Re: Some questions re: Vapor Steamers & Other Stuff

December 27, 2008

Hi, Dawn,

What does the steamer you refer to look like? I might be interested in one that gets that hot. What kind of nozzle or applicator does it have?

I found an Oreck handheld steamer online that has a precision steam nozzle for use in removing grease spots, etc.(Looks like a torture device!!!) Would probably work with what ails us too. At $50 new, it's not cheap, though.

Found the same model at ebay w 9 hours left and 0 bidders, opening bid $17.99 item 390019059138 .The listing neither says if it is new or if it works, however, so if you go there I would use the Ask the Seller button and find that out before you bid. Also, this model may suck. With 9 hours left, you have time to check the reviews and see if this model is even one you should consider.

KJ

>> Hope everyone had a nice holiday!! So, what about using a vapor steamer > which reaches temps up to 290 degrees and is said to kill microbes, ...Dawn

December 27, 2008

A vapor steamer might work if you follow the treatment with

dehumidification. Otherwise the moisture will provide ideal

conditions for further mite breeding. Dry heat would be a better

option. Zmooks got rid of the mites in her home by doing a series of

heat treatments.

Regardless of what method you use to treat the environment, it will

likely need to be repeated at least a few times. Choose your method,

then stick with it for a while. I've been on this board for a little

over a year, and have read all the posts going back to when the board

started around July 2007. I haven't seen anyone who got rid of the

mites using steam alone. Using a steam cleaner is part of my

environmental protocol, but I always follow it by running a

dehumidifier for a couple of days.

myrtle

>

> Hope everyone had a nice holiday!! So, what about using a vapor steamer

> which reaches temps up to 290 degrees and is said to kill microbes,

> bacteria, germs, microorganisms, biofilms, viruses, mold, mildew, dust

> mites, etc... Just thinking that something like this might work well

> for someone like myself who has parrots and cannot use harsh chemicals

> to clean my bird room and cages. It is easy for me to treat myself and

> my family with all of these different types of remedies but birds'

> respiratory systmes are very sensitive and time is of the essence with

> this as mites have been known to kill birds if the infestation gets too

> bad. I will be bringing them (have six) to the vet next week so we will

> see what he suggests but I also have to disifenct the entire bird room.

> Luckily it is seperate from the rest of the house! Anyway, I am just

> trying to think of different options here. My agressive eradication

> measures will begin next week.. Oh, one other thing... my brother

> happens to be in the pest control business and wants to try a product

> called Suspend which is a concentrate containing Deltamethrin. I guess

> since it's free, I will let him try it, but from what I've read none of

> the pesticides work. Anyway, I am trying a few new things tonight for

> some added relief such as using vicks vapor rub on my head with a

> shower cap for itch relief!!

>

> -Dawn

>

December 29, 2008

Well unfortunately the vapor steamer i am looking at is quite pricey.

I mean, really, really pricey. But if it is gonna knock these suckers

out then I wouldn't mind investing in one, rather than going through

exreme measures for my birds/bird room (i.e. getting rid of them,

treating them and boarding them with vet could cost in excess of what

this machine costs)and it sounds like it could greatly benefit doing

the rest of the house as well. Anyway, the first link is the better

known vapor steamer. The site I gave gives a legit. 30 day refund

policy with no restock fee or restrictions. Other sites will charge

you if returned used, opened, and restock fees. The 2nd site is

another less expensive machine but with similar feature such as

continous operation where you don't have to let it cool down to

refil. The vapor steam is a dry steam which is alot hotter than your

regular steam cleaning machines (like the one you mentioned).

http://www.sylvane.com/ladybug-vapor-steam-cleaner.html?

source=goog & keyword=ladybug%20vapor & s_kwcid=ladybug%20vapor|2451678718

http://www.allbrands.com/products/abp09285.html?

ovchn=SPRI & ovcpn=Froogle & ovcrn=Froogle & ovtac=CMP

So I am thinking of trying the machine out either way to see if it

helps or even solves my problem in the bird room. I believe this is

where I need to start. In any case I have read so much about vapor

steamers in the past few days, I am just overwhelmed by all of it!!

Take care.

Dawn

> >

> > Hope everyone had a nice holiday!! So, what about using a vapor

> steamer

> > which reaches temps up to 290 degrees and is said to kill

microbes,

> ...Dawn

>

December 30, 2008

If you want to get a steam cleaner that is steam/vac this is your

lucky day. I have a Kleen Jet mega 500 v that is listed on

www.daimer.com/steam-cleaners/ for $1897. Check it out. Anything

smaller then this is no good, or it will take you so long to do

anything, you will just give up. If you have carpet and just don't

want to give it up, then this is the answer. You will save mega bucks

just doing carpeted stairs that steam cleaning companies charge you

$5 a stair. With tax mine was over $2000 I'll sell it to you for half

$1000 if you p/u or pay freight. Now or Never.

