Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums » Bed Bug Success Stories
Success!!!!?- a little hope!!
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crystalvh222
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Joined: Nov '10
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Posted 2 years ago
Sun Nov 14 2010 0:38:33
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Wanted to give hope to those who are going through the hell of a bed bug infestation.....so here's my story
Quick keys to our success(fingers still crossed)
1. We Practically burned our clothing and stuffed animals in the DRYER at the laundomat- then immediatly sealed them into ziplocked "SPACE BAGS"put the bags into garbage bags and stored the whole mess in our BATHTUB. Some things melted and had to be thrown away...
2. We bought a Paktite unit and put everything in there...on batch at a time....and then sealed it into large ziplock bags and plastic tubs, which we sealed completely with ducttape. VHS, photos, electronic toys, books, alarm clocks, ....everything, but we removed batteries first
3. Steam cleaned mattresses right before we left, put on mattress cover....the boxspring kind ripped, so I bought another mattress one and used that on the boxspring too. Looking back I would have just gotten a blowup mattress or something for piece of mind
4. We trashed everything that could not go in the Paktite or dryer.....everything...our vaccume, furniture, decorations, dvd player etc. I know this is extreme and paranoid, but it was a huge key to our success. Stuff is just stuff. I would rather have a new apartment with only a blowup mattress and a cinder bock than have to worry about just one little guy hitching a ride and ruining all my work. It was worth it and I would do it a thousand times over. We marked everything with paint. They can easily hide in particale board, and a lot of our stuff was made out of it- its a perfect breading ground
I did not treat my computer or my daughter's keyboard...i just took a risk with those
5. While preparing to move, we lived out of small ziplock bags- we sealed our shoes , backpacks and purses in there when we took them off and limited ourselves to 3 outfits which we put on right before leaving at the front door.
6. Moved everything in plastic tubs sealed with duct tape, and large plastic zip bags. We didnt have much left after throwing away 3 dumpsters full of stuff!
7. Bed bug traps under the beds in the new appartment. .....no signs so far in 8 months!!!!
My is below....for a while I became obsessed with reading these forum posts, so for those of you who are in that boat, this is for you!!!! You are not alone
We first found the little buggers January of this year...one in my daughter's bed and a small number of bites on both of us off and on. After a very thourough exterminator failed to find ANYTHING, we still called our management company to bring in a second professional and treat our unit. I literally drove myself crazy trying to prepare for his arrival, but after spending a lonely Valentine's Day in the laundromat burning our clothes and stuffed animals. I pulled everything out from the walls, covered electornics etc- we were ready.
I got back to our apartment after the guy was finished and found a note that siad they had found one in my bed, and none in my daughters. Also, the managment company had requested that they only do a steam treatment since it was more "Cost effective". I was ferious. I did not want to leave this up to chance...but the management company refused to do more unless we found evidence that the steaming was not effective. I got traps for the beds and waited......two weeks of sleepless anxiety-filled nights....every time my hair brushed my skin or a piece of dust landed on me I freaked out. I was a mess at work and didnt want to tell anyone what was going on. We had all of our stuff in bags, nearly all of our clothes and all of my daughter's clothes. It was terrible. My daughter could not stay at friends houses, or have our family over or anything...we didnt go visit anyone and I was afriad i would somehow bring them to my work or daughter's school.
Fianlly after 2 1/2 months of living our of bags in constant fear, I finally had enough. I statrted looking ofr new apartments. I wrote a writtem complaint to my landlord about the bugs. Our lease specified that the leasing agent would be in default if a written compaint was issued and not taken care of within two weeks. I waited the two weeks, and nothing was done.....and in the mean time we found a few more bugs in the traps. I figured that since we found only 8 bugs total, that maybe the problem was a neighboring infestation that had grown too big for it's host and was traveling to our unit to feed. In anycase, I knew since the landlord was not taking this seriously, and even if my unit was properly treated, it was likely we would be reinfested unless all the units were treated-which wasnt gong to happen. The only option was to get out of there and hope for the best.So I found a place, followed the stpes above, and moved into a new place, all within 10 days.......a crazy 10 days, but I am so glad to put this behind me.
8 months later and so far so good. I have read several places that it is impossible to move without taking bugs with you- im here to say it can be done, but most people arent willing to part with most of thier belongings or painstakingly treat everyting else and properly seal it up. I really went crazy with it, but boy am I glad I did. It also helped me to get angry at the bugs instead of being afriad. It was hell going through it, but now I hardly think of it at all..... chalk one up for the extremely paraniod and thourough human!!! take that bugs!!!! -
Starrcrenshaw
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Joined: Sep '11
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Posted 1 year ago
Sun Sep 11 2011 9:55:49
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What type of Bedbug trap did you use?
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Koebner
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Joined: Aug '10
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Posted 1 year ago
Sun Sep 11 2011 10:24:26
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Starrcrenshaw - this post is 10 months old, the OP may not be around to answer. You can see the age of a post in the lefthand margin, under the poster's details.
When deciding what, if any, kind of BB monitor to use, that decision really depends on individual circumstances; how extensive the infestation, whether the environment is occupied or unoccupied & other factors. This FAQ may be helpful; http://bedbugger.com/2009/04/23/more-information-on-cheap-and-cheerful-bed-bug-monitors/
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jrbtnyc
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Posted 1 year ago
Sun Sep 11 2011 13:56:49
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(OP means original poster.)
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Buggybumpers
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Joined: Apr '11
Posts: 113offline
Posted 1 year ago
Sun Sep 11 2011 15:33:04
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Yes, the post is old but it is not the first one where the OP who claimed success stated that they had to move and get rid of just about everything they owned. That's what happened to me and I am not claiming success yet! I recall one girl saying she moved with just her clothing and nothing else. Old or recent, it's a sad commentary on the effectiveness of pest control in general. Most people can't afford the heat treatment and apartment dwellers would probably not even be allowed to use it.
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soretit
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Joined: Nov '11
Posts: 83offline
Posted 1 year ago
Mon Nov 28 2011 13:02:33
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My god.
Someone who has come to the same conclusion about the state of the art of Bedbug control.
Stuffing your pets in a dryer?
Did they come out alive?
I have never heard of such a thing before.
Its awful what bed bugs do to morality.
Shame on them.
The bed bugs.
Not the animals.
They're a pop group. -
blargg
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Joined: May '11
Posts: 338offline
Posted 1 year ago
Mon Nov 28 2011 14:57:05
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soretit - 1 hour ago »
My god.
Someone who has come to the same conclusion about the state of the art of Bedbug control.
Stuffing your pets in a dryer?
Did they come out alive?
I have never heard of such a thing before.
Its awful what bed bugs do to morality.
Shame on them.
The bed bugs.
Not the animals.
They're a pop group.I don't know if you were kidding, or you misread the o.p., but they put their plush animal toys into the dryer, NOT animals. Sorry, I normally don't post during the day, but as an animal lover, nobody should ever put pets into a washer or dryer. ever.
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soretit
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Joined: Nov '11
Posts: 83offline
Posted 1 year ago
Mon Nov 28 2011 16:40:19
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Well its better than practicaly burning them and stuffing their clothes in the drier.
I call them animals.
The owners.
Not the animals.
But if the stuffed animals came out alive I might call them miracle workers.
I am sorry though, I was only joking and did not mean to upset anybody.
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