Advice - how to confirm an infestation? « Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums

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Advice - how to confirm an infestation?

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kctarafied

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Posted 2 years ago
Thu Mar 24 2011 10:42:46
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I need some advice on how to identify a bed bug infestation!!

I moved from a bed bug infested apartment into a new one just a couple months ago. Brought with me just the essentials, a newly encased mattress, and items I believed not to be infested.

I was relying on Climb-Up interceptors I placed under my new bed frame (which is entirely metal) to see if I brought any unwelcome visitors with me. So far, no bed bugs have been caught on the interceptors (although it did catch a clothes moth!).

From what I have read, there is no way to tell whether one has bed bugs just through bite marks on the body. There are plenty of biting insects out there, so I had promised myself I wouldn't freak out because of bite marks on my body. (I have gotten a few bug bites since, but there is no way for me to know whether they were actually from bed bugs.)

I am worried that I have bed bugs and the longer I wait, the harder it will be to treat them. But it seems that - if I have an infestation at all - it is a very small one, almost impossible to detect. Do you guys have some other ideas on how to detect a bed bug infestation?

I was thinking of buying a bed bug beacon and leaving it on top of the bed while I'm on vacation. Basically, I need to see a bed bug to confirm that I have an infestation! I have been dealing with this for 6 months now, and I've worried myself sick without ever seeing a single bug. (Although I had found some bed bug eggs on my pillow at my old apartment after an exterminator had inspected my entire apartment and told us he thought we didn't have bed bugs. This is why I feel like I distrust visual inspections as a way to identify an infestation.).

Help please!!
FeelingHopeless

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Posted 2 years ago
Fri Mar 25 2011 14:15:05
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Yeap, I am searching through the forums as well to try and find this answer. There is a fabled "bb infestation scale" on here. But I can't find it using the search terms- BB infestation scale, BB inspection, or how to determine the level of BB

Nobugsonme?? Can you help us out?
Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

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Posted 2 years ago
Fri Mar 25 2011 15:40:17
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http://bedbugger.com/forum/topic/how-we-grade-infestations
Nobugsonme

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Posted 2 years ago
Sat Mar 26 2011 1:45:08
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But I think what kctarafied needs is information on how to detect bed bugs.

See this FAQ on detection and also the FAQ on monitors.
scaredsilly

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Posted 2 years ago
Mon Mar 28 2011 0:08:54
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IF the bugs are harboring in your bed, the interceptors may not be helpful. I had this problem. The bugs have to be harboring somewhere else and need to climb up the interceptor to get to you. The idea of a beacon on top of your bed while you are gone is a great idea.