Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums » Bed bug pest control firms (PCOs), Bed bug k9s, etc.
PCO in San Francisco area?
(15 posts)-
fed_up
newbite
Joined: Mar '09
Posts: 22offline
Posted 4 years ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 3:02:30
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After cleaning up, moving everything away from the walls and having no bites for over two weeks, I've had to face facts that the little ... bugs are still here. Of course I knew they were, I was just avoiding the inevitable argument with my father who will blame me for all of this even though it's not my fault.
So... know any reliable PCO's in the greater San Francisco area? I'd like my life back, please.
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fed_up
newbite
Joined: Mar '09
Posts: 22offline
Posted 4 years ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 3:15:07
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Also, any feedback on the use of orange oil? I'm wondering if these people might be able to help:
http://www.planetorangetermite.com/
I read here that the d-Limonene in orange oil works and I assume that's what they use.
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oldtimer
Joined: May '07
Posts: 1,969offline
Posted 4 years ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 8:39:59
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Fed Up
Try Luis at Pestec. Really sharp PCO
They have a team that specializes in bed bug eradication and have experienced K9 handlers.
Pestec Headquarters 4221 Mission St. San Francisco, CA 94112. Office: (415) 587-6817
I befriended Luis when he came to Florida & acquired LadyBug from us.
Luis has won awards for innovations in IPM & specializes in cutting edge green technology.
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oldtimer
Joined: May '07
Posts: 1,969offline
Posted 4 years ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 8:59:39
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Fed Up
I looked at the Planet Orange website, but I only see references to termite eradication.
Some readers have reported that Murphy's Oil Soap works as a contact killer, but I haven't tried it personally. I am not familiar with the method of action for citrus oil.
The trick is getting these products to make direct contact with bed bugs that are hiding in inaccessible areas.
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your host
Joined: Mar '07
Posts: 13,692offline
Posted 4 years ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 12:05:06
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Pestec has got a lot of press and seem to know what they're doing (based on media).
There may be a few San Francisco PCOs discussed in these threads (you can also get to by clicking the San Francisco tag at top).
Unfortunately, not a lot of Bay Area folks have come in and told us who they used.
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fed_up
newbite
Joined: Mar '09
Posts: 22offline
Posted 4 years ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 14:33:59
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Thanks for the info, I'll check them both out today and will definitely post results here later.
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fed_up
newbite
Joined: Mar '09
Posts: 22offline
Posted 4 years ago
Tue Apr 14 2009 13:45:05
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Called Pestec and they were very nice on the phone. I called Monday to ask questions and Tuesday (today) to make an appointment for an inspection. Each time I got someone who was friendly, polite and helpful to talk to me.
They are sending Latte over tomorrow afternoon to sniff around. I'll update this thread after the inspection. Right now I'm going over the preparation email they just sent me. Fingers crossed for a good outcome!
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fed_up
newbite
Joined: Mar '09
Posts: 22offline
Posted 4 years ago
Wed Apr 15 2009 20:18:56
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Post inspection... Morgan and Latte were great, unfortunately we have so many pets in the house that Latte had to stay in her carrier and couldn't sniff around as there were too many distracting smells. She sat patiently for an hour while Morgan did the search, which was pretty extensive.
The verdict so far: My bedroom is "heavily" infested. This was not what I wanted to hear, but just this morning I found two live bugs while cleaning so I suspected it was pretty bad. The adjoining rooms don't show any signs of bugs at this point, but one live one was found on the living room sofa where my son has been sleeping. It's possible that was the only one in the room and was carried out there on an item that was later taken out of the house a while back.
Morgan suggested heat treating my room and steam treating the sofa. The inspection was $250 and those treatments together would likely run upwards of $1500.
After the inspection Luis called me from the Pestec office and told me he felt it was safer to heat treat ALL the bedrooms AND the living room, which would probably cost as much as a new car, I figure. I'd like to think it's just overkill, but can't really know for sure. The little bastards are hiding in my walls, which is a problem.
I will say that so far Pestec has been a very professional company to deal with. They prefer to treat without chemicals which really appeals to my family as we have pets and kids in the house. But geez... the cost is scary.
Any input from PCO's or bb veterans out there?
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fed_up
newbite
Joined: Mar '09
Posts: 22offline
Posted 4 years ago
Sun Apr 19 2009 12:43:45
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After a long talk with Luis to discuss options, we've changed our plan of attack and the cost is now more reasonable. No more massive heaters, we're going to try something different, starting with steaming, dusting and using other low-impact treatments to see how it goes.
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respectablefish
newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 6offline
Posted 3 years ago
Mon Sep 7 2009 21:00:48
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I'm going to call Luis tomorrow. I have over 100 bites on me which have happened for the first time 7 days ago. I met Morgan one night out in the city. We got into a discussion that night about her work. I am a dog walker so it was interesting to me at the time what her beagles can do. She actually just moved to Philly this week, but I had a long convo with her on the phone. She is fantastic, and I'm going to get the dogs over here asap. I can not sleep in my place, just cant do it. I am sleeping in my car tonight as I did last night. I'll let you guys know what happens after the dogs come. I'm still holding out hope it may be mites or something, if anyone has any ideas please let me know. 100 bites in a week, nightmare on Hayes ST.
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brettman
newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 4offline
Posted 3 years ago
Wed Sep 9 2009 2:07:03
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I had Orkin PCO come out and the bites have dropped dramatically. He seemed to know what he was doing but its still early in the process and the PCO said the poison works for months, so it might take a while to get all of the bugs. I have heard also that mineral oil kills them...but not the eggs. The Orkin guy said the poison works in little dots he spayes everywhere. He said it lasts for 18 months or so, so even the dormant bugs that hide have to come out and feed eventually. When they do, they walk into the poison. Hope that helps..but I'm still fighting the war here myself.
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brettman
newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 4offline
Posted 3 years ago
Wed Sep 9 2009 2:11:17
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...Oh and the Orkin guy mentioned in my last post is in San Francisco. His name is Mark Maxim I believe.
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spideyjg
oldtimer
Joined: Jul '08
Posts: 3,201offline
Posted 3 years ago
Wed Sep 9 2009 2:19:45
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What he is referring to is microencapsulation. It is how scratch and sniff things are made and is used in pesticides to increase the time they are viable.
"Scratch and die" for pests.
Jim
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buggyinsocal
oldtimer
Joined: Jun '08
Posts: 2,440offline
Posted 3 years ago
Wed Sep 9 2009 2:34:13
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Any chance that the next time we get a new graphic banner for the main website, someone can do a rendition of bed bugs with the scratch and sniff death scene?
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respectablefish
newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 6offline
Posted 3 years ago
Thu Sep 10 2009 19:32:12
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Good news for me, NO BED BUGS! Latte the Beagle came and gave me the all clear. Later I went to see a doctor as I have 150 or so welts on my torso, and he said it's pityriasis rosea a harmless skin condition which will go away on it's own.
I am glad I got both the dogs all clear, and the doc's diagnosis. If I had only one or the other I may still be paranoid. Now I have learned so many huge lessons.
This all started with buying a used piece of furniture on CL, I will never do that again, probably I'll never will set foot in a thrift store again either.
I was lucky this time, but that one week where I really believed the worst wrecked my nerves. Good luck to all of you, my deepest sympathies are with you.
And if you are in SF, I'd call the dog in, it was worth every penny to get piece of mind.
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