Bugs in Queens apartment buildings?

[Henna]

Originally Posted by straightshooter

this is very true...don't overlook bedbugs. my friend was a housing inspector for the city, and he always said that bedbugs were a big problem. another friend lived in astoria, and she had a bug problem in her building. but, it had more to do with the 8 africans sharing in a studio in the floor below than the building itself. before moving, LOOK AT WHO YOUR NEIGHBORS WILL BE. if you're living with a bunch of afro or asian natives, they will have different cleanliness standards than you. their lower standards will affect your living experience. also, don't be afraid to call 311 on a scumbag landlord who refuses to address a problem. everyone deals with the occassional roach, bug, even mouse, but excessive occurrences are code violations. report it. that landlord isn't there doing you any favors...he's already overcharging your rent by 75%, screw him if he doesn't like being reported for his negligence.

actually, anyone can get bedbugs as the bugs don't care about cleanliness; they only care about access to human blood. It may be true that if bedbugs appear in a building where people do not care as much about their surroundings that the bugs may be harder to eradicate. Even if you eradiacte them from your unit, if other people are not fastidious enough to deal with them, they can re-infest your unit by coming thru walls and floors from other units. In general, it doesn't hurt to try to find out if there is a history of bedbugs in the building. IT's most likely difficult to get this info as the realtor will not tell you, but there are various bedbug registries that will give you info about reported infestations.

basically there is a major epidemic going on all throughout the city and every other large city in the US and maybe the world. So I would assume that any multi-unit bldg you choose will get them at some point in the next few years if they haven't already. In this case, it;s important to choose a place where the landlord and the neighbors will band together to get rid of them if they do appear.

[straight outta camden]

Oh, man this takes me back. In 7 years in New York I lived in buildings with them all--roaches, mice, and rats. At one point, in an old house in Astoria, my girlfriend got so cool about the roaches she would slap them with her bare hands as they waltzed across the table. Once, opening a bag of tea... but you don't want to hear all this.

Not all places have them, though. When you check out a building, rather than looking for "Afros" and Asians, see how old the place is and how it is built. Old brick buildings with wooden staircases and fittings are bad, bad news--and it the place has wallpaper, forget it. The vermin hide in the crevices and you will never get rid of them. Concrete, steel-frame buildings are best, breeze blocks aren't bad, iron staircases are a good sign. Fumigate, avoid ground level, and learn to love tupperware.

[rqnll]

My sister lived in Colleg Point several years ago and the big problem were mosquitos! It didn't matter where in CP she was in the mosquitos were there.

She then moved then moved to Astoria last year but moved shortly afterwards because the building smelled of alcohol and vomit.

Astoria has a lot of old buildings as one one of the posters has pointed out, so I would really try to get a hold of a tenant in a building you're interested in and ask him or her about any pest problems.

[Hustla718]

Originally Posted by rqnll

My sister lived in Colleg Point several years ago and the big problem were mosquitos! It didn't matter where in CP she was in the mosquitos were there.

She then moved then moved to Astoria last year but moved shortly afterwards because the building smelled of alcohol and vomit.

Astoria has a lot of old buildings as one one of the posters has pointed out, so I would really try to get a hold of a tenant in a building you're interested in and ask him or her about any pest problems.

The problem is most tenents are too stupid to give you an honest answer. New Yorkers are known to tollarate things others would not. Bad smells, loud music, a few gun shots.

[njguy]

(In my sarcastic and playful tone) So let me get this straight - You get to pay an ultra-high price for housing and one still has to deal with a "BUGS" problem too? Wait, if that's not enough one can have a rodent problem too in the colder months. FOR WHAT? To live near NYC that comes with the unfriendly high priced housing market as well as the "great" employers that take someone wanting their opening seriously?

I think I shall pass - No thanks.

The only Bugs I would ever want to see is Bugs Bunny - lol!

[atlantagreg30127]

That was my thought reading these, living in Atlanta. Now here due to the climate, roaches and the very large "Palmeto Bug" are common enough that you'll get a few of them no matter what. But so far the Atlanta area hasn't seen the bed bug issue we've read about up there and in other cities.

Heck, even when I lived in an apartment though, I went to Costco myself and got the home exterminating spray and used it every month on top of the lackluster job the complex did on their own. I almost never saw a bug, even living near a creek and on the ground floor. In the even I did get that stray one, you would usually find them laying on their backs dead the next day due to the spray, etc.

I would think that keeping your place clean with no piles of papers around, spraying yourself, placing sticky pads here and there, that regardless of NYC or Atlanta or Miami, you can keep the place 99% bug free unless you are living in a building that is literally infested, in which case it sounds like you all can call the 311 number and get it taken care of(?)

[MaryGallo]

Originally Posted by Henna

The bug you should really be worried about is the bedbug and not the cockroach.

I agree. My mom's apt. was just condemned for 2 weeks because she has a serious infestation.

She has to throw all her furniture out and the super is having someone come in to fumigate. Not only that, they have to replace the rugs. In the meantime, she is going to stay at my brothers house till the place is bug free.

They live in the headboards and the mattresses and in the sofa and suck your blood while you sleep.

A cousin of mine is seriously allergic to those things, last time she stayed at my moms apt, when she woke up in the morning her eyes and feet were swollen.

Nasty little things.

All I can say is don't bring in any second hand furniture into your place.

[Miss NY]

Originally Posted by Henna

The bug you should really be worried about is the bedbug and not the cockroach.

Whats a bed bug? What does it look like?

[Elvira Black]

I've found that Combat traps are pretty good for roaches...also keep your kitchen clean and dry.

When I was selling my LES coop, I brought home a box of cat food that had little moths that live in foodstuffs--got a good exterminator who uses pet friendly spray, and the problem was resolved.

Having a cat is a great way to avoid mice--and some, like my cat, love to catch flies etc.

I know someone in Colorado who had bedbugs, but he lives like a pig. Had to throw out all his furniture and spray the place down. Now that's a living nightmare.

The bugs are tiny, and you usually find them if you lift up your mattress. It is ironic that even swanky NYC hotels have had an epidemic of bedbugs.

[Funyun]

If you have a problem with those small roaches like I did (I think they're called German cockroaches), get Raid Double Control Roach Baits with Egg Stoppers.

I use them and only saw one roach since the first day I tried them around a year ago (they last at least 3 months) and that was after an infestation of them and I never saw another one after the single one I saw.