bed bugs!

idealist

My boyfriend had bedbugs at his apartment in Prospect Heights and I think he's brought them over to my apartment. It could just be paranoia, but I am analyzing every black/brown piece of dust, etc. on my bed.

I stayed at his place before he realized he had bedbugs, and I got bitten really badly. 3-4 big welts that hurt for days. Yesterday I woke up with a tiny welt on my arm, and freaked out. The welt that I got yesterday went away by lunchtime and didnt hurt. Maybe it could have been cause by something else?

My boyfriend's exterminator said that there had been a lot of bed bug incidents on 8th ave. So I thought maybe people here wold have some tips.

Any recommendations for an exterminating company? Ideally I'd like someone to come to my house and do a free or relatively cheap inspection just to see if I actually do have bedbugs or if I'm just being paranoid. I figure that these guys will know what to look for...

And I'd like a good exterminating company who really knows what they're doing so I wont have to go through this again...

steve

USA Exterminators on 3rd Avenue is a client. They're good people but I never used them because I don't have bedbugs which are supposed to be awful.

(718) 832-0900

vanilla

eeep! bring those bed bugs back to williamsburg where they belong!

erikka

From what I've read they strongly recommend cleaning baseboards and cracks/nooks in furniture. They often hide there and then reinfest. Did your boyfriend buy a new bed? Probably a good idea--the black spots they leave on the mattress is feces.

homeowner

There was an article in the Times a couple of days ago about a guy who specialized in bedbug extermination in Harlem. You should go on line and see if you can find it. One of the things he mentioned was putting your mattress in a vinyl bag to suffocate the bedbugs and wrapping duct tape sticky side up around the boxspring to trap bugs trying to climb up to the matress.

idealist

Subject: Different Theories

Its funny because everyone has their own theory on how to treat bedbugs. I'm having an inspector come tomorrow morning just to see if I really have them or not.

I'm hoping I dont.

idealist

Subject: no bed bugs!!

i had an inspector come and he couldnt find any trace of them... but i'm going to have my apartment partially treated just in case...

armchair_warrior

ot sorta. bed bugs destory my used mattress cliental. i used to get like 10 calls a week for used mattress every day. this started to stop during summer.

steve

I think they are talking about making selling used mattresses much more difficult now that the bedbugs are back

joanjettofarc

it's feces? that's so gross.
thank god i haven't had this problem.

boygabriel

bedbugs are one of my ny-apartment-nightmares

armchair_warrior

steve wrote: I think they are talking about making selling used mattresses much more difficult now that the bedbugs are back

oh my customers buy it off other people on criags lists.

erikka

HOLY SHIT I SAW ONE ON MY PILLOW!

I was getting into bed tonight and there it was on my pillow. Killed it and looked it up online, definitely a bed bug. FUCK! Is it "where there's one there's more" philosophy? Should I start spraying? Get rid of the mattress? OH MY GOD I am beside myself in horror right now. I was sick at the thought of having bugs on me in my sleep.

What do I do? I am fucking losing my mind here. Idealist, what did you do?

street shooter

erikka wrote: HOLY SHIT I SAW ONE ON MY PILLOW!

I was getting into bed tonight and there it was on my pillow. Killed it and looked it up online, definitely a bed bug. FUCK! Is it "where there's one there's more" philosophy? Should I start spraying? Get rid of the mattress? OH MY GOD I am beside myself in horror right now. I was sick at the thought of having bugs on me in my sleep.

What do I do? I am fucking losing my mind here. Idealist, what did you do?

Try wearing one of those rubber diving suits to bed. I'm sure that will work.
Just Kiddin.

drano

Oh, for crying out loud. You guys are about to make my life difficult - my wife saw some random bug in the bed the other night and flipped out even though:

a) She had to admit it didn't look anything like the pictures.

b) A further inspection revealed nothing alarming.

c) Ain't nobody been bit by anything.

