What are your views on boric acid? Is it worth using? Thanks.
In general, Boric Acid is NOT a good roach control product. This is true for many reasons but here’s the main one.
Boric acid it works as a stomach acid. This means you must get the roaches to ingest it in order for the treatment to kill them. Boric acid doesn’t taste good and roaches really don’t want to eat it. And yes, there have been some baits that have done a good job of hiding the boric acid mixed with it but these products are marginal at best. And when pure boric acid is used alone with no supporting cast of products, only the very best of pest control technicians can expect to get complete control with such a limited arsenal. For the average applicator, they’re doomed to failure unless they go to the one of the roach baits.
On top of that reason, there are actually many more dust formulations that work so much better than boric acid. So if you insist on using any kind of dust, go with the DRIONE we have featured in our ROACH CONTROL article. Drione is so much more effective compared to boric acid. In fact, you can get instant results meaning you can eliminate a roach problem immediately following a treatment if you were somehow able to apply it everywhere the roaches were living. The same can not be said about any other dust and certainly not for boric acid.
But even with Drione being better, the ROACH GEL is usually the way to go. It’s easy to apply, requires no special prep work prior to using it and you can add more as needed without making a mess. All dusts tend to break down when they get wet, they’re messy and one must know where to use them in order to get the best results. But products like Roach Gel eliminate all these concerns and makes the matter of roach control an easy problem to solve.
Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:
Roach Control: http://www.germanroaches.com/roach-control
Roach Gel: http://www.bugspraycart.com/bait/gel/maxforce-magnum-roach-gel-1-oz
Drione: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/dust/drione-dust
Filed under borax by
My son has had a lot of difficulty with his landlord – a city owned building, in having them get rid of a cockroach infestation as they do not do the fumigation thoroughly. but now he is bringing baby roaches into my apt. even though he tries to check all his pockets, and bags before he leaves his place. what can I do?
No need to panic yet but you should take a defensive posture. As our ROACH article explains, rogue or roaming roaches will be seeking food in their new abode. Take advantage of this behavior by setting out some ROACH GEL. Roaches that come into your apartment will no doubt find it which will help allow them to live and start nesting.
I also suggest you set out some ROACH TRAPS. If roaches aren’t seeking food they’re seeking other roaches. Roach traps set out will no doubt collect some too.
If you set these out for now, there is a good chance any roaches in your apartment won’t get established regardless of where they come from. But if you don’t start doing something, things will rapidly get worse.
Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:
Roach Control: http://www.germanroaches.com/roach-control
Roach Gel: http://www.bugspraycart.com/bait/gel/maxforce-magnum-roach-gel-1-oz
Roach Traps: http://www.bugspraycart.com/traps/pheromone-and-food/roach-trap-6-pack
Filed under what to do by
I am desperate! My family and I moved into a Florida apartment in late August. The night we moved in we realized our apartment was roach infested, there were roaches of all sizes every where: kitchen, bathrooms, and bedrooms. Immediately we told our apartment complex and they brought in pest control. Pest control has come to our apartment almost every 2-3 weeks in the last 4 months. They use bait mostly but also use a spray cyclophan (or something along those lines is what they told me it was called). One time the guy also squirted some powder stuff behind our kitchen appliances. We no longer find roaches in the bedrooms and rarely find them in the bathrooms but we still find them in the kitchen. We may go a few days without seeing a roach but then I’ll find a handful in the kitchen some other day. I’ve found them on the floor, on the refrigerator and even INSIDE my drawers. We keep most of our food in the fridge. I clean daily and I discard dead roaches in the toilet. I am so frustrated that 4 months later after constant fumigation we still find roaches.
What can we do to end this problem! Please help :)
I our only solution to move??? Can there be a roach infestation so bad that it can’t be ended? HELP!
If you read our roach control article, you’ll learn that baiting is what we feel is the best approach for most any infestation. And from your message, it would seem that you’ve got bait being applied throughout the unit. But also in our article is a section about “repelling” roaches. This can be especially important when it comes to multiunit housing like apartments. This is because roaches can be cleaned out of one unit but because a neighboring unit has a bad problem, the cleaned out unit is subject to an never ending stream of roach activity. I suspect this is happening in your case.
