# I'm tired of hearing about bedbugs **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 3, 2011, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031 "2011-09-03T04:51:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Azeotrope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/0ea827/32.png) [@Azeotrope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Azeotrope)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2011, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/21 "2011-09-04T18:05:04Z")
> [@even\_sven](#): > > I am with the OP. I got bit by bedbugs all the time traveling around before bedbugs were a “thing.”. Yeah, sometimes they itched. But really it wasn’t that big a deal n A “thing”? That makes it sound as if itchy bloodsucking parasites are a new fad, like appletinis or skinny jeans. I’m sure my coworker who went to check on her baby one night and found bedbugs crawling all over the poor kid would agree it’s no big :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2011, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/22 "2011-09-04T19:09:53Z")
> [@Mince](#): > > Cite? In my experience. True I’ve never been bitten by Scott Baio… ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2011, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/23 "2011-09-04T19:33:49Z")
I’m with Sven, I’ve encountered them when traveling, not the end of the world, and certainly not the plague. What astounds me is the extermination thing. When I had them, I was told to tell the manager of the losmen (guesthouse). He had, both mattresses, dragged out of the bungalow, next morning. Left them in the brutally hot, baking, SE Asian sun for 12 hrs, flipping occasionally, and no more bedbuds! No chemicals, only heat. And, voila, no more bed bugs. You should be able to do your house and all your furniture for the cost of a carpet steamer rental. I get they are an issue for hotels, airlines, etc. But Holy Hannah, people carry on like it’s a plague of locusts. When traveling in India, I met several travelers who routinely bought a newspaper every day, to spread on the bed before bedding down to protect from bedbugs. I never did it, but lots of people did. ---
**Author:** ![Maeglin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8baadc/32.png) [@Maeglin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maeglin)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2011, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/24 "2011-09-04T20:08:12Z")
**mozchron** , you are needed in aisle three. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2011, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/25 "2011-09-04T20:18:25Z")
Bedbugs hide in picture frames, bed frames and cracks and crevices too. They are not that simple to get rid of. Cleaning a bed and sheets is usually not enough. ---
**Author:** ![OneMissedPost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8e7dd6/32.png) [@OneMissedPost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneMissedPost)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2011, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/26 "2011-09-04T22:43:25Z")
Bed bugs are pretty nasty critters, and scabies sucks on so many levels. My conclusion is that bed bugs are irritating and no one wants to put up with them. Any questions? ---
**Author:** ![mozchron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mozchron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mozchron)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2011, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/27 "2011-09-04T23:10:46Z")
> [@Maeglin](#): > > **mozchron** , you are needed in aisle three. Heh. I’ve been trying to stay out of the bedbug threads. the ites are annoying, but the real proplem is that YOU CAN NOT GET RID OF THEM (A least not easily). even sven is correct, in a way. in India or other places, living in a tiny bungalo with a dirt floor, just drag out the mattress and heat it. Unfortunately, in today’s modern wprld, its not that simple. in an early infestation, yes, that could be enough. but most people don’t deal witht the problem in the early stages, they wait until it gets bad. bugs in the carpwt, bugs in the furniture, bugs in the walls. no easy way to get rid of them. in multiunit housing, bugs spreading from unit to unit. That’s why i advise not to bring thwm home in the first place. if you read my other posts on the subject, you’ll see that I M quite paraniod on the subject. but I am an entomologist, and a nationally recognized expert on the little bastards. almost to a person, entomologists who work with bedbugs are all paranoid to some extent. some are even worse than me. ---
**Author:** ![mozchron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mozchron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mozchron)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2011, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/28 "2011-09-04T23:11:48Z")
> [@mozchron](#): > > Heh. I’ve been trying to stay out of the bedbug threads. > > the ites are annoying, but the real proplem is that YOU CAN NOT GET RID OF THEM (A least not easily). > > even sven is correct, in a way. in India or other places, living in a tiny bungalo with a dirt floor, just drag out the mattress and heat it. > > Unfortunately, in today’s modern wprld, its not that simple. in an early infestation, yes, that could be enough. but most people don’t deal witht the problem in the early stages, they wait until it gets bad. > > bugs in the carpwt, bugs in the furniture, bugs in the walls. no easy way to get rid of them. in multiunit housing, bugs spreading from unit to unit. > > That’s why i advise not to bring thwm home in the first place. if you read my other posts on the subject, you’ll see that I M quite paraniod on the subject. > > but I am an entomologist, and a nationally recognized expert on the little bastards. almost to a person, entomologists who work with bedbugs are all paranoid to some extent. some are even worse than me. ( forgive the typos, im typing on my phone) ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2011, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/29 "2011-09-04T23:32:43Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > I’m with Sven, I’ve encountered them when traveling, not the end of the world, and certainly not the plague. It’s not the plague, but holy shit, no one actually wants them in their house. They’re easy to get rid of in situations where you have very little in the way of furniture, but the majority of American homes have lots of carpeting, at least one couch, other upholstered furniture, and complicated beds (box spring, mattress with springs, strong frame). And unless you’re in the Southwest, you probably don’t typically have access to ragingly hot temperatures to leave most of your worldly goods out in for a week or so, and risk it missing a few eggs that were in stasis and will hatch later and start the problem over again. Got mice? Set traps, they’re gone. Cockroaches? Spray the fuck out of the place - and don’t post about it, because you don’t want anyone to think your house is filthy. Bedbugs? They’re like the STD of the house infestation, because they’re not easy to get rid of, you can catch them from other people('s stuff), and you can’t tell by most cursory examinations who has them. People complain about them because they’re a pain in the ass. Yes, it’s a “First World Problem” in the sense that we see it as one because of our privileged situations, but wow, cut out complaining about those things and this message board and many others would shut down. ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2011, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/30 "2011-09-05T01:49:49Z")
