Treating Sleeping Bag with Permethrin

[Robo]

We are carrying sleeping bags on our next Camino to ‘try’ an Albergue now and again.

Let’s see what all the fuss is about And what we have been missing out on!

Not having carried a sleeping bag before I’m Thinking of treating them with Permethrin. So how best to do that?

For those who have treated their bags.... what would you say is the best method?

1. Use a spray.
2. Soak the whole bag.
3. Other?

 

[alexwalker]

@Robo : This was discussed recently in another thread. I contacted the Norw. supplier of Permethrin, and was strongly adviced NOT to treat my sleeping bag with the stuff, for health reasons. Can't say more about it, but I trust the supplier. So, go for your option 3.

 

[linkster]

@Robo I assume you are treating the sleeping bag to prevent bed bugs. I would suggest just spraying the outside of your sleeping bag. The soak method is great for thinner items like clothing, but permethrin needs to dry for it to be safe for human contact. You may not want that much chemical in something you are going to sleep in. I have sprayed the outside of my sleeping bags for years before wilderness trips to prevent ticks, and mosquitoes. Other than the hair loss ... I have not noticed any symptoms of exposure.

I do not want to spark a debate on the use of permethrin to prevent bed bugs, BUT it is NOT supposed to be effective to prevent bed bugs. There are bed bugs on the Camino, and I met more afflicted pilgrims than I anticipated. Some of these afflicted had treated their kit with permethrin. I do not know how to prevent them, but here is what I did. Maybe I just got lucky, but I will take luck any day.
1) I did not treat my kit with permethrin.
2) Bed bugs are on the move to Santiago just like us, and hitching rides on the backs of other peregrinos.
3) I inspected the bed before putting anything on it. Look in the seams. Bail if you are not comfortable.
4) I did not use the blankets ... how often are they washed and dried? There were a couple of albergues that had nice looking bedspreads. Some of my fellow peregrinos got underneath, and got bed bugs. The facility was immaculate.
5) I think the buggers want you, and not your kit. Hang your backpack off the ground ... a loop of cord and a small carabiner work great.
6) I used a bed bug sheet. I read a post from @Kanga, and decided to give it a try. I was going to ship it, or donate it until I started meeting some of the afflicted. One of my Camino buddies used one. He said he saw bed bugs under the bug sheet one night when nature called, but he did not get any bed bug bites. Maybe he was lucky ... maybe they did not like the taste of him?

Buena Suerte Amigo

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

I've done a lot of reading on bed bug protection and have not come across anything that says that treating your bags with permethrin will help. A long time exposure may kill them but not the few hours they need to feed. Also, permethrin will not repel them. A high concentration of DEET on you or your bed clothing should work but its effectiveness will start to wane as the night goes on. Old-timers that get up in the middle of the night can re-apply.

If you do use permethrin I advise using the spray only and only on the outside of the bag. Dried it is supposed to be safe but why expose yourself to it when it isn't likely that it will help. Keep it away from cats, it can be deadly to them.

Ancedotally, on the camino, permethrin treated sleeping bags have been found effective against the bites of elephants, giraffes and moose. Not one case has been reported.

 

[Robo]

OK found the earlier thread!
Sorry to have brought up the topic again....

 

[Camino Chrissy]

I use Permathrin spray on the outside of my sleeping bag, backpack and on my personal mattress sheet, but not the pillowcase I bring. I have seen bedbugs 4 different times in the 120 total days on my three spring Caminos. They were always noticed in the morning when lights were turned on and this was even after I'd checked their hiding spots carefully when arriving at my destination beforehand. I've never been bitten (to my knowledge) and I definately sleep better cocooned in my sleeping bag!

 

[alexwalker]

OK found the earlier thread!
Sorry to have brought up the topic again....

Like with everything else: If nothing works, read the user guide (search function)...

 

[Deleted member 56069]

After four Camino's and absolutely no bed bug issues, there is also the 'do nothing' alternative.
Personally I would rather risk a bite than spray all my equipment with chemicals and pesticides.
Although you are not likely to see bed bugs in the day, we always ask to see our room before we lay our money down. You get a good feeling for how well the albergue is maintained and cleaned. Most of course are very good, but occasionally you do run into some that are not.
If we have any doubts as to the cleanliness of the place, we simply thank them and move on.
I will agree there is some luck involved in not having any bed bug issues in four Camino's, but I am not a fan of chemical prevention myself.

