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Well-nigh bug free

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success stories

TomIsBugged

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Joined: Mar '08
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Posted 4 years ago
Fri Jul 11 2008 6:25:16
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I'm going to go ahead & risk setting myself for the Law Of Irony to come back & bite me on the [noun; PG-13] by posting to Successes.

Yep, I've escaped - seemingly bugless - from a moderately active infestation. A risky proposition, for sure, which I wouldn't generally recommend as the odds of taking one along are quite high in those circumstances. The background to my case was that the bugs came from an upstairs neighbour whose physical/mental health were such that he wasn't lucid enough to recognize his problem before it got well out of control. Having gone through an infestation a couple of years before, I went into DEFCON-12 as soon as I came across the first "explorer bug" that I saw in my own place (a few weeks before they finally went & inspected upstairs). Anyhoot, long story short, the neighbour ended up being collected by our nice Provincial Health People, and my apt. became a great travel destination for migrating bugs. A few months' of highly "vigilant" protocols later, I lined up a fabulous new place to move into - get this: a detached cottage 20 min. from downtown, no shared walls, no roommates, and all for a mere $600/mo. I've almost converted to a new religion bcs. of this luck.

With the move, I adopted a slightly modified 'scorched earth' approach. As has been noted many times in these forums, throwing away everything you own isn't necessary. All the same, though, I ended up taking only some (well-washed 'n dried) clothes. In the town I'm in we're lucky enough to have a super-cold storage facility that accepts buggy stuff, so that's where all my 'keepables' (furniture, books, doo-dads) are chilling out. These went into deep-freeze at the end of April, and I'm tentatively planning to liberate them at the end of August (overkill perhaps, but I have a grudge).

Moving day was quite the logistical circus, what with the precautions I took. The gist of the precautions was that, in the weeks leading up to moving day, everything I was going to take was heat-treated & immediately double-sealed in plastic, then transported to a neutral location (I'd remove the outermost seal immediately before removing it from the apt). The upshot of all this was that the surfaces of anything that left the apartment had not been exposed to any surfaces (or air!) in the apartment for more than about 10 seconds. Anything that didn't get this treatment was scuttled (again, quite possibly unecessary but quite cathartic).

There's a lot of comedy in the interplay of quarantine protocols and exhaustion, lack of sleep, and the need to minimally clean the apt. to hand over the keys. I'll spare you these details, and instead offer a top-ten style LIST OF FUN TIPS ABOUT MOVING WITHOUT BEDBUGS:

- If baking the contents of your wallet, be warned that credit/bank cards melt
- If baking a computer, do take out the battery
- Don't leave toilet paper behind, 'cause bugs can live there. Leaving caulking supplies, garbage bags, rubbing alcohol, drinking alcohol, however, might be a nice gesture.
- If you've already thrown out your towels, that 'last shower before heading out the door' may necessitate drying yourself with a hand-held fan
- Leaving behind a hand-held fan might be a nice gesture.
- If your landlord's late to pick up your keys, they might not understand your desire not to re-enter the building. In that case, if they're in your former apt. while you're waiting for them outside, try waving at them like a deranged lunatic for a while. They'll notice after about 10 minutes, & your old neighbours will appreciate the excitement.
- While buying a coffee once you've finally handed over the keys and you're free at last, remember to show some emotional restraint. Sure, you've been through a lot - but the poor lady at Starbuck's doesn't want to know.

There's a few more tips, but since kids might have access to the site, I'll keep those to myself.

Good luck to everybody - and do remember that it is indeed possible to rid yourselves of these horrible creatures.

PS: A quick note in praise of my former landlords. Slow on the learning curve at first, they're not renting out the apt. again for at least 2 months and, in the meantime, they're taking out the floor, treating the wall voids, sealing everything, telling the remaining (well, adjacent) people what to look for, and in general seem to be taking the problem quite seriously. Good for them; I hope they get it under control.
PaveIt

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Joined: Jul '08
Posts: 6
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Posted 4 years ago
Fri Jul 11 2008 9:18:28
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Way to go Tom!

I am going to have so much free time once I'm free.
I'll ( eventually ) be able to sleep normally.

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I won't use hotels much, won't go to the theatre.
Are you going to live like a monk now?
If the Dalai Lama got bbs, would he kill them?

Please come back and let us know about the boring life.
angie

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Joined: Nov '07
Posts: 396
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Posted 4 years ago
Fri Jul 11 2008 12:49:18
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Congrats, Tom!! I know how you feel about the "too early success story" theory. I have yet to post mine as I feel that if I cheer too loudly, they will come back to bite me in the ass. Literally!! Good luck and keep us updated!! Your help here on this forum is important to all the newbies and to us old-timers!!
bugbasher

senior member
Joined: Dec '07
Posts: 543
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Posted 4 years ago
Fri Jul 11 2008 13:18:24
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Tom,
Congrats! Very exciting to get your life back,feels like you were in prison and just got paroled.I'm happy for the starbucks lady you didn't share with,too!
Keep us posted and have fun.Oh, and if you do convert ,just tell us what religion,ok?
buggyinsocal

oldtimer
Joined: Jun '08
Posts: 2,440
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Posted 4 years ago
Fri Jul 11 2008 14:01:27
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Congratulations on your (hopefully--::crosses fingers and toes::) bug free existence. And thanks for the top ten list. I was actually toying with the idea of beginning a more general one myself--top ten ways you know you've done battle with BB. 1. You begin to seriously think that buying stock in Ziplock might be a way to recoup some of the financial outlay. 2. You actually have a preference between Ziplock and Hefty. 3. Despite previously green--one might even say positively earthy crunchy leanings, you begin to have fond thoughts of DDT. and so on.

Clearly, it's still a work in progress.

My point is this: I really enjoyed your top ten list. And i wish you a life in which you don't ever have to add any new items to either one.