Posted on 08/27/2019 8:19:12 AM PDT by Sarcasm Factory
A recent thread on bedbugs abruptly disappeared because it wasn't news. Still, the care and feeding of tenants is a topic of some interest, and at least one person in that thread complained about tenants who muck up your property with bedbug infestations and then demand that you fix the problem at your expense.
I've had to deal with this problem myself, and it might be worth sharing the results of my extensive research into ways to avoid the costly expedient of either whole-residence heat treatment or sulfuryl fluoride fumigation. This is only a list of a few products that appear to work well and not a complete guide to the ugly art of eradicating these persistent pests.
“Ortho Home Defense Bed Bug Flea and Tick Killer 0.5gal”
https://walmart.com/ip/Ortho-Home-Defense-Bed-Bug-Flea-and-Tick-Killer-0-5gal/192594799
“Rockwell Labs CXID032 Cimexa Dust Insecticide, 4oz”
https://amazon.com/CimeXa-Insecticide-ounces-bottle-Rockwell/dp/B0085HRWI8/
“Mowis 1800W Heavy Duty Hot Air Shrink Gun with LCD Display, Temperature and Wind Speed Adjustable”
https://amazon.com/gp/product/B07J5X5MZP/
The Cimexa is especially useful for preventing an infestation from returning after your tenant re-visits a friend or family member living in a house or apartment with a simmering bedbug problem. It kills slowly but surely, and cautions apply around children and pets. It’s expensive, but a little goes a long way. The heat gun kills all insects hiding in deep cracks, and the Ortho Home Defense spray is useful for mass killing on contact if the heat gun can’t be used. Just keep in mind that the Ortho pesticide bottle requires no less than three safety chokes to be opened for the battery-powered sprayer unit to work. Don't set anything on fire with your fun heat toy, and don't forget that plastic melts.
See the following URL for a decent article on the power of Cimexa™:
https://pctonline.com/article/pct0814-silica-gel-research-bed-bugs/
You'll probably also want a puffer and a cheap paintbrush for the amorphous silica dust (Cimexa). Save yourself some money and aggravation from more expensive puffers that never seem to work well by buying a box of hair-color application from Dollar Tree. Toss everything but the cute little puffer bottle inside. The puffer is for deep cracks, and the paintbrush is for applying a very thin layer of Cimexa to whatever surface. You should hardly be able to see it.
You might prefer to fill your small puffer by squirting dust into it directly from the original bottle of Cimexa. This stuff will fly everywhere, so watch yourself. Wearing your safety goggles and a cheap dust mask from Dollar Tree is a sensible precaution.
Needless to say, you should urge your tenants to keep clutter cleaned up so that these terrifying insects have fewer places to hide and breed. These days, even library books can serve as carriers for bedbugs and their nasty little eggs. :/
https://nytimes.com/2012/12/06/garden/bedbugs-hitch-a-ride-on-library-books.html
And whatever you're wearing during treatments should be washed right afterwards and then left in the dryer at high heat for at least forty minutes after it's dried to kill any tiny white eggs that might have hitchhiked back with you. Before you enter your pest-free residence, stuff the garments into a plastic garbage bag. Immediately discard said bag outside after pouring your clothing into the washing machine. For extra safety, scrub down the washing machine drum with something strong. A cleanroom suit will do nicely if you're paranoid.
I highly doubt that. You probably posted your article in News/Activism, which is reserved for actual news stories - not vanity posts.
Had you posted it in Chat or Bloggers, it wouldn't have been yanked.
Thank goodness I’ve escaped bed bugs, but for roaches:
The whole Integrated Pest Management racket involving endless, expensive pesticide applications, can be gone around with 1 simple thing:
* After carefully cleaning out any clutter
* Get a transparent, 2/3 full “catsup/mustard” container of Boric Acid,
* tap it to cause atomization,
* disperse a thin layer around the edges of a room.
It works. Nothing else does. It’s cheap.
I use Ortho® Home Defense® to spray around the baseboards in my apt. I do that a couple of times a year. It costs about $8 per gallon at Walmart. It also has a very slight odor, which makes it preferable to the high-cost spray can items.
I occasionally use boric acid. It is high-dollar (upwards of $30) via Internet, but I got a 1-lb (large) container at a dollar store for $2.00 several years ago. The 1-lb container will last around a century. :)
Pure denatured alcohol in a garden sprayer will kill them and disappear.
No smoking.
Perhaps we need a new category for bedbug threads which combined Chat and Bloggers. We could call it, "Chiggers."
I highly doubt that. You probably posted your article in News/Activism, which is reserved for actual news stories - not vanity posts.
Had you posted it in Chat or Bloggers, it wouldn't have been yanked.
Thankfully it wasn’t bedbugs. They can survive 18-months without feeding and are a costly challenge to get rid of.
I suspect I brought back scabies which aren’t hard to get rid of as they die without feeding (biting you) in 3 to 5 days. But the eggs can hatch and reinfest. Permethrin 10% for animals reduced with body lotion to 1.5%-2% applied head-to-foot for 15 minutes is a fraction of the cost and stronger than 1% over-the-counter Nix. I read horror stories of people with long-term itches. It seemed they had pets they didn’t treat or get rid of, had family members who passed them around, too small a small residence to sleep/sit in different spots. Another internal medicine was diluted ivermectin paste for horses which thankfully I never had to do.
It works. Nothing else does. It’s cheap.
Bag the mattresses, so those outside can’t get in and those inside can’t get out. If the bag gets a hole in it, put another bag over the top of the old one.
No point in buying a new mattress until you’re sure they’re gone.
“Times Columnist Bret Stephens Has A Total Meltdown After Being Called A ‘Bedbug’ On Twitter”
http://digg.com/2019/bret-stephens-bedbug
[[Perhaps we need a new category for bedbug threads which combined Chat and Bloggers. We could call it, “Chiggers.” ]]
That’s Chassist!
If one tenant brings in bedbugs that create an infestation, then, yes, you as the landlord are of course responsible not to have spread to the other tenants on your property.
One of many, many reasons I don’t take tenants. But I know plenty of people who do, and their exterminators also.
It appears the favorite poison is diatomaceous earth. It’s not toxic to pets or humans, yet it kills bugs rapidly and decisively. I tried it on my carpenter bees once. Once was all it took.
Exterminators prefer multiple weaponry. One dose of this, another of that. You can safely handle the DE yourself and save a few hundred dollars.
Don’t go heating plastic, although slip covers and pillows in a hot clothes dryer will help. Bugs don’t survive the heat. See that you do.
But to be truly safe, don’t take tenants. Get a hefty deposit on an installment contract for the deed. More than they care to lose. If they default and leave you bugs, at least the forfeited money will pay the exterminator.
If one tenant brings in bedbugs that create an infestation, then, yes, you as the landlord are of course responsible not to have spread to the other tenants on your property.
That works. Permethrin kills just about all bugs large, small, or tiny. Keep a bottle ready and respond quickly and decisively and the problem will be nipped in the bud. Dilute with water and spray your luggage and lightly all your clothes before a trip.
Your post on this subject was removed by moderators and so you posted it again? Did I get that right?
They’re not cheap.
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