 

[trecile]

After four Camino's and absolutely no bed bug issues, there is also the 'do nothing' alternative.
Personally I would rather risk a bite than spray all my equipment with chemicals and pesticides.
Although you are not likely to see bed bugs in the day, we always ask to see our room before we lay our money down. You get a good feeling for how well the albergue is maintained and cleaned. Most of course are very good, but occasionally you do run into some that are not.
If we have any doubts as to the cleanliness of the place, we simply thank them and move on.
I will agree there is some luck involved in not having any bed bug issues in four Camino's, but I am not a fan of chemical prevention myself.

It's not the bites that I'm worried about - it's the prospect of transporting bedbugs to another albergue, or even worse, home!

 

[JohnMcM]

We are carrying sleeping bags on our next Camino to ‘try’ an Albergue now and again.

Let’s see what all the fuss is about And what we have been missing out on!

Not having carried a sleeping bag before I’m Thinking of treating them with Permethrin. So how best to do that?

For those who have treated their bags.... what would you say is the best method?

1. Use a spray.
2. Soak the whole bag.
3. Other?

Personally Robo,
I would use a spray and only on the outside.
Buen (bug-free, bag-carrying) Camino

 

[martin1ws]

@Robo ..
5) I think the buggers want you, and not your kit. Hang your backpack off the ground ... a loop of cord and a small carabiner work great.
...

I do not understand this.
My backpack has a loop for hanging it off the ground.

Do you need this if there is no possibility to hang your backpack on?
And then you hang your backpack with the carabiner and the loop of cord to the bunk bed?

 

[kelleymac]

We did not experience bedbugs on any of our walks, and we always stayed in albergues. If you do decide to spray your sleeping bag, please do it outside. There was one woman who sprayed her bunk, and her sleeping bag every night. I ended up trying to get ahead of her. Have fun!

 

[flewitheagles]

I've done a lot of reading on bed bug protection and have not come across anything that says that treating your bags with permethrin will help. A long time exposure may kill them but not the few hours they need to feed. Also, permethrin will not repel them. A high concentration of DEET on you or your bed clothing should work but its effectiveness will start to wane as the night goes on. Old-timers that get up in the middle of the night can re-apply.

If you do use permethrin I advise using the spray only and only on the outside of the bag. Dried it is supposed to be safe but why expose yourself to it when it isn't likely that it will help. Keep it away from cats, it can be deadly to them.

Ancedotally, on the camino, permethrin treated sleeping bags have been found effective against the bites of elephants, giraffes and moose. Not one case has been reported.

Any word about the strangest of all ..... reindeer???? Merry Christmas!

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

Any word about the strangest of all ..... reindeer???? Merry Christmas!

On the caminos reindeer don't bite you, you bite them.

 

[alexwalker]

In 10 years on the Caminos, I have never seen a bedbug. If I should do, then let them suck me and get on with it. If they're big enough it might even feel good... They're like mosquitos to me. This is not a life-treatening danger. Calm down on an issue unlikely to happen to you, and harmless, though irritating and annoying.

 

[linkster]

I do not understand this.
My backpack has a loop for hanging it off the ground.

Do you need this if there is no possibility to hang your backpack on?
And then you hang your backpack with the carabiner and the loop of cord to the bunk bed?

Yes, what if there is no hook around? I used the loop to make a larks head knot, and the carabiner was the hook to hook my backpack on. I have a hanging hook built in to similar to yours.

 

[Jodean]

Sprayed the outside of my sleeping bag and my back pack. Did this outdoors and let it dry well. Checked every mattress and did not use the blankets in the albergues. No bites.
Going on the Portuguese Camino in April and the Frances again in Sept. and will spray my stuff.

 

[RJM]

Soaking down with poison anything that comes in contact with your skin for long periods of time sounds like a really unhealthy idea. Really not worth the possible detrimental health side effects. I never saw any bedbugs on the Camino Frances. Maybe just better to walk without such fears.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

In 10 years on the Caminos, I have never seen a bedbug. If I should do, then let them suck me and get on with it. If they're big enough it might even feel good... They're like mosquitos to me. This is not a life-treatening danger. Calm down on an issue unlikely to happen to you, and harmless, though irritating and annoying.

