How to Move without Taking Bugs With You in Furniture & Boxes
Are you planning a move soon but have some things you don’t want to take along? Damaged furniture, old DVDs, and outdated electronics are some of the more common items of the list – but what about unwanted items like cockroaches? Finding a new place to live is an opportunity to get free of the pests, but they can be very difficult to leave behind. Roaches like dark, warm places, and they can fit in small hidey-holes. Sometimes, roaches hide in furniture, cabinets, and couches, which are hard to take apart to look for the bugs. Luckily, there are a few tips for how to move without taking roaches with you in boxes, books, furniture, and more.
Attack First – Exterminate
Before you start packing, hire an exterminator to come and get rid of your roach problem. Just like with moving, asking a professional for help is the best way to go. Eliminating the bugs before you start your move will make life so much easier. Professional pest control will use different chemicals and tools that all work together for the best results.
If you want to avoid moving with roaches, you should also avoid DIY extermination (even if that seems like a money-saver). Although some studies suggest that the bacteria cockroaches carry could be useful in the pharmaceutical field – it’s definitely not enough to convince us about these new roommates! You don’t want to carry any of that bacteria to your new home, so let the professionals handle it.
Planning with Your Packing
When your goal is moving without taking roaches, you have to make sure you pack the right way or the roaches will hitch a ride in your things without you even knowing it. Be sure you are using brand new boxes (not food boxes from the grocery store or used moving boxes). While recycled boxes and reused Amazon packages can be a real money-saver, it’s not worth it if you think roaches might come with you.
Inspect everything you put in a box and ensure it’s clear of roaches. When a box is full, remove the box from your household to eliminate the possibility of roaches getting into it after all your hard packing work. If you can, pack clothes and blankets in moving bags and seal them tightly. Launder all your clothes and shake them out to make certain there are no roaches hiding in the folds.
Appliances and Other Large Items
Roaches love to hide in dark, warm environments. We’ve all seen them in the kitchen, bathroom, and under the welcome mat. That means places like your oven or your microwave aren’t safe, either. In fact, those are their favorite places, because they can find a safe space to hide out. Refrigerators are another culprit.
Inspect the appliances for roaches and make sure you’ve looked in every nook and cranny where a roach could hide. Cleaning your big and small appliances helps eliminate eggs and hatched roaches. Large appliances are often known to harbor infestations. Then pack the appliances in black plastic contractor’s bags and seal them tightly so no new roaches can get in.
If you have time and space, take the bags outside and set them in the sun to get warm. Roaches can only stand temperatures up to 125°, so if you can let the bags heat up past that, you’ll have killed all the roaches and you can move stress free. Sounds gross, but it totally works!
A Clean, New Home
Now that you know a little bit about how to move without taking roaches along, you can decide which professional moving company is the best to help you with your actual move. Your local moving company like Tropic Moving can make difficult, first-time, and roach-infested moves easier with a professional hand. After all, we have experience with all types of moves! Request an estimate today and find out what a relaxing move can feel like.
