Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums » Introductions
John from Kentucky
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JOHNHATESBB
newbite
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 10
Posted 1 year ago
Mon Jan 5 2009 23:55:12
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To All:
I just discovered this forum and I think it's great. My name is John and I am from Louisville, KY. I have not met anyone who has had bed bugs. I first found them in the middle of October 2008. I am still puzzled as to how I got them. I live in a new home built October 2007. I am a night person and work 2nd shift so I am usually up late. I was sitting on the couch around 3 or 4 am with my boyfriend and he saw a bug run across my shirt. I killed it and thought nothing of it. A few moments later he found one on him. We had watched a show about Bedbugs on TV a month or so prior and jokingly said "it's a bedbug!" We googled it and the pictures shown matched what we found. He then inspected the couch and the seems and found them running throughtout. We threw it out in the front yard. After looking better at the couch in the front yard we found eggs, fecal matter, nymphs, and adults running around and a few blood stain spots. We looked through the mattress but did not see anything. My neighbor asked why we were throwing the couch out and I replied "Don't ask." Because of embarrasment I had a friend bring a truck over and we threw it in a dumpster in the middle of the night. I went back to look the next night and it was gone.
The next day at work Jayson calls me to tell me he found them in the bed on the box springs. I am an OCD kinda guy who flips over the house not being neat. LOL. I had a nervous breakdown at work when he told me that. "I've been sleeping in that bed while those bugs eat me alive" is what I kept thinking. All of this also happend right after a best friend died on Oct 3rd. I flipped out. We called a pest control to professional treat the house. Because the infestation was not that bad we ended up keeping the box springs and mattress. I had them steamed cleaned as well as the entire house. Did laundry in hot water til my fingers were RAW. My pest control has been coming weekly since. They also placed glue traps under the beds and it was catching 1 a week until about 3 weeks ago. I have not found one in 3 weeks but I am still finding bites on me. They are scheduled to be back this Wednesday. We bought a new living room suite and now am debating the covers for the mattress and box springs. I hate these bugs and cannot wait until we get the all clear. I am wondering tho, would it be possible to have got them from a rental house that sits about 30 feet from mine? I read online they will travel up to 100 feet to find their prey. I also had a lot of guests over during the beginning of October due to my friend's funeral. Any ideas or comments?Thanks,
John
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Forget trying to figure out how you got them, could have come from anywhere... Just be cautions of where you go in the future. I would not purchase anything new until this is at least 3 months past you. I'm sorry but the new furniture was a mistake. Also buy the new encasements for the mattresses and box springs asap. Steam is great but there is nothing protecting it at the moment. If a female somehow manages to make it to the bed you can have ground zero all over again. Buy Protect-A-Bed encasements and make sure you measure properly. Good luck!
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Northern Kentucky has quite a problem. Lexington and Frankfort have both been in the news with bed bugs. But I would assume they are spreading everywhere in the state to a degree and you could have gotten them anywhere.
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JOHNHATESBB
newbite
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 10
Posted 1 year ago
Tue Jan 6 2009 0:17:01
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KillerQueen,
Thank you for the response. That's what I thought about the new furniture but our pest control said it would be fine and we went ahead and had it delivered. I have had them treat the couches and have not found them in it. Any ideas on how to keep them safe? It's cold in Kentucky. I could sit them out in the garage for a while. I will buy the encasements. Should the mattresses be treated before putting them in there?
Thanks,
John
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JOHNHATESBB
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Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 10
Posted 1 year ago
Tue Jan 6 2009 0:23:02
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Yeah, I think it is pointless to worry about where they came from. Too many possibilities. I am wondering tho, since I have treated my home, would they run to a neighbor's home and should I tell my neighbors that I have had them?
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I always treat the inside of the box spring (under the batting).. Let it dry and then encase them. Before encasing them you or the PCO can treat the outer surfaces of them with a product labeled for such application. You can also re-steam the out portions and treat the inner box spring with a residual, let it dry and encase them.
The furniture in the garage is also risky. How long has it been in the house? Since you said you worked second shift and found them originally there.. I would be careful and inspect them again ...It could be tricky to place them in the garage at this time. Steam the surfaces of them and treat the undersides and areas not exposed to the touch.
