I went about 3 weeks of no bites, no signs of bed bugs, after a visit from a PCO that basically drenched every room in the home so bad you can still smell the chemicals.

However today I open my blinds to find a giant nest of eggs and bed bugs just sitting there. They were not there 3 weeks ago. Found 6 adults, a few babies, and 70 eggs. I am serious, they spat out so many eggs in a short period it makes me think that bed bugs are just moving from chemical treated areas of the home to places chemicals don't reach. Another room the home? No signs on the bed, frame or pillows. However they love the ceiling. Every day a new bed bug magically appears there. All super plump from feeding. My beds are isolated with interceptors. Blankets are not hanging onto the floor. How are they feasting on my family and I, then retreat to random places quite a distance from the bed, all while possibly walking over residual chemicals and dusts? I swear to god I got super mutated bed bugs immune to pesticide, powders and the ability to climb up smooth metalic surfaces.

This marks a solid year of bed bug activity for me. I'm tired of it and financially drained. I am at the brinking point of selling my home. I've already got so many good offers. I got a place to move in to if I need to absolutely ditch everything. If only my father was still alive; he was a chemist and could probably get access to chemicals that actually do something. I don't care if its toxic to humans. I'll take weeks of poor health if it meant the 100% elimination of bed bugs. I've seen the same PCO guy visit over 11 times. He basically comes every two weeks even without appointment. The last visit was the first time he came in with additional help and it's not enough. There needs to be something done with the EPA to lift bans on effective chemicals available for professional use. The damage done by bed bugs are a lot more than just itchy bumps. If they actually transmitted disease, you bet your ass we would have guys in hazmat suits spraying on every street like they did with DDT 50 years ago.

About me: 25 year old gay male living in NYC. I'm very clean and live in a small studio apartment with a cat. I just moved into this apartment in June.

My infestation: I discovered that my bed was infested with bedbugs on August 11th. I apparently don't have a reaction to their bites, so I'm not sure how long they had been there. I didn't have them in any previous apartments.

Once they were discovered, I sprayed the live ones with poison, vacuumed their bodies, washed out my vacuum, and hauled the mattress, box spring and all bedding to the curb. I've been sleeping on the couch.

I immediately contacted my building's management company, and they sent over an exterminator on August 18th. I saw zero bedbugs between the time of discovery and the arrival of the exterminator.

The exterminator drilled holes in my wall where the bed used to be, and sprayed poison into the holes. He then sprayed liquid pesticides at the bottom and top of my walls in the main room (where the wall meets the floor & ceiling) as well as around the windows. He then donned a gas mask and sprayed a fog-like poison into my upholstered furniture and all around the rest of the room.

I have seen zero bedbugs. I have seen zero shed skins. I have seen zero eggs.

But the paranoia... It's crippling me. I can't buy a new bed. I can't sleep on the couch. I can't focus on a movie or TV or even a phone call - all I do is itch and check for bugs.

Every day, I come home from work and check everywhere for signs of bugs. Anything can send me into a panic. Any dark speck on fabric, I'm sure is bedbug poop. Any crumb on the ground, I'm sure is a skin. Any white speck, I'm sure is an egg.

What do I do? How can I reassure myself that they're gone? How can I go one with my life? How can I give myself the peace of mind that I caught them early and that I probably defeated them? Every website, this one included, fuels my fears. People talk of battling them for months, years even. I can't handle that. I'll go insane.

So what I want to know is this: what are the chances that I've defeated the bugs? And regardless, how can I get back to a normal state of mind, where I'm capable of buying furniture and cooking and sleeping and relaxing in my home... Without always thinking about those damn bugs?

I need advice and comfort and maybe just understanding listeners. I feel so helpless. Any kind word is appreciated. Any advice is welcomed.

All the best,
Keith

I remember it was the summer of 2011. You could feel the hot summer air of August. I was living in an upstairs 3 bedroom suite with one of my high school friends. Returning to the city from a visit at home turned my world upside down. I was so tired and just wanted to get back into bed and sleep the day away, hey I was only 21. My small room was a mess, futon mattress on the floor, a shirt laying on the bed, shirts thrown over my computer chair, clothes on the floor.

Everything changed once I got back that day, I went to clean up my bed to get some rest. When I kneeled down to pick up my shirt, I had noticed these little critters on it, a lot of them, they ran for the dark cresses as I gently laid it back down. These bugs were tiny and cause of little alarm, since you find beetles and ants in your home on occasions.

Days before heading to my parents I had noticed an increase of centipedes and these greenish beetles and spiders, mot knowing why. One night while playing ps3 I looked down to see a massive black spider with long legs fly across my bed, I killed it. That night I remember waking up to something running across my body, I jumped out of bed freaking out. I found a small black spot above my chest and was hard to wipe off, and wasn't the first time. I also remember noting these black spots that stained my pillow case, and tried washing it several times without luck. Now looking back there were tell tale signs of an infestation lurking in the shadows.

