Neighbors & Bedbugs

We have a similar problem with rodents coming through the party wall and into the spaces in the ceilings. Very difficult problem to address, especially for something as small as a bed bug. If you don’t have unreachable crawl spaces in the attic or elsewhere, you might begin as bklnite suggests, by caulking any openings into your apartment. This won’t prevent them from living in the walls or floors/ceilings. If that doesn’t work, the next step might be to open up all the ceilings along the party walls so you can get at the joist pockets and fill them in with cement or plaster or whatever will stop bed bugs. If that isn’t sufficient, you might consider demo’ing the plaster on all the party walls and filling in the cracks between the bricks and such. It still might not work completely. What about chimneys? Also, I don’t know if this is realistic, since eliminating bed bugs require such a lot of work, but have you considered offering to pay for the neighbor’s treatment? Curious how this is received, since I am contemplating something similar with the rodents.

callalily

in Exterminator 12 years and 9 months ago

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msmahoney | 12 years and 10 months ago

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Hi – The Brownstoner community has helped me with a few different issues in the past, so I’m hoping you’ll pull though with this tough one too:  We are owners of a wood frame attached house and have been dealing with our third bed bug invasion in as many years.  Outside of just being experts on the subject, we are now convinced that our inability to permanently rid ourselves of the problem is because they are coming from a neighbor (bedbugs found in a ceiling lamp and in our bath tub, because they fall from the ceiling fan, are proof).  Our problem is that the neighbor (who is also the homeowner) is not only low-income and probably doesn’t have the resources to exterminate, but she is also unapproachable on the subject. 311 operators have said that because we were homeowners, not tenants, there were no city resources available. While difficult, I don’t think the owner is mentally ill, so Adult Protective Services wouldn’t be helpful.   Any suggestions or ideas Brownstoner community?  While an unusual problem, given the city’s bedbug problem, I can’t imagine we are the only homeowners who have had to deal with this.  Thanks in advance!

Bklnite | 12 years and 10 months ago

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Empty thread may be due to the odd formatting gibberish causing the question to be hidden. Sounds miserable. Maybe the 311 operators got to then end of their script which only addressed bedbug complaints by tenants. I’d try the department of health of nyc and/or nys. Probably also worth contacting your attorney. I’d assume it’s possible to sue with a claim that the neighbor is negligent and causing you damages and get a court order. Might sound extreme & unrealistic but if you could persuade (or compel) your neighbor to sell and move to a smaller home with less maintainance there’s a good chance you’d have better luck with new neighbors.

msmahoney | 12 years and 9 months ago

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Seems crazy to have to consult an attorney, but I think you may be on to something.  Will call NYS and NYC DOH in meanwhile.  Thank you.

Silvermax | 12 years and 9 months ago

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Unclear — this is a neighbor in a completely separate building? Adjoining walls? Or is this someone in apt. above you — hence bedbugs dropping from above onto your ceiling fan and then onto bathtub and lamp? Clarify.

msmahoney | 12 years and 9 months ago

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The houses are attached on both sides, so the neighbor with the problem is joined to us by a party wall.

Bklnite | 12 years and 9 months ago

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Because you found bedbugs in the ceiling fan and lamp your suspician is they come through the party wall and travel between the ceiling and the floor above to the fixtures? Have you attempted to caulk or otherwise seal all the gaps in the party wall? May be difficult if you have to open up walls & part of the ceiling to get at the party wall.