Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums » Bed Bug Treatment
Need Expert Advice!!!
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tormentedbybbs
junior member
Joined: Feb '10
Posts: 38offline
Posted 3 years ago
Thu Feb 4 2010 1:46:33
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I WISH I would have found this place before I moved and took my bb problem into my new home...I can't believe that I've now infested my friend's home, none of us has a lot of $ to fix this problem, the bbs have now gone from my room to their room, and they're probably on another floor of the house, and I'm crying and ready to put a bullet in my head...sorry for the melodrama, but I just feel incapacitated and unable to move forward and I really need someone's help.
I moved 12/30. I warned my friends I might have an issue with bbs - I was suffering but "dusted" with what I now know to be DE that I found online. During the dusting, no bbs - problem solved, right??? Wrong. Apparently, they were waiting around in my stuff just waiting for their chance. I left 1/2 my stuff in his shed, which was in my bedroom and I thought might not be safe. I washed all my clothes (hot water hot dryer), but brought other stuff in (now it's on the third floor), thinking stupidly that it was "safe" because it was elsewhere in my apartment (yes, I know NOW this was WRONG WRONG WRONG...) Also - until I came here I did NOT know about their ability to be in your shoes - WTF??? On or about 1/20 I woke up with three bites on my face - I went into a panic, and that's when I found this site. I saw the suggestions, especially about waiting to talk to the PCO before doing anything. I'm in NJ, and it seemed that Cooper were the experts. Called and the man was just so dismissive (I know, I know - it's like no big deal to them, and it's like my whole life to me...a complete and total disconnect...) Anyway, I told him I'd been on here, and that I wanted them to come but we really had no $, blah blah blah. He stated I should isolate the bed (that was IT), that they could come but it would likely be around $5000!!!!! OMFG!!! (The house is THREE stories, PLUS basement PLUS attic...) And, of COURSE, there's more - there are FIVE beautiful dogs in this house - who do NOT sleep in dog beds, rather, in people beds, and move around during the night, often sleeping on the couch (sometimes accompanied by a human - no, NOT me!) HOW THE HELL would I isolate???? Added to this, every Friday a family member sleeps over in one of the (five) bedrooms - and I have been absolutely FORBIDDEN to tell her anything about the bbs at all - for fear that her reaction will be worse for us than the bbs...anyway, this means I can't even get her to exercise precautions....OMG - now that I have written this all down I realize it's even worse than I thought...
Unfortunately, after Cooper told me that it would probably be $5000, I completely lost it and have been absolutely paralyzed and unable to do ANYTHING - and today my friend's partner told me he had "bumps" on his arm - OMG the poor man - and it's my fault. That finally spurred me to do SOMETHING - so here I am. I only have $300, and the encasements and Climb Up just for my bed alone will be like $170 - and I am SURE that even with the dogs I should at least try to encase all the three beds, even though that won't help the sofas...and what about the third floor and the stuff I put up there - there's probably a gazillion bbs crawling around trying to get downstairs - OMG - this is why I am paralyzed.
I have read about the alternatives to pesticides (which I am REALLY trying to pursue due to the dogs) - Thermal (and Vikane - but that's a pesticide, isn't it?) sound amazing, but costly (I just can't imagine they are MORE than $5000 - but I guess we're at their mercy...), I saw this Cedarcide stuff, but the doesn't the lack of residual effect make it less effective, and does anyone know anything more about this stuff? Then I saw the DE stuff, but that's what I used before, and it didn't work. Then I saw the alcohol/dish soap/DE thing - does this REALLY work??? But how about the DOGS??!! And the Friday visitor??!! Will anything ever work????
Please, please, please - any information/help/advice/suggestions/directions you can give me will be SO appreciated. Thank you so much for your help.
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your host
Joined: Mar '07
Posts: 13,720offline
Posted 3 years ago
Thu Feb 4 2010 5:21:16
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It sounds like you have a serious problem around the house. They're probably in lots of different places including the shed. Thermal is a good option -- I know it may be expensive, but I would check on how much if I were you. Cooper does thermal. So does AAA Superior. Vikane is also an option. Price multiple companies before making a decision.
I wish I could tell you that I thought CedarCide was going to do it for you, but you're at a stage where people are suffering and it's in multiple rooms, and you really probably need a much quicker solution. Even traditional spray and dust treatments would probably be much more effective, though they would not be my first choice either if you can swing thermal. (The CedarCide review thread talks about what the product is and isn't.)
I am so sorry I don't have a cheap easy solution to suggest.
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tormentedbybbs
junior member
Joined: Feb '10
Posts: 38offline
Posted 3 years ago
Thu Feb 4 2010 9:43:08
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Thanks for you input, Nobugs. [I just realized I stated that I "left half my stuff in his shed, which was my bedroom" I have NO idea what I meant to say (it was very late), but in actuality I left half my stuff in the shed, and brought the rest in the house.] SO - "Big problem and expensive to fix" - I was afraid that's what I would end up hearing. I hadn't heard of AAA, but I guess I'll start the process. Unfortunately, I don't think any of us is in a position to pay for this treatment, so we may have no other alternative but to wait. In any case, do you think that isolating the bed will do anything at all, or is it just an exercise in futility?
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buggyinsocal
oldtimer
Joined: Jun '08
Posts: 2,440offline
Posted 3 years ago
Thu Feb 4 2010 23:40:27
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Isolating the bed is basically a means of allowing people who have trouble sleeping with the thought of being food for the bugs to get some sleep during the treatments that take time to work.
If you don't freak out at being bed bug bait, there's no need to isolate, and in some cases, isolation might make the treatment take longer or increase the chance of reinfestation. (For example, if there are bed bugs inside the box spring or mattress, you have to keep the encasement on until the bugs inside it die of starvation. We know that this can take up to 18 months. If that encasement gets torn in that time, you can be reinfested.)
I know it's hard, but take a deep breath. This will get better. You absolutely do not believe this right now; I know because people told me that when I was still in the initial panic mode, but time passed, I got treatment, and the old timers who gave me advice were right.
Isolation, steam, DE, residuals, thermal, vikane--all of these are tools in the arsenal against bed bugs. Not everyone needs--or even should use--all of them. Exactly what combo you will need depends a lot on the problem in the particular structure and the resources available in your area and what you can afford.
Single-treatment options like thermal and vikane can be very quick and effective. They tend to cost more up front, but it's always a good idea to figure out the total cost. For example, with thermal or vikane, there would be NO NEED for encasements at all. Laundering costs might also be reduced.
On the other hand, with Vikane--all the people in the house and all the pets--would have to live somewhere else for several days, so you'd need to take those costs into account too.
And, again, this will get better. It really, really will.
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venus885
newbite
Joined: Nov '10
Posts: 2offline
Posted 2 years ago
Thu Nov 11 2010 2:17:26
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When I treated my small house, I used the RID brand lice spray in each area that I isolated. It was less costly, but it does take time. You have to keep spraying if you don't have the money for the pros. My dog couldn't go into the room for 12 hours at least after I did my spraying every 3 days. (That was my rule, just to keep her safe.)
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