Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums » Uncategorized
8 adult bus seen on bed--how bad do you think the infestation is
(21 posts)-
phantom1
junior member
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 65
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 10:06:03
#
Login to Send PM
I've seen about 8 adult bed bugs on my bed....I think this may have been going on for about 2-3 months how bad do you think the infestation is and how hard to get rid of?
-
Marixpress
member
Joined: Sep '08
Posts: 305
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 11:23:55
#
Login to Send PM
Keep reading is all I can say. You'll find your answers (and many more questions lol).
-
parakeets
oldtimer
Joined: Mar '07
Posts: 913
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 12:19:01
#
Login to Send PM
In my opinion, if you've seen 8, that isn't so Gr-8. I would say you might have a moderate infestation at the minimum. It takes a while for shy bedbugs to show themselves. So if you only have a few, they stay hidden. The more you have in your room, the more risks some of them seem to take to come out, move around and try to find a meal. If the place hasn't been incorrectly treated (such as bug bombs that might drive them into the walls or treating the bedboards only as if you were treating roaches)...then you might be able to find the harborages and treat them. They tend to stay near the bed and with very careful inspection in your room, you might find where they are and have that location treated. Unfortunately, there probably are other rooms around you that are also infested, so unless all the rooms are treated, the bugs will be back.
-
phantom1
junior member
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 65
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 12:29:01
#
Login to Send PM
I did see them at night--not during the day. Does that make a difference?
-
Marixpress
member
Joined: Sep '08
Posts: 305
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 12:32:51
#
Login to Send PM
No-
-
phantom1
junior member
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 65
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 12:35:31
#
Login to Send PM
So you thnk I have a really bad infestation....
-
Marixpress
member
Joined: Sep '08
Posts: 305
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 12:36:33
#
Login to Send PM
Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but it does sound bad. Check this scale:
http://bedbugger.com/forum/topic/how-we-grade-infestations#post-17126
-
phantom1
junior member
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 65
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 12:39:19
#
Login to Send PM
I am so sick about this. It's a studio apartment in manhattan in a really nice building and it's my parents and I am worried that I have ruined it and will never get rid of them. Truly I am in tears and my stomach is heaving.
I have had a first PCO and will have a second. the kitchen is about 12 feet from the bedroom the apartment is only 1.5 rooms. total (not including the bathroom. Would they bother with my kitchen if I (the meal) am that much further away?
-
Marixpress
member
Joined: Sep '08
Posts: 305
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 12:44:17
#
Login to Send PM
Phantom, I feel your pain. I've been dealing with this for many months. It might be easier since you're living alone and in a studio. There's less room to treat and easier to follow protocols without room mates. Just keep reading and reading and reading. We all feel that horror, fear and denial in the beginning. You need to accept this is happening and take action. Hoping this will go away or isn't an infestation isn't going to help you.
Think of how you might have brought them in. Do you rent or own the apartment? Resist the urge to leave and stay with someoene else. They can travel in your personal belongings or even on your clothes. Stay where you are and educate yourself as much as you can. Don't let people over now either until you get a handle on this problem.
-
phantom1
junior member
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 65
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 12:44:59
#
Login to Send PM
maxi--noticed you had a severe infestation--how did you handle it and how are you doing--any tips for the desperate newbie. PLEASE....(as you said...note to self...do not cry...)
-
Marixpress
member
Joined: Sep '08
Posts: 305
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 12:48:39
#
Login to Send PM
Everything you need to know is in here. Nobugs has provided a lifesaver in bedbugger.com.
Start with the "FAQ" section on the main home page. If you have a question, use the search feature at the bottom of the forums page.
-
Marixpress
member
Joined: Sep '08
Posts: 305
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 12:51:08
#
Login to Send PM
Don't forget to BREATHEEEE E E E e e e
-
phantom1
junior member
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 65
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 13:01:23
#
Login to Send PM
I have already had the first treatment from a PCO and I will be having another in a few weeks. It's horrifying but I will get through. The only thing is that my son lives with me and I fear that he may have to stay with his father for a while until we treat this
-
Marixpress
member
Joined: Sep '08
Posts: 305
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 13:07:34
#
Login to Send PM
ACK! Does he travel between homes? If so, his dad NEEDS to check for BBs. I know it's not fun but you HAVE to tell him or else you can have 5464767 treatments but never fully be rid of bugs if he has them too.
-
phantom1
junior member
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 65
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 13:09:37
#
Login to Send PM
Yes. and I have already told him. I have also had our pediatrician tell him. He won't listen to me but he will listen to her....
-
Marixpress
member
Joined: Sep '08
Posts: 305
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 13:14:54
#
Login to Send PM
I suggest you have clothes for your son at each home so you don't have to transfer them back and forth. That will keep bugs away from dad's house and vice versa. When your son comes home, immediately put everything in a plastic bag and seal tightly until you can blast with high heat in the dryer.