From what I've heard, if you've got these things, you know it, but now it's front page news! I'll be hearing about this for sure. Anyhow, let me know how it goes, just in case.[/i]

armchair_warrior

Drano wrote: Oh, for crying out loud. You guys are about to make my life difficult - my wife saw some random bug in the bed the other night and flipped out even though:

a) She had to admit it didn't look anything like the pictures.

b) A further inspection revealed nothing alarming.

c) Ain't nobody been bit by anything.

From what I've heard, if you've got these things, you know it, but now it's front page news! I'll be hearing about this for sure. Anyhow, let me know how it goes, just in case.[/i]

well you could do what my uncle does. pay the guy anyway to pretend to kill all the bed bugs and the mrs would feel better . my uncle does that to my aunt all the time.

whyfi

erikka wrote: HOLY SHIT I SAW ONE ON MY PILLOW!

I was getting into bed tonight and there it was on my pillow. Killed it and looked it up online, definitely a bed bug. FUCK! Is it "where there's one there's more" philosophy? Should I start spraying? Get rid of the mattress? OH MY GOD I am beside myself in horror right now. I was sick at the thought of having bugs on me in my sleep.

What do I do? I am fucking losing my mind here. Idealist, what did you do?

Don't panic.

Move.

Buy all new stuff.

drano

WhyFi wrote: [quote=erikka]HOLY SHIT I SAW ONE ON MY PILLOW!

I was getting into bed tonight and there it was on my pillow. Killed it and looked it up online, definitely a bed bug. FUCK! Is it "where there's one there's more" philosophy? Should I start spraying? Get rid of the mattress? OH MY GOD I am beside myself in horror right now. I was sick at the thought of having bugs on me in my sleep.

What do I do? I am fucking losing my mind here. Idealist, what did you do?

Don't panic.

Move.

Buy all new stuff.

It'll be good for the economy...

anotherdayinbkln

new york city's official bed bug fact sheet:
http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/vector/vector-faq1.shtml

the gothamists take on it with more info:
http://www.gothamist.com/archives/2006/10/16/bedbugs_and_you.php


andddddd bed bug stuffed animals:



edit:
apparently they can even hide in phones, alarm clocks, and of course pillow cases and the box springs.
from Gothamist:::

- Landlords are required to get rid of bedbugs within 30 days of an inspection from the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (call 311)
- Co-op and condo owners are on their own, but "building could be responsible if, for example, bedbugs have affected multiple apartments and their source is not readily traceable"; if a unit owner is found responsible, he/she needs to immediately take action
- Bedbugs don't necessarily mean the apartment is dirty - it just means the bedbugs happened to like your warmth and CO2: "they pierce the skin and withdraw blood for about 5 minutes before retreating to a hiding place"
- "Exterminators look for tiny tar-black speckles — fecal droppings made up mostly of digested blood"
- "People searching for bedbugs do not know to look along the seams of mattresses, under box springs, behind headboards and picture frames, and even inside alarm clocks and telephones"

erikka

[quote=Anotherdayinbkln]
andddddd bed bug stuffed animals:


Mine was not that cute and cuddly I was up for about two hours looking at different websites and it was differently a bedbug. I couldn't confirm it with anyone else because I smashed the little fucker.

My room is definitely not dirty and I just moved my mattress and box spring less than a week ago and saw nothing. Flipped over the mattress last night and ripped all of the sheets off the bed. Nothing. Checked body for bites or welts and...nothing. No visible black spots on the mattress or bedding, no more bugs found.

I'm going to buy a mattress cover tonight (which may not work since they can live a year without eating) and wash all of my linens in hot water. I'm scared to sleep in my bed tonight--I know I'm being paranoid but I have heard so many horror stories. Can there really just be one?

anotherdayinbkln

there is never only one.

someone in your building is probably infested and they are moving through the floors and walls-- finally getting into other places.

i don't want to scare you, but listen--- first thing's first-- call your landlord!!
tell him/her you have an inspector coming to check it out and then its the landlord's lawful responsibility from there.
"- Landlords are required to get rid of bedbugs within 30 days of an inspection from the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (call 311) "

read those links and get the right information!

better safe than sorry, right?

drano

If we get them, my plan is to get drunk every night before turning in. They will drink my blood and the alcohol will poison them, or at least make them stagger around a bit for my amusement.

