Talk:Bed bug

Wording

Plantdrew, you reverted an edit I made in the first sentence of the article. It seems you prefer "Bed bugs are a type of insect..." over "Bed bugs are insects...." Your rationale, as far as I can tell, for the former, is, "not all bloodfeeding insects are bedbugs" The sentence ""Bed bugs are insects that feed on human blood" does not in any way suggest that bed bugs are the only insects that feed on blood. I disagree that it is preferable, in terms of style or accuracy, to say "Bed bugs are a type of insect..." because bed bugs are not a type of insect. The term, as the article says, refers to two species of the genus Cimex.

I agree "exclusively" should be changed. It was intended to convey obligate hematophagy, but if bed bugs do feed on other species, this could be read as inaccurate.Michaplot (talk) 22:38, 11 July 2019 (UTC)

I changed it back to the original Bed bugs are insects from the genus Cimex that feed on human blood, usually at night. that was supported 2:1 in the informal RfC above, and is completely defining and grammatical. I still don't see what's wrong with that form, except that some feel it is not simple enough, something I strongly disagree with. No such user (talk) 21:20, 31 May 2020 (UTC)

Diatomaceous earth

Hello @Andrew.schalk: About [1] - it does sound that way, however there are no spam links in there so maybe not. I don't care enough to bother but this may be appropriate to instead integrate into the sentences that are already here about DE. (There are already 3 sentences about DE. Definitely not just this person's crazy idea.) If you feel like it you could do so. Then again this added text provides no refs... Invasive Spices (talk) 17:40, 31 October 2021 (UTC)

Bedbugs have been eliminated with diatamaceous earth for many years. Bed bugs can not tolerate contact with diatamaceous earth, it destroys the waxy cuticle covering their skin, so even if they don't rip themselves apart crawling through it, they become dehydrated and then die. This is a traditional, natural, science based remedy that is non-toxic. It's not cited in a text anymore than pouring salt on a slug to kill would be cited in texts. Leaving the description as is is inaccurate, and probably actually harmful, because it doesnt take many treatments and pesticides to cure bedbugs. When I had an infestation Wikipedia was worthless in explaining how to get rid of them, and guess what? People don't look up bedbugs on Wikipedia because they're interesting,they are looking up ways to kill them. Fortunately,I went to Home Depot, and a clerk told me that diatamaceous earth is very a commonly used , told me how to apply it. The first night, I got one bite from one that apparently survived the initial diatamaceous earth contact, the second night-no bites, and there have been no more bites in 5 years. Exterminator told me it would take several treatments over a period of months,and estimated $1500. The diatamaceous earth cost $8. In fact,I only used a small portion of the bag.

So the reason I'm making the effort here is because it really sucks having an infestation,and most people can't afford the.exterminator revolving-door dangerous pesticide treatments. So please actually do a little due diligence before pulling my info, I obviously know alot more about this small portion of the article than you do. Unless your day job is an exterminator, and you don't want me taking your favorite "gravy money"scam. 24.154.37.209 (talk) 19:33, 2 November 2021 (UTC)

• Also, some of the article supporting this are companies selling products, but there's plenty of reliable sources to back this up, it's a time-tested method. Some articles give false information: it's dangerous to spread diatamaceous earth all over your bed,for example. Bedbugs can't jump, and they usually live in cracks in your wall, especially textured ceilings. So every night, the bed bugs crawl from the walls, floor, any bedding or curtains they can climb on to get to the host.Move the bed from the wall and curtains,and only treat the places theyll have to crawl through to feed. In my case, I bought 4 toddler's sippy cups, set each bedleg in the sippy cups which are then filled with diatamaceous earth.The bugs were forced to contact the diatamaceous earth, I didn't use any more,anywhere else. To a bedbug diatamaceous earth is exactly the same effect as a human crawling through one of those caves with the giant, razor sharp salt crystals the size of buses. 24.154.37.209 (talk) 20:05, 2 November 2021 (UTC)

• Yes I'm sure DE works but it still needs a real cite. Invasive Spices (talk) 22:22, 3 November 2021 (UTC)

Interceptor traps

Hello 71.78.112.194 and @MrOllie: I think this is a good addition now, with the EPA source. Invasive Spices (talk) 2 October 2022 (UTC)

Yes, I'm fine with it with the new source. - MrOllie (talk) 17:58, 2 October 2022 (UTC)

Lifetime of a bedbuv

The article states that a bedbugs can survive without feeding for 70 days and then later states that bedbugs can survive without food for 100 to 300 days. 2A01:B340:60:60CA:E13D:5117:444D:E5F3 (talk) 08:42, 31 October 2022 (UTC)