Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums » Introductions
Another Newbie
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Tamales
newbite
Joined: Jul '09
Posts: 20
Posted 4 months ago
Thu Jul 9 2009 10:38:50
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Hi All,
Been battling the damn bugs for about 6 weeks now. The only evidence I've seen are the bites and some blood stains on the encasement I bought after I first discovered the bites. A PCO came to my condo ( I own) and sprayed 10 days ago and still getting bit. Like many of you, I'm living out of plastic bags, vacuuming like a mad woman, washing sheets every single day, dusted DE everywhere, caulked, etc.. My question is, can the BB crawl under your clothes and bite you? I've seen on this site that they usually only bite exposed skin, but I've been covered from head to toe every night and still getting bit on my arms and legs. What gives??
This whole process has been exhausting, frustrating and depressing. It's nice to have this site for support. Thanks all.
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Yes, they can crawl under clothing and bite you.....
Are you talking about a uniform pattern across your body? ....
Any estimates of how many bites that you are receiving on a given night?
Six weeks of infestation, a treatment ten days ago & no actual specimens found ..... Hmmm
Can you describe the blood stains with more detail ....
Are you sure that you are dealing with bed bugs? .... You should try to keep an open mind until you get a positive ID on an actual bug.
You might want to consider utilizing inexpensive passive monitoring systems like BB Alert or Climb up Interceptors to see if you can capture a physical specimen ....
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Tamales
newbite
Joined: Jul '09
Posts: 20
Posted 4 months ago
Thu Jul 9 2009 12:32:55
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They are always in a row or in a circle. Before I was sprayed, I was getting bit every night. After the spraying I've had a few nights where I got no bites, but last night I got bit. A row of 3 on my upper-tricep and 1 on the back of my thigh. I think the most bites I've gotten in one night was 12. I've put plastic pint containers under the legs of my iron bed with DE and alcohol in them. Nothing in the containers. I'm baffled by these little buggers. Don't know where they could be hiding...
I'm fairly certain it is bed bugs since 2 other units in my condo had them last year. I just found this out when I called the condo association to tell them of my problem.
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buggyinsocal
oldtimer
Joined: Jun '08
Posts: 1,130
Posted 4 months ago
Thu Jul 9 2009 13:31:12
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Bed bugs prefer to bite on exposed skin, but if they get hungry enough, clothing won't stop them.
I have to second Doug's suggestion that you use some monitors to make sure you're dealing with bed bugs. Not because of the bite patterns, timing, or location. But because a lot of insects can cause bites or bite like responses, and blood spots can be caused by other things.
When the PCO inspected, did he or she find any evidence of bugs: actual live bugs, eggs, fecal matter, cast skins?
I don't want you to hear that I'm saying you don't have bed bugs. You very well may. But it would suck to be treating for bed bugs if you actually had, say, a carpet beetle infestation, which is handled very differently than a bed bug problem.
Also, DE and alcohol wouldn't be my first choice for filling the plastic containers. Mineral oil works just fine and isn't an inhalation hazard.
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Tamales
newbite
Joined: Jul '09
Posts: 20
Posted 4 months ago
Thu Jul 9 2009 13:59:55
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Thanks for the tips doug and buggy. Do you know where I could get a BB alert? The PCO didn't find anything when he came out because he didn't really do a thorough inspection. Sounds like I need to find someone new.
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PleaseDefaceItems
newbite
Joined: Jul '09
Posts: 5
Posted 4 months ago
Thu Jul 9 2009 17:25:34
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DougSummersMS - 5 hours ago »
Six weeks of infestation, a treatment ten days ago & no actual specimens found ..... HmmmShould we be seeing dead insects?
I have Climb-Ups and check the carpet perimeter and nothing. I'm on the same boat. Six weeks of infestation and two treatments (2 wks apart). The source of the BBs, a "beautiful" picked-from-the-curb dresser, stayed in my basement apt. for 1 wk before I noticed bugs crawling up walls and took action. I bagged EVERYTHING I own. I react to bites, but after encasing my mattress, Climb-ups and the first treatment the biting has stopped.
I do know I still have them living inside my ziploc bags because just a few nights ago I took a contaminated bag to the Packtite and found a live one. Looking back, I wonder whether bagging everything was the best thing to do. But in my case, I think I did ok because better to have them in the bags than wandering off to the rest of the townhouse where my roommates sleep. I really hope I was tasty enough for all of them to stay in my room, but I'm not too hopeful *sigh*. As a monitoring tactic, the roommate and I will be rotating rooms for a while so I can react to any stragglers in the rest of the house.
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