WRG......................

> > >

> > > Hope everyone had a nice holiday!! So, what about using a vapor

> > steamer

> > > which reaches temps up to 290 degrees and is said to kill

> microbes,

> > ...Dawn

> >

>

December 30, 2008

Dawn, we have one of the cheaper ($500 when new 10 years ago)

steamers that we normally (pre-mitemare)used once a month to clean

the roll-around powdercoated iron cages of our 3 African Grey parrots

& their large manzanita play tree. We just wipe down the cages with

paper towels & hot water & scrub the grills & catchtrays with a nylon

pad in the shower in between.

Our unit is no longer made, was manufactured in Italy, has a

stainless steel tank & a hard plastic wheeled body and a number of

stainless-cored hard plastic shelled wands & attachments for every

job I've used it for over the years. That includes hardwood flooring,

tile showers, windows & mirrors, cast iron outdoor furniture,

concrete basement & garage flooring, outdoor grills & even teak

garden furniture & bluestone porch & patios. Don't recall if it was

billed as " continuous " - the tank holds maybe half a gallon & works

for 30 minutes with the floor steamer & longer with the small detail

attachments. You can vary the amount of steam that comes out from a

blast to a light application, depending on what you want to clean.

Don't know temp of steam created, but it's surely hot enough to melt

dried poop instantly & you can't touch the metal cleaned for a few

minutes till it cools off.

Whether it's " dry " steam (sort of an oxymoron) or not, couldn't say.

Leaves a steam sheen on wooden floors that I dry mop over every few

swipes, but not a puddle. The drymop simple step serves to buff the

finish as the steam leaves it rather dull. The really expensive floor

models ($2500) have an additional part that vacs up the steam as soon

as it goes down so leave the floor absolutely dry.

Using the brush nozzles on the tile shower or birdcages creates more

airborne steam than the floor attachment, since you're not confining

the steam against the surface. Bathroom fan takes care of that

without even fogging the mirrors. The manzinita play tree dries

within a few minutes & the steam is the only practical way to

penetrate the characteristic fissures in that wood.

I've followed Ray's advice regarding " Don't Water the Mites " &

haven't used the steamer since the mitemare began. Been running the

dehumidifier continuously for 3 months & that's been effective here

after the first couple weeks. When the forced air furnace kicked in

as the weather cooled here in central Virginia, the humidity dropped

even further to a typical low of 15% - really too dry for comfort but

we haven't turned off the dehumidifier (a 50 pint that now needs to

be emptied only every few days) or turned on the humidifier unit on

the furnace.

To fill you in on our situation - I'm the only one (thankfully) who's

been marked by the mites here. My husband was bitten outside, but not

in the house, and his bites healed quickly & normally with no further

impact. Our two dogs, two cats & three parrots have not seemed

affected during the 5 months we've been dealing with the mitemare.

We don't have a birdroom. Our Greys are fully flighted & normally not

confined to their cages primarily. Since the mitemare, they have been

mostly cagebound to minimize any encounters with the mites & so their

wingbeats don't stir up the air. Also feel I can better control their

immediate surroundings by limiting their access & moving them around

less.

They routinely get Braggs' apple cider vinegar in their drinking

water & always have. Baby, the oldest at 12, no longer gets to sleep

on her towelbar in the large masterbathroom at night, but still gets

a couple hours playtime there by herself during the early afternoons.

(When the mites were active here, late afternoons through the night

was primetime.) Ben's been unhappy at not being able to play on the

outside of his cage or with his gym - the bathroom was never his

personal playground - but has accepted it with the addition of more

toys in his kitchen (daytime) & bedroom (sleeptime) cages & more

cuddletime with my husband. Max, the youngest, stays in the kitchen

all the time now in his cage & doesn't seem to mind at all, having

become busier with his cage toys & seeing that Baby & Max aren't in

their normal modes either.

Since I'm spending most of my time in the kitchen with them, even

sleeping here on a leather couch, they're actually getting more of my

attention than usual on a minute-by-minute basis. I believe they

fully understand the situation & have adapted. Given that Greys are

known for their smarts, equivalent to a 5-year-old human's, and we've

treated them like human children in so many respects, you may

understand that belief. I've dubbed them the " wellness choir " during

the mitemare, since they've each been unflagging coaches in

encouraging & entertaining me. They know I have the " bitey bugs " &

that the changes have been for their protection.

