Paranoia is a beautiful thing. « Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums

Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums » Detection / Identification of bed bugs

Paranoia is a beautiful thing.

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RottenBugs

newbite
Joined: Jun '09
Posts: 2

Posted 4 months ago
Fri Jun 19 2009 5:48:05
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I live in a city where bedbugs are a common issue it seems, especially in large scale apartment buildings. I have never had them.

I hate laundromats with a passion, but yesterday I had absolutely no choice but to use one. I'm scared to death of pests, so I inspected all the surfaces my clothes touched, including the insides of the washers and dryers, the baskets I used, the counters, etc. My clothes came into the 'mat in blue bags, which I threw out and put them in clean bags once they were clean. The bags touched the floor, but the clothes did not. I didn't see anything that looked like bedbugs, or bug anything. I washed most of my clothes on warm with cold rinse, except whites which I washed on hot, and everything except a small handful of heat-sensitive stuff when in the dryer for 25-30 minutes. I'm kicking myself over using the laundromat baskets, but I DID inspect the inside of them for anything.

I also went out to the park yesterday, where I know I got eaten by mosquitos.

I woke up this morning, and scratched an itchy-ish spot which quickly rose up into a bump. . It is "soft" like a mosquito bite, turns white if I squeeze at the skin around it, and aside from the initial itchyness, is not bothering me at all. It doesn't appear red, maybe a tiny bit pink.

I would gladly call this a skeeter bite except for the fact that it's on my side, under my arm, where I most definitely was covered with a shirt yesterday while I was out. The shirt was tight enough that I can't see a fly flying up or into the shirt, but the material's not super thick.

Can mosquitos bite through clothing? (That seems like a stupid question, but that is the only way a mosquito could have bitten me there) Does that even sound like a bed bug bite? I've heard they're usually red and hard and definitely itchy. How common is it to pick up bed bugs at a laundromat? If I had, could an egg say, have hatched and bitten me within less than 24 hours? I found no blood specks on my sheets, or inside my nightgown, and found nothing around my mattress, but I am freaking out imaginging I brought an egg home that hatched and is now going to infest my apartment and I'm halfway to setting fire to my bed. Sadly one of the things I washed was my afghan that goes on my bed--it's crocheted, so there's a ton of places a bug could probably hide..but not a full-grown adult. I looked it over very thoroughly before putting it back on my bed (and it was one of the things that went in the dryer, so it was subjected to a fair bit of heat for about 25 minutes).

I guess I'm looking for reassurance, or the go-ahead to set fire to everything I own. *sigh*

(I know you don't actually have to set fire to things.)
Munched

newbite
Joined: Jun '09
Posts: 26

Posted 4 months ago
Fri Jun 19 2009 12:44:20
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Yes, burn it. Burn it all. It's the only way to be sure.

Kidding.

Here in the Northwest we have lots of mosquitoes and yes, they can definitely bite you through your clothing. In fact, they are known for it. A tight shirt makes their job even easier, since there is less distance between the fabric and your skin.

I've been dealing with my first bed bug infestation and bed bug bites react almost exactly the same as mosquito bites on my body. The only distinction with bed bugs is that they have the tendency (not always) to bite in a row of two or three, whereas a mosquito will only bite you once so the pattern tends to be more even, although an exposed patch of skin may see heavier attention.
lil_bit_obsessed

senior member
Joined: Dec '07
Posts: 501

Posted 4 months ago
Fri Jun 19 2009 14:42:32
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i agree with munched. i watched a mosquito land on my knee yesterday and bite me through yoga pants. talk about itchy! so they definately can, especially if the material is thin.
RottenBugs

newbite
Joined: Jun '09
Posts: 2

Posted 4 months ago
Fri Jun 19 2009 21:44:51
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So...I have seen no bedbugs, was very cautious about not getting any bedbugs, have seen no signs of bedbugs, and basically have an itchy bite mark that seems to be a mosquito bite and makes perfect sense because I have several mosquito bites in other places due to my stupid constant forgetting of bug spray.

... basically, I am paranoid, probably 100% fine, and can chill?
natalie

newbite
Joined: May '09
Posts: 13

Posted 4 months ago
Tue Jun 30 2009 13:18:38
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To me, there is a definite distinction between bed bug bites and mosquito bites. Mosquito bites itch more, and have a point of entry. Bed bug bites usually do not itch me (though I know some people get terribly itchy from them) and they are perfectly flat and are at least two in a row.
Emmm

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Joined: Mar '09
Posts: 219

Posted 4 months ago
Tue Jun 30 2009 13:31:11
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Well, I asked about mosquitos not long ago and was ignored. But I was having issures with potential mozzie bites this weekend that freaked me out, primarily because two were on one foot (though not particularly close together). But while I can't be 100% sure they were mosquito bites, I had to look at some facts to let it go. My roommate was also bitten and our third companion said he saw tonnes of mosquitos flying low to the ground of our porch. While bed bug bites look exactly the same, they also had a burning itch, very intense itch that wouldn't go away, while mosquito bites for me will itch and itch, but will subside after scratching for a bit. The other thing being that mosquito bites on me would be itchy again after some dormancy period hours or a day later. My bed bug bites itched like mad for maybe a day tops, more like a few hours, and then just stopped.

We actually HAD an infestation that I've been grappling with accepting we might be over. It's tough to let that paranoia go. In your case, you were very careful, AND you were out and about before your bite. So while no one can say with 100% certainty you're fine, you can probably relax. Because your mind is open to this, you can keep watch for further signs or bites (this site has FAQs on what to watch for), but don't obsess over it. You'll see a sign in everything. (That pimple-feeling mark on my back itched when my shirt tickled it-- BED BUG BITE! OMG!)