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Korean bedbugs - dubious treatment plan adopted
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hegemon1
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Joined: Dec '07
Posts: 18
Posted 2 years ago
Wed Dec 26 2007 3:50:12
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Dear Friends,
Thanks for all your advice and tireless posting, even around Christmastime. I sincerely appreciate it. Since there are not really any bedbug specialists in this country I wanted to run the Korean exterminator's anti-BB plan by you guys.
Here is the relevant part of the email I received from the person coordinating the extermination, which is tomorrow:
According to my understanding, the fumigation process involves spraying
a gas into the room which kills bedbugs (not eggs) over a period of time
after the treatment. The treatment itself takes 20 to 30 minutes per
room, followed by a 3 hour period during which you cannot enter the
room. Once you are able to enter, open the windows and door for 30
minutes to ventilate the air.The fumigator has prior experience eliminating bedbugs from the rooms of
other Americans who have brought bugs with them to Korea. The gas is
non-toxic to humans and you do not need to make special preparations for
the fumigation.End quote. Apparently this guy also has experience working w/ US embassy staff, although that cant be verified yet. I called him on the phone and in our broken English/Korean exchange he said that the treatment tomorrow with gas should be "99% effective." Right now its not clear that there will be a 2nd or 3rd treatment, although I'll be lobbying for one. [Recap on situation, the extent of the infestation is that bad bites were happening for 3 weeks in the apartments of 2 people who spent lots of time together, and a piece of a young bug molt was found in 1 more apt of a person who spent time with one of those more heavily infested people (2 other adjacent rooms, including mine, were tested and showed no signs). Our building is half occupied by foreign students and all our rooms will be sprayed (but not the native Koreans' rooms). Im moving out today only taking washed/dried clothes which have been double bagged].
I dont know the name of the gas, but I'll post it when I find out. But so far, what do you guys make of this treatment plan. Does it sound like it will be effective?
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I don't know, hegemon. The fumigation used successfully here is vikane gas. But that takes 24 hours. I am suspicious they may be talking about what's called a bug "bomb" or aerosol fogger, which do not work with bed bugs, can make them worse, causing them to scatter more deeply into the home. We have a FAQ on why bombs don't work. Click FAQs below and then "treatment".
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hegemon1
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Joined: Dec '07
Posts: 18
Posted 2 years ago
Wed Dec 26 2007 9:42:49
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Thanks Nobugsonme. I am not sure what he'll use but I will be here to see it and I'll def report back.
I am pretty sure bug bombs are illegal in Korea, so thankfully I think we can cross that one off the list.
I dont know what to think. I read all these awful stories online and think 'man I'll have this for the next 2 years or 5 months at least.'
Reasons to be optimistic:
1) the exterminator's worked with other Americans, and knowing how fussy we are as a people, he wouldve probably quit by now if he wasnt successful and got harassed by them wanting follow ups. (or maybe they gave up b/c of language barrier).
2) he claims to have done this several times, maybe if he wasn't successful hed stop advertising himself as successful. Pretty much no other guy in Korea claims to handle bed bugs. They contacted a large big-name company here but they were too expensive (and who knows if they really have experience). On the phone this guy was passionate and knowledgeable about the problem, which counts for something especially in a country where you mention the name of these bugs and no one has any idea what they are!
3) he sounded confident on the phone.
4) The infestation seems to be at an early stage only big in 2 rooms.Reasons to be pessimistic:
1) Hes taking only 20 mins per room, so he wont be inspecting for harborages it seems, and I'd guess he wont be spraying whatever he will spray into cracks.
2) In a building w/ 15 rooms (4 floors, 4 per floor, 1 room on the 1st floor uninhabited), hes only spraying the ones with us foreign students, 7 out of 15.
3) We are being told to keep quiet and not tell other residents, though I already told people from 2 rooms but...
4) the native Koreans didnt seem to care... this could be a disaster waiting to happen. There is NO info on bed bugs in Korean online, these guys dont even know what the word ('bin dae') means!! My bed bug girl neighbor looked on the Korean internet and found blogs saying "Theres bugs and I feel so itchy here, Ive had it! Im moving!"
5) The authorities may not request a 2nd treatment, let alone 3rd.Any thoughts?
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hegemon1
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Joined: Dec '07
Posts: 18
Posted 2 years ago
Wed Dec 26 2007 9:45:45
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6) I think I just found a ton of eggs from just randomly peeling back the plastic border where the wall meets the floor - in a totally random place in my room, far from the bed.
doh!
