Hi. Today I have discovered the worst nightmare of my life lmfaolmfao
So I had a book on my desk, that I ordered recently, along with two other books. I rarely ever use my desk but I was feeling extra today so I sat down and wanted to homework on my desk. And then I see a bug. I’m like “okay… a bug”. And then another one. AND THEN ANOTHER ONE.
I am scared of germs and bugs and so on so I panicked. As I already said, I don’t really use my desk, therefore I don’t really do a “deep clean” (deep clean in a meaning of a messy 16years old lol) of it, so I couldn’t have noticed that before. I started moving things on it and yeah, real life horror, so many tiny, brown bugs.
I opened the textbook I suppose is a culprit of the entire situation, and yeah, there were bugs there, happily all dead. I wiped my desk with detergent, water and disinfectant, and it seems that it mostly did the job. It was 4 hours ago and I don’t notice them anymore. Though I left a book as a “trap” and they do indeed seem attracted to it so I unfortunately suppose, they were booklice.
I cleaned the books that were “infested” (but they really weren’t though; like I mentioned, most of the bugs were dead, and now I put the book I left to see are they still here in a plastic bag and it’s defo going to sit there for some time lol). Thing is, other than my textbooks, luckily there are no valuable books of mine nearby. They are on higher shelves of two bookshelves in my room, so.
Should I be concerned? To clarify, there’s no way for me to froze the books, no space in the freezer, and I heard it is not effective. I looked through the rest of my books and they seem fine. Since it wasn’t an actual infestation, do I need to take extra steps or can I just leave it to be and hope for the best? Sorry if this is stupid I am just terrified lol
by SevereFlorality
2 Comments
Booklice in nature feed on algae and lichen; in human dwellings, they feed on mold and are known particularly for eating the paste used to bind older books.
If you’re as neat and clean a person as I infer, and your books are newer than the use of the old pastes, I don’t think there will be an issue. Sealing possibly-contaminated books in plastic bags and freezing them is supposedly a great way of killing the bugs – I don’t know what you’ve heard, but as long as the books are cleaned afterwards cold is a great way to kill adults. Getting rid of the eggs is more complex, but dryness helps.
I… am horrified at this idea. I never considered it as a possibility. I’m sorry, and proud of you for being brave and taking care of it. If it ever happens to me, there is a 30% chance of a desk on fire. So you did good.