the tiniest crevice.

If they are hiding in your mattress/bed, the best thing to do is get rid of it and buy a new one. If you are sure your bed is not their hiding place...

...then you need to get yourself some diatomaceous earth. It's not too expensive and does work. I think to use it inside your house, you probably need to get the food grade one. It doesn't look great, but it is safe to aniamls and humans, but insects really suffer.

Basically, you can sprinkle this around the legs / feet of your bed - ie, treat it like a little slug trap. Get some kind of saucer / lid and stand the leg/wheel of your bed in it, then surround that with the dust. Move your bed/headboard/sheets away from any other walls etc. Bed Bugs cannot fly or jump,they have to walk through the dust - this will then kill them. If you have built in wardrobes, try sprinkling it along the runners - you get the idea.

I hope I haven't gone on too much! Good luck!

Kathy535

We get bird mites every year (since moving into this house in 2007) and last year I got 40 bites in one night - usually an average of about 5-10 per night. DH doesn't get bitten. However, they usually only cause a problem for me between beginning August and mid September, the colder nights seem to kill them off. I haven't had a bite for 10 days or so. Also, this year I got the gutters cleaned when I got the first bites and it really reduced the average number of bites. Next year I'll get them done in mid July and that might help even more.