Bedbugs help!

[BugsInTheBed]

My mum is quite vulnerable (mental health) and is in council housing.

She has found she has bedbugs. She has the bites and is frightened of the whole thing. A google told her treatment cost £1000 which neither she or I have.

What can we do? I told her to phone the council (council house) but they just told her it was a tennants problem after she plucked up the courage to ask.

She does have a very crowded bedroom and unbelievable amounts of clothes (not quite hoarding as she periodically gets tid of some - she has a small room double bed and wardrobe/dressing table no other space)

I dont have 1k to lend her (realistically it would be a gift anyway) . She is on benefits and lives hand to mouth.

She is making herself ill with worry and I truly don't know what to do.

As for treatment - how do we know a website/trader is genuine or good. Anyone can put up a website and they're all so expensive.

A google suggests its hard to eliminate yourself.

What do I do!? Help!

I've never had the problem, but if I were in her situation I'd clear the whole room out, hoover everywhere, perhaps hoovering mattress and that area a couple of times. Hot wash everything she intends to put back in the room - get the room aired over next few days (easy as it'll be warm). If she can clear the problem, I'd say moving forward to turn back the covers everyday so nothing can fester and open window at same time.

The problem is they live in the mattress - so emptying/airing/washing wont get them.

I could go over and help if it was simplay the sheets. I think she may be sleeping on her sofa now :(.

Where did you get the £1000 quote? My council pest control service is £300 for bed bugs.

If I were you, though, I’d do an absolutely massive clear out. Any soft furnishings that are not essential get chucked straight in an outside bin. When all the rooms are cleared (as far as possible) set off pest control smoke bombs in every room simultaneously to kill the bugs and give them nowhere to run to.

We cleared everything we didn't need immediately into sealed binbags and into the shed. Everything we needed got washed including duvet. We bought a steam cleaner and steamed the bed frame, mattress, floor etc every week until we stopped seeing them, then every couple of weeks, now monthly.
Yes we had to buy the steamer but cheaper than paying someone.
Use sellotape to catch any you see.
Any method takes time unfortunately as the lifecycle means you kill adults but more hatch.

Quotes locally (not london) seem to be in that bracket but I have only googled a few. She is getting herself into a real panic as she is usually short £30-40 each month which I lend her and the next month she pays me back/she realky is living on benefits and can't save up - even a few hundred would take months to save.

Our council doesn't do bedbugs - does mice/rats etc but not bedbugs.

I am both wanting to help her but also not brilliantly well myself in terms of what I can actually do to help.

She has a tiny flat so no shed/spare rooms to put things in.

She doesnt really have things she doesnt need. She was qlready worried about cost of mattress protector/in case that would work.

I may need to find out what loans are available for her but she has no money.

A long hot tumble dry should kill them in clothes. I personally would chuck the mattress. Better a second hand mattress off gumtree than a bedbug infested one. Steam cleaner is a good call.

You basically need to empty the room tumble dry or steam clean everything before you put it back in, keep it super clean - be vigilant. If they return...pest control.

As she’s vulnerable, have you tried contacting adult social care? You need to be really tough with them - explicitly state that you cannot help her.

Leaving clothes in a freezer for about a week will also kill bugs! A cheaper option than tumble drying.

We had bedbugs and I really feel for you and your mum. They are absolute bastards to get rid of. It's absolutely outrageous that the council won't help with them- I would try to push on that if at all possible.

I wouldn't follow the advice you are getting here of throwing away the mattress; likelihood is they will just find their way back to her new one.

We used these people and it worked (eventually) but they too are expensive and I can't remember exactly how much it came to in the end. They have good advice on their website though.

Get some Cimexa or diatomaceous earth, might need to go on American ebay/amazon for it. You'll also need a heavy duty respiratory dust mask as it's a lung irritant (but totally inert & non toxic once settled on surfaces)

Declutter as much worthless stuff as possible. Put the rest of the stuff in heavy duty binbags and secure tightly with no exit. Then you can treat the stuff systematically.

Put clothes on a hot wash 60C and tumble dry. Things that can't be washed, put in the deep freeze for a few days. Put laundered stuff in a safe, uninfested zone for now.

Dismantle the bed.

Hoover thoroughly. Dispose of the hoover bag immediately in the outside bin. See if you can get a dry vapour steamer. Treat all the nooks, crannies, corners and joints with the hoover and steamer. Then lightly dust with the insecticidal dust.

Don't use bug bombs, they push the infestation deeper into the fabric of the building. Don't chuck any furniture or other expensive stuff out and replace it... it can take several goes to get rid of bedbugs, even with professionals, so it's just throwing good money after bad.

Really good advice from @DogandMog Those people I recommended use that stuff too (I can't spell it so not going to try!)

Has she had a positive id? Lots of things can leave a bite like a bedbug. Not to minimise what is happening, but it's important to take it one step at a time.

Afaik (based on our own experience with bedbugs) a reputable pest control person will want some sign of bedbug activity before they start treatment. I actually found a single bb but when they came to spray the person said she saw no sign of infestation so she didn't recommend it. She suggested dusting with DE (as suggested by pp) using a makeup brush and we never saw another bb after that.