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Please make sure to have the eggs identified by the entomologists who surveyed the rooms, not the PCO. I know you are freaking out but please don't. It's not helpful.
It's useless to discuss this PCO; we don't know what he's using and in any case he's the only game in town, or at least the only solution available to your landlord. Despite his enthusiasm, it does not sound promising, I'll grant you that. Crack and crevice treatments are pretty much how it's done as far as our information goes. And you know by now that follow-up inspections are required. Maybe he has access to different pesticides. It's beyond what I can comment on. (There is a Canadian entomologist/PCO who runs a website and he is a more appropriate source to consult about pesticides and treatment protocols. The site is thebedbugresource.com.)
And it's also useless to explain how short-sighted and wrong these attitudes are, although I have a thought or two about that. I assure you that Americans in Korea are not likely to be the only ones with bedbugs!
Concentrate on your situation. You're going to be okay. And disregard the sad stories of infestations you read here or elsewhere. Some people fight for a long time because they are in circumstances they can't control and we never get a complete picture. It's not that these bugs are invincible.
Please be very careful with your things, now that you have found eggs, if indeed that's what they are, do find that steamer and consider having your new home inspected (as well as your own careful inspection). Just stay vigilant for a few weeks and take precautions but do not overturn your life. This is not a disease!
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nomorebugs
junior member
Joined: Oct '07
Posts: 115
Posted 2 years ago
Wed Dec 26 2007 12:54:20
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Hi,
I think you have to get terms clear, with us, and with the PCO.
Fumigation means using a gas, which is what is not being done here. The building must be cleared out complete to fumigate. The gas is extremely toxic.
It seems like he's just spraying the rooms with a pesticide. This is what is done in the US. Basically you/PCO must lay pesticide everywhere the BBs are or can be. This is very difficult. It's hard to completely detect where they are and they can go everywhere. Most pesticides with a residual (residual killing action) only last 2 weeks, which is about the hatching time for eggs. So you must lay down more residual pesticides to kill the newly hatched bugs (nymphs).If it's all you have, you have to go with it.
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Do you have the capability to post a picture of the eggs that you found behind the baseboard?
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Hi,
Pics from your end would be good but if you need to compare here is a closeup of a bug and egg cluster.
http://www.bed-bugs.co.uk/hirescloseup1.jpg
I will work on more pics for the gallery in the next few days and a new 180mm Macro lens is on my shopping list.
Regards,
David
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hegemon1
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Joined: Dec '07
Posts: 18
Posted 2 years ago
Thu Dec 27 2007 1:00:58
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Hi guys, just to update to those following my story, hopelessnomo, David, and others (thank you!).
I emailed a professor of entomology and he says the CO2 chamber idea only works if you get to a 100% CO2 atmosphere using chemicals that get rid of the oxygen... so that seems hard.
Now, about the treatment today: The guy used Vapona (dichlorvos). After researching it online I found that although its not recommeneded for bed bugs, its very potent. However it will not kill eggs. Do you think that if we got the landlord to flood every room in our building (4 stories, 16 rooms, 1 uninhabited) with Vapona 3 times over 2 week intervals - would that definitively solve the problem?
Any thoughts on that idea or today's Vapona treatment? Will it work well?
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hegemon1
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Joined: Dec '07
Posts: 18
Posted 2 years ago
Thu Dec 27 2007 1:49:53
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Update, we're not sure what the guy used - he told me dichlorvos, and someone else 'deltamethrin'. It was a yellow liquid poured into a metal bowl, which he then lit a fire under, filling the room with a yellowish fog.
What was this mystery treatment?
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hegemon1
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Joined: Dec '07
Posts: 18
Posted 2 years ago
Thu Dec 27 2007 2:02:55
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PS - thanks for the egg photos, I gave them to the parasitologist professor and will let you know what he says.
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Thanks for the update in the other thread. I actually started to get very nervous about it. Someone actually sent me a PM saying it couldn't possibly be that risky. I'm glad it ends with that post! So, not only extremely risky, but not worth the trouble if it won't be effective.
As far as your PCO, Vapona is being looked at here but is not yet labeled for bedbugs as far as I know. Deltamethrin is pretty standard here for bedbugs. Some PCOs have been experimenting with Vapona off-label, hence the interest.
