Please help! Bugs among us!

[tatangel19]

Thanks to our wonderful next-door nieghbors(we live in townhouses that share ductwork) we now have roaches and bedbugs. Not only does this gross me out horribly, but it is bad for us in that bedbugs bite, etc. I have contacted several companies about spraying and checked into the ''bombs'' that you can buy, but the thought of spreading all those chemicals around, especially since we have carpeted floors, is not acceptable either. Plus, we are on a tight tight budget and could'nt afford it anyway.So, anybody else had this issue? I have been doing my best to contain this, and if I can show that I am making an effort to dispose of these things then the HOA will probably order said nieghbors to do the same. Please help!

[nurturebaby]

I'm not sure that bedbugs can be caught from neighbors, but having bedbugs does not mean that you live in filth, so don't worry - it's not your fault.. (and I doubt it's your neighbor's fault, either!!)

You may want to look into diatomaceous earth (must be food grade) - google it - it's a powder that break down the exoskeleton of bugs and then they dehydrate and die off. It's safe (the only thing is you have to make sure not to breathe it in while you're applying it) - some people even eat it as a supplement and it's used as an anti-caking agent in foods, as well as to get rid of grain moths.

That's what I would try if it were me.

Good luck! I hope you're able to get rid of those nasty little guys!

[tatangel19]

Thanks for the advice, I will certainly look into that.

[MommyHawk]

I know that Bay Leaves - dry ones I believe - placed in kitchen drawers keeps cockroaches away.

[TzippityDoulah]

how did it work? did it get rid of the bugs? I'm wondering if we have them. we just moved to a new house. it's very clean but since we lived here my daughter has been itchy CONSTANTLY and wakes up itchier every single day. we've tried everything and it just occured maybe it's *shudder* bed bugs. I read they can live dormant for a while.... ugh!

[tree-hugger]

Check this out http://www.connorspest.com/bed-bug-treatments.html

They use sniffer dogs to find the bed bugs and then use heat to kill them. No pesticides involved!!!! And UC-Davis says that the method is 97% effective

[mattemma04]

The dog/bed bug reminds me of a show on tv where they froze the bugs after the dog found them.The DE you can get at feed stores for cheap.

Use baits for the roaches so they take the poison back to the rest.Not sure if you can seal up things between you and the neighbors.When we lived at a condo the condo association hired someone to bait and spray our entire building.We bought the place not knowing about the bugs and the treatment was forced upon us.I was so mad as I had little kids.

Maybe the freezing works for roaches too.

[ABrez]

Is it a condo or apartment? In a condo the HOA should foot the extermination bill because it is affecting more than one unit. In an apartment the management should take care of it even if it was only in your unit.

Going this route will ensure that your neighbors unit gets taken care of as well so they don't come back.

I used to be on the board of our HOA and we always had pest control in the budget.

[ElaynesMom]

When I was worried about bedbugs someone recommended http://www.bedbugger.com. It's a good site in that they have tons of info and they have photos of bedbug bites to help you identify them, etc., but don't visit the site unless you want to become seriously paranoid. Thankfully, we didn't have them.

Hope you get the bug problems solved soon. I know how emotional I got when I thought I might have them, it's awful