I say this because really, there is only one of two things happening. One, the roaches you’re seeing are in fact living in your unit or two, they’re coming from an adjoining apartment. Now if it’s situation one, then the bait and spray that’s been applied would take of any living roaches as long as you’ve removed all the bait like you claim you’ve done. That leaves situation two.
And if you’re getting roaches that are traveling through electric conduits, electric wall sockets, light switches, light fixtures, pipe holes in the wall, etc., the problem will be never ending until you set up a barrier through which foraging roaches won’t ignore. And how do you do this?
Apply DRIONE to every port or route of entry into your unit. Gas lines, electric lines, drain pipes – basically anything that goes into the wall or ceiling is a port through which roaches can enter. And as long as these ports remain open, you’ll no doubt keep open routes of entry that over time could allow lots of roaches to enter.
Apply the Drione with a HAND DUSTER to every void and focus attention on where you mostly see the roaches. Remember, there is no need to make a mess with the application and if you do it right, the dust will not interfere with the gel bait placements. If you stay the course you should be able to eliminate all routes of entry into your space and once you’ve achieved that goal, any roaches still in unit will no doubt consume some bait and die. At that point you’ll finally be roach free.
Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:
Roach Control Article: http://www.germanroaches.com/roach-control
Drione Dust: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/dust/drione-dust
Hand Duster: http://www.bugspraycart.com/good/hand-dusters
Filed under apartments by
can you tell me how much will be to treat a small single home?
This is a tough question to answer specifically. I say this because in the end, it will depend largely on how many roaches are living in the structure. For example, if you have 25 or less roaches, one tube of ROACH GEL will be enough. In fact it would be enough to treat several times so you might go through half with the initial treatment and then use the second half 1-2 months later.
But if you have a bad infestation, it could require several tubes of gel to knock the roaches out for good. This partly due to the fact that the more roaches you have locally, the more they’ll eat. Other variables include how long it will take for all of them to be affected, how dispersed the infestation might be, etc.
Now if you decide to spray with some ORTHENE and GENTROL, the same is true. Mild infestations can many times be resolved with 1-2 applications. But when several hundred roaches are nesting in the home, it will no doubt require more material to knock them out.
Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:
Roach Gel: http://www.bugspraycart.com/bait/gel/maxforce-magnum-roach-gel-1-oz
Orthene WP: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/wettable-powder/orthene-wp-1-4-oz-pk
Gentrol: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/igr/gentrol-vial
Filed under how much by
My wife and I, along with two small children recently moved into a town house development in Tampa Bay FL which has 5 townhomes to a row all connected. When we moved in I noticed a couple roaches every few days. I started spraying and this lessoned. I sealed up cracks and now I see one every two or three weeks walking across our downstairs floor. Is this an issue or is it coming from another unit next to us? Thank you.
My first concern is what you mean by the word “issue”. Here’s why. In my house, we will see 1-2 roaches every fall as the weather turns and gets cool. These are Pennsylvania wood roaches foraging in from outside our home which is surrounded by lots of trees. No matter how much I spray outside, these guys fly and can effectively bypass my treatments. In the end, one or two will be seen no matter what I do and my family has accepted this fact. But these guys won’t be able to live inside so there is little risk involved by not doing anything unless this number was increase significantly.
But if we were seeing one every 2-3 weeks throughout the year? To me this would be an “issue”. And if we ever saw just one german cockroach, it would be an even bigger issue!
Which leads me to your question. Based on the way you phrased it, I’m thinking what you’re asking is if the roaches you see every 2-3 weeks are a sign your unit is infested or if they’re coming from a neighboring unit? If this is the question, I’m sorry but there is no way I can tell for sure where they’re coming from. But here’s what I do know.
Roaches exist for three things. Food, shelter and sex. Food is first. This means if you’re seeing activity during the day as described, the roaches involved are either very hungry foraging for food or they’ve been affected by some kind of treatment which is causing them to forage in broad daylight. More importantly, the 1 you see is most definitely NOT the only one. That means the ones you’re not seeing are what’s really important. And if you have roaches foraging throughout your unit what do you think they’re doing? First, looking for food and second, looking for a place to live.
