Is it bad luck or a curse

[TravelingZombies]

Starting to wonder if I am just unlucky or cursed.
Our first trip out ended when I developed edema in my legs, 2nd trip ended after trying to sleep in back packing tent and 3rd trip I was bitten by a bug that caused an infection within 12 hours of being bit. We went back to site after hospital for an additional 3 days before coming back to base camp.
My rig is to small to sleep in laying down so we sleep in seats which we've made work for us somewhat.
2 nights ago we went to bed but I discover what was making me break out in bumpy, scabby rash and of course, it's bed bugs.
It seems clear to us that being on the road is no longer a choice but rather a requirement. 
We thoroughly researched bed bug treatments and found the only option we can afford, abandone the house for upto a year and starve the bugs to death. 
The only reason we're still here now is for vehicle maintenance and while we're waiting on that I'm going to try to figure out a way so we can stretch out in truck even if we have to take turns because being home isn't working for us anymore.
I'm desperately trying to figure it all out but am about ready to have some kind of mental or emotional breakdown from everything that's been going on in my life lately.
Trying to stay positive has become a bit challenging lately.
I did at least figure out where these bed bugs come from as someone we knew and used to associate with had battled theses demons for the last 2 years and she still has bugs. After seeing here and her family try to win the bed bug battle and spending tons of money to no avail is why we're choosing to abandon house for awhile and let these things starve and die.
Fortunately the infestation is just starting and hasn't spread throughout the house or to our truck so going to go before it's too late.
F.Y.I. rubbing alcohol that is %70 or more kills theses and other bugs almost instantly but steam works the best. We've definitely have learned alot about bed bugs, it's good to know your enemy and it's weaknesses if you wish to succeed in life's battles.

 

[Morgana]

Good heavens, you are experiencing a spectacular series of setbacks! I think I would be in orbit by now. Fingers crossed that some of the good luck that is obviously accumulating in your account kicks in soon.

It sounds like you have already researched this a lot, so apologies if any of the following falls into the "do you seriously think I didn't already consider that??" category. But ...

(1) It seems there must be something better you can do than wait a year to starve them out. Even swanky hotels can get bedbugs (they feed on blood, not dirt, so even a spotless place can get 'em), and they must have a faster solution than that. The person whose coping skills (if I understood your post right) resulted in passing the bugs on to you is probably not the best person to take advice from. Some research in finding the right professional to spend money on might be worth it.

(2) If they are only in a limited space right now (and not in your truck!), is there a way to isolate them in there so you can narrow your attack and not risk further frustration?

(3) FWIW here's the EPA bedbug page:

Meanwhile, heck yes I hope you can figure out a more comfortable sleeping situation; that sounds very challenging.

Good luck and be strong!

 

[RoamerRV428]

I don't have a friggin' clue about how to combat bed bugs LOL
I hope you can deal and get that crap handled!!


but you need 'to stretch out' and you need 'room to stand and all when on the road etc. in your truck?  car?  what is this 'rig' again, I know you said somewhere but I can't remember LOL

Car tent.  You need a back extension to your vehicle.....kinda like this issue....in that you can 'go out the back with a flat board and mattress in there to make your bed as the 'whole vehicle' for a big lie down and then when ya scoot out of bed you got your tent for your privacy.

So think a version of something like this picture where you get a full bed stretch lie down for comfort sleeping but you also have stand up room for your other living.....this pic might show you options....

if you want an 'off the ground, better bed version in a smaller rig, think building out the back of your vehicle as your stretch out comfort bed and then you got more room to function.....so throwing out an idea...no clue if this can help you or not be what ya want, but might be a solution???   wishing you the best!!

 

[TravelingZombies]

We're going back to buying a tent, air mattress and sleeping bags plus a pump of course for spots we can set it up.Our rig is 1988 Ford bronco 2 xl with 156,000 miles on it.

Bed bugs are cold blooded and during warmer weather they'll die after 2-3 months without feeding but can slow their metabolism during cold months and live upto 1 year without feeding. Professional treatment from exterminator can run upto $3000.00.