-
buggyinsocal
oldtimer
Joined: Jun '08
Posts: 1,259
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 13:28:06
#
Login to Send PM
Phantom,
I know--believe me I know--how absolutely devastating bed bug news can be. But it also sounds like you're beating yourself up over this--like you did something wrong.
Bed bugs don't mean you're a bad person.
They can be hard to get rid of, but even with a moderate or worse infestation, you're not guaranteed to have a terrible battle. I found about 3 or 4 adult bed bugs on my bed in the middle of the day (albeit on different days), and I got rid of mine in one thermal treatment.
I agree with what other people above said. You're not dealing with roommates, which actually gives you more control. (For example, some people have come here because their roommates/spouses/significant others think bed bugs aren't a big deal and don't want to do all the prep work. *That* really sucks.) Read the FAQs, esp. the ones about not spreading bugs (so you know what precautions to take when your kid goes to visit others) and on choosing a PCO (not to choose one, since you have one, but I find that FAQ really helpful in terms of questions to ask your PCO. I read it, followed its advice once my landlord chose a PCO, and the PCO who came to my house was super, super impressed that I asked all the right questions. I suspect he was that much more likely to take the time to train me in terms of what to inspect for and explain what the chemicals they were using were because my asking the right questions, I established with him that I was going to be as informed and helpful as possible in the fight. )
And also, I know--I know how hard it is in the middle of the worst parts of the fight to remember this, but keep in mind that you get a sample selection bias in terms of who posts to these boards. We get a disproportionate number of people with really stubborn infestations that take longer than usual to go away. When I got here and started reading, I freaked out, and despaired that I would have to do battle for years and that the bugs would spread to neighboring apartments, and none of that turned out to be true. People with the worst problems are most likely to come here looking for help. There's always a chance that you'll have that kind of problem, but there's at least as big a chance that you won't.
Finally, re: the 12 feet away kitchen.
Read the FAQs on isolating the bed. Isolating the bed will allow you to get a decent night's sleep, which I'm sure you're desperate for, without risking spreading the bugs to the kitchen. Bed bugs can and will travel farther than 12 feet for a meal. (I think I remember numbers like 15 or 20 feet. There are a select few people here who've reported bugs from a neighboring building moving into their building when the previous building was emptied for renovation and the food source went away.)
Hang in there. Have hope. Things absolutely will get better, even though it doesn't feel like it right now.
-
phantom1
junior member
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 65
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 13:38:48
#
Login to Send PM
Thanks. I am actually in tears reading your post--and I don't cry easy--I know it's not like I am in a war zone or losing a limb but it is so disheartening and creepy to think that you can't be comfortable in your own home.
I got rid of almost all of my furniture but am thinking of having the other stuff I have fumigated then stored and returned once things are ok again. However long that takes. Does that sound like a decent idea to you? -
buggyinsocal
oldtimer
Joined: Jun '08
Posts: 1,259
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 14:09:38
#
Login to Send PM
Some people have items fumigated in a Uhaul truck. The chemical Vikane was originally used for termites, but it has been found to work on bed bugs if used at higher concentrations.
Treating with chemicals in the apartment can get rid of the bugs in your furniture without needing to ship them off to be fumigated in a truck with Vikane and/or having them treated in a thermal chamber if one is locally available.
As for it not being a war zone, well, I've never lived in one of those. But I'll tell you this much--nothing I've been through was half as stressful as dealing with bed bugs. I expect people have a lot of variation--but for me, home (no matter how small, cluttered, or ugly to others) is my safe space. When I had bed bugs, home no longer felt like a safe space. And not having that refuge to go to was enough to completely throw me off my game.
I also promise, although it doesn't feel like it now, that it will get better. And the sleep deprivation that comes with bed bugs makes every thing like 6 times worse.
I would definitely give the PCO three good treatments before you make any decisions about what to do about other tretments for the furniture. I threw out nothing in terms of furniture, and plenty of people on the boards here regret throwing out as much as they did in the heat of the panic about bed bugs.
Once you've had three treatments with the PCO, then decide if you really want to spend the money on having your belongings put in a Uhaul truck and Vikaned. Give the chemicals a chance to do their work. I realize that that's really, really hard advice to follow when you're stuck feeling unsafe in your own home with nothing to do, but I made some decisions in the heat of the moment that I wouldn't make again.
Again, hang in there. We here all know how very awful it is. But people told me it would get better, and I didn't believe them, and it did.
-
phantom1
junior member
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 65
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Jan 14 2009 14:50:03
#
Login to Send PM
I'm really concerned about my guitar, it;s pretty valuable and I am worried that it could have a problem. Wait or don't wait....
-
It's also REALLY common to get them from neighbors. They can walk over. You can't assume you brought them in. You must involve all adjacent neighbors for this reason: if one is infested and does not identify and solve their problem at the same time, yours will likely remain.
Reply
You must log in to post.
