In Quebec, July 1st remains the province’s big moving day, but September brings a wave of its own: the start of the school year sends tens of thousands of college and university students into new housing, often hastily furnished with secondhand pieces or whatever the previous tenant left behind.
That’s exactly the kind of situation where cockroaches and bed bugs change addresses most easily.
Bed bugs and cockroaches are two very different problems, but they’re regularly confused around moving time. Bed bugs are small, reddish-brown, flat, and hide in mattress seams, bed frames, and cracks near sleeping areas; they’re mostly identified by bites that appear in lines or clusters and by tiny black spots on the sheets.
Cockroaches, on the other hand, are larger, dark brown, move quickly, don’t fly, and tend to stay near sources of food and moisture, such as the kitchen, the bathroom, and appliances.
The two require completely different treatment approaches, which is why it matters to correctly identify what you’re dealing with before doing anything.
Inspect secondhand furniture and mattresses before accepting them: look for small reddish-brown insects, tiny black spots, or pale eggs in the seams.
Avoid picking up a mattress or couch left on the curb without examining it carefully.
Choose plastic bins over used cardboard boxes, which offer far more hiding spots, especially for cockroaches.
Dry clothing and fabrics on high heat before packing them: the heat kills eggs and young bed bugs.
If the truck or trailer is shared or rented, take a look inside before loading. Keep at-risk items separate from those already clean and packed.
Before unpacking anything, check the kitchen cabinets, under the sink, and behind appliances.
Also check the bed frame, mattress seams, and baseboards near sleeping areas.
Then unpack gradually, starting with rooms that are easy to clean, wash textiles in hot water as soon as possible, and stay alert for signs of activity during the first few weeks: most infestations are easy to resolve if they’re caught early.
Reporting it quickly to the landlord or property manager makes all the difference: the earlier a cockroach or bed bug infestation is caught, the simpler and less costly it is to fix.
In an apartment building, alerting the property manager at the first signs also makes it possible to check whether the problem is affecting other units before it spreads.
Just moved in and still have doubts, or manage a building going through a lot of lease turnover? A professional inspection before or after a move can confirm what’s going on.
