Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums » Tools/ideas for fighting bed bugs
Dryer testing theory confirmed.
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spideyjg
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Posted 12 months ago
Wed Nov 26 2008 23:23:14
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Just did my own dryer tests that I described before. Stopped a load of clothes, opened the door, jammed an instant read thermometer deep into the clothes, shut the door, and gave it 2 minutes.
This was halfway through the cycle BTW.
158F so that dryer is a confirmed BB death chamber.
At the end of the cycle nearly 170F
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v186/spideyjg/BBs/dryer002.jpg
Unloaded, across the lot, and up the stairs the temp was still near 130F
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v186/spideyjg/BBs/dryer002.jpg
These clothes would be baggable and considered BB free.
Jim
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wigginonbugs
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Joined: Sep '08
Posts: 48
Posted 12 months ago
Thu Nov 27 2008 0:00:36
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Right on! Half the time the dryers at this stupid place don't even get hot enough to dry your clothes- let alone kill BB's!! Argh!!
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myLifeinZiplocs
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Posts: 84
Posted 11 months ago
Thu Nov 27 2008 1:43:41
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you know, I have taken clothes out of sealed ziplocs DAYS later and could swear that they were still warm. I put them directly from the dryer into the bags and seal them. I don't know if that is possible though. But I could swear clothes I put on from inside the bags are still warm sometimes.
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here is one guy in my building that has had the vast majority of his clothing sealed up in bags since this last March. He only leaves out just what he thinks he will need as clothing for a week.
Bed bugs really screw up peoples lives.
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Itchy-Scratchy
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Posted 11 months ago
Thu Nov 27 2008 17:41:06
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What a timely post, as I am currently waiting for my bedding to come out of the dryer.
Mylife, I have found the same thing : if I ziploc my clothes immediately from the dryer, they retain the heat.
Oooo, I hope there are a bunch of BBs being SCORCHED to death right now in our laundry room. DIE you BBs, DIE!!
(As you can probably tell, I've had a very bad visit from the PCO today and feeling very malevalent today ...*sigh*)
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sereneseek
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Posted 11 months ago
Thu Dec 4 2008 0:49:20
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I haven't tried a thermometer yet, but our dryer literally scorched my new duvet cover.
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BugsInTO
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Posts: 197
Posted 11 months ago
Thu Dec 4 2008 8:58:13
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Sereneseek - Be careful not to overload the dryer. Maybe take the duvet to a laundromat for an extra large dryer.
We scorched a handmade family quilt by accident. My husband had overloaded the dryer so that the contents couldn't tumble properly, so one part of the quilt was forced up against the hot air source. The dryer alarm tripped and fortunately we didn't have a fire. But, very sad about the quilt.
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rgrobste
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Joined: Dec '08
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Posted 11 months ago
Thu Dec 4 2008 14:17:10
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awesome insight. quick question: will this dryer method work with things like carpets, stuffed animals, pillows etc? is it necessary to wash first, or will the blast of heat do the trick?
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aussiebug
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Posted 11 months ago
Tue Dec 9 2008 22:15:35
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I just discovered we have a special rack that came with our dryer it sits still inside while the drum rotates, it's for putting shoes in so guess what everything that can go on this and be will be getting zapped at high heat.
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gottagetemout
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Posted 11 months ago
Fri Dec 12 2008 15:51:23
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Being that I just recently purchased Dryel and gallons of detergent and bleach to prepare for an exciting weekend laundering, do you think that laundrymat dryers get up to the same temperatures as personal, home washing/drying machines?
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Overwhelmed
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Posted 11 months ago
Fri Dec 12 2008 16:54:05
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gottagetemout - 59 minutes ago »
Being that I just recently purchased Dryel and gallons of detergent and bleach to prepare for an exciting weekend laundering, do you think that laundrymat dryers get up to the same temperatures as personal, home washing/drying machines?The dryers in my building (which are the same as laundromat dryers) get up to more than sufficient temperatures. I think a lot of dryers got a lot hotter than is strictly necessary. If you're worried you can always pause the dryer mid-cycle, stick a thermometer in there for a couple minutes, and then check the temperature before restarting the cycle.
