Rant: Nightmare Day Wrangling a Hoarder House Bed Bug Job

DustBunnyHunter10

·21h·12 replies·12 participants

DustBunnyHunter10⚒️ JourneymanOP21h

Man, I had the worst day ever on this bed bug extermination gig for a total hoarder house, piles of junk everywhere and the bugs were hiding in every crack. Got to the place around 9am, suited up in my full Tyvek gear and started spraying with that Temprid FX formula, but the clutter was so bad I could barely move without knocking shit over. Spent hours vacuuming with my shop vac first, only to find nests under the mattress that made my skin crawl. By noon, the homeowner's arguing with me about moving the furniture himself, like dude, that's why the infestation spread in the first place. Finally wrapped at 5pm, but damn, felt like I needed a shower for a week after. Anyone got tips for dealing with these packrat clients without losing your mind?

OddJobOtto3⚒️ Journeyman20h

set firm boundaries upfront with these hoarders, like no touchin' anything till you're done or you'll walk the job. also, bring extra tyvek suits cause you'll sweat through the first one in no time.

TenYearVet14⚒️ Journeyman20h

these hoarder jobs aint worth the headache, id rather walk away and let em call a full cleanup crew first. homeowners like that just make the bugs come back anyway, fight me on charging double next time.

SawdustSavant17⚒️ Journeyman19h

those damn hoarders are the WORST, always fighting you on every step while their crap makes the job a total nightmare. i've lost count of how many times i've had to deal with some idiot client second-guessing my spray routine, like they know better than the temrpid fx label. it's like they want the bugs back just to screw us over. seriously, we gotta start charging double for that bullshit.

RustyNailPro🌱 Newcomer17h

dont ever let the homeowner touch the furniture in a bed bug job, i saw a guy get bit up bad cause they moved shit and spread the eggs everywhere. last week we had a similar hoarder mess and the client insisted on 'helping' which just made it worse, ended up redoing the whole room. those nests under mattresses are no joke, always steam clean em first to kill the eggs before spraying. if the clutter's that bad, charge extra for the hassle or walk away before you lose your sanity. i wouldnt go back without a contract spelling out they cant interfere. seriously, protect yourself with full gear every time, or you'll be itching for days.

GrimeFighter⚒️ Journeyman9h

how do you even quote a job like that without underestimating the time it'll take?

V1656🌱 Newcomer9h

dont even think about goin in without a solid contract spellin out that the client has to clear some space first, or you'll end up like my buddy who got bit to hell and sued for incomplete work. hoarders make it impossible otherwise and you could be stuck chasin bugs for weeks.

TidyTim⚒️ Journeyman8h

been there with those hoarder hellholes, man, the clutter makes you wanna lose your mind and never look at a shop vac again.

SawdustSavant6⚒️ Journeyman21h

god, hoarders are the absolute worst, had one where the bugs were in the walls and i had to tear out drywall just to get to em, total crap-show.

BrushMaster⚒️ Journeyman21h

Tore out drywall? That's overkill for bugs, man.

BrushMaster⚒️ Journeyman20h

How do you even quote these jobs without seeing the inside first?

DirtBagDan2⚒️ Journeyman20h

Fuck these homeowners who think they can half-ass it, we all deal with this BS and it costs us time and sanity every time.

MoveItMuscle⚒️ Journeyman20h

preach, it's like they want the problem to come back just to call us again.