After finding these tiny critters on my wrinkled shirt I sat down in my chair that hung dozens of shirts and sweaters off the back of it. I sat there looking online for what it might be that's setting up shop in my bed. Remembering the top google link, Bed Bugs. I clicked it and wasn't sure what that was, beside the old bed time nursery rhyme. Pictures emerged of the identical critters. I flipped out as thoughts raced in my head.. I moved my pillow and saw these tiny red dots crawling towards me.....

Then I moved the sheets around to find bed bugs sitting around the outer part of the bed, even around where my head would lay. I found them hiding in my closet that was above my bed, on the clothes that were laying at the foot of my bed. My roommate was shocked and found them in his bed as well.

We didn't know what to do... We stayed in that house from August till the end of October trying everything you could think of. I was living out of bags, and was bringing car fulls of laundry down to the Laundromat. Trying products that said they would work. Having a PCO come 3 times, which did nothing, I moved limited things to the unoccupied room to get a decent nights sleep but they followed you. There were days at work when I would find them crawling on my jacket and killed them immediately.

I would fully dress before getting into bed, laying there knowing they are coming for me.. I would wake up and swat my knees to try and kill anything. Then I'd wake up with itchy spots. Not being able to take it any longer, I took my tv and placed it in the kitchen where I sat most of the time I had off from work. I even caught a bed bug crawling up my leg.. wasn't the first time. I would be exhausted from not sleeping and couldn't go back in my bed. at 6am I'd finally roll up my sweater and place it on the table, where I laid my head and fell a sleep. Nights went by like this, I saw a few crawling on the walls and made me feel so depressed.

Finally I had enough of this nightmare, knowing farewell I could bring these bugs to my parents I had no choice. I bagged the things I really needed and packed my car up. Leaving behind thousands of dollars worth of my things, including baby photos. The bags were placed in a garage while the things I needed were cleaned and inspected before bringing into the house. I remember a few weeks had past and I was watching tv on the couch when I lifted my leg to see a bed bug drinking my blood. My mom freaked out and we thought it was just the one that managed to get inside.

A month later I had moved and never had to deal with bed bugs again, I acquired new things and my life went back to normal. There was one incident where my mom called saying she found bed bugs around her bed, but they kept an eye out and insist they don't have them. If you move they will follow you, I feel bad about passing them on to my parents, but its the only way you'll lose them, is by moving and taking nothing with you but your clothes.

I know it sucks to surrender to these little bugs but its the only solution to get rid of them as of right now. If you're going throu the same thing please do yourself a favour and get out and get your life back on track.

I know this was long but I really wanted to get this off my mind, please feel free to comment and share your stories.

I'm new and scared I HATE BUGS all forms so to know this has been living under my bed I'm shocked!!! I found a few bugs in my bed my husband thought I was crazy I've washed everything but 2 days later found another one. I didn't have any idea what a bed bug was (Google is amazing) I panicked went to home depot bought proof bed bug killer but haven't slept in over a week. Seriously feel like I'm losing it I cancelled thanksgiving worried what people will think am I crazy???? I had my 1st of 2 treatments from my pco on Wednesday. I told my family since they stayed at my house a week before but the pco says it's pretty safe to say it's isolated to my room. I'm calling him daily with more questions, with all the horror stories I have read. My pco says I'm a 1.5 on a scale of 1 to 10 but I can't relax!!! My family told me ....I heard people have to move because of bed bugs???? I'm a homeowner but on a budget so moving is not an option!!! Please ANY advice is appreciated!!!!

Hi everybody,

I have found a lot of helpful information here, so I thought I would ask for your opinion as well. It all starts back 3-4 months ago, I got a brand new (not used) mattress. Shortly after, I noticed I had bites that resembled pictures of bed bug bites that I have seen. I shrugged it off as I live in Canada and my skin always gets rashes in Winter due to the weather conditions. However, when I woke up with a red blood spot on my sheets, I wondered what it could be. I then did more research and also found black spots on my pillowcase that look to match the poop. This was at least 3 months ago, and I have not found any other black spots or blood on my sheets or pillowcase since. I have also inspected my mattress and box spring and surrounding area thoroughly and can not find any bugs or eggs or anything like that. However, the other day I saw a bug crawl across my pillow. I instantly freaked out and killed it (so I do not have a picture) and thought it was a bed bug. I then proceeded to tear my bed apart and thoroughly search again. Again, nothing else was found. I did however, find a larvae that looked to closely resemble that of a carpet beetle, which makes sense as I have a crack in my wall and no bed frame so my box spring and mattress are on the floor. I would like to think that it is just carpet beetles, but it does not explain the black spots on the pillow case. But since I haven't seen anything else in months, could it have been something else? It may also be worth mentioning that I have two room mates who have not found anything. I am currently trying to get my landlord to get an inspector in, but in the mean time, I could use some opinions. Thank you.

