I studied up a bit on here and some county extension sites and decided that I needed Diatomaceous Earth and some spray of some sort. I did not disturb where I thought the most likely places they would be but took off to ACE hardware once they opened. I bee lined for the chemical aisle and already had the Diatomaceous Earth in hand when I was approached by a clerk asking what I was wanting to kill.. told him I had the bedbugs. (they are apparently very common in my area) He advised that I did have the right thing in hand and also suggested a bottle of JT Eaton bedbug spray, (label says it lasts for up to 16 weeks)

There was a huge display of several bedbug choices right as one walked in the door, so I felt a bit better knowing I was not the only one facing this embarrassing situation. I took the spray containing Deltamethrin .03% and the Diatomaceous Earth bottle (Safer Brand) home and formed a game plan.

I have an upholstered suede headboard from floor to almost ceiling with lots of tufts, buttons and folds so I figured that’s probably a favorite hiding spot. Sure enough, after noticing some poop marks and trails, I was sure of it. I started checking it out and there were about 10 creepers that I caught and bagged. I wanted to make sure the spray killed the suckers so I gave them a dose in the bag and they were all incapacitated immediately and died soon after.

I then took the vacuum hose and sucked in every crevice in the headboard and then took the bed apart, loaded up the washer on hot and threw in the sheets and mattress cover and bagged the wool blanket. The bed springs of this king bed sit directly on the short tight woven carpet so I figured I would find a bounty there, but did not. The mattress showed no signs of infestation, whew….. I sprayed the headboard, I don’t care if it kills me or not!! I spayed around the bed, under it and inside the box springs. I then caught a couple more adults wandering around in a stuper.

I vacuumed the entire room at least 12 times over, cracks, crevices, mattress, box springs, headboard EVERYTHING!! I sprayed around all the base, door entries, bathroom and closet. Then I dusted all the door entry ways in case some tried to run out, they would be coated in the dust. I set the box springs and mattress up on edges and let everything dry. Then I laid out lines of the dust and since it only made heavy lines, I took a broom and went back and forth to throw it all in the air— I stuck my face in my shirt since the whole room filled up like smoke. This coated EVERYTHING with the dust, which was my intention.

I then laid lines along the baseboards and swept it up under all the base, put some in the air returns and also turned on fan on the HVAC unit and pumped some of the dust in there in case they were hiding out in the vent system. Everything I have read and trust me, I read all day, states that this Diatomaceo Earth dust is really effective in long term due to its action of dehydrating the bugs and killing them naturally within a short period. This would include the new hatches as they come along, but I plan on vacuuming it up and re-applying in 2 weeks.

I don’t care what they say, I am not sleeping in that room for at least a week. I am in the spare bedroom which someone had recently been sleeping in with white sheets and there is not one single sign of a bug anywhere in there. I figure if they are going to come after me in that room, they are going to have to go through A LOT of the dust to get at me so this might actually work in my favor, making them chase me down thus making sure they get a good dose of the dust on the way.

I am now off to scrub the headboard with hot water and laundry detergent and am going to use a scrubber brush. Will report back with my results. I really appreciate this forum and thank you all for your contributions. I really couldn’t afford to get an exterminator and I feel good about my decision to take this on myself, but couldn’t have managed without help from you all. !! I am in Denver, by the way! Thanks..

If you are trying to get rid of them, throwing out your mattresses and blankets and sheets won’t do it, you have to eradicate them from the entire room.

good luck!!

Note: Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth

Chinese Chalk looks like regular chalk so if you have children you MUST keep it out of reach. You can order it on Ebay or across seas like I did and it is very inexpensive. I used it for roaches and it was a MIRACLE, got rid of my roaches in ONE night and I haven’t seen one since. It affects insects’ nervous system and basically makes them go crazy and die.

The directions say that if you’re using it for bed bugs to take your mattress and put it on the floor and draw a circle around it and leave it there for a few days so when they come out they have to walk across it. I would, for extra measure, also draw lines around the rest of the bedroom or whatever area is infested and leave it there for about a month.

When you draw your lines you have to make sure they are thick so that when the bugs walk across it they will get the chalk dust all over their body. Also, remember not to draw lines in places that children or animals will come into contact with. Clean up is also a breeze, you just use water. I hope this helps some people.

Now for my story…There are 3 different sites for my job and I have recently become the floater so if someone calls out at any of the sites, I fill in for that person. Well, I had been covering in this particular location since last Thursday. I was there Thursday, Friday, Monday, Tuesday, and half of Wednesday. I had been working with one other guy (an old man who refuses to retire), who’s not the cleanliest person in the world. I had been hanging my coat next to his each day I was there.

Wednesday I saw a bed bug crawling out of the pocket of his jacket and I freaked. I left everything there in the office and went home with the t-shirt on my back. Now I am really paranoid that I may have already brought a bed bug home with me as our jackets were touching each day I was there.

I haven’t seen a bug or noticed any bites but I fear that my infestation might be in its infancy. For anyone who knows all about bed bugs please tell me what are the chances that I probably brought a couple home with me????

Thanks

———————-
Hello Jessica,

I think you’ll be fine with the bed bugs not jumping to your cloths, but if I were you, I’d would not wear you work cloths home and instead bring a clean pair to change into, or sweats, etc. Use a plastic bag to put everything into and seal – you want to isolate your work cloths from home, then when it’s time to clean the work cloths, make sure to wash in hot water – take some time and read the comments here – you find some great ways to make sure you stay bed bug free.

