Bed bugs are one of CDNews’ worst fears. We drive other members of the family crazy when we travel, with thorough examinations of mattresses and pillows for signs of possible infestations.
But now it appears that they’re getting closer to home. Our friends at The SunBreak reported today that a King County official said that bed bugs are “out there” and “doing well” here in Seattle. And they provide a link to BedBugRegistry.com that shows three reported infestations here in the Central District, all in multi-unit apartments:
- 1100 block of 17th Avenue – One unit with bed bugs
- 1500 block of 17th Avenue – At least two apartments in 144-unit HUD building infested
- 100 block of 21st Avenue East – Bed bugs in one unit in a 4-unit apartment building
We’re getting itchy just thinking about it.
One saving grace for CDNews is that we’re in a single family residence and thus have some natural barrier if they continue to spread. But don’t be offended if you ever come over and we ask you to leave your bags outside and put on a moon suit before entering CDNews World HQ.
I too live in fear of these vermin.
I sucsessfully eradicated these buggers 15 years ago back in NYC..,they’re not as bad as portrayed by the press.
Your experience in eradicating these bugs is encouraging, and your advice on how to eliminate them would be appreciated. I hear that you can use those bug bombs available at most hardware stores, but have not actually had an infestation ( fortunately ), so do not know if that is true or not. Could you provide advice, on how to eradicate these bugs, for us concerned home owners? Thanks
http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2010/09/03/bedbugs-infest-go
Lots of good info on this site. Eradication is very hard, particularly in multi-unit housing. Bug bombs are ineffective. You need a good pest control company, with a good technician, you need to have 100% resident buy-in, you need to treat and re-treat, you need to get rid of lots of furniture & clutter… It’s really all about the tech’s knowledge and experience, so if you are so unlucky as to acquire this plague, make sure to get a pest control technician who comes with good recommendations. I can tell you that I am now very, very careful about buying any used furniture & may quit altogether. And anything from Value Village or Goodwill goes straight into the dryer to fry on High for 20 minutes as soon as I bring it home. I am considering getting a Packtite heat box to fry our luggage in when returning from trips, or for frying used items I can’t put in the dryer. I work for a housing provider which is battling bed bugs, so I know more about these creatures than I wish I did.
and it’s all about being meticulous. i used a fairly non-toxic powder (made from chrysanthumums) and had to really clean, scour, seal and dust everywhere. i lived in a 100-year-old tenement in NYC that had tons of holes, cracks, wood floors, etc. i did it unilaterally, withoutout other units participating. one must approach eradication much like when battling roaches: absolute vigilance.
here’s a great pest management dude in seattle who knows his stuff: johan, progressive pest solutions, 444-6250. environmentally aware and really conscious guy.
I picked some up in a cute guest house in Vancouver BC. I ended up throwing away all my bedding and getting a mattress cover from Bed Bath and Beyond for $100 which seemed to take care of the problem. I highly recommend getting a mattress cover if you are able to afford it. Also, wear the same pair of pajamas when you travel and keep them separate from the rest of your clothes, possibly in a ziploc for your return trip, then wash on high heat and dry twice. I didn’t have a reaction for more than 24 hours and then thought they were mosquitos- really horrible mosquito bites that kept on coming!
It was really scary. When I lifted up my mattress and I saw these tiny black creates walking inside the bed. Immediately I bought spray and killed them, but they keep coming back!
Got sleepless night from these bed bugs. ohh..I hate them!
After 1 year, I finally got rid of those bed bugs. I go crazy about bed bugs.
This is what I’ve learned:
1. Wash all your cloth in HOT water ( above 68 Celsius)
2. After washing, put your cloth in the dryer for at least 20 min (HOT)
3. Put all your cloth in a plastic back with zipper (no air can go inside)
4. Vacuum your mattress and bed frame
5. Steam vacuum your mattress is better
6. Spray your mattress 12 hours before your sleep with beg bug spray
7. Put double tape around those four legs of your bed
8. Move your bed away from the wall (so bed bug can not reach your bed through the wall)
– Do this at least for 1 week until your mattress is free of bed bugs
The last option is throw away your mattress, but make sure you seal it first with a plastic bag.
Otherwise other people will bring these bed bugs to another home.
Your mattress is maybe free of bed bug, but you are not finished yet. Bed bugs are still hiding in the tiny holes or carpet. Especially those tiny eggs. They are almost invisible.
9. Vacuum your house
10 Vacuum your house
11. Seal the vacuum bag and throw it away immediately
12. Put a lot of double tape around your house
13. Organize your furniture
14 Put all furniture outside under the sun (must be hot temperature)
15. If you are in the summer, then spray bed
There are more steps, but I can’t write anymore here… http://www.bedbuggoaway.com
Just to keep the record straight… the bed bugs in 1 unit in the 1100 block of 17th ave is mis-reported. We had an inspection, but it turned out that the insects in someone’s bed weren’t bed bugs after all, thankfully! still gross, though.