Dark Banquet - Bill Schutt [71]
Fortunately, in some states like New York, there are laws to regulate the sale of reconditioned mattresses. Unfortunately, the lack of enforcement guidelines means that nobody is out there checking to see what these secondhand vendors are doing. Rather than being effectively sanitized, it’s far more likely that used mattresses get a quick disinfectant spritz and a new cover—right over the old one.*110 So, in addition to bed bugs (which can be hidden throughout the mattress), the old mattress might be contaminated with urine, saliva, and just about anything else your imagination can dredge up. After a quick turn-around, the refurbished bedding is sold to a generally clueless public (many of whom probably think they’re getting a new mattress, perhaps with a bit of old hardware within).†111 In instances where the recycled and resold bedding is already infested with bed bugs, the results are predictable.
Here’s another serious, bedding-related problem that helps explain the current bed bug resurgence. Let’s say you’ve done your homework and found a bedding store with a stellar reputation. You pick out a mattress and box spring and set up a delivery date. So far so good—but here’s where things start to unravel. Typically, in addition to delivering your new mattress, the company will haul away your old one—and even though your old backbreaker might be completely bug-free, there’s a real possibility that some of the mattresses these guys pick up during their workday are going to be infested with bed bugs. These contaminated mattresses are going to be placed onto the same truck as your new mattress—perhaps they’ll even be leaning against each other. And what about the interior of the delivery truck (dry, dark, and full of cracks and crevices) or even the deliverymen? Are you going to check their cuffs for tiny specks of bed bug feces? Some of these guys might have something to say about that (and the ones who don’t could be even more of a problem).*112
So the next time you purchase a new bed, you just might be getting more than only a new mattress and box spring delivered to your home (especially if you happen to be one of the day’s last deliveries).
Alarmed by the spread of mattress-related bed bug transmission, New York City councilwoman Gail Brewer introduced new legislation in September 2006 that would ban the sale of all reconditioned mattresses. Introductory Bill Number 57 (or Intro. 57 for short) also required that new and used mattresses be transported separately. Unfortunately, while this law would be a move in the right direction, it wouldn’t come close to stopping the bed bug problem.
“They sort of forgot to include box springs,” said Andy Linares, the owner of Bug Off Pest Control in northern Manhattan.
“What about couches, futons, and nightstands?” I asked.
“Whoops,” Andy said, smiling.
And that was a problem. How many thrift-conscious city dwellers have snagged a piece of furniture or other household items from a secondhand store or off the curb? Bed bug harborages aren’t limited to mattresses and box springs, and it is unlikely that a change in the city’s administrative code would have much of an effect on bed bug populations, if any. The bottom line is that people should forget about bringing anything into their homes that they’ve picked up curbside. They should also be very careful about what they purchase from secondhand stores, flea markets, or obtain from furniture rental outfits.
According to Lou Sorkin, “They can hide just about anywhere. Clock radios, TV remotes, telephones, picture frames, lamps, headboards—basically any type of furniture.” Books and wall hangings are also popular aggregation destinations as are the spaces behind the switch plates covering electrical outlets.
The bed bugs’ ability to adapt to our methods of transportation is another reason for the recent resurgence in these creatures. Remember that in the days before civilization, the spread of bed bugs was limited by the range of their bird or bat hosts (and the