MMM I'm confused.. Didn’t read your thread again. Did you do steaming? Or am I mixed up with another post?
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JOHNHATESBB
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Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 10
Posted 1 year ago
Tue Jan 6 2009 0:38:20
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Yes, I have already steamed and the new couches are black leather. They have been in the house for 2 months now. The pest control had treated twice and told us to have the furniture delivered.
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If its in the house that long I would keep it where it is. Just keep inspecting
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JOHNHATESBB
newbite
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 10
Posted 1 year ago
Tue Jan 6 2009 3:52:38
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What product do you recommend for self use?
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buggyinsocal
oldtimer
Joined: Jun '08
Posts: 1,249
Posted 1 year ago
Tue Jan 6 2009 12:08:53
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John,
I'm sorry to have to welcome you to our community.
As others have said, I wouldn't waste too much energy trying to figure out exactly where they came from. It's a natural reaction, and if you suspect they came from anywhere that might lead you to reinfest, sure, figure out out the source. Unfortunately because of the nature of the bugs, figuring that out with any certainty is very hard to do. So unless you think they are coming from your places of work, I would give up on that. I know it's frustrating--even six months out from my infestation all I can think is that hands down the worst part isn't the money (although that sucks a lot), it's the not knowing part. There's so much that you cant know for sure that it's really frustrating. They could have come from a place next door, but they could have come from a hitchiker on one of your guests too. Remember that, like you and me when I discovered my infestation, a lot of us don't even know they exist. On top of that, some research shows that as many as 70% of people don't react to the bites, so it's possible that a guest had them and didn't realize because so many people don't react and don't know that they exist.
Which is why I say you might not be able to track down where they came from.
As for the still finding bites on you, remember that bites can appear as late as 9 days after you've been bitten, and some people become sensitive to the stuff that makes up bugs' exoskeletons and so old bites flare up after coming into contact with dead bugs. In other words, it may be hard to tell whether your current bites are 100% definitely new bites that happened recently. Keep in mind that some people find an increase in bug activity after treatment. the rule of thumb is that if you're seeing a drop off overall in bug activity after each treatment, then you're probably headed in the right direction.
Lastly, before you do *any* self treatment at all, talk to your PCO. Only your particular PCO knows the full details of the treatment at your place, and some self-treatment options can undo the work of the PCO. (For example, if your PCO is using residual sprays and you go in and steam the residuals off the items that were treated, you can lessen the effectiveness of your treatment even though you haven't used any chemicals. Using chemicals when your PCO is using chemicals is even more complicated because of the way that different ones interact with others.) Ask your PCO for a specific list of what's been used where and ask him or her what you can do to support treatment. If your PCO says not to put anything else down, don't put anything else down. That will maximize the effectiveness of your treatment.
Hang in there and let us know how things go.
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schwa 2112
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Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 2
Posted 1 year ago
Tue Jan 6 2009 21:23:07
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I also live in Louisville. Found out that the apt I am renting has bed bugs. Landlord is refusing to pay because she states its my fault. I have called lexington and they agree it is the landlord's responsibility. The PCO is naturally not calling it either way. Has the Louisville health dept been of any help?
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JOHNHATESBB
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Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 10
Posted 1 year ago
Fri Jan 9 2009 2:25:43
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buggyinsocial;
Thanks for the response. My PCO came yesterday and couldn't find any! This makes 3-4 weeks since our last find. They also put flat glue traps everywhere under the bed and up in the box springs to try and trap a live one. That's how I found the last few. I took pictures of them but don't know how to show them on here. I hope they stay empty! I have not noticed any new bites in the last week or so. For some reason only when I am at home I feel like bugs are crawling on me but I never see any. I think it's all in my head. I am going to wait on the self treatment as I have a warranty through my OPC. Once they have declared the all clear I have 30 days from there. They didn't this last time due to the bite marks since the last treatment. Next treatment I hope will be the all clear.
