A good friend of mine has bed bugs and it is horrifying. I had heard rumors of outbreaks but thought it was just people being paranoid and overreacting to seeing a few little bugs. But now that I’ve seen it 1st hand I’m terrified. She has had to throw away almost all of her clothes, buy new furniture, and spend tons of money on exterminations. It’s costed her a fortune, not to mention that her body is covered in welts and sores which is painful and unsightly. She was in denial that it was a real problem and put off doing anything about it for months, so now it is a full on infestation and they still keep coming back since they’ve gotten into the walls and little crevasses. Gross. Anywayyyy, has anyone bought bed bug mattress, box spring, and/or pillowcase encasements to keep them from getting in? I know they can still lure in other places, but I want to be preventative, so has anyone used these in the past??? I’m super paranoid after seeing what she’s going through, help
Yes- I am only talking about preventing bed bugs (Cimex lectularius). If it protects against dust mites and other bugs too then that’s great, but my major concern is bed bugs…not mites, spiders, beetles, roaches, weevils…but bed bugs.
The Allerzip made by Protect A Bed is the best on the market. It’s made to encase all 6 sides of your mattress and they do make one that encases the foundation/boxspring. It’s made of a thin woven polyurethane which keeps them from sleeping warm, and still keeps bedbugs, dustmites, and water/stains out of your mattress.
They are machine washable and you can tumble dry them.
http://www.protectabed.com/full-encasements/www.protectabed.com/Full_Mattress_Encasements/subgrouping.htm?cat=30636
http://www.protectabed.com/Bed_Bugs/subgrouping.htm?cat=30653
What can you spray or whatever to get rid of bed bugs? What can you put on a mattress?
To address the previous answers:
1). Never steam clean a mattress as the residual moisture will prompt growth of mold, mildew, fungi and spores.
2). Avoid spraying the common types of cleaners as most are chemical-based and flammable.
3). Across the board, people who live in the south are no more intelligent than the people (sic, yankees) who live in the north…how absurd and totally ignorant! Bed bugs do not nourish themselves on a persons’ body oils…they suck your blood, period. Dust mites nourish themselves by surviving off the 1.5 million skin cells that humans shed daily. They do not bite people.
With that said, the task of toting mattresses outdoors to beat the dust (and crap, literally) out of them, then exposing the mattresses to the natural cleansing abilities of the sun (UVA and UVB light waves) has become a mostly forgotten, spring-cleaning chore. This truly is an absolute necessity for improved health and even more so today than in decades past due to improved (air tight) energy-efficient construction methods.
Now for your question. First, confirm that you really mean bed bugs. Oftentimes and quite erroneously, dust mites have been referred to as “bed bugs.” These are two very different animals. Dust mites are microscopic and next to impossible to spot with the naked eye. Bed bugs are quite visible and so are the tale-tell signs of infestation such as, bite marks, fecal droppings (small reddish-brown spots), and even small blood stains on the sheets.
Build barriers against bed bugs!
If you truly mean “bed bugs”…create barriers from where the bed bugs hideout and your bed.
1). Pull your bed away from the wall
2). Place a light coating of vaseline on the legs of the bed, or
3). Place the legs of the bed into empty tin cans then add mineral oil or vegetable into each can
4). If there is a sham on the box-spring, take it off to prevent access to bed from the floor, likewise, do not allow the bedspread/sheets to reach the floor.
Again, if you really mean bed bugs…you will more than likely want instant gratification by wanting them dead NOW! So you have 2 choices, call an exterminator (best choice) or do it yourself with available pesticides. Bed bugs are nocturnal and typically hideout behind furniture, wall hangings, bed frames, and in cracks and crevices created by molding and trim. IF, you have holes in your mattress they could be inside the mattress.
Once you have your instant gratification (dead bed bugs) begin a preventative measure to thwart future incidences.
All natural, non-toxic, non-flammable (very important for mattresses), chemical-free and odorless, Enzyme Cleaners are becoming very popular due the multitude of uses that these products provide.
Ideal for every home environment, “green” (eco-friendly) enzyme cleaners reduce the prolific chemical usage presently found in name brand cleaning products. They are especially ideal for persons who are susceptible to chemicals and the volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) emitted by typical chemical-based cleaning products through casual use. Kid-friendly, pet-friendly, totally safe…this product can even be used on humans and pets as a body wash or shampoo!
The enzyme cleaner I use is also non-magnetic, or non-static, meaning that once a surface is wiped cleaned there is no chemical residue left behind (of course) AND the freshly cleaned surface (furniture, counters, picture frames, Knick-knacks, etc.) will not attract dust, unlike conventional, chemical-based cleaning products!
Get rid of bed bugs now!
What do you want to clean, sanitize and sterilize?
Any and all household surfaces can be cleaned with an Enzyme Cleaner and at extremely economical costs without any chemical residue or VOC’s.
Need an all-natural pesticide?
Enzyme Cleaners attack pests (fleas, bed bugs, dust mites, scabies, lice, roaches, silverfish, etc.) by causing the insect to pre-molt and die, unlike pesticides which attack the central nervous systems. Pesticide residues also attack YOUR central nervous system, to varying degrees.
Call around to various merchants in your area and ask what they have to offer in the way of enzyme cleaners. Health food stores will probably stock such items. Try it out and if you like the product and for even more economical savings, look at purchasing it by the gallon over the Internet. The product I use for my business and home use, cost me $75.00 per gallon, BUT, it’s super-concentrated and requires a mix ratio of only 1 ounce per gallon of water. This equates to $0.72 per gallon (when shipping costs are included). What other cleaning product can you buy for just $0.72 per gallon plus the cost of a gallon of distilled water? I think a gallon of bleach even costs more than that…but I don’t 
really know for sure because I haven’t had the need to purchase any bleach for a very long time.
Dead Bed Bugs’ most comprehensive Bed Bug Treatment Kit
Effectively eliminates bed bugs in your environment for up to 60 days! Our do-it-yourself Bed Bug Treatment Kit is proven effective for killing bed bugs quickly and safely. This ready-to-use commercial strength Bed Bug kit includes enough EPA registered product to treat several rooms. Kit also includes Climbup Insect Interceptors to monitor bed bug activity, a DE applicator, and Disinfectant to clean Bed Bug debris from your living area!
If you would like to know which product I use…feel free to send me an email.
If by chance you meant dust mites and not bed bugs…visit the link below. It’s cost-free info “76 Tips to Reduce Dust Mites and Indoor Allergens”
http://www.sterilmattress.com/ebook_dust_mite_removal_tips.html
-What can you spray on bed bugs to get rid of them?-
Effective Bed Bugs Control
The powerful and easy to use fumer for effective control of crawling and flying insects such as fleas, bed-bugs, ants cockroaches, stored product insects etc. and flying insects such as houseflies, cluster flies, fruit flies, wasps, moths in the situations shown below. Forte Fog Fumers are easy to use multi-purpose products using an insecticide of low mammalian toxicity for insect control in enclosed spaces in hard to treat areas without the need for additional spray equipment.
Dead Bed Bugs’ most comprehensive Bed Bug Treatment Kit
Effectively eliminates bed bugs in your environment for up to 60 days! Our do-it-yourself Bed Bug Treatment Kit is proven effective for killing bed bugs quickly and safely. This ready-to-use commercial strength Bed Bug kit includes enough EPA registered product to treat several rooms. Kit also includes Climbup Insect Interceptors to monitor bed bug activity, a DE applicator, and Disinfectant to clean Bed Bug debris from your living area!
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