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spideyjg
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Posted 11 months ago
Fri Dec 12 2008 17:04:18
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gottagetemout - 1 hour ago »
Being that I just recently purchased Dryel and gallons of detergent and bleach to prepare for an exciting weekend laundering, do you think that laundrymat dryers get up to the same temperatures as personal, home washing/drying machines?You will have to measure to be sure on any dryer. Some may pass, some may fail in any laundromat.
Jim
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surrounded
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Posted 11 months ago
Sat Dec 13 2008 19:10:15
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the dryers at my local laundromat get phenomenally hot. I have some pants with metal on them and i burned my had getting them out of the dryer.
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gottagetemout
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Joined: Dec '08
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Posted 11 months ago
Sat Dec 13 2008 22:10:36
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So I took your advice and bought a thermometer. The heat at the local laundrymat measured the heat measured 130 degrees. I hope this is sufficient (I heard that the bbs can't survive heat past 113 degrees). I also used Dryel and found that the temperature inside the bag doesn't get quite as hot (only about 120 degrees) as just drying clothes alone. Round two tomorrow. Thanks for the advice.
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spideyjg
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Posted 10 months ago
Mon Jan 5 2009 1:02:38
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Whoops second pic up top was wrong. Here it the correct one....
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v186/spideyjg/BBs/dryer008.jpg
Thermometers had been removed and cooling in my pocket during transport. This was a re- measurement.
Jim
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eatenalivenh
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Joined: Dec '08
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Posted 10 months ago
Mon Jan 5 2009 1:38:45
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Thank You! I will need to get a thermometer to be 100% sure but I think that my dryer should get hot enough. I will bring the big items to the laundromat so that there is pelnty of room but if I do not overload I think I can do most of this at home. That you in advance for saving me a ton of $!!
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kpabarue
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Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 49
Posted 9 months ago
Sat Jan 31 2009 19:38:05
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Joy of joys! I purchased an insta-read thermometer this afternoon just for clarity of mind. I've been washing/drying clothes intensely for 2 months now, but I wanted to make sure it was actually doing something. This evening I took my sheets and blankets over to the laundromat. And, after half an hour, stuck it into the load (to be fair, it was a light load, and the cloth was very thin). After waiting 3 minutes, it read 150 degrees! Hooray! I also stuck it in the bag I carried the sheets home in, and, despite the FREEZING weather in NY, when I got home, it read 140 degrees! I think I'm in love with this thermometer. I'm going to try it on heavier items tomorrow.
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spideyjg
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Joined: Jul '08
Posts: 1,405
Posted 9 months ago
Sat Jan 31 2009 23:54:28
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Isn't it reassuring to know that the temps are lethal?
Jim
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buggedoutinNJ
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Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 10
Posted 2 months ago
Wed Sep 2 2009 1:39:01
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gottagetemout - 8 months ago »
So I took your advice and bought a thermometer. The heat at the local laundrymat measured the heat measured 130 degrees. I hope this is sufficient (I heard that the bbs can't survive heat past 113 degrees). I also used Dryel and found that the temperature inside the bag doesn't get quite as hot (only about 120 degrees) as just drying clothes alone. Round two tomorrow. Thanks for the advice.Thought I'd bring this topic back up since the b/f purchased some Dryel for home dry cleaning. The idea was t save us some money on dry cleanable garments. Apparently, the question I had about whether or not it works was answered right on the package:
From Caution Statements:
"DRYEL will not remove dust, dirt or lint. It will not kill moths, dust mites, carpet beetles, eggs or larvae."If it's not effective in killing a mere dust mite, I'm thinking that there is no way it can kill bedbugs. It also specifically states that it will not kill eggs (not sure what kind they refer to, but still).
So this warning is enough to convince me not to trust home dry cleaning with Dryel or any product like it.
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