 

[txmnjim]

Trying to stay positive has become a bit challenging lately.

yes, i always have a hard time with this as well. sorry you have had a rough time lately
but i would throw out all bedding sheets, etc and set a insecticide fogger off (maybe two)
and then come back with a spray bottle of something like [font=Roboto, arial, sans-serif]Ortho Home Defense Max
Bed Bug, Flea and Tick Killer to spray down mattress, box spring,etc. i've not
had a lot of experience killing bed bugs but i've sure massacred a heck of a lot
of roaches  good luck![/font]

 

[RoamerRV428]

yea I did the air mattress also in our tent. problem for me NOW is getting up off the damn thing.....when in my 20s I could bounce up fast off that thing and yes it was a great comfort for sleeping....now at age 59 and years of farming and joint issues I don't bounce up off the 'ground anymore' LOL

so for me I would personally....and remember my words here...personally want to make my entire ford bronco my bed. Sleep off the ground, in a vehicle which is hard sided and has that 'big hard base' under me and I would outfit it with a platform to fit the mattress I required to 'fit me' and my size.

I would then 'live in the other' parts of the tent area I would set up for me.

I would rather 'skooch' around in the bed 'set well and firm' in the Bronco then I would rather have to deal with 'the ground and an air mattress' that darn it, did un-inflate on us many times thru the years HAHA and I hate those damn things now in that when ya wanna sleep and you feel that deflate and it is like....ok just shoot me LOL

BUT THAT is me and what I require.........I get ya if that is what you need and the best way forward!!

Just think of ALL your options!! You got quite a few with using your vehicle in the 'best and most important' manner for the time on the road and offshoot the other issues to 'just camping' with a tent, or EZ UP tent or whatever else you need to make a fast good camp for yourselves.

 

[TravelingZombies]

I tried converting the inside of the bronco to where my wife and I could sleep in and it didn't work out as we also have two dogs so it's pretty crowded in here just driving down the road.

 

[nature lover]

I haven’t experienced the troubles you have, but I have had my trials since I went full-time. I’ve had three hospitalizations in the last 14 months. I have to keep looking up. This is not an evangelical meeting but if I didn’t have Gods help I’d be sunk. I keep plugging away hoping for things to improve and thankful that I’m not locked in that darn nursing home. If it weren’t for the help of others I couldn’t do this full-time. That’s just a fact of life for me.

 

[WanderingRose]

I call these times a test, to see how much I can take, and so far I have survived everything.

Your health department wherever you are may be able to link you to a service to eradicate your bedbugs at little or no cost.to you.

 

[bullfrog]

For beds it is hard to beat 4 totes 30" x 20" x 15" with jackets/clothing/extra bedding to level the tops and a sleeping bag. If you have room a piece of 3/8" plywood 30" x 80" makes a perfect platform for a 4" memory foam mattress enclosed in a cheap sleeping bag to make a pillow top mattress works wonderfully if put on top the totes. A 6' wide by 8' long utility trailer with a 7' wide x 8' long light weight box (tnttt.com) 6' tall allows for a bed on either side and a 24" walking/standing space down the center. Building the base of the box vardo style allows the box to extend over the side rails and fenders of the trailer and raises the bed platform about 10" so a little high for a bed but it still works and provides even more storage. It is about as cheap as you can get in my opinion but you do need to watch your weight as full timing is a heavy ordeal and when you have space you tend to fill it. If you are tent camping you can get by pulling a much smaller trailer as all you need is enough room for 8 totes full of gear and a tent if there are two of you. My wife I have done this and many are now doing this with square drop style trailers. Having a place to sleep/stand in really bad windy weather convinced us to go a little larger. A 6' x 10' gives you room for gas cans, generator, batteries and things better stored outside on the empty trailer bed. Tenting is great for extended stays but not daily travel so much. Tenting is great in good weather but windy weather it is better to sleep in the trailer.

 

[TravelingZombies]

I went out and bought tent, mattress etc. Just now and plan to head out later today or first thing in the morning.
Will be in Olympic mountains at free sites for next few weeks before heading east and work our way towards the Dakota's.

 

[travelaround]

Sorry I don't have any bed bug solutions. Travel for a year sounds nice though. I just went to your YouTube channel and watched a few videos. Nice channel.. but I see only your wife in the videos. Where is the video with you in it? I liked your campsite near Wenatchee with the river going past. Where do you think you'll be going next?