I see the LA doesn't offer bedbug treatment but it might be worth ringing to ask if there is some arrangement in place.

It's an awful experience (we've been there more than once) and you and your mum have all my sympathy but don't panic.

Has she found evidence of bed bugs or just has bites? Where are the bites?

BB will leave dark marks on bedding and mattress and there will be a smell. These are legitimate signs of activity in the absence of an actual insect (which can be hard to find) but bites alone aren't enough evidence to pull the trigger on an expensive treatment regimen. Get a recommendation if possible, to avoid being scammed.

She got bites but also she says she has the little black stains in the mattress.

Shes in a tiny flat so any heaving of furniture isnt possible/she only has a tiny fridge freezer... but as above from what she's read DIY solutions just send them round the house rather than get rid of them permanently.

Its quite cramped but its because she only has a small living space - she doesnt have "worthless stuff" and can't afford to replace things.

Its hard from a distance as I cant take over (she's not so unwell herself it would reach social service threshold currently for example (no risk to self/others)) amd not even sure what id do if I could.

She told me she's hiding in the living room not getting much sleep as cant face sleeping on the bed knowing they are there :( which is understandable.

I think she needs to get a loan and get them gone doesnt she!? Are there loans for people that cant afford to pay them back!?

And yes shes a high risk for being scammed. Where on earth would you get a recommendation!?

AFAIK you're supposed to continue sleeping in the bedroom as if you move to the sofa they will migrate in the flat to where you move to so the infestation will spread to lounge.

I looked into bed bugs a lot as I'm always getting bitten on my face but have never found evidence of them in years.

There are even forums dedicated to bed bugs on google that you might find useful.

You can ask friends/neighbours and see if anyone can recommend (you don't need to mention bb, you're looking for a pest control company), or a local forum might be helpful.

You can ring around various reputable exterminators and ask what their treatment procedure is, there should be some effort to identify bugs before spraying.

Could you ring the council and go into a bit more detail about your mum's situation, or ask a local councillor if they can advise?

I know these services have been reduced over recent years but ffs are council tenants and vulnerable people meant to just suffer in silence until whole areas are thorougly infested and uninhabitable?

You can try the procedure recommended upthread - put all clothes in a hot dryer and then into plastic bags, hoover and dust everything very sparingly with DE, dispose of hoover bag outside. If your mum moves around sleeping on different furniture it will spread an infestation so it's recommended to sleep in the same place. That said I understand how hard it is to do that.

DE shouldn't send them round the house, it should treat the problem and we were advised to use it by a professional pest control expert employed by the council. (I have heard that about bug bombs.) Not sure what 'volume' of infestation can be self-treated though.

This should send you to the relevant webpage for your local authority: www.gov.uk/pest-control

I understand your mum has rung but it's worth seeing what the website says in case they offer concessions or can advise to avoid scams.

British Pest Control Association and Buy With Confidence might be helpful:
bpca.org.uk/
www.buywithconfidence.gov.uk/find-a-business/

Thanks I've just spoken to our council "pest control" (mum went through the council housing association) and they no longer "do" bed bugs so she advised check a trade.

I also explained that she was vulnerable/under council housing in case she had any ideas and she said it was definitely a tennants responsibility! 🙄.

Hi there

Sorry to hear about your mum’s situation.

Some things come to mind to help, and it won’t be to the cost of 1k. There will be some cost though.
So I recommend that the bed, mattress, sheets, pillows, duvet - THE lot - gets binned. As Ripley in Aliens says, nuke the site from orbit, it’s the only way to be sure.

Clear up the room from clutter - especially clothing clutter. Clothes especially washed and put away.

Give the room a good clean and steam. TCarpet cleaner if carpeted. And rpt this process in a few weeks (due to maybe the next
cycle of any missed eggs left behind from the first time).

New bed and mattress and sheets.

Going forward, maybe airing the room regularly, keep the bed sheet free at least once a week with UV light shining from window, curtains wide open everyday (these bloodsuckers hate day light) and flip mattress regularly. And keep room as clutter free as possible.

Recently, I’ve felt like I’ve learned more about Bedbugs then I’ve ever wanted to.
On Sunday morning, I found out we had an infestation of them. First time ever in my life. I was mortified.
What was worse was I found out because I was trying to attach a next-to- me bed to our bed - as my DW just gave birth the day before!! Fortunately, baby and her had to stay the night in hospital due to being high risk, so baby was well away from this. But was due to be discharge later in the afternoon.

I phoned DW immediately - and thankfully
she had the same thought I did - to get rid of the entire bed, mattress, sheets, duvet, THE LOT (it was my favourite duvet cover also) - it was the only way to be sure. Luckily, we have a large, firm electric air mattress to use for a few days. DW on bed, baby in his little cot, but sadly me on the floor. It’s uncomfy to hell, but I’ve another bed and mattress for end of week.

Hope your mum gets sorted soon

Sorry, I did forget to add, DW also found out bedbugs are at the moment more of a problem then ever before, due to raising temperatures

You have my sympathy. We had a dormitory suffer with bed bugs on a school trip one year. Another way of killing the little b**gers is to seal clothing in a plastic bag and put in the freezer overnight. Unfortunately you do need to get rid of them before they spread to the rest of the flat.