Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums » Reader questions (do not fit into other categories)
detection before moving to new place?
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john c.
newbite
Joined: Mar '09
Posts: 1
Posted 8 months ago
Fri Mar 13 2009 16:33:54
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Backstory: I lived with bedbugs for 6 months back in the winter of 2007. We think they were already in the apt. Me and my roommate both had had no prior experiences with bedbugs and neither of us picked up anything 2nd hand when we moved in together. I thought I was dealing with spider bites at first and went to the ER where they told me I probably had a rash related to the stress of living in a new apartment (seriously?). I solved my immediate problem by placing the feet of my bed in solo cups and those solo cups in bowls of water (once I had steamed my bed and dried my linens). I used small blankets that wouldn't make contact with the floor or walls. I know now this will only cause the bugs to find another host, but my landlord refused to pay for any more than the first treatment and I was about to get off at mental breakdown station. I've been in the clear almost two years (though I still have some stuff sealed in plastic sitting in sealed Tupperware bins in my current basement).
Currently: My lease is up at the end of June. I was really excited about finding a new apartment until I remembered about bed bugs. I live in Portland, Maine, where I guess bedbugs are getting to be quite an epidemic. Is there any way to test if the apartments I'm looking at have bedbugs before I move all my stuff in?
I don't want fear of bedbugs to dictate my life but I barely have money to cover a new security deposit; I can't afford to have bedbugs again (financially or mentally). What do I do?
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MyWorstFear
member
Joined: Sep '08
Posts: 266
Posted 8 months ago
Fri Mar 13 2009 16:55:39
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You could get a dog in the new place to check if there are any bugs. Is this a single standing house or an attached house or apartment? If it's the latter two, you'd need the dog to check the surrounding units (side, below and above yours)or else you won't know for sure if those units have them. But you could caulk everything up. What are you planning to do about the moving van? Not to scare you, but if that van moved someone who had bed bugs, you can pretty much assume one will be in the truck waiting to attach itself onto YOUR nice stuff! You can also check out the BedBug Registry. Just realize that just because a place isn't listed does not mean it's bed bug free...just that someone hasn't posted about it/and or doesn't know about that site. You can also ASK the landlords of wherever you are looking. Of course, they can lie through their teeth, so I suggest you ask in person and maybe you'll be abe to tell by their faces if they are lying etc. The penalty for lying is only $500. IIRC, which isn't much when you are facing the expense of bed bugs. Best of luck!
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