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Dare I Say It? I Think We Finally Got Rid Of 'Em
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makesmenuts
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Joined: Aug '11
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Posted 1 year ago
Wed Mar 21 2012 20:13:26
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I haven't been around for a while, but I wanted to stop in to give hope to fellow BB victims who think the ordeal will never be over. I felt that way last summer, especially because we did many wrong things in our initial panic that spread them farther around the house.
Now, dare I even say it, I think they're finally gone. I can't help but worry about the couch in the back of my mind, but it's been months since my last confirmed bite so I'm daring to let myself hope.
We managed to do it on our own, although I don't recommend that. We had animals it would be hard to move out of the house, combined with trouble finding a competent PCO in our area. The first one we had out didn't think we had BBs because he found none in his inspection, yet I found one in an obvious spot on the mattress right after he left.
Our main infestation areas were two bedrooms and the couch in the family room. We were able to close off one bedroom from the animals, and I believe it was the site of the original infestation, so we treated it with very, very, very carefully selected chemicals multiple times. We had driven the BBs behind the baseboards in there, so it was a challenge, but we managed to find and eliminate them with the help of our electronic BB detector.
The other bedroom & couch were treated with a combination of natural contact killer, DE, and obsessive vacuuming. It was frustrating because I'd go a while without a bite, then boom, I'd get one or catch a BB in the act. Now I think our research (with many thanks to this site) and diligence has paid off.
For others in a panic right now, I'm happy to say there's hope. If you find a competent PCO, you'll be BB free more quickly than we were, especially if they can treat your entire home. I swear by DE, too, although you have to keep it very light. It's a horrific experience, but you CAN reclaim your home from the bloodsuckers.
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theyareoutthere
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Joined: Sep '11
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Posted 1 year ago
Wed Mar 21 2012 20:36:08
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Congrats! A sort of dumb question for you or one of the experts here: when BBs go behind baseboards, do you have to pull out baseboards from wall to do DE? I've seen that in videos and wondered if you have to buy new ones...just curiosity..so don't worry about answering.
Congrats again!
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your host
Joined: Mar '07
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Posted 1 year ago
Wed Mar 21 2012 20:42:56
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Thanks for letting us know, makesmenuts!
Good luck to you.
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makesmenuts
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Joined: Aug '11
Posts: 149offline
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Mar 21 2012 22:00:48
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Speaking strictly as a non-professional, we did not remove the baseboards. We used the BB detector to find the major concentrations (most of them had just moved behind the boards in the same spots where they previously had their biggest harborages on the bed & furniture) and used chemical treatments on the baseboards. In between, we kept a dusting of DE around the boards and in a circle around the room so they'd have to cross it to come out and feed.
I don't think there would be any benefit in removed the boards to lay the DE, as long as they'd have to cross it when they come out to get blood. We still keep DE up there now around the baseboards, just as a precaution.
theyareoutthere - 1 hour ago »
Congrats! A sort of dumb question for you or one of the experts here: when BBs go behind baseboards, do you have to pull out baseboards from wall to do DE? I've seen that in videos and wondered if you have to buy new ones...just curiosity..so don't worry about answering.
Congrats again! -
oldtimer
Joined: Nov '11
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Posted 1 year ago
Wed Mar 21 2012 22:27:39
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There are a number of techniques which may be used to successfully treat in tight places such as behind a baseboard.
For the most part, we're trying to access the harbogage areas whilst keeping potential damage to a minimum.
For example; baseboard molding may be juxtapositioned or moved for treatment pruposes using suitable pry bars or other tools and then replaced. Some application equipment is fashioned to allow treatment into tight cracks & crevices as well.
Hope this helps ! pb
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killdienow
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Joined: Jan '12
Posts: 69offline
Posted 1 year ago
Wed Mar 21 2012 22:57:42
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what were the "wrong" things you did that made them spread and whats an electronic bb detector!
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makesmenuts
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Joined: Aug '11
Posts: 149offline
Posted 1 year ago
Thu Mar 22 2012 16:25:23
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The main wrong things we did were ripping everything apart in a panic (furniture, beds, etc.), which sent the bugs running, going on a spray frenzy of Rest Easy (a contact killer which did kill many, but the ones you don't hit directly with it just flee and spread), and then moving into a different room for sleeping. The main damage caused by that was spreading them into areas which weren't originally infested. Fortunately, we did lots of research when we calmed down and were able to do prompt damage control.
We used an electronic BB detector that measures CO. People here report mixed results with detectors, but it helped us find the behind-baseboard harborages, as well as BBs in the couch and bed that we would have otherwise missed. It picks up your breath, so it takes some time to learn how to use it without setting it off with false positives.
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