Hey, everyone. I'll spare you the long version of my bedbug ordeal. Our infestation has been contained to my roomate's bed. She hasn't seen a live bug or any other live signs since November 26th. We have been spraying residual pesticides weekly. However, she found two dead bodies on December 23rd and another dead one in her passive monitors January 10th. She's eager to start fully unpacking our stuff and getting life 100% back to normal. I'm still a little paranoid.

Would any professionals mind weighing in? Are we safe to resume life as normal? I'd rather wait longer than have to go through this entire process again. Thanks in advance for your advice.

Hi,
I have been reading about BB for two months. Lots of great advice on this forum.Thanks in advance for any answer or help you can give me. I am not very computer literate,so I probably won't be able to post the pictures I have. Darn.

My battle with the bugs started last Thanksgiving. My neighbor one floor above my unit on the opposite side asked me to watch his cat while he visited his parents. I agreed being a good person and a animal lover. I spent long periods of time sitting on the couch playing with the cat.On Friday the day after Thanksgiving I was getting ready to leave and noticed a small bug on his couch. I picked it up and took it into the bathroom to get a better look. I have never seen a bedbug but noticed that the daughters room had a encasement. I went to get my phone to take a picture of the bug but it escaped.

I sat in a kitchen chair the night before in their apt. Skype with my BF. I did get a small bite on my knee and one on my elbow. I decided then to bring the cat to my apt to play and then back there to sleep. Still had to go in to feed water and change the litter. My Property Manager was also out of town. I saw her Monday morning and asked her why we weren't told there were BB in the bldg.She said they got the all clear from her PCO. I told her I saw a bug and had gotten bitten. She told me she would call the PCO and would call me later. I still had the key so the PCO myself and the Manager went to the apt. They were home and livid to find they were back. The couch had several in different stages. They scheduled another spray and told them it wasn't necessary for them to rebag their things. The PCO came and checked my apt. But know now that wasn't going to help at that early stage. The Property manager then called me and told me she had some spray that she bought from the pest people to use in the hall. She came over and sprayed quickly most of my baseboards. She also mentioned she was trained to spay. I highly doubt that. She said the PCO helped her measure the amount.

I continued to have bites show up. I immediately ordered encasements and DE. The Property Manager even came over to help me put them on. I surely wasn't going to ask anyone else. I bought a small steamer and steamed my bed frame. It is metal. I didn't have a duster so I did the best I could with the DE. I vacuumed like crazy before I applied it. I took things out of the room lamps etc.

I continued to clean bag my clothes and literally pack up my apt because I was sure she would send someone to spray. The PCO came back on December 3rd and still didn't find anything. Me either. Bites continue as did the cleaning and vacuuming. I found what I thought looked like eggs. I didn't know how to remove them so I ruined them. They were in my dining room chair where I sit for long periods of time. I know I napped on the sofa after leaving that apt. So I thought maybe they are in the couch.

I ordered a thermalstrike and heated everything I could. Meanwhile I had to have surgery. My BF came 1200 miles to spend Xmas with me and help me through surgery. He didn't really think he was getting bit but he did have some marks and got a really bad rash on his back. He stayed a month and although it was great to have him here he didn't take as much care to not to contaminate his belongings. That added extra stress to my already stressed out life. I put all his stuff in the heat box or dryer before he left. I sure hope he didn't take anything back with him. He did talk to the Property Manager and told her to spray. Although it wasn't a bedbug spray.

Oh the PCO did come and check again on January 10th. Told me " you absolutely don't have BB".
Also I did show the Doctor my bites and told her the story she cave me pills for itching and told me it would also take care of the anxiety. She did confirm that they were bites and not a skin condition.

The pest people sprayed on Friday. The Property Manager said she came and made sure he did a good job. She did give me a copy of a flyer that has what he used to spray. It does list BB on it. He also said I don't have BB. The name of the insecticide is Onslaught. Active ingredients are
Esfenvalerate.......6.4% Praalenethrin.....1.6% Piperonyl butoxide.......8.00% other ingredients 84.00% contains petroleum distillates. He is scheduled to come back on Monday February 6.

So by now you are saying why do you think you have bed bugs? I have a few signs but no bugs. I have climb ups on my bed. I just put David Cains passive monitor on my mattress and raid BB traps on different areas of my couch. I found what I thought was BB feces on my encasement on Sat but I didn't have anyway to test it. I also found what I thought could be a casing and fecal in my bed a couple of weeks back. Also my elderly neighbor had to go to a nursing home. His family came to clean his apt out. They threw out almost everything he owned. Stacks and stacks of sealed garbage bags. They were obvious because they were grey. Also we had a could snap and the asshat upstairs had all his furniture and garbage bags of clothes on his deck. I hope he doesn't think that is going to help any. One of the maintenance people who lived in the bldg next to mine left in the middle of the night because his apt was so invested.They had people throwing out lots of mattresses and furniture and moving. Also the Property Manager moved to a different bldg to. Their were people in hazmat suits working in that bldg for days because the infestation was so bad.