I stopped handling the Greys, feeding them or cleaning their cages at

the very beginning - two weeks into this - when I realized the mites

were in my hair & scalp, sinuses, ears, eyes, lungs & digestive

tract. My husband took over their care, though I still prepared their

hot meals with a Buzz-Off kerchief round my head, disposable gloves &

much caution. Only took the youngest, Max, to our wonderful avian vet

for a full check-up. Max's sleep cage was right next to the bed where

I slept. $800 & a glowing report later, we didn't take Baby or Ben

since it wasn't time for their annual check-up. Moved Max immediately

(day one) from the bedroom to the kitchen. Abandoned my bed & have

slept on the kitchen's leather couch ever since.

Our vet understood I was infested with birdmites & didn't find that

unusual. Advised me to leave packing tape sticky-side-up on the

windowsills & in the cage trays & to bring them to her for inspection

if I found anything. Never did find mites on the tapes. Ones that I

taped later from my skin & the walls I didn't take to her either,

since her office is nearly an hour away. Though she lives only a few

miles away & makes housecalls in normal times, didn't want to expose

her to what was in my home.

Found & eliminated many pale 1/4 " enlongated cocoons stuck to the

bedroom walls near the bed within the first few weeks. Each contained

at least one black speck at its core. Found that a rag wrung nearly

dry in hot hot water & splashed with white vinegar dissolved the glue

holding the cocoons to the wall. They were above & to the side of the

bed going 6 feet up the matte-painted wall & that much either side of

the bed. Found none on the shiny trimwork baseboards or the door- &

windowframes that limited their spread on the wall, and none on the

rest of the bedroom ceiling or walls. Found a mix of 's Oil

Soap, OrangePlus household cleaner from Ecos & hot hot water, done at

half a capful of each to half a gallon of water & used to scrub the

walls with a rag, actually dissolved the cocoons exposing the specks.

Didn't find the glued-on cocoons anywhere else.

Used the s/OrangePlus mix to wipe down all the wood furniture

here & found no cocoons nor specks. All our furniture is old with

shellac & wax finishes or old paint. A few weeks later found mites

divebombing me from the kitchen ceiling above my couch & did the

entire kitchen/family room with OrangePlus & Swiffers. The method is

here on this forum:

bird mites/message/7659

Doing this every 4 weeks since in bedroom & kitchen & powderroom &

haven't encountered any mites in the house since then. Vacuum every

couple days now instead of the daily routine I did at first. Dust at

the same time with the vac attachments & bag the attachments between

uses, soaking them in the OrangePlus mix periodically.

Luckily began internals right after my mite attack. Month later

started the ESP Botanicals system for skin. The ESP worked wonders

for me. So the mitemare was minimized here & I've been very

fortunate. No bites since I got wise to how to clean the house &

treat myself. Crawling stopped soon after. Every once in a while I

get a tingle & roll off a hard or soft pale grain that's caused it.

Still get small red pimples on face or hands occassiionally that

resolve quickly with no problems. Assume those are being brought to

the surface exhausted or dead & take that as a further sign the deep

layers are healing. So I'm not completely clear yet, but haven't been

problematic the last 3 of the 5 months of mitemare. And I was pretty

bad in the first two months of mitemare. Three months ago I started

cleaning the cages again, wearing the disposable gloves since my

hands were still shedding. A month ago stopped wearing the gloves &

now take care of the birds again. Still minimal touch contact for

their protection. My shoulders feel so empty. Looking forward to

being able to play & cuddle & dance with them on my shoulders when

I'm convinced I'm finally clear.

Since you have a birdroom, I'd advise you to clean it top to bottom,

starting with the ceiling, with the OrangePlus method. Another of the

orange cleaners - TKO - should work as well or possibly better. Using

it this way hasn't bothered my birds in the least. I haven't used it

on their cages, but all around them. Just hot water & paper towels

have worked for us as daily wipedowns, and the trays are lined with

paper towels & changed daily. Perches & food holders & water bottles

are washed at the sink with soap every other day or more often if

they get beak-wiped or fouled.

With regard to the OrangePlus - don't believe spraying the mix will

do the trick long-term from other reports here, but that the

components & eggs must be physically removed with the Swiffer or

such. As if you were cleaning off dirt, spraying a solution wouldn't

actually remove the dirt. Was able to do that here by rolling the

birdcages away from the area I was cleaning & then rolling them back

in place. Made sure to clean the wheels each time as well. Vinegar on

a wet paper towel worked for the many windows, wiped off with a clean

paper towel. The sills & trim got the OrangePlus monthly.

