Had bedbugs in the past - now want to buy a new bed (which to choose?) (apartments, mattress)
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A couple of years ago we had a bedbug infestation in my apartment. Thankfully it seemed to be confined largely to the bed (in the bedroom). We had a wooden frame Ikea bed and even though we covered the mattress (with one of those $100 covers to deter bedbugs from investing in the mattress), the bedbugs were all over the mattress and in the wooden bedframe.
I got rid of the frame and mattress,and got an exterminator to exterminate the whole apartment.
Fortunately I didn't see any bedbugs (and haven't seen any) in any of our clothes or anywhere else in the apartment.
Since then, we have been sleeping on the pullout sofabed in the living room (which wasn't infested).
I also recently bought a cheap sofabed from Target which had a solely metal frame (less likely for bedbugs to live in it) and a vinyl-fake leather cushion material (also less likely to have bedbugs set up shop there). So we also sleep there sometimes.
Unfortunately, neither option is very comfortable.
We haven't had any bedbugs in a couple of years (I know, because I was getting bits all over my legs and haven't seen any bites in that time,nor have I seen the bedbugs), so I am considering buying another real bed for the apartment. (I'm sick of sleeping on uncomfortable couches).
I do know the building still has occasional bedbug infestations in other apartments (because I occasionally see mattresses being thrown out,etc.),so I still worry about getting bedbugs again.
I am considering buying a metal frame bed,because I am assuming that again, the bedbugs are less likely to live in a metal frame.
However,I am worried about buying a mattress for the bed. Of course I will cover the mattress again but...what kind of mattress should I buy to make it LEAST likely that I will get bedbugs again in the bedroom. Thank you for all suggestions! Much appreciated.
I just went through something like this so i know your pain. A family member of mine had them and boy was it quite a process. IMHO if you're in a building that has them you're gonna get them and i don't think the type of bed matters. Our exterminators told us the best thing to do is have a simple metal frame and get a boxspring encasement and mattress encasement for the boxspring and mattress. He said the wooden headboards (like my grandmother had) was the worst and most difficult to get rid of. The exterminators we hired were really helpful with advice afterward so PM me and i can give you their email if you have questions like this. But good luck! Try and seal up all the cracks to keep them out
It's my understanding that the frame material is irrelevant. BBs will crawl over a frame to get to the mattress. I've see mattress covers which are supposedly BB-proof, but don't know how effective they really are.
You might want to research if anything sprayed on the mattress would help, or if a mattress made of different materials - I know there's some Greek one made of something different - would help. And please report back if you learn anything.
I read article once that the smell of peppermint can kill bed bugs. I know it kills other bugs. Once a week after I mop my apartment I go around my whole apartment and spray peppermint on the base boards. Also rodents don't like the smell. If you like the smell of peppermint or don't mind it perhaps you might want to try this to help keep your place bug free. Lavender is apparently another scent. I spray my bed with that. Makes for a nice smell and relaxing feeling in my bedroom.
You could try reading Bedbugger.com for actual scientific information.
Last time I read that site, what I remember is that bedbugs are attracted to warmth and carbon dioxide (a product of your breathing). Therefore it stands to reason that they will inhabit any space where living, breathing humans spend a lot of time. This is why they have been found in theatre seats and buses, along with many other places that are not necessarily beds.
So the material of your mattress and bed doesn't matter as far as attracting or repelling bedbugs. As someone else did mention, certain types of beds are easier to exterminate if you do get bedbugs. For this reason, it's probably best to get a simple frame and not a captains bed or an upholstered headboard.
I bought zippered plastic wrappers for the box springs, just in case. They were like $4.99 in those junk shops on Third Avenue near 104th St. I recommend them.
However wrapping the mattress in vinyl sounds very uncomfortable but they have pricey fabric ones online that are supposed to breathe but have too fine a thread count to allow bugs to penetrate.
If I went through the expense of a new mattress, I would look into the added expense.
But DO wrap the box springs...too cheap not to.
Twelve months ago I got a bunch of bites and went NUTS. I have assigned blame to a particular theater which I will never again attend. Hint: Upper West Side. I have even put Vapona strips inside my walls, just in case. But like OP I have not been bitten by anything in almost exactly a year so I think my place is clean. I have even set up a passel of carbon dioxide generating traps but have never caught a bug.
Yes, metal frame is a good idea. Keep all the legs in specially designed traps (a well within a well type with slippery sides. (I have read the glue traps are inadequate because bedbugs can walk over them without breaking the surface tension enough to stick.)
Keep all bedding material OFF the floor and a couple inches from the back and side walls.
I agree, type of mattress will not affect bedbug resistance, buy what is most comfortable.
Here's my thinking: If you can get that FIRST bedbug, you are ahead of the game. The ultimate case of an ounce of prevention being worth a pound of care.
Peppermint, clove, cinnamon oils are pretty universally considered useless scams. They are no substitute for insecticides, however repulsive.
Last edited by Kefir King; 01-30-2016 at 08:13 AM..
Peppermint, clove, cinnamon oils are pretty universally considered useless scams. They are no substitute for insecticides, however repulsive.
How are they considered a scam? They keep all other bugs out of my apartment. Its a few buck to buy pure peppermint oil. You use a small spray bottle of water place a few drops in and spray it. Lasts forever.
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