Reply to Rowhouse Neighbor with Bed Bugs - Can we Improve Exclusion on Party Wall?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Sorry to bring this up, but if insects are finding ways to get through your party, you may also have a big code issue in terms of fire safety.  I'd call a building inspector and get it checked.[/quote]

OP - OK, this is where I get to show my total ignorance of construction. There is quite a bit online, and a bit in this thread, about the risk of bed bugs moving between construction where buildings or units touch.

In older rowhouses (think 1880-1900), where there is a thick brick wall and foundation (or maybe it is a couple of walls that abut), would you under ordinary circumstances not suspect a problem? If not, maybe I can feel optimistic, do my own treatment, and expect resolution.

If it points to some kind of building repair issue I can have someone check, what am I looking for?  [/quote]

I think this advice is a bit overblown.  The size of a hole that would allow a bedbug to crawl through is not at all an indicator that you have a fire safety issue.  It’s not going to hurt to check it out, but bedbugs can get through just about any size space. And no home is really 100% sealed - otherwise you’d have no air left inside after a while...   New homes are sometime so tightly sealed that they do require some sort of additional air circulation, but that doesn’t mean that an older home is a fire hazard just Because a bug can  slip through from next-door

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Says someone who has never read the fire code.  What the OP describes sounds like a code nightmare, particularly the shared attic/ceiling space among units, soft/deteriorating brick party wall, etc. You need a one-hour fire-rated wall (minimum) with continuous fire-rated materials that extends 18" above the roof, ideally.  You want no through-penetrations between the walls or units.  [/quote]

OK, quick disclaimer here: I am OP and I, confused and paranoid OP, doesn't understand the facts that well, which is part of the reason I am asking question. I assume there is some kind of gap because a neighbor once said there is. I have no idea of the claim is true. We probably have whatever is true of circa 1880-1900 rowhouses with flat roofs in cities like DC, Baltimore, and Philadelphia. Maybe we do have a continuous up to the bottom of the roof? Anyone know?

I do know the walls are continuous brick.

I can also say that walls are exposed in our basement, and are soft, and that when I showed this to a contractor and asked if we should address this, kinda shrugged, said it was possible, that the situation was common, and that no one bothers with it. But he did give me a ballpark quote for applying a mesh and coating to the expanse.

I strongly suggest certain amount of rodent tunneling between homes possible, unless this is an urban legend related to intrusion from the outside people misdiagnose. But I know someone who claims a rat just dug into the basement one day.

I'm in Baltimore, and people love to tell stories of that kind.

I might be insane. But in all seriousness, I figure we might as well look at everything carefully and at the very least if there things to foam , caulk or treat. Or inspect, if that's really a concern.

I really wish I understood the structure better, but I just don't.

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