If you have a hardfloor in the birdroom, the OrangePlus should work

there as well. If carpet, you can use it in a carpet machine, which

I've done for years (also deodorizes). If you find any evidence of

mites or litter on your cages or trays, you may want to go the

steamer route. Ditto if your cages have may nooks that are unusually

hard to clean. Heard a lot of good reviews about the cage cleaners

that use grapefruit seed extract - you might check them out, since

citrus seems especially effective.

The diatomaceous earth (DE) food-grade may be a good idea to add to

your birds' food. Trisha of ESP Botanicals mentioned there's a South

American parrot that's reported to never get mites because it

normally eats DE. Checking myself into what amount would be

appropriate & plan to give it to the dogs & cats, my husband & myself

as well.

If you are the only one in your household effected by the mites, you

may want to persuade another family member to do the birdroom clean

down & take care of your birds until you recover. If you can't, try

to do it when the mites are least active on your skin. I routinely

used a half capful of the OrangePlus in my bathwater (salt) to kill

the mites on the surface.

Another thing I believe has helped here - we have two of the Austin

Aire brand hepa filtered air cleaner roll-around units here. We

stopped using then when we replaced the furnace here with hepa-UV

filters on the forced air system. We pulled them out again & replaced

the filter units, putting one in the kitchen & one in the bedroom.

These units capture particles down to 3 microns in size (dustmite)

but my model doesn't deodorize. The units come with filters & they're

expensive - $500? - as are the filters you replace every few years at

$300. You run the new units or new filters on high for 24 hours &

then at a speed you select. They do a great job with the dander of

our dusty Greys & all airborne dust in general. These are metal,

perforated on all four sides, and running on low speed are barely

perceptible. The only maintenance is to dust or vac the outside case

in normal cleaning. At the end of the filter life (2-3 years) you

just replace the filter. To my way of thinking, if you just leave it

running all the time, the pull should keep anything dragged into it

immobile until it dehydrates & dies. I would recommend one for the

birdroom. If your pockets are full of cash, get another for the room

you spend the most time in.

At this point, I'm methodically cleaning everything, room by room,

with the OrangePlus. With our family of furred & feathered members,

most of our stuff is easily cleaned. I haven't encountered any mites

yet while doing this, but wouldn't be surprised if I do. I will steam

clean again when I'm certain this is over. If you do use a steamer,

make sure to monitor the humidity & use a dehumidifier if necessary.

If you're the one taking care of the birds, it may lessen your time

to them & their exposure since it's faster than wiping down every

cage every day. Make sure all the perches & toys can stand up to the

steam if you choose this route or you'll take time removing all the

paraphernalia & replacing it afterwards. We're using the rubber long

flexible perches instead of fabric braided ones & they're easily

cleaned.

If you're in the market for a vacuum, I can recommend the Rainbow

vac, which captures dust & debris in a water tank for disposal & can

also be used to vac the air. I'd add a little OrangePlus to the water

as kill for what lands there. New ones are expensive but old ones can

be found at vac repair places or craigslist or online. Got mine years

ago (secondhand then) at the recommendation of an allergist & it was

(and is) a real champ. May pull mine out of storage & use it again.

Though my whole house vac is great, haven't had to empty the dustbin

yet or figured out how to go about that now.

Another thing I started again for our Greys is the Sunshine factor

brand red palm oil they'd have in their native environment for immune

boosting. It has the consistency of honey. Directions say to mix with

dry food but I just put a drop on a cracker for them every other day

& they love it. Perhaps there are similar foods for your birds?

Bessie rehomed her birds when her mitemare began & now thinks it was

probably not necessary. I sought her kind advice when our mitemare

began & our fids are fine & never appeared to have any mites. As I

say, I minimized direct contact with them & they were in good shape

at the start. We considered temporarily removing our fids (feathered

kids for you not familiar), dogs & cats, but decided we were all in

this together & would tough it out. Looking back, once the OrangePlus

& 's was hit upon, it would have been more reasonable for me to

go elsewhere for the duration, since the mites were attracted to &

colonizing me...

Like many here, I believe these become internal quickly & must be

treated with internal & external personal remedies at the same time

as the environment to minimize their impact & hasten their demise.