The idea of bedbugs gives me the "heebie-jeebies" and I have seen 4 in the albergues. A mosquito lands on you quickly, does its thing, then quickly flies away. A bedbug however, crawls very slowly across your sleepsack and climbs slowly into bed with you. I don't know how long they linger to enjoy their feast, before crawling slowly back to their hiding spots, or hitching a ride with you to the next place you sleep. They procreate faster than a rabbit causing new infestations hard to get rid of even with the help of an exterminator. Thankfully mosquitos only live outdoors. I don't like them either, but at least they don't make my skin crawl!
Just my opinion from a female point of view.

 

[Deleted member 29041]

Personally, I'm more weary of the long-term effects from skin contact with Permethrin (a disputed subject), than I am of bedbugs. Add to that, that I find smell of Permethrin disgusting.

And before you ask: Yes, I have been rudely introduced to bedbugs.

 

[MisterH]

We are carrying sleeping bags on our next Camino to ‘try’ an Albergue now and again.

Let’s see what all the fuss is about And what we have been missing out on!

Not having carried a sleeping bag before I’m Thinking of treating them with Permethrin. So how best to do that?

For those who have treated their bags.... what would you say is the best method?

1. Use a spray.
2. Soak the whole bag.
3. Other?

I sprayed my bag and my pack. I had no problems on either walk.

 

[Lurch]

My shot at the CF is in 18. I will spray the outside of my pack and sleeping bag. Agent Orange hasn’t killed me yet, but not for lack of trying. I don't think anything OTC could be any worse and bedbugs and cooties are not friends I want to make!

 

[Deleted member 43780]

If the supplier says not to spray sleeping bag, I would follow that advice.

Considering most companies will not be that open. Must mean something about the product.

I spray outside and even inside my pack. Outside hammock, packing bags, etc.

I used to spray outside my sleeping bag; but, after reading this, will not do that again.

In all of my 5 caminos I have yet to see one single bed bug.

Have seen a rat and a few mice. When ham mocking out back of one of the caminos saw a rat or two run by. Guess they wondered about my hammock. Must have been a novelty for them.

Saw few scorpions, roaches, nasty ants, etc.

Makes me love my screened hammock even more.

Hennessy Backpacker light. Love, love, love it.

 

[gcsz]

We are carrying sleeping bags on our next Camino to ‘try’ an Albergue now and again.

Let’s see what all the fuss is about And what we have been missing out on!

Not having carried a sleeping bag before I’m Thinking of treating them with Permethrin. So how best to do that?

For those who have treated their bags.... what would you say is the best method?

1. Use a spray.
2. Soak the whole bag.
3. Other?

Has anyone had any experiences with bed bugs in private rooms?

 

[Deleted member 56069]

I just bought a can of 'Doctor Doom' (with Permethrin as the active ingredient) to spray on a couple of Aspen trees I have in my yard that are affected by some kind of burrowing worm that is turning my trees into sawdust.
After 4 Camino's and no bed bug issues and also having never run into anyone that brought the subject up either, I will continue to not spray any of my equipment with Permethrin type pesticides. Good stuff for killing pests in the yard though.

 

[Deleted member 56069]

Has anyone had any experiences with bed bugs in private rooms?

My wife and I almost exclusively stay in private rooms while on our walks. After four Camino's, we have yet to have a bed bug encounter. Yeah, maybe we are lucky and I am certainly not discounting bed bugs can be an issue for some. I can't get my head around the idea of spraying my clothing and sleeping bag with the same product I use in my garden that wipes out every bug that moves.
I use rubber gloves and a mask when handling pesticides, so having direct contact with this product scares me way more than bed bugs do.
I quarantine all my gear in my garage when coming home and the clothes I am wearing. I transfer clothes to green garbage bags and then directly into my washing machine. My back pack and sleeping bag never enter my house.

