Can upstairs neighbor's heat treatment for bugs warp my vinyl, etc.?
September 30, 2024 2:23 PM
My upstairs neighbor will be having a pest control company come in and set up 150-degree heat lamps for bug-eradication purposes. I'm probably overreacting, but I'm wondering if that much heat upstairs will warm up my place enough to cause issues (such as warping vinyl records) and/or if I need to take some precautions to prevent said issues?
My neighbor directly above me will be having a pest control company come in and set up 150-degree heat lamps to get rid of some bedbugs that came back with her from a trip. (She let me know in case I have anything "flammable" in my place). I reassured her that I didn't, but now I'm wondering if enough heat could leak down from her place to cause some warping in my record collection (some of which isn't easily replaceable) or cause other issues (turn chocolate into liquid, etc.) The landlord says this shouldn't be an issue, and the floor/ceiling between the upstairs neighbor and myself is probably/hopefully thick enough that he's right. I'm just wondering if I should take at least some precautions (e.g. temporarily move the records on the upper shelves closest to the ceiling) to avoid any (extreme-)heat related issues. (I do have A/C but it's centered in one location and doesn't reach the Music Library area).
My neighbor directly above me will be having a pest control company come in and set up 150-degree heat lamps to get rid of some bedbugs that came back with her from a trip. (She let me know in case I have anything "flammable" in my place). I reassured her that I didn't, but now I'm wondering if enough heat could leak down from her place to cause some warping in my record collection (some of which isn't easily replaceable) or cause other issues (turn chocolate into liquid, etc.) The landlord says this shouldn't be an issue, and the floor/ceiling between the upstairs neighbor and myself is probably/hopefully thick enough that he's right. I'm just wondering if I should take at least some precautions (e.g. temporarily move the records on the upper shelves closest to the ceiling) to avoid any (extreme-)heat related issues. (I do have A/C but it's centered in one location and doesn't reach the Music Library area).
I sell records for a living. If it were me, I would ask the pest control company what temperature they expect neighboring apartments to get to and use that info to gauge what to do. Regardless of what they say, I would remove my most valuable titles from my home for the duration.
posted by dobbs at 3:16 PM on September 30
posted by dobbs at 3:16 PM on September 30
Medications can also be affected by heat in case that applies to you.
posted by ellieBOA at 4:36 PM on September 30
posted by ellieBOA at 4:36 PM on September 30
Heat dissipates as it travels away from the source. Logically, the device would have to do serious damage to the items in their apartment before it would start to do anything to the items in yours, and it obviously isn't going to do serious damage to their apartment or it wouldn't be used as a remediation tool.
Bedbug treatment information from Virginia Tech and the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services backs this up.
Also, vinyl records apparently don't melt until they're above 160*. If you're super nervous, and they're up against your ceiling, just move them away during the treatment.
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 5:42 PM on September 30
Bedbug treatment information from Virginia Tech and the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services backs this up.
Also, vinyl records apparently don't melt until they're above 160*. If you're super nervous, and they're up against your ceiling, just move them away during the treatment.
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 5:42 PM on September 30
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Other advice you didn't ask for:
You may want to do a general pest control check, land buy a bed bug cover for your mattress if you don't have one just in case a bedbug decides to travel into your unit.
The advice in Chicago is to treat all adjacent units for bedbugs. This may not be applicable ( or may have already happened) but it would be something I would concider.
posted by AlexiaSky at 3:06 PM on September 30