We've used nothing different here in the house than the dehumidifier,

air cleaners, OrangePlus Swiffer method, BioKleen's Premium Plus

laundry powder in a very hot washing machine, careful but not

extensive cleaning & reasonable precautions. We haven't needed to

toss a thing. We didn't use petrochemicals or toxic cleaning products

or chemical pesticides before or during this time. For me personally,

herbal internals, the ESP Botanicals system & Buzz-Off clothing have

been my ticket. And a lot of providential good fortune, I'm sure.

Think your situation through & you'll find your path through this,

too. Rooting for your soon success. Wings up for you & yours!

Best wishes, Sue

Hope everyone had a nice holiday!! So, what about using a vapor

steamer which reaches temps up to 290 degrees and is said to kill

microbes...Dawn

December 31, 2008

Dawn, replied earlier but must've been lost in land…

We have a less expensive ($500 new 10 years ago) Italian steamer unit

with a stainless steel vapor chamber & hard plastic exterior on

wheels. No longer being imported but there may be similar models

available. It's about 2' long by a foot high and wide so easy to

maneuver & has a conveniently long cord that wraps around the bottom

to store. Came with steel-cored hard plastic encased wands & numerous

attachment heads. Holds about half a gallon of tap water & steams for

half an hour with the floor head & longer with the detail

attachments. It's not continuous steam & I do have to wait a few

minutes before unsealing the tank to replenish the water. After half

an hour of use, I'm ready to take 5 while it cools down & steams up

again, so never found it inconvenient. Heats the water quickly & can

adjust the force of steam flow for scummy or delicate tasks. I find

that more useful than the continuous steam feature.

We've used it to clean our three African Grey parrots' powder-coated

iron roll-around cages & their manzinita play tree on a monthly basis

for years. Really the only way besides immersing to clean the

fissures in that wood. Also for hardwood floors, shower tile, windows

& sheet mirrors, garden cast iron & teak furniture, concrete basement

& garage floors and bluestone porch & patio. We have another

inexpensive lightweight upright model by HomeWorks (discounted at

Tuesday Morning to $50 a few years back) that I pull out for quick

jobs when the dogs track mud into the front hallway. I use terry

shoptowels on that one's integral clips since its steam is coarser &

to catch the mud at the same time. Like pulling out a broom instead

of a vac – quick & easy. Even has a ring at the top to hang in the

broom closet & also steams up quickly using tap water. Never used it

long enough for it to run out of steam. No attachments but a nice

long cord. The steamers that run on tap water are cheaper to run than

those that require the extra expense of distilled water.

Regarding the good one, don't know how hot the steam produced

reaches, but it's hot enough to instantly melt dried-on bird poop

from cages & the metal bars are too hot to touch for a minute or two

afterwards, so it's pretty hot. Don't know if it's " dry steam " (an

oxymoron?) but it's a fine mist that leaves a steam vapor on the

hardwood floors without spotting or puddling & dries within a couple

minutes. I follow with a dry mop every few swipes to buff since it

leaves a rather dull look to the poly finish otherwise. The really

expensive steamers ($2500 & up) include a vac that sucks up the steam

a second after you put it down so surfaces are immediately bone dry.

Using the brushed or pinpoint attachments for tile, cages & play tree

produces more steam in the air since the heads aren't continually

flush to the surface as it is on the floorhead. Bathroom fan takes

care of it & never enough to fog the mirrors even after an hour's

use. Way less moisture than a 5 minute hot shower. Took me a little

practice to learn to use the attachments for steaming the cages

without splattering the liquefied crud. Working top to bottom with

catch papers on the floor & directing most of the steam down into the

cage where the crud's caught in the tray lined with paper towels (so

it doesn't splash back) became my preferred method. Some friends take

their cages outside & blast away, but ours are too tall to make that

easy.

To explain our situation - our family is composed of my husband &

myself, two dogs, two cats & the three Greys. My husband & I were

bitten in the yard this Summer. His bites healed normally with no

further progression. Some of mine did not & I alone was attacked

inside a month later. The mites quickly internalized into my eyes,

ears, sinuses, lungs & digestive pathway. So I've been the only one

marked by the mites, thankfully, and now five months from the initial

inside attack, no one else appears to be affected.

