Could you live in a house full of bugs?

[RachelS]

Hi.....
okay this has been an on-going arguement that I have had w/ my dh for four years now..... long story short our house becomes infested w/ these little bugs called springtails every spring through the summer until about september every year. We have had out every single kind of specialist trying to figure out what is going on in our house with no luck of fixing it. The bugs are EVERYWHERE!..... on the floors and walls, in my childrens tubs of toys, in our drawers, in the kitchen cuboards, on the kitchen table, in the linens.... you name it! It really effects me emotionally!
Finally my dh said that we can move.... so our house has been on the market now for many many months with no offers..... I am soooooooo scared as we start to approach spring time.... I feel desparate to move to another home if we had the money...

Anyway.... today my dh told me that most people would be okay with our bug situation and not be so bothered as I am about it.... making me feel 'crazy'.........So .... how would this effect you? Am I over-reacting?

[fek&fuzz]

I could not live in a house full of bugs.

[swellmomma]

Everything I am seeing about springtails is they need damp areas to live. PErhaps a dehumidifier as a start. I wonder if you have mold or rot in the walls somewhere in the house giving them a place to feed and multiply. I would not live in a house that infested. I have issues with fruit flies every couple months and that is more than enough for me to deal with, I wouldn't want something like that crawling all over my clothes, or kids things etc. You are not crazy for wanting to be out of there. My paranoia would have me thinking about those bugs crawling on my kids while they slept etc.

eta if are still there when they emerge this article might help to treat them http://www.bugspray.com/article/springtail.html

[doubledutch]

nope. no way. i could deal with doing certain activities, like cooking and just spending time in the house during the day, but i would have a really hard time sleeping. (based on the times we've caught bugs in our house!) you have my sympathy. i hope you can find a solution!

[RachelS]

Thank you Mamas! It has been very hard on me these past four years.... I know it is sounds strange... but it effects me very much emotionally which then effects my life quite a bit! I am SAHM and we only have one car which my dh takes to work..... he just doesn't understand how it effects me!

Yes... at night.... I hate it!!

Our house is under 1000 feet and we run two entire home humidifiers! Yikes...

I agree... it must be in the walls somewhere! Last year we had almost 10 different people here trying to find the problem and an array of sprays that bothered me sooooo much!

Thank you again Mama!!!

[AnalogWife]

You poor thing, you are NOT crazy, and I can see why it would affect you emotionally. Best of luck that you get an offer soon.

[the_lissa]

No way. I thought my house was buggy because we have spiders and house centipede, but not that many and not everywhere like that.

[suzyfakename]

after you have sold the house and moved, you and hubby should rent BUG with ashley judd. you may get a kick out of it. but wait until you are in a bug free home.
good luck selling.

[RachelS]

Thanks you Mamas soooooo much!!! I can't tell you how much I appreciate it! At least I can now vent about it with you all! I am have always been embarassed about it because I do have a very clean home and I thought people would think that I am dirty or something.....

It sucks and I feel like I am going crazy!

Here is one..... cooking .... it totally stinks... I have to cover everything as I am cooking .... yucky! Look in all my bowls to make sure there are no bugs! And be VERY watchful at the dinner table..... how about killing one on the table next to your plate..... yeah.... YUMMY!

[salmontree]

Originally Posted by RachelS

Our house is under 1000 feet and we run two entire home humidifiers! Yikes...

You use two humidifiers? Maybe if you could get through the bug season without those it would help...

I would not be able cope w/ a house full of bugs.

[lovemysunshine]

I know nothing about the kind of bugs you have, but we live in an area that gets crazy amounts of ants inside during the hot months. Basically from May/June until November or so, we are overrun with the darn things. We deal with it.

[Aubergine68]

Well, I *could* do almost anything if I *had* to....

But I powerfully wouldn't want to deal with that kind of infestation.

Wishing you the best of luck in figuring out how to get rid of them.

[superstella]

I had to google those to see what they were, and there is no WAY I could live with them! Especially as you described your cooking and eating scenario, poor you! You are a saint for dealing with them for this long. We have giant spiders here in the summer, and I can't deal with them either. You have my sympathy.

[skai]

I too googled them and would never ever live with them. I mean, one or two every 3 months or so I could manage, but what you're describing.. I'd want to move too. I hope you get an offer soon!

[onlyzombiecat]

We get infested with ladybugs as the weather gets colder. It is kind of annoying and creepy but it is not just our house so I'm not sure moving would solve it. I'm not planning to move.
If I were in your situation where it was so severe I couldn't cook or eat without bugs and was emotionally affecting me and we had done everything to try to resolve it then I'd definitely move.


I read this which confirmed they need humid conditions and gave a few ideas.

[lovesdaffodils]

No way could I handle that. *shudder* I hope you guys get to move soon!

[CherryBomb]

No, I definitely couldn't handle it. I hope you either get to move or figure out how to get them to go away!

[SugarAndSun]

No! It would bother DH even more though. He gets all rallied up if we get some fruit flies. We got an infestation of moths last year and it ruined tons of food.

[aaronsmom]

Couldn't read and not post to give you a . I don't think you're crazy at all. I couldn't live in a house full of bugs.

[Mallori]

I couldn't do it either. I am very intolerant of spiders, and most bugs. We have an exterminator come once a month. It stems from childhood events, and my fear is deep.

From what I understand of springtails, they need moisture, but it's not that your house is "damp", it's that it has an ideal nesting site. Springtails travel along moisture sites (drain pipes) and just follow water. If you treat the nesting areas, you may be able to eradicate them.

You said that your infestations happen from spring through summer. What kind of landscaping do you have around your house? Do you mulch? I would be highly suspect of an outdoor but close to house nesting site, and would look to those areas. What kind of specialists have you inquired with? Have you checked exterminators? Garden supply/landscaping businesses might be of help to you, they may have successfully dealt with them before. Again, they migrate, and in huge numbers. Killing them will do no good, unless you hit where they nest. Find that, and you may solve the issue. Good luck to you.