 

[linkster]

Chinches may like a private room as much as anyone. One night, in the middle of the night, I heard a lot of back and forth, then the washing machine and dryer. I thought how rude of the hospitaleros to be doing their cleaning in the middle of the night. I had my ear plugs, so I went back to sleep. The next morning, I discovered it was the couple in one of the private rooms. They woke up in the middle of the night infested with chinches.

I was in the bunks with everyone else. Maybe I was just lucky?.

 

[C clearly]

Has anyone had any experiences with bed bugs in private rooms?

Yes. I believe that 3 of the 4 times I've been bitten, it was in private rooms.

 

[Jodean]

Permethrin is not supposed to kill bed bugs, it is just supposed to keep them away. It is a deterrent only.
You don't spray your clothing, only the outside of your sleeping bag and your back pack.
Most of us probably do far more dangerous things on a daily level then this minimum protection against getting bit while sleeping.

 

[trecile]

Permethrin is not supposed to kill bed bugs, it is just supposed to keep them away. It is a deterrent only.
You don't spray your clothing, only the outside of your sleeping bag and your back pack.
Most of us probably do far more dangerous things on a daily level then this minimum protection against getting bit while sleeping.

Actually, I think that permethrin will kill bedbugs, but not immediately on contact. I'm not sure if it repels them or not.

 

[C clearly]

Permethrin is not supposed to kill bed bugs, it is just supposed to keep them away. It is a deterrent only.

Actually, permethrin is an insecticide - it is known to kill some insects, including bedbugs, under some circumstances. However, its effectiveness as a repellent or deterrent is not proven, but that is what most people here are hoping for.

 

[trecile]

Actually, permethrin is an insecticide - it is known to kill some insects, including bedbugs, under some circumstances. However, its effectiveness as a repellent or deterrent is not proven, but that is what most people here are hoping for.

I hoped that by spraying my backpack, sleeping gear and all of my cloth zippered bags that I organized my gear in that if any bed bugs made their way into my things that the permethrin would eventually kill them.

 

[Anamiri]

My wife and I almost exclusively stay in private rooms while on our walks. After four Camino's, we have yet to have a bed bug encounter. Yeah, maybe we are lucky and I am certainly not discounting bed bugs can be an issue for some. I can't get my head around the idea of spraying my clothing and sleeping bag with the same product I use in my garden that wipes out every bug that moves.
I use rubber gloves and a mask when handling pesticides, so having direct contact with this product scares me way more than bed bugs do.
I quarantine all my gear in my garage when coming home and the clothes I am wearing. I transfer clothes to green garbage bags and then directly into my washing machine. My back pack and sleeping bag never enter my house.

The one time I was bitten, was in an expensive private apartment. I think they can be anywhere

 

[hgardner]

We are carrying sleeping bags on our next Camino to ‘try’ an Albergue now and again.

Let’s see what all the fuss is about And what we have been missing out on!

Not having carried a sleeping bag before I’m Thinking of treating them with Permethrin. So how best to do that?

For those who have treated their bags.... what would you say is the best method?

1. Use a spray.
2. Soak the whole bag.
3. Other?

I wash things in a giant washer at laundromat and add permectrin 2 to the detergent.

 

[C clearly]

I wash things in a giant washer at laundromat and add permectrin 2 to the detergent.

Welcome to the forum! You have managed to find a thread that is over 3 years old, but it has been a long time since we've had the permethrin/bedbug debate, so that is great!

It is not necessary to add any insecticide to your laundry to kill bedbugs, and I would question the effectiveness of diluting a product that was intended as a spray. Instead, you can rely on the heat of a dryer (20 minutes or so at a normally hot temperature) to kill any bedbugs. That is 20 minutes on the dry laundry, so you need to be sure things are dry and then do 20 minutes.

 

[gerardcarey]

We are carrying sleeping bags on our next Camino to ‘try’ an Albergue now and again.
Let’s see what all the fuss is about And what we have been missing out on!
Not having carried a sleeping bag before I’m Thinking of treating them with Permethrin. So how best to do that?
For those who have treated their bags.... what would you say is the best method?

1. Use a spray.
2. Soak the whole bag.
3. Other?

1, Spray only the outside of the sleeping bag.
2. Keep you arms inside the bag. (Best of luck with that)
3. Spray both the inner and outer of your pack.
Regards
Gerard