Hello there.
I have a rather long thread on bedbugs on here somewhere I think its called "Something is biting me."
We are dealing with bedbugs and have had them for nearly a year now. Our landlord refuses to do anything about them and they have infested all of the six units in our apartment building.
I'll tell you my experiences with them.
They can bite on air mattrasses because 9 times out of 10 the bugs are
not actually living in your bed at all. They are traveling out from the walls, baseboards, and rugs of your home. This is a big mistake I hear people saying all the time. "If they aren't in your beds, they aren't bed bugs." or "Bed bugs don't travel very far for a meal so they'll be right around your bed."
Have you ever seen a bed bug? They are FAST! And they most certainly will travel from room to room. If you move from where you are to another room, it won't take too long for them to track you down and follow you.
Its also possible that only one person is getting bit by them, and guests are not affected. Once a bed bug bites someone, they go back to that person every time. They simply prefer it that way. Of course, in cases like hotels and the like.. they will adapt, but in general.. one person CAN get all the bites and someone else not. At least at first. It might takes a few months, but eventually everyone in the home will get bit. Guests however are new blood, and they don't always get bit. We've had overnight guests for the past two weeks, (yes they know about the bugs and were warned.) and they woke up every morning totally fine. Had we slept where they did, we would be covered in bites.
Sometimes, a guest will get bit the first day. My sister in law didn't even sleep here, just came to visit and she got bit on her leg sometime during the course of the hour she was here. During the day. So there really is no rhyme or reason to when they bite, or who.
Some pictures
So anyway.. the best way to catch whats biting him is to plan to be awake between 3-4 am. Thats when they are generally out and about. You have to look really carefully because they can stick to any tuft in a blanket and they are VERY flat before they've fed. I've been able to find them by simply waking up early and moving stuff on the bed around.
No evidence of fecal matter, eggs, shed skins, or a crawling nest in your mattrass like all the Utube videos? DOESN'T MATTER! All you need to verify that its bed bugs is #1 a bite. and #2 one bed bug. We had nothing else and couldn't find any evidence of a bug at all until nearly 6 months after we starting getting bit. FINALLY we caught one strolling through the living room on the carpet.
Also, if they're hungry or they feel like it.. they WILL come out in the daylight. They are nocturnal.. but if they want to they will. Which means, you can get bit during the day. If you do, don't write it off as not a bed bug because it was during the day.
Also, you won't feel them bite you. Not even if its during the day. You'll only feel the itch some time after they bite. And even though everything says they feed for 5-10 minutes, I've found that sometimes its MUCH shorter than that. I've caught one in the action and watched it. (yes after nearly a year we get a bit cynical) It didn't stop at biting me three times in a row... it went on to sample my legs and bit me a total of 15 times! ONE BUG. And it still didn't feed all the way. But it doesn't matter because its the anticoagulant and numbing stuff they inject that causes you to itch, so once they poke you.. you're gonna itch.
A few tips. Wrap your bed in plastic. Make sure its completely air tight. If you can't afford a real cover you can use regular plastic as long as you seal with ends with duct tape. That will kill anything on a regular bed, or keep it so they can't get into any crevice.
Putting blankets, pillows, and clothes into the dryer for 5 minutes is hot enough to kill all live bugs, nymphs, AND eggs. So throw your stuff in the dryer before bed to eliminate there as a possibility. (again, most likely they are coming to your bed from walls anyway)
You can try double sided carpet tape on the floors around your bed, making sure no blankets or bed touch the walls at all. And you can try to catch them on the tape. My experience this didn't work but thats because we know ours are coming from the carpet too. (no bugs on carpet tape, wake up with bites anyway..)
The minute you catch one, contact a professional.. because the problem will only get worse and home remedy's don't do too much to help. They are extremely resistant to most everything. They can live for a year and 1/2 with no air or food. So even if you move out and back in 6 months later.. they'll still be there. The only things that kill them well are extreem heat and extreem cold. Cold takes about 48 hours. So you can put something in the freezer for a few days. Heat is only about 5 minutes in a hot dryer. A VERY hot day and you could put furniture etc.. in the sun.
Anyway, hope that helps!
but there isn't much choice.