The new maintenance person moved from her apt somewhere else because it had BB. He told me she got them from her neighbors. She now lives in our community. How long did she have them before she new. I know for a fact that she painted the apt that I saw the bugs in.

Okay now the questions. I am moving in a few months. I refuse to live in a bldg where the neighbors are being kept in the dark. I think it's criminal. I still have a few months left on my lease but don't know how long to stay. I can't go through this much longer.

I don't want to get rid of the things I've worked so hard to acquire. I'm close to retiring and don't have the money to buy new. I am going to put my stuff in storage and put nuvan strips in the storage unit. What do I do with all the food etc. I'm just taking my clothes shoes cosmetics. The bare necessities. How do I treat my cosmetics jewelry and things like that. Should I assume that everything is invested. I don't want to bring them to my friends house when I move.

Also I work in the service industry. I am in people's homes. I keep my purse coat etc in totes and change into my clothes in the kitchen. I steam my shoes and spray the with alcohol when I walk out the door. Am I doing enough to protect my clients. I make myself sick thinking I might infect their lovely homes...help help help! Is there anyone who could walk me through the pic posting. I really don't have any ideas what URL etc are.

I've come to the conclusion that SOMEDAY I won't have bed bugs anymore, but it seems like a dream. We noticed bites in November on all three of our kids who share a room. After two days of bites of knew something wasn't right. Had a sinking feeling it was bed bugs, lifted up my sons mattress (it's an ikea bunk bed and it lays on the floor) and found about 20 dead bugs stuck to the bottom in some tape that was there. If that tape hadn't caught them I'd have never found anything. We've NEVER seen a live bug. Ever. Never seen blood....I've only ever seen dead bugs and a few casings. Fast forward two weeks, we had a pest control company come inspect (found nothing) and a few days later do a heat treatment. Two days after heat treatment my daughter woke up with bites. Three days after heat treatment my husband woke up with bites. Two weeks later they came back out and did another heat treatment. Two and a half glorious weeks went by...NOTHING. No bites, no itching.....I actually started relaxing and sleeping again at night. Then 2.5 weeks later, my daughter woke up with a single bite. Within 5 days all my kids were being eaten alive again. My 3 year old son now has over 30 bites on his body and is crying saying "I want to move!" I'm going insane. Pest control is saying "there's no way." I'm saying "YES there is." We still have seen nothing. Can't find them. I've ripped my house apart numerous times. I've never seen a live bug like I said and that's almost driving me more insane than anything else. WHERE ARE THEY???? It's like the most aggravating thing i've ever dealt with. I just want them gone. Please tell me how you've finally eradicated them and that your mental health is intact!

Thursday night I pulled tweezers out of the medicine cabinet to pull a hair off my face. I was pulling and looked in the bathroom mirror and thought I saw a bb. I threw the tweezers in the sink. I looked and did not see a bb. This morning as I was getting ready for work I was at the bathroom sink and just happened to look at the towel rack and saw a very much alive bb. I captured the bb and put it in a jar to show the inspector when he comes out on Monday. We already had 4 treatments the last two were spot treatments. We had not been getting bitten since the last treatment and I have not seen a live bb until I saw that one. It was an unfed adult not sure of gender. The inspector is supposed to put us in the clear Monday. I have so many questions one was it a straggler that was missed. Two where did it come from? Three how did it end up on my face? It did not get a chance to bite me. I live in a single family house. The PCO said when he came back the last time that we have so much residual around the house that no bb that crosses through it will survive. That bb is very much alive. I know the PCO used transport,phantom, alpine, sterifab bedlam, and etc. How good are those products? Please tell me it was a straggler. I was just starting to feel back to normal again.

I've purged most of my bed bug infested belongings months ago. I currently live in a home with rather minimal furnishings until the bed bug menace is gone (it hasn't for over a year).

For the most part, there's been no signs of bed bugs in the living room, in or around beds, baseboards, curtains anywhere EXCEPT for the goddamn ceiling. My home has what's called popcorn ceilings, used mostly for asethic purposes in homes in the 1950s. Here is where I find bed bugs almost every 3 days just chilling, usually after feeding. Only ceilings in two rooms have bed bugs. I've found a few nymphs and fecal matter on close inspection.

These rooms were treated by a professional multiple times for the last few months. I've even complained about bed bugs on the ceiling and he even went and applied chemicals to the edges around the top of the ceiling. This did nothing except make the room smell for a few days. Three days later, bed bugs there chilling in the same spots.

