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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Bed bugs and Vinted etc

55 replies

Rainforests555 · 06/10/2023 22:37

have the bed bug headlines made you think twice about ordering clothes or anything fabric-based from websites or apps like Vinted and eBay ? I was looking at some baby items, but now I’m wondering if it’s not worth the risk !

OP posts:
Fallenangelofthenorth · 02/11/2023 09:09

Hadn't crossed my mind until now. Thanks for that!

BlinkerGoBlink · 02/11/2023 09:30

DAMN YOU OP.

Yes. YES. NOW I am worried about it.

😂

MelAndTim · 02/11/2023 09:51

I don’t read rags and am not on SM.

I subscribe to the Times and the Financial Times, both have run bed bug stories recently. FT at least twice in October. Times probably five times in October.

My parents had an infestation of bed bugs about 18 months ago, it was stressful and very expensive for them, £2k on a pro to deal with them, £800 dry cleaning curtains and blinds, two new mattresses, all new bedding.

Washing alone doesn’t get rid of them.

Lockless · 02/11/2023 10:19

I wish people took bedbugs more seriously. Well before the current news about them, I came across them in a rented flat on first night there (left immediately). It was unbelievably gross and once I had read about them, I realised the true nightmare of them getting into your house! I then came across them in a Premier Inn hotel (would have had no idea if I hadn't looked due to previous horror) I don't buy from Vinted etc and tbh won't be staying in hotels. Read up on it! They aren't THAT rare. Uncommon but definitely a risk.

BertieBotts · 02/11/2023 10:33

YY I agree you have to be wary of them in hotels and def wouldn't want an infestation, as once they're in it's very hard to get rid of them. I just didn't think they migrated on clothing. They need to be near to a host, don't they?

I wonder if it's not just global warming ie warmer temperatures? I always associated them with warmer places like Spain and some hotter parts of the US. An online friend living in Texas had a horrific infestation but hasn't seemed to have any issues with them since moving to Canada.

Headsett · 02/11/2023 10:42

You can see bed bugs with the naked eye, if you're concerned open the parcels outside? I give anything bought second hand or from a shop on a nice hot wash anyway to be honest.

Lockless · 02/11/2023 10:57

They do wander and can get into clothes. Doesn't mean they live there but are attracted to human smells on things like clothes. That's how they travel in suitcases etc. Yuck.

Lockless · 02/11/2023 10:59

Also, a hot wash won't kill them. Needs a nice tumble dry at minimum. These things are hard to kill!

GarlicGrace · 02/11/2023 21:46

A 60° wash will kill them and eggs (needs to be a good 30 minutes at high temp). Same for tumble dry: 30+ minutes on high, eco dry won't bother them. Steam works, too, same principle: must be scalding and 20 minutes or more.

Insecticides don't hurt them these days.

Freezing for 4 or more days inactivates them, but eggs can survive so you must was the items as soon as they're out of the freezer. Also, make sure you freeze the things inside fully-sealed bags as the adults could find their way out.

Substances with very pointy molecules can kill most creatures with an exoskeleton, the points pierce their 'armour'. Salt does it, and so does diatomaceous earth - it's what they make clay kitty litter with, but you can buy it as a fine powder in huge bags. Diatomaceous won't harm fabrics or plants like salt does, but you must hoover it all up or it will grind the fibres of your carpet/furnishings/clothes. Good news: it's also a great deodorant.

Large objects like mattresses need steaming by a professional with a high volume, high pressure, superheating steamer. You obviously can't super-steam wood, and I don't know how they'd treat bed & furniture frames - burn them??

Bed bugs can walk far and fast (as can most lice!) They've been tracked marching miles, en masse, through wall cavities. crawl spaces, lofts and along or under roads. They're attracted by human pheromones and you can't stop giving those off while you're alive.

I mean, they deserve their place in the ecology (whatever the fuck that might be) but they're persistent little bastards. For thousands of years, bed bugs were just considered part of life. The only reason that ended was the invention of chemical insecticides ... and they've now developed immunity 😡

Nov29 · 02/11/2023 21:51

heat is better at killing them than freezing things. Either wash at 60 if you can or steam your items

Nov29 · 02/11/2023 21:54

Tbh I think the risk is low from buying second hand clothes but furniture I wouldn’t risk personally. They are good hitchhikers though apparently 😑

graciousmouse · 02/11/2023 21:57

Get a handheld steamer and use it on any second hand clothes before a wash.