*** WARNING: DANGER ***

Here is information from the government on Insecticide Chalk that is illegal in the United States! In a nutshell, they say:

“These products are deceptively dangerous. Children could easily mistake them for common household chalk,” said State Health Officer James Stratton, M.D., M.P.H., “Consumers should avoid them.” “Obviously, making an insecticide look like a toy is dangerous–as well as illegal,” said DPR Chief Deputy Director Jean-Mari Peltier.”

The products — sold under various trade names including Pretty Baby Chalk, Chinese Chalk, and Miraculous Insecticide Chalk — are hazardous for two reasons. First, they can be and have been mistaken for common household chalk and eaten by children, causing several illnesses. Second, the products are unregistered, and the ingredients and packaging are unregulated. These products are typically manufactured in China and illegally imported. The packages instruct consumers to draw chalk lines on the floor to kill insects that crawl over the pesticide.

I also found this statement from:
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1026725/pdf/westjmed00130-0076a.pdf

“Miraculous Insecticide Chalk”- An Unregistered Household Insecticide:
The California Department of Health Services recently has received numerous reports of the sale of an unregistered insecticide for use against cockroaches and ants. This insecticide is prepared as a white stick simulating common blackboard chalk, and lines are drawn where the insects are to be controlled. It is manufactured in China and is not registered with either the US Environmental Protection Agency or the California Department of Food and Agriculture. This product is being sold to the public primarily through flea markets and Chinese import stores, with its use most often being reported in Asian restaurants and migrant labor camps.

Samples of “Miraculous Insecticide Chalk” submitted by the public have been found to contain 0.71 % of a synthetic pyrethroid compound called deltamethrin. Deltamethrin is mildly toxic, with the most likely toxic manifestations being irritation of the mouth if ingested by a child. Ingesting small amounts-one piece of chalk or less-should require no medical therapy. Ingesting larger amounts should be managed supportively; no antidote is known. Since the product has not gone through the proper regulatory channels, we have no assurance that either active or inert ingredients pose only a minimal health hazard.

The sale of “Miraculous Insecticide Chalk” is illegal in California, and its use in restaurants is a violation of California’s Health and Safety Code. Use of the product should be reported to local public health officials or local county agricultural commissioners.

KENNETH W. KIZER, MD, MPH
Director
JOHN H. POORBAUGH, PhD
Senior Public Health Biologist
Environmental Management Branch
California Department of Health Services
714 P Street
Sacramento, CA 95814

For those of you reading, please beware of these warnings. Consider using Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth instead – there are a number of comments on this page with more information about this all natural product!

Dear people, please avoid chemicals as much as possible.

They tell me my sister brought them to my dads apartment inside her stereo speakers and she had done it before to someone else’s home…shame on her.

Anyways, I came to stay with dad and to get rid of these things. I bought the Bayer spray from Lowes and spayed and sprayed and sprayed (always use a respirator/face cover, do not breathe in the vapors). It seemed to work some but the temperature in this house is 86 and I cannot use the spray anymore because I cannot take Dad out of the house. The bugs are EVERYWHERE!!!! Its horrible day or night all over! My son had one on his lip when he went to take a drink! My grandson had one on his finger when he was at the table eating!

##BTW SPECIAL NOTE: Bed Bugs DO drop from the ceiling and walls ##

I will go today to get the natural products you have listed and get some storage bags and a steamer. I will let you know how I make out .

Back in October me and my family move into our new home. well about two weeks later one of my daughters came to me me and said something was biting her, not thinking about bedbugs because she has a infant and she was getting bit we threw out her bed and that was it.

Well, about two weeks ago i noticed bumps on my arms and they were itching like crazy! I just thought it was from something that i ate. It wasn’t getting better and there were more bite marks. It’s now January 20th 2010 and i couldn’t sleep well so I pulled back the covers and there it was! At first I thought it was a cockroach so i killed it then i saw the blood started checking the covers. Sure enough, there were many more and decided to get on the internet and look up bedbugs, found your site and they match exactly!

I put all my blankets in the trash, I’m calling my doctor in the morning for treatment and i will be calling the landlord! I think that this house was already infected because the people that lived here before me were very dirty! I am terrified to go to sleep and want to move!

Dear God, this is like a Biblical curse of some kind, we thought we were clear, but now we find out, NO, we are not we still have the little monsters, i have put down Delta Dust after the exterminator was here i thought that would keep us safe, i am going to put some Delta Dust on the box springs under the mattress and use some kind of a spray and check Every DAY for the bugs.

I don’t know what else to do, the exterminator stole from me while in my apartment, so i don’t want to go back to the landlady because she will call him back and i don’t want that thief back in here again, i am 55 and have Never come across Anything like this creature before.

I have the greatest amount of sympathy for Everyone that is going through this terrible ordeal, i want to move but am on a limited income so moving is not an option at this time, i hope to somehow get rid of these critters, it is just going to be a matter of time, i hope.

Beds, floors, couches, walls, rugs, cracks! Just Open Doors &windows for ventilation! The situation was Bad, I had no money, disabled, but this was what I had to do in order to get to sleep or sit down in this place!

These bed bugs were eating me alive face, back, legs, arms, it was a nightmare! There is a God and believe me my prayers were answered! after spraying the fist day I could sleep a lot better, but you continue the treatment everyday, until you run them out, Kill Them!! this is also good, for those nasty Water-Bugs, Roaches, spray on your bed, bedding around floors carpeting daily they will die! it is strong smelling but after it clears it has also been disinfected! GOD IS Good! Sweet Dreams!!