> [@even\_sven](#): > > I am with the OP. I got bit by bedbugs all the time traveling around before bedbugs were a “thing.”. Yeah, sometimes they itched. But really it wasn’t that big a deal n N? n what? Oh no… I fear the worst. Has anyone checked this thread for bedbugs? ---
**Author:** ![Jenaroph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Jenaroph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jenaroph)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2011, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/31 "2011-09-05T04:34:11Z")
My god, they got her. ---
**Author:** ![Azeotrope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/0ea827/32.png) [@Azeotrope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Azeotrope)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2011, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/32 "2011-09-05T14:55:31Z")
> [@Jenaroph](#): > > My god, they got her. I’ve got this mental image now of **even sven** , sound asleep, drifting off down the street about half an inch above the ground as a million little legs carry her along… ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2011, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/33 "2011-09-05T16:14:53Z")
> [@](#): > > Bedbugs? They’re like the STD of the house infestation Seriously, calm yourself. They really aren’t that hard to get rid of. There is no need to throw away furniture or burn anything. Rent a steamer. Steam your furniture, floors, picture frames or any other spot your paranoid little heart imagines they might be. They are parasites. Yes, they _can_ survive on a picture frame. But not for long, since they need a host. And how infested would your house have to be for them to get to a picture frame? Seriously. The reason you get bites in a straight line is because they really cannot hop very far. Up to a picture frame? Yes it’s possible, I know. Hotels, and buses, and such places have a different issue, as there are people coming and going from all over, daily. Unlike your home. Sheesh, wash everything that can go in the laundry machine, on hot water, longest cycle, and steam your floors and furniture. It’s really, really not that hard. Fleas, on the other hand, require chemical intervention, I’d rather fight bedbugs anyday! ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2011, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/34 "2011-09-06T01:38:55Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > Bed bugs are worse than Scott Baio … Not according to Erin Moran. ---
**Author:** ![liberty3701](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3d9bf3/32.png) [@liberty3701](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/liberty3701)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2011, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/35 "2011-09-06T01:51:05Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > Seriously, calm yourself. They really aren’t that hard to get rid of. Have you had bed bugs in your house? Because that is seriously not enough to get rid of them. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2011, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/36 "2011-09-06T01:58:39Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > They are parasites. Yes, they _can_ survive on a picture frame. But not for long, since they need a host. > [@NCSU Entomology Dept.](#): > > Bed bug adults can survive up to a year or more without feeding, which means that infestations may continue to survive even if a house was left vacant for several months. > **[Bedbugs - Biology and Control | NC State Extension Publications](https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/bedbugs-biology-and-control)** > > This Entomology Insect Note discusses identifying bedbugs and how to control them in households. ---
**Author:** ![Farmer\_Jane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Farmer\_Jane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Farmer_Jane)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2011, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/37 "2011-09-06T06:00:05Z")
> [@Algorithm](#): > > This is the stupidest thing I’ve ever read, and I read the entire Sweet Valley High series. This is officially the best quote ever. I don’t know WHY I opened this thread…now I feel itchy. ---
**Author:** ![henrylarry6](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/57b2e6/32.png) [@henrylarry6](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/henrylarry6)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2011, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/38 "2011-09-12T13:58:00Z")
Much of the over hype given to the bed bugs is by the bed bugs repellent companies who have only one motive of gaining profit from ignorance of people. But then these bed bugs are really irritating and make it miserable to go for sleep. ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2011, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/39 "2011-09-12T14:27:24Z")
> [@even\_sven](#): > > I am with the OP. I got bit by bedbugs all the time traveling around before bedbugs were a “thing.” It’s not surprising so many hadn’t heard of them. They were called bugito beddo in Japan and they were a huge hit. But then they came to America and they sold out. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2011, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031/40 "2011-09-12T14:29:25Z")
> [@henrylarry6](#): > > Much of the over hype given to the bed bugs is by the bed bugs repellent companies who have only one motive of gaining profit from ignorance of people. But then these bed bugs are really irritating and make it miserable to go for sleep. The companies don’t have to hype it. All you have to do is wake up a few mornings seeing the ugly things running away and finding blood spots ALL OVER your clothing and sheets, and having raised itchy welts all over yourself. That’s enough by itself. No hype is needed. They may not be dangerous to your physical health, but they can do a number on you psychologically. Come to think of it, being unable to sleep properly _can_ be detrimental to your health. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-tired-of-hearing-about-bedbugs/595031.md?page=3)