Are you concerned about bed bugs?  

Will
your chair fit in your microwave oven ?

No, but ...
maybe I could get one from the '70s. They were pretty big then.

Don't worry about the chair.
If it WAS infested it's safe to assume that the bugs have since abandoned it, climbed the stairs, and are in your bed.
Since the chair's now free of the vermin, upholster away.

I think they are still there, waiting for me
Also, I found this fun bed bug tidbit on Wiki: All bedbugs mate by traumatic insemination. Because the female has no genital opening, the male pierces her abdomen with his hypodermic genitalia and ejaculates into the body cavity. Especially desperate males sometimes mistake other males for females and fatally wound the latter in the abdomen.
Seriously, the growing bed bug problem might dampen some folks' enthusiasm for buying used. It will make me look more closely at some items.

...
...
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/02/nyregion/02bedbugs.html?ref=fashion

Call my cynical, but I have...
Call my cynical, but I have a feeling that bedbugs aren't nearly the threat that they are made out to be. I wonder if certain industries have an interest in propagating a supposed 'bedbug epidemic'? i.e., mattress manufacturers, clothing retailers, etc. The first time I remember being warned about this danger was about 12 years ago and I have yet to come across one myself...am I just lucky or is this problem being blown out of proportion?

A segment on NPR talked about...
A segment on NPR talked about bedbugs for quite a while a couple of days back. They were saying that bedbugs only feed late at night, and do not stray far from where they get their meal (the bed). They made it sound as if it is unlikely to find bedbugs in clothing, or furniture that is not near a bed.

I don't mean to scare you, but...
I've had bedbugs at my place. I got them from my friend's couch, and she probably got them when she had her friends over at her place, sitting on that couch.
So bedbugs aren't just staying in the beds. It's unlikely that they will travel long distance on their own, but they can be easily transferred/transported from a furniture to a person, to a furniture in another location and to another person, etc...
They are active during the night and hidden during the day, so you rarely find them on your bed. So one day your body starts to itch and you wonder why, then soon you start noticing small bite marks (usually in a row) on your ankles, calves, fingers, arms, stomach, neck and back. And they itch like CRAZY!!!!! and those marks tend to remain for a long time.
I heard from the exterminator guy that they are spreading rapidly all over the place. They quickly grow in numbers, and they don't easily go away or die. Once you get one at your place, be prepared to fight the war with them for awhile...
So those who buy/trade furniture, I'd recommend you to inspect the piece before you bring it into your place. It's not easy to find them but maybe you will. Dust the piece off, or if possible, spray the chemical (the ones specifically designed for bedbugs) or steam-clean it. This will reduce your chance of having this unwelcomed guest in your place.
Seriously, bedbugs are no joke. It's been 3 months since I got my first bite, and I still suspect that I have them around my bed...

Thank you. I'm not crazy.
The thing about bed bugs is that they don't live just in used mattresses. As TK said, they can live on couches, and they also hide in wood furniture. I'm not going to stop buying great MCM pieces, but I will look them over more closely before bringing them in the house.
Apparently, the little suckers are hard to kill and live a very long time -- not a nice combination.
Good luck, TK.

bed bugs
My brother stayed at an extended stay in las vegas while doing some contract work. I had warned him to look out for bed bugs while traveling. He thought I was crazy...until he developed a terrible rash. He woke up and found them in the bed. When the hotel denied them, he took pics and showed them the bed bugs. Everyone in the front office checking in quickly left. He told me that they had shut down a ritz carlton in lv due to an infestation.
On a side note, I spoke with an exterminator in phoenix once who warned me not to buy any used furniture. He said they are spraying quite a few homes now. He also said that they are almost impossible to get ride of and they give no guarantees.
I read somewhere about unsavory mattress shops re-covering old mattresses with new material and selling them as new. The poor customers unknowingly buy bed bug infested mattresses.
Also, apparently someone at work's sister had her furniture shipped with other pple's furniture by a moving co. recently. She ended up with bed bugs because of this.
I believe the hype is real. I think whoever develops a safe fda approved pesticide is going to hit a gold mine. I sure as hell dont want them in my house.

I believe they said high, high heat
was the method for annihilating them. They close up the house and raise the temp to some ungodly level, I forget how high, but sauna-like dry heat.
Not chemicals, apparently. So, maybe check it out for yourselves before letting an exterminator use them.

If you are interested ...
NPR had a good interview about bed bugs today.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129701363

Right. . .
The heat needs to be over 120 degrees -- 130-140 is usual. This doesn't damage electronics (for instance). Take your wine bottles out, though, and chocolates. . .
A clothes dryer on medium should be enough, Potter said. The only drawback of the heat treatment is that it isn't necessarily permanent; if you get a reinfestation, you have to do it again (obviously).
Anybody know how to get some DDT ? This was a REALLY effective, and long-lasting, remedy, apparently. . .
(As I recall it, DDT was banned because it killed birds and other wildlife. Why not use it -- cautiously -- indoors ?)

Click through to Wikipedia...
Click through to Wikipedia below and read up on "Effects on Human Health". Chems in the home should a last resort.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ddt