ever heard of bed bugs? or how to get rid of them?

get a new bed

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[edit] Self-treatment
Some individuals have had success conducting their own exterminations by preparing an insecticide mixture of pyrethrins and fresh-water diatomaceous earth. At least one manufacturer produces a household insecticide D-20 with only .2% naturally derived pyrethrins and 1.0% Piperonyl Butoxide, which magnifies the pyrethrin’s effectivenes by 10 times. Natural pyrethrins are more expensive than many alternatives. The function of the pyrethrins is to stimulate the nervous system of the bugs so that the spasms will allow the diatomaceous earth to desiccate, puncture, and kill the bugs through mechanical action. Great care should be taken not to use products with salt-water diatomaceous earth or heat-treated diatomaceous earth (the common industrial forms), which can damage the lungs of any mammal (dogs, cats, or humans) which inhale it (due to its extreme sharp crystalline edges), and has also been known to cause cancer. Fresh-water diatomaceous earth, however, is commonly used to deworm cats, dogs, and humans, and is considered as safe as table salt. What is sold as food-grade diatomite generally contains very low percentages of crystalline silica.

Others have used fruit and vegetable insecticides, comprised of a mixture of pyrethins and canola oil, which are usually safe for humans and most pets (aside from fish).

One person writes: Contrary to popularly disseminated information, extreme heat or extreme cold is usually not effective in eliminating bedbugs. Pest control professionals receive reports of infestations even in the dead of winter, and manufactured environments of extreme heat or cold (such as encasing a mattress in a bag and placing it in direct sunlight, or placing a suspect piece of bedding or clothing in a freezer) usually cannot stay consistently hot or cold enough to sufficiently kill bedbugs, which are not particularly sensitive to temperature extremes.

From a San Francisco tenant advocate: As someone who has suffered from bedbugs myself, and counsels and follows-through on approximately 35 bedbug cases a month, proper exposure to extreme heat and cold is the most effective means of healthfully treating bedbug infestations. While mattresses generally need replacement because of their nearly unpenitrable thickness; sealing belongings in black plastic bags and leaving them in the boiler room or on a hot rooftop for several days is very successful in killing bedbugs and their eggs. Bedbugs, in fact, are very sensitive to extreme temperatures if left 2-3 days. Adding dry ice to bagged goods suffocates living bedbugs, but does not harm eggs.

In addition, since bedbugs normally disperse, treatment of a bed or mattress is insufficient to eradicate an infestation.

[edit] Professional treatment

[edit] Selection of professionals
Not all exterminators in North America are familiar with extermination techniques for bedbugs. In the past, fumigation with Cyanogas was used for bedbug control. This was very effective, but also very dangerous. This method is no longer used. Fumigation—that is the use of poison gases—is costly, and though this has been tried as a method of control in isolated cases, it is transient. New infestation can be imported shortly after a fumigation has taken place. Fumigation does work, but it may not be practical, and may not be permitted in most jurisidictions. Care must thus be taken when selecting an exterminator, in order to select a professional who knows how to conduct proper bedbug removal. The National Pest Management Association can assist in the location of pest control professionals.

[edit] Necessary number of professional treatments
A survey of pest control professionals conducted by a pest control professor at the University of Massachusetts stated that 68% of all bedbug infestations require three or more treatments, 26% require two treatments, and 6% require just one. [4] However, this survey does not seem to have taken into account the size of the infestation, the size of the venue being treated, the extensiveness of that venue’s preparation for the treatment (thus enabling or inhibiting coverage of the poisons), the skill of the exterminator, whether popular nesting places have been disposed of, and the cause behind the original infestation. Treatment Exterminators will often apply a “contact kill” spray directly on bedbugs found in the apartment (such as a mixture of cyfluthrin, pyrethrins, and piperonyl butoxide), and then spray lambda-cyhalothrin on baseboards and other favorite hiding places. Lambda-cyhalothrin acts as a “slow kill” barrier which kills bedbugs after they cross it, and is usually microencapsulated, making it safe to pets and humans after it dries. Often, deltamethrin is also injected into larger crevices. The lambda-cyhalothrin and the deltamethrin are at their strongest for the first two weeks following their application, but usually retain effectiveness for up to 60 days.

Successful treatment of a bedbug infestation is often highly dependent on how thorough the pest control professional is. Although the assessment and judgment of the pest control professional should be respected, most treatments cover such areas within homes as closets, curtains, outside and inside furniture crevices (dresser and desk drawers, night tables, etc.), as well as the interior of electrical outlets and behind pictures hangings on walls. If the choice was made to retain bedding, professionals will often either treat or steam-clean bedframes and the undersurface of solid beds. Some higher-end pest control firms also offer to perform the aforementioned vacuuming

[edit] Pre-treatment preparation
Proper preparation is a mandatory requirement for control to be effective. Pest control firms should outline this in detail and provide detailed instructions on what to do. This is generally done by the resident; although some firms may offer preparation for an additional charge, this is uncommon. Preparation involves providing access for pest control treatment as well as taking measures to ensure that bedbugs are destroyed or contained. If a home is not properly prepared, the likelihood of successful control is not high. Although preparation may be difficult for some people (for example, seniors or handicapped individuals), it is essential for effective treatment, and thus in such cases family members, friends or social or charitable agencies may need to provide assistance.

