Bedbugs!! They came into my apartment from the one above. Landlady is getting fumigators, but does anyone?

Question

have any suggestions of what I should do in the meantime? I don't think I'll be able to sleep. I'm going to thoroughly vacuum my mattress (I don't have a boxspring) and floor, and my bed frame. My landlady says it'll take up to 4 fumigations, once a week, to get rid of them. Also, she says to wash all my bedding in hot water and store any clothing that will be on/near the floor, like stuff in my laundry basket, in plastic garbage bags so they can't get in. Are the clothes hanging in my closet safe? My shoes? Any suggestions would be hugely appreciated.

Answer 1

The vacuum is your best tool, used daily and on more than the mattress. Bedbugs hide under furniture, along baseboards, on closet floors....... Throw the vacuum bag away immediately, don't let it stay in your place! Washing in hot water is great but worry about some of your clothes, drapes, bedspread, etc that won't take hot water. Dry cleaner?? OK, that's expensive. Wash as per laundry instructions and then freeze items for several days.....refrigerator freezer may not be cold enough, you may need a dedicated freezer.

Answer 2

The land lady is right as is the first person that answered. Don't forget to vacuum out furniture as well because they can hide in there. It happens when you go from the bed to the couch or chair so look out!!! I put vinyl zip covers over all five of our mattresses as I remember having bed bugs when I lived in a group home. Very itchy.....

Answer 3

Vacuum the bed daily and change your sheets daily until the problem is under control. Bed bugs live off your expired skin cells. Taking away the source of food will drive them out, kill them off. Bagging your dirty laundry is good, do it as often as you can, it's a great source of food. Don't leave dirty socks around and any shoes you don't wear often, should be placed in airtight containers. (You can get a large storage bin at wally world to store all your shoes. Put in a bar of your favorite soap, still in it's packaging, to control any foot order.)