Have I got bed bugs?

[friendofdorothy]

How can I tell?

I keep getting bit overnight, in places on my body that are not exposed to air and are generally under the covers. I seen to have a least 1 itchy red bump somewhere about my person for ages. Still itchy even though I used zapp it and have take antihistamines. Currently have 6 ichy bite like marks. Not seen any bugs. Or any midges/ mosquitos either.

What should I do?

 

[Aladdin]

Bread soda all over your mattress for a couple of hours .it will dry them out and they will die.
Hoover everything in the vicinity of the bed. The feckers can hide. Wash all bedlined in a hot wash.
Duvet Included.

If you have bedbugs you'll see little brown stains on the sheets from where they bit you. If its not bedbugs ... I've no idea what to do...
But keep us posted

 

[littlebabyjesus]

I had an infestation of bed bugs a few years ago. I would get bites in a straight line up my arm or leg. They became an obsession.

I threw out my mattress (doesn't work - they don't generally live in the bed but in cracks in the wall). Cleaned everything in the flat. Washed everything. Tried various shop-bought insecticides. I ended up sleeping on the floor. In the end what worked was going online, lying that I was buying for the council, getting extremely nasty professionals-only insect poison and spraying it all over the room.

They would come in waves. and that's the bugger. If you don't also kill their eggs, you get them again a few weeks after getting rid of them. So you have to spray everything.

Only ever saw one once. It was there on the bed. I banged down and squashed it. They are slow. They rely on stealth. They basically stay in their crack until you're in bed then come out and bite you then return to their crack. And they may stay there for days before having another go.

I hope for your sake you do not have bed bugs.

 

[Guineveretoo]

I know for sure I don't have bed bugs, but I am also being bitten at night time by something or other! All I can think is that it is a midge which gets trapped under the covers.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

I was determined to get rid of them on my own. But if it happened again, I think I would call the council and get them to do it. It costs. But it was horrible.

If you're doing it yourself, nastiest insecticide you can get hold of and spray everywhere you think there may be cracks they could live in. That means all along wardrobes, skirting boards, everything. Got to get those eggs!

fwiw I tried those bombs you can buy that send powdery spray around the room. Didn't work.

 

[izz]

Do you sleep with an open window friendofdorothy ? If so, could be mosquitoes, do you live near water ? We have them in Somerset

 

[Monkeygrinder's Organ]

I had them once on holiday and ime if you've got them you really know about it - like dozens of bites not just a few.

 

[friendofdorothy]

Do you sleep with an open window friendofdorothy ? If so, could be mosquitoes, do you live near water ? We have them in Somerset

I do often get bit by flying mossies etc. Didn't think they would bite through PJ's?

 

[friendofdorothy]

Bread soda all over your mattress for a couple of hours .it will dry them out and they will die.
Hoover everything in the vicinity of the bed. The feckers can hide. Wash all bedlined in a hot wash.
Duvet Included.

If you have bedbugs you'll see little brown stains on the sheets from where they bit you. If its not bedbugs ... I've no idea what to do...
But keep us posted

No little stains or any droppings I can see. Might do a spring clean of bedding etc anyway.

 

[two sheds]

Mossies here bite through clothes layers - either that or the little fuckers crawl underneath.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

No little stains or any droppings I can see. Might do a spring clean of bedding etc anyway.

Yeah, good place to start.

This week's heat wave might not help if it is mozzies. FWIW when I had bed bugs I didn't notice stains or droppings.

This is the bad boy that worked for me in the end.

 

[two sheds]

Can Mosquitoes Bite Through Clothes?

Avoid mosquito bites all summer long by wearing the right clothing.

www.familyhandyman.com

Thick, heavy, loose-fitting items and materials like denim, canvas and wool provide a more difficult barrier for mosquitoes to penetrate. Long-sleeved shirts and pants are also effective in preventing mosquito bites.

Wear light-colored clothing when possible since mosquitoes are attracted to dark colors. Socks and closed-toe shoes also prevent bites on the feet and ankles.

Synthetic fabrics like nylon and polyester trap heat and moisture, making it easier for mosquitoes to detect human skin and bite through. Natural fibers like cotton and linen are more effective.