SharonEllis · 02/11/2023 22:00

No need to freeze for a week. Just 3 days is plenty.

GarlicGrace · 02/11/2023 22:02

More than half my clothes don't tolerate high temperatures!

When the 'plague' makes it to my godforsaken neck of the woods, I might just dress in cotton sheets 😂

BellaAndDave · 02/11/2023 22:05

GarlicGrace · 02/11/2023 04:29

Yep, even new clothes tbh. I once caught scabies from a new pair of jeans. Now creepy-crawlies have got so resilient, I've been fighting a mild paranoia about unwanted visitors arriving with my purchases!

I'd forgotten about freezing them. Good call, thanks ❄

New fear unlocked! Scabies from trying jeans on 😱

GarlicGrace · 02/11/2023 22:06

BellaAndDave · 02/11/2023 22:05

New fear unlocked! Scabies from trying jeans on 😱

Sorry!

It freaked me out, I can tell you!

Cheeesus · 02/11/2023 22:09

I feel like scabies would be easier to get rid of than bed bugs.

AliceMcK · 02/11/2023 22:14

Well we got bed bugs one from a pair of brand new pj’s in plastic packaging from a reputable store once so I’m not worried about second hand. Everything second hand goes straight in the wash as with anything that comes in sealed packaging.

Bed bugs can be picked up anywhere and easily treated if you do get them.

AlphaAlpha · 02/11/2023 22:18

BertieBotts · 02/11/2023 06:04

Bed bugs are unlikely to survive in a postal bag for several days and anyway wouldn't you wash it before giving to your DC?

Just a non issue.

As an aside what is the reporting like in the UK that people are so terrified of bed bugs calling them the next pandemic? Confused

Bed bugs can lie in a dormant state for months!

And the only human smells they are attracted to is expired CO2 and blood. They don't jump or scurry, they live in dark, warm crevices like mattress seams and headboards and light fittings.
Yes one or two may make their way out but I feel the risk is tiny.

I bought the buggers back from holiday a few years ago (unknowingly at the time) and I live in fear of having them again - it cost thousands to get rid of them.

But I'm not worried about buying a few items from Vinted.

graciousmouse · 02/11/2023 22:18

GarlicGrace · 02/11/2023 22:02

More than half my clothes don't tolerate high temperatures!

When the 'plague' makes it to my godforsaken neck of the woods, I might just dress in cotton sheets 😂

Surely a quick handheld steam is ok for most delicate garments

Sula72 · 02/11/2023 22:19

Bed bugs are unlikely to survive in a postal bag for several days and anyway wouldn't you wash it before giving to your DC?

I wouldn't generally... I had assumed people wash clothes before selling them, why wouldn't you 😩

Sula72 · 02/11/2023 22:24

easily treated if you do get them.

Easily treated... If you have the money! After the treatments and throwing away some items that were stained from them, I didn't even have enough money to buy a new mattress, I had to wrap it in cling film and leave it thay way for years. I'm now so paranoid about bed bugs that when I got a new mattress, I wrapped that one in a couple layers of cling film too

IMustDoMoreExercise · 02/11/2023 22:26

BertieBotts · 02/11/2023 06:04

Bed bugs are unlikely to survive in a postal bag for several days and anyway wouldn't you wash it before giving to your DC?

Just a non issue.

As an aside what is the reporting like in the UK that people are so terrified of bed bugs calling them the next pandemic? Confused

Unfortunately brd bugs can survive for a year without food.

IMustDoMoreExercise · 02/11/2023 22:29

Sula72 · 02/11/2023 22:19

Bed bugs are unlikely to survive in a postal bag for several days and anyway wouldn't you wash it before giving to your DC?

I wouldn't generally... I had assumed people wash clothes before selling them, why wouldn't you 😩

I even wash brand new clothes (apart from coats and jeans,) let alone second hand ones

StarDolphins · 02/11/2023 22:30

I look at their nails (while they’re holding up the item) & the background & I risk assess it for anything sinister arriving with the item based on how clean everything seems.completely the wrong thing to do with no evidence whatsoever but that’s how my mind works with it! Always wash everything too!

I think most people are decent & if they had any bed bugs or anything else, they wouldn’t knowingly pass it on but maybe I’m too trusting!

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