Within the first two weeks, I discovered pale quarter-inch cocoons

glued to the matte-painted walls above & around my bed where I'd

first been attacked inside. These cocoons reached about 6 feet up the

wall over the bed and to the side until boundaries of the gloss-

painted doorway and window frame intervened. Simultaneously found a

way to remove them and a way to dissolve them. Each cocoon enclosed a

black speck. You can read about that discovery here:

bird mites/message/6032

Once those timebombs were removed, I found an easier way to remove

the components from ceilings, walls & floors that I continue to use

once a month. Haven't found anything while doing this in the last 3

of the 5 months into the mitemare. Check that method out here:

bird mites/message/7659

The parrots haven't shown any problems with this method of the

OrangePlus. (We've avoided the mint crystals fearing possible

negative effects on them.) I just wheel them in their cages out of

the way while OrangePlus Swiffering & wheel them back when their

area's done. Some have tried spraying with OrangePlus or another

orange oil & haven't been as successful. I believe it's the

combination of the OrangePlus and the mechanical removal of bugs &

eggs with the Swiffer that does the job. Like cleaning a dirty floor,

you couldn't expect to spray & leave any solution & actually remove

the dirty grime. My experience is that the OrangePlus kills the live

ones but not the eggs, even those that are mature but as yet unlaid

in the bodies of the adults. Believe they have to be physically

removed. Another, and perhaps better, orange product is TKO, which

Bessie uses & recommends.

In the beginning, we considered farming out our furry & feathered

family members temporarily, but decided we were all in this together

and would tough it out. Looking back, once I figured out how to

clean, it would have made more sense for me to go, since I was the

one sustaining the mites. Bessie rehomed her beloved bird companions,

and later decided it may not have been necessary. With her kind

advice, we all stayed put & hung tight. (Thank you for sharing your

wisdom and experience, Bessie!)

Max is our youngest Grey & his sleepcage was next to the bed where I

was attacked inside. He went to our wonderful avian vet the next day

for a total work-up. $800 in labs & a thorough examination gave him a

glowing health report. Our vet immediately believed me about the

birdmites & advised us to line the windowsills & cage trays with

packing tape sticky-side-up & bring her anything suspicious caught on

them for ID. Never did find anything on those tapes after a week of

my being bitten routinely, Though I taped black specks on my skin &

on surfaces before finding what worked for me, didn't take them to

her. Her office is nearly an hour away, I didn't want to ride in the

car in my active stage for fear of infesting it, and although she

lives a few miles away & makes housecalls, we didn't want to expose

her to what was in our home or on & in me.

Max & I moved out of the bedroom on Day One & into the kitchen for

the duration. We pulled up & trashed the bedroom carpeting since we

had worn it out & wanted to put down a wooden floor anyway. That's

the only thing we've chucked. Made it easy to vacuum, OrangePlus &

Swiffer the plywood subfloor. When I'm certain we're out of the

woods, we'll install a hardwood floor.

Unlike you, we don't have a birdroom, though we'd like one. Our Greys

are fully flighted & in normal times not often confined to their roll-

around cages. They spent a lot of their days uncaged in the master

bedroom suite. That changed immediately & now they spend most of

their time cagebound in the kitchen. Baby, our oldest at 12 whom

we've loved since she was a fuzzball, no longer sleeps on her towel

bar in the master bath. She still spends early afternoon playtime

there – it's really her room & she lets us use it – but not the late

afternoon & overnight that was primetime for the mites. Ben isn't

allowed to play on the outside of his day or sleep rollarounds, but

still sleeps in the bedroom since it disturbed him too much to spend

all his time in one place. Max doesn't mind the change since it's

been equal for all. More cage toys & more attention since I'm

habitually in the kitchen myself now have helped them adjust. Keeping

their access limited in this way has helped protect them, we believe.

Confining your fids to their birdroom for the duration may help you

as well.

The other important change was that I stopped handling our fids

(feathered kids) as soon as I caught on, a couple weeks into the

mitemare. Luckily, my husband & are semi-.retired, self-employed &

work at home. He was able to take over their handling, feeding & cage

cleaning to minimize direct contact with me. I still prepared their

daily hot meal, wearing Buzz-Off clothes & headscarf & disposable

gloves. Within two months, having a method for cleaning & myself, I

took care of cage cleaning wearing the gloves. Last month doing so

without gloves as I'm no longer shedding. Still not handling them &

my shoulders are still lonely. Looking forward to the days of

scritches & cuddles again once we're clear…

We've always added Braggs' apple cider vinegar to their drinking

water & started again giving them Sunshine Factor red palm oil that

they'd have in their native environment to boost their immunity.

Instead of mixing it with dry food, they get a drop of the oil on a

cracker every other day & love it. Perhaps there's something similar

you could give your birds for the same reason? Trisha of ESP

Botanicals mentioned recently she'd found out about a South American

parrot that never gets mites in its native land because it eats

diatomaceous earth (DE foodgrade). Planning to add that for us all

here soon as I find the appropriate amount for the parrots.