I've heard recommendations of placing smooth tape around the edges of the ceiling to discourage bed bugs from climbing up there. I'm still trying to find the main love nest that's probably somewhere in the walls but even tearing out sectionals of the wall come up with nothing. I know a proper solution is to call a professional that actually know what they're doing but frankly, I've spent enough on bed bugs: over $10,000 and the people I got now will continue to monitor and treat the home as long as there's bed bugs within a 30 day period. Honestly, I believe this is starting to do more harm than good. Just I haven't found a good DIY plan that works and believe me I've tried EVERYTHING. Right now I'm doing everything I can to keep the bed bug population from exploding like it has in the past. As long as I keep the numbers low, it won't completely drive me insane.

We has our first treatment last week and the upcoming one is next week. PCO said it was a light infestation. I have seen several dead nymphs in the climbups and one slow moving adult on the floor in my daughter's room since then. I had the whole house treated (except kitchen and bathroom).

There are nothing in the bedrooms except beds and empty dressers. I dont let mey daughter hang out in her room right now, nor do I spend anytime in my room, except to sleep.

All clothes are in Ziploc bags, placed in plastic bins with a lid. I am doing daily laundry--mainly after I get home from work--which consists of the night clothes we wore to bed previously.

But after reading these posts, I wonder if I am doing this wrong?

I have a long work day and may daughter is in school all day, then an aftercare program. Am i supposed to have us take off our clothes as soon as we walk in everyday? I have us take off our shoes and put into bags (for me to clean later) but I dont change until its time for bed. I put our bags on the hat rack right next to the front door, and they go into the Zappbug every morning before we leave for the day. I was putting our shoes in their as well but notice the glue on some of them are starting to disintegrate and I will be spraying them with alcohol instead.

On weekends, am I supposed to change every time I leave the house???

I am so exhausted everyday and I am crying as I type this because I dont want to mess this up.I cant tell if every little black, red or white colored thing is a bug or lint or a rock or a piece of food or whatever. I want these things gone.

My fear and paranoia has gotten so bad, I am going to see the doctor today.

What are the damn rules?!?!?!

We were planning to finally move this spring, well before we realized we had bed bugs.
We currently live in an old, crappy and depressing rental home. We have felt trapped here financially sense we moved in, three years ago. The owner of the home is a perfect example of a "slum lord".
There are brand-new very nice apartments being built in our town, and we applied to get one. We were approved and the building is due to open late this spring.
Now we are feeling trapped again, due to these bugs.
We have tossed out nearly all of our furniture and scrubbed down what little furniture remains. I have washed and bagged up all clothing/bedding/childrens' toys in the house- only leaving us a few items to use during the week.
I have treated the house myself, and have lined each room's edge with DE.
I vacuum and wipe things down daily, and wash our items daily.

I have not seen a live bug or skins or fecal stains anywhere in the house sense the initial discovery-6 days ago.

Could I possibly move without bringing bed bugs with us to our new place?
What is a safe way to move???

My daughter's best friend lives down the street from us. The two girls would always play together, and often stayed all night at each-others houses on the weekends. Long story short, her family had been half-assed fighting a bed bug problem for months, and for reasons unknown, decided not to tell me about it. Her house was infested and yet she still allowed my child to spend the night without saying a word.... It was only AFTER I got them in my house. Only THEN did she fess up and say she had a problem.
So now we have bed bugs.
I first noticed two live bugs on our couch about six days ago. I immediately recognized what they were. I checked all the beds in the house and every single one of them had at least two or three bugs. Even my baby's crib had a couple.
I lost my mind. I immediately purchased supplies. I wrapped all furniture and had it hauled off. I sprayed bed bug spray, used a steamer, used alcohol in a spray bottle, and used large amounts of DE all over the house. I washed and bagged all clothing/toys/etc.
My family consists of me, my fiance, and our four children (one of whom is a baby)... I stored away all clean clothing, only allowing each person in the family to keep a few outfits out to use during the week.
We now have almost no furniture in the house. We sleep on air mattresses that I clean and spray daily with alcohol. I wash our blankets and pillows every single day.
I have not seen any bugs, dead or alive, sense the initial discovery six days ago. I have not seen any castings whatsoever, or droppings anywhere. I have cleaned and sprayed alcohol on nearly every surface of every room in my house. I have wrapped double sided tape around the legs of what little furniture I have left. I have placed bed bug traps under each leg of the baby's bed. (he is the only family member who kept his bed). I believe the last bite was received around four days ago.
We have spent so much money. We are broke. We already lived paycheck to paycheck before this bed bug issue... Now we seriously have no money. We had to let our bills go late. We have been living off ramen noodles and what few canned food items are left on our shelves...
When will this be over? Can I even beat this by myself? I cannot afford the professionals to come treat the house.
Our landlord refused to assist us in our fight, because "we brought the infestation into the house ourselves" Before all this, we were planning to move this spring, now, however, we are not allowed to move until we rid the house of bed bugs. The land lord will sue us if we don't fix the problem. We even had a place picked out and were trying to set up a date to move in April... just a few weeks away.
I am so angry at our neighbor...
I feel embarrassed and humiliated.
I have been crying every day. I am exhausted and paranoid.
How do I know if I have beaten the problem?
Does it sound like I caught it early?