[edit] Packing
All furniture and appliances in the dwelling usually need to be pulled away from the baseboards, and it is commonly asked that all furniture containing potential hiding crevices, such as bookshelves and desks, be emptied and left open for the exterminator to spray. Items in tightly sealed containers are usually safe from bedbug infestation and need not be emptied. Pest Control Operators may declare an item untreatable upon inspection–especially items of wood or paper.

[edit] Laundry
Everything that can be laundered should be laundered, and laundered in advance of the treatment, then placed in plastic bags. This would include stuffed animals, drapes and so on.

The items should be securely tied into plastic bags, and emptied directly from the bags into the machines. (The bags should then be immediately disposed of.) It is heat, not water, that kills any bedbugs residing within the laundered items; so the items should be washed in hot water, regardless of normal washing directions, and should be dried with medium heat (preferably high heat) for 20 minutes or more. (For those who have the ability to measure the temperature of the water in their washing machine, or of the hot air in their dryer, the target heat range is 120°F (49°C).)

(If a marathon laundering session such as described is financially prohibitive, it has been posited by some that the items need only be run through the dryer, not the washing machine. However, the extensive water and spinning action associated with washing machines may assist in dislodging bedbugs from where they are residing within clothes and laundered.) However, this is optional as the heat of the cycle of drying will effectively kill all stages—eggs, immature stage (nymphs) and adults.

For items that require dry cleaning, the dry cleaners should be informed that the items in question are potentially infested, and the items should be bagged. (However, many dry cleaners then may refuse to accept the items.)

Steam cleaning of carpets can be helpful; although bedbugs will not be in the middle of the floor, they may be under the carpets at the edges of rooms. Vacuuming is especially important, however. Pesticide is applied at perimeters and is effective, but the more steps are taken to assist removal, the more thorough the elimination will be.

[edit] Vacuuming
The mechanical removal of bedbugs by vacuuming is a most important part of preparing for control. Vacuuming alone will not solve the problem, but it can substantially reduce bedbugs’ numbers and thus help reduce the population as part of preparing for treatment. A crevice attachment should be used on the seams of mattresses, on box springs, on bed legs, within furniture interiors, behind pictures, on curtains, and anywhere there is a possibility of the insects hiding (e.g. inside dresser drawers, dresser cases, under chairs, etc.). Carpets should also be vacuumed throughout the home, preferably with a power-head. Baseboards should also be vacuumed using the crevice tool—not swept—prior to the exterminator’s arrival. Vacuum bags should then immediately be removed and placed in doubled plastic bags and placed into strong plastic bag for disposal. Spraying inside the vacuum cleaner bag with an aerosol insecticide or 50/50 alcohol/water mix is a good idea. The bags should be stored outside of home before collection. Incineration is not practical in the vast majority of urban centres and may be illegal.

[edit] Steam treatment
Some pest control firms do offer steam treatment for items like mattresses or upholstered furniture especially when individuals are concerned about pesticides on bedding. This has only a very limited effectiveness, however, it is quite effective in this range of less than 1/2 inch of penetration. This also depends on the time that the steam is applied to the surface of the item. Small steam cleaners for domestic use can be useful for mattresses and the surfaces of upholstered furniture. This is a worthwhile option if there are issues of allergy, and the homeowner takes the time to treat carefully in this limited context.

[edit] Managing bedding
There are differing opinions as to whether it is necessary to dispose of mattress, boxsprings, futons, pillows, and other bedding. There is of course often a heavy cost involved in the complete replacement of such bedding. It is clear, however, that getting rid of infested bedding does not solve the problem. The decision to replace bedding or not depends on the condition of and often related level of infestation within the items, the comfort level of the owner, whether the owner can afford replacement, and aesthetics. A reasonable rule of thumb is that new bedding does not need to be replaced but if bedding is older and replacement may have been done soon in any case, then of course, replacing it AFTER control is a welcome clean start. Treatment of bedding items must be done with care and according to the label on the insecticide used. Mattresses typically need local treatment with non-residual insecticides at seams and borders. Boxsprings are more difficult to treat as there are more places for the insects to hide. The notion that getting rid of bedding helps solve the problem is misguided. Infestation must be handled first and then if new bedding is desired, the old bedding can be disposed of. Spread of infestation in apartment buildings is increased by tenants deciding to throw away old bedding. An infested mattress or box spring dragged in a hallway to an elevator will cause bedbugs to fall off or even run off the item, and these may then find their way into other units. As noted here, the use of plastic bags to protect bedding after treatment or to enclose bedbugs when the items are being thrown away are invaluable in preventing spread of infestation. It is also suggested to slash or mark up infested items so that others do not take them back into the building.