We stopped steam-cleaning when the mites appeared, following Ray's

advice Don't Water the Mites. (Thank you, Ray!) Even with the a/c

running nonstop, the humidity was at 55% so we bought a Danby

dehumidifier that's been running continuously & was keeping the

humidity at 35%. Once the weather cooled down here in central

Virginia & the forced-air heating kicked in, the humidity level stays

between 10 & 20% and we only have to empty the 50 pint model every

few days. Really too dry, but we're not turning it off just yet. If

you decide to steam-clean your cages & birdroom or other rooms, agree

with Myrtle's advice to watch the humidity level (cheap humidistat

similar to a thermostat at Walmart & elsewhere) & use a dehumidifier

afterwards if necessary. Steaming is quicker than wiping down every

cage, but you need to make sure any perches and toys are steamproof

or you'll spend the extra time removing, cleaning & reinstalling

them. We would remove & wash that sort of thing before doing our

monthly cage steaming. We have 5 identical rollaround Kings cages for

our 3 birds, so it's easy to park a bird in another cage while

cleaning one. Always thought it was too much trouble for daily

maintenance, but never needed to sanitize that often, either. Having

found no evidence of mites in the cages, we're just doing the usual

routine here. Wiping up spills & poop every day, changing out the

tray liners & washing & replacing the food dishes daily and washing &

replenishing the water bottles every other day along with hard

perches & the rubbery wired flexible long ones. Toys get removed &

washed as needed & rotated often. The removable grates & trays get

washed down every other day with soap & hot water. The entire cage

gets wiped down thoroughly with wet paper towels (a roll's worth)

every few days. The cage cleaners made from grapefruit seed extract

might be useful, since citrus seems a mite killer & repellant. Never

used it myself, but you may want to consider it.

The other appliances we added are Austin Aire brand hepa air cleaners

that we'd had before at our office. They come with filters & cost

$500 or so. We never used them here since we replaced the

heating/cooling system & added hepa filters & uv lights at the time

about 7 years ago. But we dragged them out, cleaned them up & ordered

new filters at $300 a pop. The filters last 2-3 years & need no

maintenance between replacements. The units are metal squares on

wheels with perforated sides. New ones or new filters need to be run

on high for 24 hours & then you can adjust them to low-medium-high by

preference. Running on low they're barely audible. These units catch

particles down to 3 microns – dustmite size. As long as they're run

continuously figure they trap anything pulled into them & immobilize

them there to dry & die. The outside is just vacuum dusted as routine

care. Since the entire filter is a round inside the square chassis &

is bagged & trashed at the end of years of useful life, figure that's

a safe bet for pulling them out of the air where they so easily

float. One's in the kitchen between my couch/bed and the birdcages. I

believe it's helped trap any mites I've shed from wafting into the

birdcages. They're available from allergy sites & secondhand. You

might consider one for your birdroom. If your pockets are deep, might

want another for the room most affected or where you spend the most

time.

If you decide to use the OrangePlus Swiffer method in your birdroom,

suggest you do the ceiling first & then work down each wall to the

floor at a time. Include the windows, doorways, inside & surfaces of

any cabinets & trimwork. The Swiffer makes it pretty easy & quick. If

you don't find any mites on the pads as you rinse them, you may have

gotten lucky like me and they may not have gotten to your birdroom

yet, preferring you & your usual locations. Hope this is so! If you

have a hallway leading to the birdroom, I'd treat that the same way

as well, and work further into the house from there.

If you're in the market for a vacuum, check out the Rainbow vac.

Regular vacs often blow the dust (and mites) back into the air & even

hepa vacs can be problematic in this situation. The Rainbows use a

water reservoir to deposit the dust which you pour down the john when

you're done. I'd add a little (few drops) of OrangePlus to the water

for kill. An allergist recommended one to me years ago & I found one

secondhand then that's still a champ. The whole water reservoir can

be washed in the sink & you can even let it run to vacuum the air.

New ones are pricey but secondhand or refurbished available at vac

repair places, craigslist & online. I'd personally go for one of

these before I'd spend $1500 for a Ladybug. A secondhand Rainbow vac

& a less fancy steamer unit would be my choice along with a

dehumidifier if high humidity levels make it advisable. An Austin

Aire or equivalent air cleaner would be another big plus in my

thinking. You could find all of these for $1500 total I believe. And

all would be nontoxic & useful well beyond the mite stage. Haven't

used my Rainbow since the whole house vac here. If it wasn't in

storage at the moment, I'd pull it out again. Don't want to chance

letting anything loose in the storage unit (before the mites for my

mom's stuff) or I'd bring it home now. I routinely Ziploc my vac

attachments after using now & periodically soak them in OrangePlus.