PJs a piece of piss for them you'd think

 

[littlebabyjesus]

I'd say the most characteristic thing I noticed with bed bugs was that I'd get three or four bites in a straight line. I guess one bug moving up the arm/leg? They'd get to work maybe 20-30 minutes after I got into bed. Takes the fuckers some time to get to you.

I was bitten to fuck a couple of weeks ago and initially feared the worst. In a way I was relieved to hear the mozzies. Mozzies will go away as soon as the weather changes.

 

[two sheds]

Do they itch like fuck as do mossie bites? And old ones itch when you get new ones as do mossie bites? (Sorry if you've said above).

 

[littlebabyjesus]

Do they itch like fuck as do mossie bites? And old ones itch when you get new ones as do mossie bites? (Sorry if you've said above).

Yes. Very similar to mozzie bites. I react quite badly to bites anyway, but big red itchy blobs.

 

[friendofdorothy]

Usually up to two bites in one place. Yes very itchy, big red itchy blobs.

 

[two sheds]

I think I am going to get one of those heat treatment type pens next year. Touch wood not been bitten for a few days now.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

btw if it really is bed bugs and you're a council tenant, you should be able to get the council to fumigate for free. Otherwise it costs 100-odd quid iirc.

 

[metalguru]

This seems ridiculous but just over 10 years ago I thought I had bedbugs when I actually had hives (urticaria), with itchy red welts. As I recall, it was a time of some stress as I’d just changed jobs.

If you haven’t done so already, it may be worth checking if only to rule it out.

 

[Aladdin]

This seems ridiculous but just over 10 years ago I thought I had bedbugs when I actually had hives (urticaria), with itchy red welts. As I recall, it was a time of some stress as I’d just changed jobs.

If you haven’t done so already, it may be worth checking if only to rule it out.

I remembee thinking I had bedbugs. Scouring everything. Turned out it was my liver disease fucking me over yet again...

 

[hitmouse]

Diatomaceous earth is your friend, get some food-grade diatomaceous earth and you'll be sorted. Changing bedding, spraying the mattress with pest sprays and so on are all good, but as mentioned above they can live anywhere in your room, so I think it's a good idea to make it impossible to climb up to your bed. They can't jump or fly, so you've just got to work out where your bed is in contact with the floor and take those points of contact out - I put DE in jar lids and then put the legs of my bed in the jar lids, and that helped to sort the problem out.

 

[Puddy_Tat]

pink sparkly flea collar?

 

[Epona]

Diatomaceous earth is your friend, get some food-grade diatomaceous earth and you'll be sorted. Changing bedding, spraying the mattress with pest sprays and so on are all good, but as mentioned above they can live anywhere in your room, so I think it's a good idea to make it impossible to climb up to your bed. They can't jump or fly, so you've just got to work out where your bed is in contact with the floor and take those points of contact out - I put DE in jar lids and then put the legs of my bed in the jar lids, and that helped to sort the problem out.

It's bad to breathe in the dust from that though, you're not supposed to put it down and leave it down. You're supposed to put it down around the edges of carpets to deal with where fleas lay their eggs, then hoover it up a bit later - while wearing an air filter/respiration mask. Not have it around all the time.

 

[Magnus McGinty]

I get bitten by midges at my mother's place when sitting outside. Through clothing.

 

[kittyP]

I do often get bit by flying mossies etc. Didn't think they would bite through PJ's?

I'm sure I read somewhere that they are more likely to bite through clothing than bare skin.
They are attracted to the smell of carbon dioxide coming off you and there is more of it trapped between your skin and clothes.
Mozzies that is

 

[kittyP]

Can Mosquitoes Bite Through Clothes?

Avoid mosquito bites all summer long by wearing the right clothing.

www.familyhandyman.com

PJs a piece of piss for them you'd think

I always get bitten through jeans.

 

[izz]

If you haven't seen it already friendofdorothy Sali Hughes has a column on bites and the treatment and avoidance thereof.

 

[friendofdorothy]

Who she?

 

[izz]

Hyaaar Mosquitoes love me, so I’ve tried all the solutions. These are the best | Sali Hughes on beauty

 

[pug]

Could try wrapping fly paper round the bed legs maybe