Bed Bugs !

cattie

Are you sure they are not fleas as their bites make you itch? If you have pets then I would investigate whether you have a flea infestation rather than bedbugs.

Ajax18

The bites I got from bed bugs were itchy too. But if you have bedbugs you should be able to find them in your mattress as they are the size of half a fingernail... if you can't find anything I agree, it might be flees.

Although I read in the evening standard today that bedbug infections have gone up in London by 300 percent!!! :eek:

Mr_Meanie

Strangely there was an article on BBC News 24 today about the rise in population of bed bugs, being predominately nocturnal they are hard to spot but apparently the way to tell if you have them is that they leave tiny spots of blood on your sheets/bedding.
If you don’t have the tell tale spots of blood then it’s most probably cat or dog fleas you are suffering from.

Just one last note from the BBC web site that may help you!

Gentlemen travellers in the 19th Century would often take a pig with them when staying at strange hotels.
They would put the pig in bed first, to satisfy the bugs' blood lust, before risking retiring for the night themselves.

Bear_family

HI,

Can anyone recommend a flea/bed bug spray that I can use in the bedroom, particularly on teddy bears, who I think are harbouring the fleas still? I have changed bed linen and PJs and I'm still getting bitten.
Any suggestions?

Thanks

mrs_baggins

I worked in the local pest controldept so can give the following advice. Have you already had a treatment in your home for bed bugs? Do you mean bed bugs or do you mean fleas? If you have had treatment and its within 2 weeks it may still be taking effect. If its bed bugs they are attracted to the warmth of a body if its within say 20cm of it or so. You can buy a spray from any kind of DIY/pet store for crawling insects that should do the job. Make sure the bed linen is taken off and washed at high temeperature. Spray the bed so it gets into all the creases and bits down the side and the pillows as well. Also I would spray the carpet if you have it and the room in general. If possible do it first thing in the morning then close the door anfd leave it for a few hours. Vac before and dispose of the contents in case there are eggs but dont vac afterwards. make sure you dont have any aqautic pets or animals which it could be dangerous too first.If its fleas then the spray should still do the trick and same rules apply but you may have to do the whole house and treat any pets first. hope this helps but pm me for more info if you want

STAR_BUCK

Apparently if you stick all the teddies into a carier bag, fasten it and then stick the whole thing in a freezer for a week, that'll kill off all the fleas without the need to use a spray

Bear_family

Thanks for your advice, both of you. I'm off to find a spray in my lunch hour. Unfortunately, I don't have a chest freezer so the bears will have to put up with the spray! :-))

Haushinka

Hello!

Haven't posted in a while, but I'm at a complete loss for advice.

I recently moved into a flat in Central London. The price is amazing as is the location, so moving is really my last resort, and given the circumstances, it would be very unfair to try to get a deposit out of someone for an infested room.

I moved in around 3 months ago. After two weeks of being there I started to come up in lots and lots of bites. I had an extreme allergic reaction and my arms where completely covered. I couldn't understand what was going on at the time and blamed it on my washing powder.

My flat mates eventually saw the bites and confirmed the worst. The bed bugs where back. Previously my room had been investigated by bed-bugs.co.uk and got the all clear. This was before I moved in. And the girl who lived there before had no trouble that she was aware of or what my flat mates are willing to tell me about. There is no possibility I've moved them from one place to another as I had no signs of bites or such when I lived in Finchley.

I've had bed-bugs.co.uk around to the flat twice to fumigate my room and still with no success. They had said that they would re-evaluate until I'd checked with all my neighbors to see if they have them. I went to the dry cleaners underneath, and the office next door (both unlikely sources) last night, and it would appear that they have no trouble. The only people left are on the right side of us, which I know have tenants, but it would seem unlikely also because all 3 rooms that have bed bugs are facing to the left.

I'm also worried that my landlord won't fork out another £150 to get the room re-fumigated, and given that it hasn't already worked, I could see why he would be reluctant.

I'm at my wits end. I got bitten 3 times again last night for the first time in a while, I thought my ammunity to them had gone up as I hadn't got bitten recently, but it would appear I am wrong.

Is there any home remedies, cheaper methods as to getting rid of them?

Thank you in advance,
Dani x

imho

Poor you . http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q=how+to+get+rid+of+bed+bugs&meta=&btnG=Google+Search

Read all the threads there.It looks like you have to wash your sheets really hot.Vacuum the bed all over <empty the bag after>,then put a steam iron on mattress to kill them.I would do all that 3 times a week .
Or use one those steam sprayers thingys that are about £10.If you use a iron dont have it too hot so it burns the bed !
I would be tempted to get the firm that has been out before and tell them the bugs are still there.

SaraSeahorse

on that Anthea Turner program the pest control chap put sticky tape stuff around the bed legs to catch the bugs