I used to do some car camping with my children long ago, and slept in my car's front seat. I agree with others that it will get old after a while and it will be helpful to have a place to stretch out... if at all possible. Can your vehicle tow a small cargo trailer or something like that?

 

[PeterPiper]

yes, i always have a hard time with this as well. sorry you have had a rough time lately
but i would throw out all bedding sheets, etc and set a insecticide fogger off (maybe two)
and then come back with a spray bottle of something like [font=Roboto, arial, sans-serif]Ortho Home Defense Max
Bed Bug, Flea and Tick Killer to spray down mattress, box spring,etc. i've not
had a lot of experience killing bed bugs but i've sure massacred a heck of a lot
of roaches  good luck![/font]

I don't think you'd have to dispose of them?  Washing and drying them should kill all the little buggers.
If you only knew what people brought into public laundromats.

I think the fogger in his case is a good idea.
Take EVERYTHING washable out and wash it.
Nuke the place with a fogger and kill everything.

If you have carpet it might need replacing or very good deep cleaning.
And of course as we all know, being clean every night before we go to bed is mandatory.

Good luck.  You're due.

 

[TravelingZombies]

Sorry I don't have any bed bug solutions. Travel for a year sounds nice though. I just went to your YouTube channel and watched a few videos. Nice channel.. but I see only your wife in the videos. Where is the video with you in it? I liked your campsite near Wenatchee with the river going past. Where do you think you'll be going next?

I used to do some car camping with my children long ago, and slept in my car's front seat. I agree with others that it will get old after a while and it will be helpful to have a place to stretch out... if at all possible. Can your vehicle tow a small cargo trailer or something like that?

We're heading to the Olympic mountains in western Washington to national forest to camp.I only have pictures of my feet but I think my wife got me in 1 video though.
I try to avoid being on camera alot when possible at the moment.
Glad you enjoyed the videos. I don't do much of any editing in order to keep it "real".

 

[Sofisintown]

There is a bed bug spray at Walmart in a yellow bottle.

I used it 6 years ago, when I bought my house, and sprayed every square inch of the house before i moved in even a ladder, before I painted it. At the time there was a bed bug epidemic, so I did it for good measure.
I never had problems with bed bugs.

 

[maki2]

Go to any drugstore and buy a can of bed bug spray and use it on the mattress or car seat. It works great, kills fleas too. Flea bombs also kill bed bugs. You  need to strip off the linens and spray both sides of the mattress plus tbe bed frame and any cracks or crevices, including the seams on the mattress covering. Of course wash the bedding in hot water being sure to put in a cupfull or two of Borax laundry additive. Borates are good at killing insects, their  eggs as well as killing mold and mildew spores. Some of the modern, environment friendly pressure treated wood treatments for preventing insect and rot damage is borate based. No problem doing something similar with Borax laundry additive for your car upholstery or mattress as a steam cleaning, prewash treatment.

Ant killers that you use inside your home use Boric acid too.

It will not take you years or thousands of dollars to get rid of your bed bug problem. You can do it with a trip to the store for some bug spray and Borax and perhaps a flea bomb too depending on the space you need to treat. Do it today, no point in suffering through another day of it.

 

[shadowmoss]

You could look into motorcycle trailers, as in the ones to pull behind motorcycles that open out into a tent that has sleeping quarters up off the ground.  I've thought about that to pull behind my Mazda 3.

 

[TravelingZombies]

Thanks for all the ideas and advice everyone.
I pulled a trailer last year and truck had trouble with it.
We're heading out tomorrow morning and have new gear to try out. With luck problem will be solved as far as sleeping while on the road.

 

[RoamerRV428]

ahh TZ, I get you...that bronco would be tight for sleeping with all of you guys piled up in there LOL

your tent and air mattress will do you well I am sure!!!!

Olympic mts to the Dakota area....sweet....you guys are starting a fun adventure....check in and let us know how it is all going for you when ya can!!

Safe travels!!

 

[TravelingZombies]

Thanks for the well wishes. We initially started with a tent back in June but had hard time finding tent sites available but have learned alot since then.
With luck we'll be leaving Washington state around 8-13-21 to head towards the Dakota's and other northern states before cooler weather moves in over next few months and then start heading south for the winter.