schwa 2112;
I have not contacted the local heath department. I am the home owener therefore responsible for the infestation. I agree that your landlord is responsible. I was wondering tho if I should report it to the Heath Dept tho so they could keep an eye on the issue. From what my PCO has said there are a lot of hotels dealing with the issue. -
fearless fighter
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Joined: Dec '08
Posts: 15
Posted 1 year ago
Fri Jan 9 2009 3:06:22
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I have a new home as well and had a "friend" who was having a hard time come and stay with me.Well, he brought a few unwelcome guests with him. 76 days he stayed in my house,I found 2 in my bed and thought they were ticks cus I have pets.I asked him if he had noticed any bites or any bugs in his room.He said "no".I told him I was gonna steam clean the carpets and wanted to wash all the blankets and such.He said he would pull them off the bed for me the next day.The following day he said I need to talk to you about something in my room.Well I went in and lo and behold the bed was moving! It was like an orgy of BB's and bloody matter.He had told me several weeks earlier that he was anemic and was having to take iron meds.I come to find out via the internet that these little bugs can feed on you so much that you can become anemic.He paid for the 1st PCO to come out,moved and I haven't heard from him
at all! I believe that at some point he had to have seen them and was in denial about it.Now I'm having to fight to have my home back.I don't want these BB's to take over.Good luck to you.Please keep in touch with me.I only had read about people who are in Apts that have BB's and not to many home owners.I don't know if I should have the attic treated and pull all the carpet and replace with pergo.Or wait till I have more treatments to my home.I'm on #2 treatment as of Monday. -
JOHNHATESBB
newbite
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 10
Posted 1 year ago
Tue Jan 13 2009 1:43:45
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fearless fighter;
The orgy of Bedbugs sounds funny but is horrifying! This is our first home ever and one year after buying it we did not want to experience this. I had a friend spend time here during the few months prior to finding them who was from Florida. She would stay a night here and there. I also had a long time old friend come over with her two boys one night. When I went to pick them up, she was telling me about a friend who had just donated a lot of used furniture to her. Her boys had been sleeping on mattresses on the floor. When they came over I noticed that their legs were covered in red bites but didn't think aanything of it because it was late summer and they were kids. I have read that firewood carries BBs and I bought a firepit over the summer. There is a rental property next door that was evicted over the summer. They loaded 2 large dumpsters full of trash. LOL, all of these things have went through my head and then some.
When this first occured (mid Oct) I pulled up the carpet edges and did not find anything. I have not looked in the attic but it has crossed my mind. I know when this first happens it freaks you out and you want them gone immediately. This does not happen unless you burn the place down. LOL which has also gone through my mind. I wish you patience and keep the treatments going. -
JOHNHATESBB
newbite
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 10
Posted 1 year ago
Tue Jan 13 2009 1:52:38
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I wanted to share this also. To make light of the subject. Someone at work gave me one of these and I think everyone that has had experience with BBs should get one.
Check out the following link! They make great gag gifts.
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JOHNHATESBB
newbite
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 10
Posted 1 year ago
Sat Jan 31 2009 23:13:43
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Lastest update: My OPC has come again and still no bed bugs! I still have glue traps everywhere and they haven't caught any in over a month now!! I hope and pray there are gone!
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dottie
junior member
Joined: Oct '08
Posts: 71
Posted 1 year ago
Sat Jan 31 2009 23:21:37
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Oh good Lord. A pink plush bed bug!
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denverbugfighter
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Joined: May '09
Posts: 11
Posted 10 months ago
Fri May 8 2009 22:44:53
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Hey what's up buddy? This is an old post, but if you're still fighting them then this may help. Otherwise, it may at least help someone else. I can't explain why you have them, but I can give you two FACTS. FACT: though associated with dirtiness, bedbugs have nothing to do with that. Though, reducing clutter helps a lot for fighting them. However, it has nothing to do with getting them.
FACT: Bedbugs are known to travel on pigeons, yes, pigeons. I've visited where you are from, but can't remember if I've seen a pigeon there. If you have them hanging around your house (fireplace?) this could be your answer.I just want to to also add, I know having them can be an embarrassment to you for reasons I stated above, ie, people think you're a dirty person. But, you should still dispose of your furniture properly. I live in such a huge complex that when I threw my stuff away I wrote, "DO NOT TAKE. BED BUG INFESTED", right on it in permanent marker. If you're living in a house, or rural area, take it out in the middle of the night and cut the hell out of it. I mean, shred it! Pretend you really needed a couch and if you looked at this one, you'd still pass. This way, no one will take it and you're not exposed to being a bedbug guy. I write good luck, but I hope you're free of them by now. Later
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