After the mattress and/or box spring or futon has been treated, placing these inside a cotton, polyvinyl or polyethylene bag is a good idea as a secondary means of defense. Bedbugs like to hide near the victim and are commonly found on seams of mattresses, or within the structure of box springs. The mattress bag serves to reduce this likelihood and in the case of box springs, it seals any remaining insects inside the bag. The mattress bag also protects the mattress from the mess of staining caused when bedbugs aggregate on seams. The bag is a good idea either until the infestation has been totally eliminated or in the case of good quality cotton bags, useful as a permanent protection for the mattress—and also to enable easier control if infestation recurs.

Those who end up disposing of suspect items should enclose them in plastic mattress bags, or large garbage bags, to prevent shedding bugs and eggs on their way to the disposal site. Care should also be taken to label throwaway items with a warning about the suspected bedbug infestation, as furniture is often reclaimed by dumpster divers.

New items should not be purchased until after the infestation has been thoroughly eliminated. Also, many retailers offer disposal of old mattresses. This can pose obvious problems if new and old mattresses are carried together on the same truck without the proper precautions taken.

[edit] Treatment
Exterminators will often apply a “contact kill” spray directly on bedbugs found in the apartment (such as a mixture of cyfluthrin, pyrethrins, and piperonyl butoxide), and then spray lambda-cyhalothrin on baseboards and other favorite hiding places. Lambda-cyhalothrin acts as a “slow kill” barrier which kills bedbugs after they cross it, and is usually microencapsulated, making it safe to pets and humans after it dries. Often, deltamethrin is also injected into larger crevices. The lambda-cyhalothrin and the deltamethrin are at their strongest for the first two weeks following their application, but usually retain effectiveness for up to 60 days.

Gentrol and Phantom can also be used for bed bug control. Gentrol contains the active ingredient (S)-Hydroprene, an insect growth regulator (IGR) that disrupts the normal growth development of cockroaches and stored product pests, drain flies and fruit flies, as well as bed bugs. Phantom® uses an active ingredient known as chlorfenapyr. It is non-repellent and relatively long-lasting.

Successful treatment of a bedbug infestation is often highly dependent on how thorough the pest control professional is. Although the assessment and judgment of the pest control professional should be respected, most treatments cover such areas within homes as closets, curtains, outside and inside furniture crevices (dresser and desk drawers, night tables, etc.), as well as the interior of electrical outlets and behind pictures hangings on walls. If the choice was made to retain bedding, professionals will often either treat or steam-clean bedframes and the undersurface of solid beds. Some higher-end pest control firms also offer to perform the aforementioned vacuuming.

Most infestations are not successfully handled by one treatment alone. Most require exterminators to visit multiple times. In multi-unit dwellings, such as apartment buildings, the whole building should be treated, in order to avoid a situation where bed bugs travel out of the treated unit, only to infest other apartments and/or repeatedly reinfest the original unit.

[edit] Post-treatment
Bedbugs can often be seen alive for up to two weeks following treatment of a dwelling, although they should not be seen in great number (e.g., only one or two). It is important to continue to monitor for bedbugs after the initial treatment.

Vacuuming should not be performed for a period of time following treatment, as some pesticides dry as a fine film, and can be prematurely removed from the environment if vacuumed, allowing infestations to survive the treatment.

Anecdotal evidence seems to suggest that many, and perhaps most, people who successfully deal with bedbug infestations find themselves overly paranoid about the possibility of reinfestation for varying lengths of time. These feelings of anxiety may have some relation to delusional parasitosis: “Sometimes an initial and real insect infestation precedes and triggers the delusion […] Out of desperation the victims may move out of their home, only to report later that the ‘bugs’ have followed them there too.” (The Physician’s Guide to Arthropods of Medical Importance, J.A. Goddard, CRC Press, 1993.)

On the other hand, evidence likewise suggests that reinfestations do occur often, especially under certain circumstances. In multi-unit buildings, landlords often choose to save money by exterminating only those apartments where complaints of bed bugs have been received. Bed bugs easily travel from one apartment to the next along pipes and through holes or cracks in the wall, floor, or ceiling. So a thorough and repeated extermination of one apartment may clear the infestation for a time in that unit. Eventually, bed bugs may migrate back to their original home. Since immature bed bugs are as small as the period in a newspaper sentence, is also possible that items stored in sealed containers during the treatment period may contain bed bugs, nymphs, or eggs that were inadvertently stored. If even one bed bug survives the treatment(s), a reinfestation can occur. Likewise, an individual may have inadvertently carried a bed bug or nymph outside the home (in clothing, laptop case, purse), and these may cause infestations at work, in a car, and so on. This can lead to a recurrence at home

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I heard putting your bed legs in a saucer of mineral oil helps deter them from your bed, but you have to put them on all legs. You have to deep clean your room. Dressers, drawers, carpets, etc. You can also encase your mattress in a protector of sorts. Please use yahoo search or google. Type in bed bugs and you will get all the answers you need. I used this when my daughter got head lice and I got some really cool answers that helped out alot. Good luck! And Sorry!

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