Storage Auctions
The Storage Locker => New to Storage Auctions? => Topic started by: paulieloafer on May 02, 2011, 01:13:23 PM
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Real quick question. How big of an issue are bed bugs . How do you check for them and what do you do if you find that a unit you buy has them? Horror stories are welcome. Thanks !
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Never seen one in a lkr. Have only seen cockroaches in maybe 6 lkrs out of the 344 I've bought in 7 years.
If there's food in a lkr, that's when to watch out for roaches.
Mice. Maybe have seen half a dozen dead ones over the same 7 years.
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So far never had a problem with bedbugs. Like movieman I have had roaches as well as evidence of rats in the unit.
I dont have a warehouse to store my stuff in, most of my stuff gets stored in my house. As a rule of thumb, just in case, I deliver everything from the lkr to the outside of my house, I rummage through everything and toss what is trash, and inventory all the good stuff outside my house. Good stuff gets put up in my house, but junk never goes in. Keeps alot of things safe from going inside my house. It is not full proof, but then again what is?
Mattresses are an automatic trash to me, unless the plastic cover is around them, never found a person who wants to buy a used mattress, although I have had a few that people will take from me for free. But even then I had alot of people turn down a free mattress. So for the most part those sit outside till I make arrangements for them to be dumped.
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I've never had a problem but it is something I worry about. With clothes I normally bag them up in an airtight bag and leave them for a week. Not sure how effective this is but it makes me feel better.
Bedbugs main weakness is heat and relatively low heat. I believe they die off at about 140 degrees. THere's actually companies that will come heat your house to that temp if you get them. Obviously not all of us have a sauna but if you do throw the stuff in there and they are dead. I imagine you could probably make a heat box big enough to basically throw clothes and furniture in to sanitize if your that concerned about them.
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Bedbugs main weakness is heat and relatively low heat. I believe they die off at about 140 degrees.
Did not know that, that is good to know, maybe I will end up making a heat box just for that purpose. Maybe with heated bed rocks with a constant drip from above would be low cost.
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Dude, just put the mattress on the curb, it's a lost cause. People can die from bed bug bites. Besides, just the thought of one of those things near my bed gives me the creeps.
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Dude, just put the mattress on the curb, it's a lost cause. People can die from bed bug bites. Besides, just the thought of one of those things near my bed gives me the creeps.
lol, wasnt talkin about the matress, lol
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I know that mattresses are pretty much a lost cause and I would prefer to never see one in a storage unit. My concern is that bed bugs can hide in mattresses and corrugated boxes and clothes and anything else with a crevice. Also, I've read they can go a year without feeding....which can't be natural....can it ? I was also wondering if anyone has some sort of routine of spraying or "bombing" suspicious looking lockers...though most of the ones that I've seen so far could be considered supicious on some level.. :D. I have learned that bagging up the clothes tightly and then running them through a dryer at the highest heat setting for about 30 minutes could kill most of them. I've been trying to learn more about visual inspection techniques as well......So any advice in that arena would be appreciated also. Thanks for the responses so far !
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lol, wasnt talkin about the matress, lol
I know you weren't, sometimes I just make random nonsensical comments if I think that everything has already been said.
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Mattresses are an automatic trash to me, unless the plastic cover is around them
Even with the plastic cover, i still think i'd trash it. Take no risks.
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Well if you live in the south or places like texas / arizona just put everything in a small metal shed and the temp will quickly climb.
I've not heard anyone find bed bugs yet. All the other vermin are common, specially spiders in my area. I worry more about getting bitten by a black widow or a brown more then other bugs. That and the little black scorpions.
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From my first experience, issues are going to be ants and spiders. I doubt that in any non climate controlled unit in the US is going to have Bedbugs after going through the heat of the summer and the hibernation of winter. Also mind you that a bedbug needs an animal or human to feed on and in the summer(the bugs active season) they live for about a month with a host to feed on and 6 months in winter. So in summer, they are going to be dead by the time the auction comes round and in winter, your going to kill them before they have a chance get at you if they are still alive.
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Only had mice,cockroaches and spiders.
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fyi...i dont think bed bugs will just hang out in old mattresses etc... They are blood suckers so if there is no food(someones blood to suck) there they are going to move on.
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They can actually survive up to a year with no food. Then they just crawl into the next storage unit.
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They can actually survive up to a year with no food. Then they just crawl into the next storage unit.
OR, there is this.....
Life Cycle
Female bed bugs lay from one to twelve eggs per day, and the eggs are deposited on rough surfaces or in crack and crevices. The eggs are coated with a sticky substance so they adhere to the substrate. Eggs hatch in 6 to 17 days, and nymphs can immediately begin to feed. They require a blood meal in order to molt. Bed bugs reach maturity after five molts. Developmental time (egg to adult) is affected by temperature and takes about 21 days at 86° F to 120 days at 65° F. The nymphal period is greatly prolonged when food is scarce. Nymphs and adults can live for several months without food. The adult's lifespan may encompass 12-18 months. Three or more generations can occur each year.
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I've never had bed bugs either, but I make it a point NOT to get them. We have never kept a mattress, comforter, pillow, pillow case, or any other large fabric item unless it was wrapped in plastic. You can't sell them for a lot anyway, and I would much rather lose $50 than have bed bugs (or fleas, or ticks, or mites, or lice) infect all of my other clothing & merchandise and have to spend time and money getting rid of them.
You never know why tenants got a storage unit in the first place-- you never know-- they may have rented a unit BECAUSE they had a flea or mite or lice problem in their home and needed a place to put their things while they cleaned their home. I realize this is a stretch, but you never truly know, so you always have to assume to worst to protect yourself.
Rebecca
http://storageheroes.blogspot.com
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fyi...i dont think bed bugs will just hang out in old mattresses etc... They are blood suckers so if there is no food(someones blood to suck) there they are going to move on.
Actually mattresses and furniture are the first place they hit, usually because humans occupy those areas, but also because it is dark and usually warmer there. Trust me, I went through a Bedbug issue with the clients I work with about a year ago.
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Oh ok yea I don't know much about bedbugs but it just seemed like logical sense that they would move around looking for food.