pilusoc

Subject: bedbugs

I actually do think that you can have just one. If you are lucky. I have battled them 3 times in the last 2 years - 2 different apartments. I never saw them just hanging out in the middle of my bed or my pillow, although last week I squashed one on my forehead. (I win for most disgusting!) I had been bit 11 times before I killed him. I havent been bit since, after laundering all my bedding and vacuuming. I really would try to wait until you get bit before you panic. Trust me, I KNOW this is easier said than done. But you'll make yourself crazy if you panic for no reason. It's important to not just look on the surfaces of your mattresses. Look in the seams. I went 3 months not finding anything cause I wasnt looking in the right place. Vacuum your mattress and box spring. It'll really help at least contain them, if not get rid of them. (Throw out vacuum bag after vacuuming)
good luck.

christina

Lol, like the tabasco ad with the exploding mosquito. Good plan.


I had bed bugs earlier this year. Well... I must have had them for a while actually and I took them with me to my new apartment. I remember re-assembling the Ikea bedframe and wondering what the black dots were.
I only got bitten twice (or I never saw other bites) but my bed was infested - when I got back from vacation after 3 weeks of leaving my apartment in the boiling NYC humidity (perfect egg hatching conditions) I saw not one but at least 20 bugs crawling around in my first night.
Needless to say that I freaked out.
My landlord paid for the exterminator, but I still got a new bed, mattress, and washed ALL my clothes. I'm still a little paranoid but at least so far the problems' been taken care of. Now I can only hope that none of the little buggers is lying dormant in the brick wall.

whyfi

You could do like the old days - put each foot of your bed in a bucket or jar of kerosene... just don't smoke in bed.

drano

WhyFi wrote: You could do like the old days - put each foot of your bed in a bucket or jar of kerosene... just don't smoke in bed.

Damn...sometimes the old ways really are the best ways...

erikka

This is my punishment for living next to hippies (as if that wasn't iteself punishment enough).

fast

Get rid of any mattress and box spring that has bugs in it. Get on ebay and buy a can of Bedlam (safe insecticide). They sell it for 40 bucks in exterminator shops but you can buy it on ebay for 19 bucks.

raw

The days of seizing neighbors’ hand-me-down cashmere sweaters and silk pillowcases are over.

anonymous

Subject: Bed Bugs in Park Slope

Yeah, they are around the Park Slope area for sure! Same thing happened to my hole brownstone (all floors). Dirty little bastards too. They burrow through drywall, fabric .. you name it. They make little pin mark holes in your walls. Kinda like you have been using small push pins in the wall. But it's just them, and they leave that gross brown red blood feces behind.

Find some professionals, make sure they do follow up treatments even if they have seemed to disappear. Toss all mattresses and get rid of sofas if you can. Fill in all wall holes and cracks in floor boards, walls, closets. They love little cracks in your panels and closets! Even between the joints in your bed frames and couches. Thoroughly, spray all joints where the floor meets the walls with PERMAKIL-25, permethrin spray, or something like it.

Spray the same stuff on closet edges and walls. Empty out all your dressers, closets and other areas where things you wear are around (hampers). Dry clean everything and/or wash in hot water with tons of detergent. Even the clothes you have stored away. They will only go away if every egg and bug is out of all your stuff.

Like they said, the eggs can be around for a long time and you won't know it. They can be in your winter coats just waiting for the time to hatch next spring. They get everywhere. Best thing is to do a total clean sweep of your whole place.

It's worth it after all right?

[/b]

idealist

Subject: sorry

i hadnt checked the message boards in a while. i had an inspector come and he couldnt find anything, but i still had them do a half treatment of just my bedroom. i figured that if i had a couple, then a minor treatment would at least get rid of the couple that were there...

but i didnt wash all my clothes, i just washed my bed linens.

so that was about a week ago...

now im paranoid that i didnt get rid of them. so im dry cleaning all my sweaters and thinking a/b just washing all my clothes too. i'm worried b/c im going home (down south) and i dont want to take these things with me to my parents house. it'd be a bitch to get rid of them in our house. sigh.

i wish i had more answers, but i dont. ;(