Vacuuming, as Frito says, like a crazed French maid, including all

the floor trimboard cracks & above doorways & windowsills & any

horizontal surface, has proven tremendously helpful here at

eliminating many culprits.

I've had no bites for the last 3 months of the 5 since the mitemare

began & no crawls for the last 2. My energy & stamina is normal now &

my outlook excellent. Once I caught on & learned what worked for me

here, the environment & I have improved daily. For cleaning, it's the

OrangePlus & 's Oil Soap (which I used anyway) and BioKleen

premium plus laundry powder (enzymes) in very hot water for laundry.

For me personally, herbal internals, the ESP Botanicals system & Buzz-

Off clothing have been the ticket, and I was pretty badly impacted in

the early weeks. Trisha Springstead, the wizard behind ESP

Botanicals, is a powerhouse of a friend to us birdmites people & a

wonderful soul. I couldn't have come this far without her incredible

products & sage advice. We used no petrochemicals, bleach, ammonia

nor pesticides before the mites nor during this time. We added the

dehumidifier & air cleaners & wouldn't be without them now. Haven't

tossed a thing but the bedroom carpet & that needed to go anyway.

Recognized the internal mites early & began herbals a couple days

into the mitemare, Began the ESP Botanicals system for skin five

weeks later & within a few weeks no more bites. Large lesions on my

knees & ankle only remain as tiny pale thin scabs on clear new skin.

I still occasionally get small red bumps on my hands but they

disappear in a few days. I believe these are exhausted mites

surfacing from deep in the skin in the only place I've left open for

them since I wash my hands a lot & wear off the ESP there. Once in a

while I'll feel a tingle & rub a pale sandy grain from face or upper

back. So I feel I'm well on my way to being clear of this.

Not letting down my guard & now methodically cleaning everything room

by room. Haven't run into any mites yet, but wouldn't be surprised if

I do. Feel the ESP & internals protect me now & my appeal to the

mites has faded. Hoping to make that a permanent immunity as I'm

still working to resolve the conditions that allowed them to set up

shop in me in the first place. Plan to keep up the ESP & internal

herbals indefinitely. Only other " appliance " I added in the last two+

months has been a secondhand infrared dry sauna & that's been a

wonder help at detoxing, too. Another continually useful tool.

I've been more fortunate than many with a family that believes in me

& a loving & supportive husband of many years who's had some great

ideas & doubled his workload without complaint while I was unable to

pull my weight. He's no saint & neither am I, but he gets eternal

gold stars for exemplary achievement during the mitemare from me,

I've been thanking my lucky stars & divine providence for my lifetime

& never more often than during this leg of the journey.

Take heart for you can do it, too. Think your situation through and

find your path to freedom. If what works for me or others doesn't

work for you, find what does that enhances your home & your health.

We're all cheering you on & the wonderful & caring folks here are an

exceptional group in every way. Heartfelt thanks to each of you for

all your generous help & encouragement.

A wings up from our home to you & yours, Dawn! Best wishes, (a

longwinded but well-meaning) Sue

Hope everyone had a nice holiday!! So, what about using a vapor

steamer

which reaches temps up to 290 degrees and is said to kill microbes,

bacteria, germs, microorganisms, biofilms, viruses, mold, mildew, dust

mites, etc... Just thinking that something like this might work well

for someone like myself who has parrots and cannot use harsh chemicals

to clean my bird room and cages. It is easy for me to treat myself and

my family with all of these different types of remedies but birds'

respiratory systmes are very sensitive and time is of the essence with

this as mites have been known to kill birds if the infestation gets

too

bad. I will be bringing them (have six) to the vet next week so we

will

see what he suggests but I also have to disifenct the entire bird

room.

Luckily it is seperate from the rest of the house! Anyway, I am just

trying to think of different options here. My agressive eradication

measures will begin next week.. Oh, one other thing... my brother

happens to be in the pest control business and wants to try a product

called Suspend which is a concentrate containing Deltamethrin. I guess

since it's free, I will let him try it, but from what I've read none

of

the pesticides work. Anyway, I am trying a few new things tonight for

some added relief such as using vicks vapor rub on my head with a

shower cap for itch relief!!

-Dawn

December 31, 2008

Dawn, replied earlier but must've been lost in land…going to

break this into Parts 1 & 2 so look for Part 2 next. Brevity is not

my forte.