Hello

I would be very very grateful for some advice and thoughts on the toxicity and recommended aftercare for cimetrol super. This is my second post on the same bedbug treatment, but a totally separate question so I hope it is right to start a new post. Please be gentle - I am a bed bug first timer and had no idea how awful the little fudgers were until I started reading about them in detail. I should have done more research before the treatment, but we wanted the problem sorted quickly. With hindsight, we'll take a breath before acting next time IF there is a next time - I know so much more about them now!

I saw a live bed bug and received 6 bites during an approximate 3/4 week period. Once I saw the live bug and put two and two together I immediately called several PCOs. I did a little research and decided on a heat treatment as I have a 7 month old baby who spends a lot of time on the floor and putting things in his mouth and really didn't want to expose him to any strong chemicals. According to the PCO I chose, the heat treatment should minimise chemicals.

I realise I should have gone with a company who inspected before deciding to heat treat or not so I would be grateful if people could be kind - it was a Sunday and this was one of the few companies who answered and who agreed to treat swiftly. They were also reassuring me that chemicals would not be used and it would be DE unless other chemicals were absolutely needed.

Now it is 4 days after the treatment (for a light infestation). The technician who arrived on the day said spraying would be needed to ensure the treatment was not a fail and my husband wrote down the name cimetrol super. I was away as I had left to stay at my parents house with my baby (again, armed with more knowledge now from researching I realise I shouldn't have done this! However, I took extreme precautions, only bringing things I had tumble dried, leaving my shoes and bag outside etc.) 

I am still staying my my parents because I feel scared to go back to the flat without feeling secure that the cimetrol will not harm my baby (in the immediate or longer term). Can anyone help advise on this and how best to clean up/detox the house after cimetrol has been used? The PCO has not been  a very helpful saying the cimetrol has  a dried and is safe. They have failed to provide any further info - I chase them daily. But I'm still worried- I am an Uber cautious mum, making sure my baby avoids chemicals, only have natural  cleaning products in my house, as I worry about longer term health effects that are really hard to prove or disprove. 

I have some specific questions and it would be wonderful if anyone could help: 

1) The PCO said to wait 3 weeks before cleaning/vacuuming after cimetrol. Is this correct? Is there any possibility of doing some cleaning before that? What's the most effective way to clean and detox the house with this chemical? I have a steam mop - or is it better to use a normal mop? What product should i use - soap, will natural detergents work or should i use bleach or something else?

2) Are there any other steps i can take to help detox - house plants etc?

3) the PCO said they only sprayed the floors - but I am concerned about the baby's toys in the same room (some of which were low to the floor in an open weave toy basket). How close would it need to be to contaminate the toys? What should i do with them given they often get put in his mouth? Bin them all? Rinse the plastics, bin the fabric or wood? Or can wash the fabric and wood?

Furthermore, what's the chance of this chemical being disbursed and settling on other things like the sofa, rugs? Any suggestions on what I can do to minimise risk?

4) When should I return to my home? My parents probably won't be too keen for me to stay for 3 weeks, but i could do this if recommended! I would rather be on the safe side - so happy to receive some honest, harsh truths. Or would it be ok to return - and if so what precautions should i take (eg don't let baby play on the floor, wash toys etc - and for how long?). Once floor is cleaned can we go back to normal or would it be better to wait or take further precautions?

5) How would i know if baby is affected by cimetrol?

6) Is there any way of knowing whether fabrics / other items have been sprayed with the product (I am suspicious they have)? 

All of this is rather frustrating as i would have paid a bit extra to have a totally green company had I known what they would do! Also - to top it all off, they decided not to use DE as it says to keep away from children on the packet - although presumably cimetrol is much much more toxic!

I hope someone can help even if just one or two of the questions, and really appreciate any advice.

Many thanks

BugsLoveMyBlood

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Hello

I would be extremely grateful for some advice on some shoddy advice we received from a PCO which may have exacerbated our bed bug problem. I will post another question separately about cimetrol but i wondered if you could help with my concerns about some clutter under the bed which was moved before a heat treatment. I hope its the right thing to do to post two separately as they are different issues - but happy to consolidate them if easier!

We had approx 3/4 weeks of bites (6 bites in total) and spotted a bug on our bed. We got a PCO out within a few days to do a heat treatment as i wanted a less toxic option as I have a baby. However, we received some very poor advice from the PCO which may have spread the problem.

We have a bed with drawers underneath and unfortunately have stored a lot of clutter under it as we have a very small flat (never again!!) We had the PCO come round the night before the treatment to suggest how to prepare the flat and he told my husband to move it ALL out and put in the kitchen on the table. It included boxes of papers and knick knacks, not disturbed for months, some paintings wrapped in bubble wrap, fabrics in plastic bags etc. Probably ideal bed bug habitat! Unfortunately my husband did all the prep as i was away and he followed the guy's advice - thinking that the professional told him to do so must be ok! (He hadn't done as much reading on  bed bugs as me so I was horrified when I found out). The guy who did the prep kept saying that the bugs would not live in that stuff so it would be ok to move it. He also told my husband to move lots of other stuff out - hard plastics, books! 