I'll leave the experts to answer your questions, I just wanted to say hi and I'm following and I hope everything works out. So, are you still moving or are you sticking around for a bit?
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hegemon1
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Joined: Dec '07
Posts: 18
Posted 2 years ago
Fri Dec 28 2007 0:48:17
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Thanks... could anyone please comment on Vapona, its effectiveness, whether it will get into mattresses, cracks, etc
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I'm sorry, perhaps the PCOs are on vacation or not around. Or, again, since this is not used here... but I hope they may still say something helpful to you.
How are you doing so far?
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hegemon,
You could try thebedbugresource.com. Run by PCOs, they may be able to talk about vapona, and may reply sooner (even though some of them frequent this site, as 'nomo said, they may not be around during the holidays). -
anyone have an english to korean bed bug prep and treatment instruction sheet ?
my email is joedel@officer.com
I would appreciate any referals or help with this problem.
I am trying to assist a large Korean population and they are never ready for treatment because they dont understand the english document
thank you -
BugsInTO
member
Joined: Aug '08
Posts: 212
Posted 1 year ago
Tue Dec 9 2008 1:23:01
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http://www.toronto.ca/health/pdf/bedbugs_factsheet_korean.pdf
This is from the Toronto Public Health website. It's not the preparation instructions. I don't think they are translating them. But, it's a pretty good general info sheet, at least in the English which is all I can read.
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This is an OLD thread. I am only posting because I referenced it here:
http://bedbugger.com/2009/01/20/korea-claims-it-has-first-bed-bug-case-in-20-years/ -
MickSD
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Joined: Apr '09
Posts: 3
Posted 11 months ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 9:48:51
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Hi, I've just pm'd hegemon1 but in case they are no longer active on this site, I'm wondering if anybody has the contact details for the exterminator they used in Korea? I'm living in Seoul with a confirmed BB problem and keen to get something done.
Cheers
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your host
Joined: Mar '07
Posts: 6,167
Posted 11 months ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 11:19:57
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Hi Mick,
Sorry for your bed bug troubles.
hegemon's last login was 1/08 (you can see this by clicking the "newbite" link under the username.
However, this user's case was apparently treated like the "first bed bug case in Korea in 20 years" and made the press. (We are pretty sure it was the same case, anyway.)Here's an article from the Korea Times (English) about the case. If you have no other leads, you might contact the university entomologist listed there since it appears this academic helped with hegemon's case.
You may also find my analysis here interesting.
We may hope it is good news that hegemon logged in here for about three weeks and then did not come back; I hope this means their problem was eliminated swiftly.
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MickSD
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Joined: Apr '09
Posts: 3
Posted 11 months ago
Sun Apr 19 2009 12:30:41
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Thanks, I'm going to see the guy at the university next week to see if he can identify the bug I found. I'll post how I get on.
Cheers,
M.
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your host
Joined: Mar '07
Posts: 6,167
Posted 11 months ago
Mon Apr 20 2009 13:21:38
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Sounds like a good route to take. Hopefully the rhetoric around bed bugs in Korea has now moved beyond the xenophobia evidenced in the articles I referenced above.
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MickSD
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Joined: Apr '09
Posts: 3
Posted 10 months ago
Tue Apr 28 2009 8:58:35
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Well I had the larvae and eggs examined at the university and turns out I was wrong. The professor was not sure exactly what they are, but they ain't bb's which is a huge relief. So far any chance of having some exotic new species named after me have proved unfounded. Now I suspect I have bought fleas back into my place from my travels either within Korea or elsewhere. Finding the eggs which look similar to bb eggs, combined with the bites I have been getting led me down the deductive road which the professor has now extinguished. Thankfully. The (much) lesser of two evils.
Nobugsonme, thanks for the advice about contacting the professor. It saved me a lot of time, money and sanity.
p.s in relation to the definite documented case in Korea, assuming he was referring to the same one as on this forum, (which it sounds like it was)it remains the only case he has dealt with (or heard of) so far. He referred to it as a singular event. Apparently it all happened and then a year later after he published a paper on it, the newspapers then picked up the story.
Cheers,
M.
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your host
Joined: Mar '07
Posts: 6,167
Posted 10 months ago
Tue Apr 28 2009 10:01:00
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Thanks, Mick. I appreciate you letting us know.
Glad you don't have bed bugs. Probably not a mite either, since the ento would probably have no trouble with that. Hopefully just some fleas.
Good luck!
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