The pco when they arrived the next day to do the treatment - different people than the guy who  I advised on the preparation - then told my husband that all that stuff didn't  have to be moved and doing so could have spread the problem (!) They completed the treatment with heat and cimetrol but didn't tell us where the infestation actually was despite me asking for specifics. We were away during the treatment and the guys have been terrible at following up with us about what actually happened. I am chasing them daily.

Now we have all the clutter/ stuff piled up on our kitchen table and want to know what to do! I would really appreciate advice on the following:

1) if there are bugs in the clutter, will they have died from the treatment? The kitchen floor was sprayed, is it likely they will come out and cross the cimetrol to get us and die? How will we know if there are any in there and whether they are dead? Which leads me on to my next point...

2) should we inspect the clutter and / or bag it up? Or should we leave it where it is? Obviously we don't want to mess with the treatment if it might work. Should be wait for 3 weeks then whilst the cimetrol works? (Is a very small flat and pretty much impossible to live with all that clutter so would rather not!) Or would it be safe to start inspecting the clutter and bagging / binning it, and if so what is the safest way to do this in order to not spread bugs? Will it be easy to find them in amongst such clutter? Should we bag things then inspect the bath or similar? Should we steam items etc - what about papers, or trinkets which can't be washed or steamed. We are trying to minimise costs after this massive expense - I don't have a packtite etc.

3) what is the best thing to do to see if bugs are in the clutter and/or remaining elsewhere after the treatment? Active monitors in the kitchen? Passive  ones? Climb up interceptors and isolate the bed? Or is there no point in active monitors etc as the bugs may have gone into hiding or god forbid gone dormant! What monitoring/trapping should we do to handle the situation best? I heard active monitoring only really works if you are not sleeping in the house?

We have put out yeast traps and homemade interceptors on the bed legs but i have read neither of these are as effective as the bought ones, is this true? 

4) what's the likelihood the bugs have scattered round the house when the clutter was moved and/or when the treatment was happening? Would they likely be still alive - could they have crossed the kitchen floor or walked round non-treated walls (table is touching wall) to reach areas that haven't been sprayed? How do we find out and what should we do?

5) presumably we have grounds to complain given the poor advice we received and the fact the problem could have been exacerbated! What should we ask for? Another heat treatment (could we ask them to heat treat the kitchen?) An extended guarantee past the 3 months, perhaps 6 months? Some money back? Perhaps a sniffer dog or other identification considering they also can't even tell us where the bugs were found!

6) in the meantime, how can we sleep without feeling totally paranoid they are breeding and will get us again!

The PCO is a big name company. I am frustrated with the level of service and wish i went with a smaller bed bug- specific one who would be more expert on dealing with these things, as feel the job has been totally botched.

I should clarify we have not seen a bed bug since the treatment. Maybe good news or maybe just because we've moved them and they have gone into hiding!! 

Thank you so much in advance for any advice or comments.

All the best
BugsLoveMyBlood

After months of getting bites, I finally discovered our upholstered headboard was heavily infested back in January. We took action immediately and has a professional come out and treat our entire condo (which we bought last year). They had great reviews and are known for bed bug treatments and it wasn't cheap. We also got rid of the headboard and some belongings but they said our couch was fine to keep. Since initial treatment, we have found a live bug twice on our couch and once in our bedroom. We have had 3 additional treatments for those instances. It's been about 3 weeks since the last treatment and we haven't seen anything but I am still incredibly paranoid. I finally decided to unpack most our belongings that were laundered and bagged and I'm re-drying EVERYTHING because I'm scared something has gotten in the bags. I guess my question is has anyone ever gotten rid of these things after a very heavy infestation (100+ bugs in the headboard)? And when will I finally relax? I am constantly arguing with my husband because he leaves folded clothes on our bedroom dresser and on the shelves in our closets.I also wash my clothes every single time I sit on my couch. It's getting to the point I'm doing laundry like 5 times a day and I hate being in my living room. I used to love curling up on the couch in pjs watching movies and now I sit awkwardly hoping nothing will crawl on me. I don't even let our 1 year old get in our bed. It's making me sad because we have lived here less than a year and aren't enjoying our first home at all Are these all valid concerns or am in being completely irrational?

I'm traumatized and I'm terrified of moving back in my room...

I know the rules. Don't move into another room or you will spread them but I just cannot muster up the courage. Our condo was treated for BB late January after I discovered a very heavy infestation (100s of BB) in our upholstered headboard in our master bedroom. Probably was infested for months because I recall getting unkonwn bites back in November but couldn't find the source. Anyway, after the first treatment we got rid of our old bedframe and purchased a new metal one but I still have not been able to sleep in our room. I had the bad reactions to bites so that's part of it but we also have had to get 5 follow up treatments (which seems like a ton) because I have found a single live bug a few times (two separate occasions on our treated couch, once in our master bathroom, and one nymph in our KITCHEN just this week). What gives?! Every time I get mentally prepared to move back in that room I am given a reason to never step foot in there again.

Before I found the nymph this week, I was fully prepared to move back in our room. I even posted about here wondering if I was being irrationally paranoid. Thought I was in the clear because I hadn't seen a live bug and there was nothing in the ClimbUps on the legs of any of our bed. But when I spotted the nymph this week, all of my fears came back. The PCO they sent this time seemed very thorough. He found no live bug activity anywhere and reaffirmed the climb ups were clean. But he discovered something no one else had noted on other visits. He saw fecal stains on the mattress encasement (on the bed we have not slept on in nearly 3 months) AND fecal stains, eggs, and an exelskeleton in tiny holes of the exposed brick wall where the upholstered headboard was. There's no way I could spot this with a naked eye. There are a ton of discolorations in exposed brick so I was grossed out and depressed. We were treated with dust and chemicals again (cimexa and Temprid).

Anyway, I feel like I'm back at square one. And again, am so scared of moving back into a room that has had bugs in the WALL. What a nightmare.

Here's a few things I'm trying to figure out:
1. Why would fecal stains be on a bed we haven't slept in? There have been no signs of BB activity in any of the other bedrooms
2. How do I get over the fear or sleeping in my own room? Especially knowing this is still an issue. I literally can't sleep and have been taking a sleep aid since this all started.
3. What more can I do? Other than continue to look for live bugs and fecal stains (which have been really hard for me to detect. What preventative measures can I take? I already throw all of my clothes in the dryer after I wear them. All units attached to us were bug free according to our PCO.
4. Luckily, our 90 day warranty from our PCO restarts every time we find live activity so they will keep coming out. Is this doing more harm than good? Will the bugs grow immune to treatment?

Sorry for the long post!

Hi,
Thanks for having me join this site.
I'm not even sure how long my problem has been going on for but its too long.
About 4 years ago I bought a second hand bed and moved into an apartment.
Long story short, I started waking up with bites.
Despite looking everywhere, I never found a bug.
But I got a pco in with a dog.
He didn't find anything, but sprayed our house etc, twice.
There was no improvement.
My partner has never seen a bug either so he thinks a) I'm nuts or b) it's something else.
In 4 years I have only ever seen 2 nymphs and 2 casings.
I'm going crazy, going gray.
I used climb up interceptors, and diatomaceous earth.
I never once got a bug in the climb up interceptor.
What to do?

Last February(2016) we found bb in son's room. We followed protocol and had success. We did not have a huge infestation. Mostly contained to his room.

After we were pretty sure they were irradiated, I would get bit from time to time. Not even sure it was bb. Eventually found a few stragglers in my bed. Treated my room successfully. I think I found 3. No eggs. After they were gone I had no more bites. It has been 6 months since anyone has gotten a bite in my house.

Son has been away at camp for a week. Just returned home. Tonight I found an adult BB on his bed. It had just fed. ( my son has type one diabetes so I often check his blood sugar in the middle of the night.) I did a quick scan and could find no fecal or any signs of bedbugs or skins in the place. Will check further tomorrow.

The good thing is that I washed everything he brought home from camp today hot water and length in time and dryer. Not really as a precaution for bedbugs just because I wanted to get it all done. What I did not wash was his pillow, stupid me, I just threw it on his bed. I was not even thinking about the possibility of bedbugs from camp.

Tomorrow we will take apart his bed and check to see if there are signs. I don't know that I can live through this again. I am panicked.

So it's getting nice outside again and people are wanting to get together. This is normally my absolute FAVORITE time of year. My son started baseball today and I love taking long walks with friends when the weather is nice. However this year it's different. I want to hide I don't want to see anyone!

I haven't seen a bed bug since late January, early February. It's not me I'm worried about at this point! It's everyone else! Today my dad's girlfriend wanted to take my daughter to a birthday party...I let her but didn't want to! My son had his first baseball game and another baseball mom gave me a "gift" it was a tote bag that was baseball print (brand new in the package) it's adorable and I love it but it went straight in the washer when I brought it in my house! My nephew asked to spend the night.....I'm letting him, this is the first time since before Christmas.

I'm allowing these things to happen because I can't hide forever, but it's scaring the absolute hell out of me. All of this just transpired today and it's a lot to take in one day! All the people I've seen/been around and the places we've been and my nephew staying all I see in my head is one big bed bug infestation waiting to happen!

Not only did that baseball bag go in the wash but when my daughter came home her clothes did as well....as for my nephew? The stuff he brought over is in an airtight clear tote and I took the clothes he's wearing to bed and ran them through the dryer!

I feel like an absolute nut case right now! Dear god please tell me I won't feel like this forever!!