Second, if these foragers find a good meal and start to nest, what do you think is next? That’s easy; they’ll start to multiply. So for obvious reasons just seeing 1 german cockroach a month on a regular basis is reason enough to do a treatment whether they’re nesting in your unit or not.
So what type of treatment is needed? I would go with the ROACH GEL for sure. It’s easy to apply, lasts 2-3 months per application and won’t make a mess like most any spray. All you need to do is apply 1/2 tube (as explained on our product page) every 3 months and that will do it. If a roach forages into your unit, he’ll no doubt be hungry which means he’ll find your offering, eat some and die. More importantly, if any start to nest in your town house, they too will find your offering, eat some and die. Either way you’ll be avoiding a much bigger “issue” which will no doubt be a lot more costly and time consuming to resolve.
Hope this helps; here are direct links to the information and products listed above:
Roach Gel: http://www.bugspraycart.com/bait/gel/maxforce-magnum-roach-gel-1-oz
Roach Control Article: http://www.germanroaches.com/roach-control
Filed under what is causing by
we are having problems with roaches in outlets/light switches. i plan on adding insulation to all outlets/switches. is there one on the market that helps keep the roaches out of the house?
No. In fact, adding insulation to outlets and switch boxes is generally not suggested for several reasons. The first is that this space should be left open so the area can be maintained. The connections inside these boxes will many times break down and need to be serviced. By leaving the space open, routine maintenance can be performed without having to remove insulation or any other obstruction.
Second, electric boxes are natural fire hazards because they tend to hold heat and as well electricity. This is a dangerous combination. Keeping them open and accessible reduces the fire hazard. Furthermore, the insulation being sold on the market place these days has so many “natural” recycled additives, there could very well be a natural electric conductor added that could increase the likelihood of something bad happening. Since insulation is not intended to be used in these areas, it could very well have something in it not designed to be there so again, it’s strongly suggested that you do not seal these important ports found throughout most any building.
So what you can do when roaches take harborage in this area? The good news is this problem is easy to treat. If you read through our ROACH CONTROL ARTICLE, you’ll read about a product called DRIONE. This dust is long lasting and ideally suited for using in electric outlets and switches. All you need to do is remove the cover to the switch or outlet and puff some Drione in using a HAND DUSTER. 2-3 puffs is all that is needed. Next, replace the cover and you’re done. Roaches inside the treated area will die immediately but more importantly, the Drione will last years in this environment so you rarely if ever have to retreat.
I have personally been using Drione in this manner for over 30 years and at this time I can say it’s still one of the best products on the market. Long lasting and extremely effective when used in dry environments, Drione is the best for this need.
On a related note, it does appear that roaches like electricity. And though there is no scientific proof to substantiate the claim, there appears to be something about the electro magnetism of electric current that attracts roaches. So whether it’s the electricity itself or the heat that tends to be around where electricity is flowing, no doubt roaches commonly nest in electric outlets, electric switches, electric appliances and anything that conducts, stores or uses electricity. Fortunately Drione is the one material ideally suited for this area because it can be applied to all these sensitive areas without damaging the wiring or posing a fire hazard.
Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:
Roach Control Article: http://www.germanroaches.com/roach-control
Drione: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/dust/drione-dust
Hand Duster: http://www.bugspraycart.com/equipment/dusters/crusader
Filed under how to treat by
I recently moved into my apartment and I have small house roaches. I bombed my apartment and I have been seeing roaches on the walls dead on the floor and in the window sills. Are the bombs working or do I need to find something else to get rid of the roaches ? I have a small child and another child on the way. I don’t want them in an infested apartment. Please Help!
If you read through our ROACH CONTROL ARTICLE, you’ll learn that bombing for roaches rarely works. No doubt you’ll kill some as evidenced by the bodies you’ve been finding following the treatment. But as you’ll soon learn, the 2-4% of the population that avoid the treatment will reinfest the property with a vengence and in most cases, they come back worse than ever following the use of total release aerosol bombs.
To avoid this vicious cycle, I suggest you set out some ROACH GEL and ROACH TRAPS. These two products are usually all that is needed. They’re very safe to use (especially compared to a total release aerosol bomb which is spewing chemical needlessly all over your apartment) but more importantly, the Gel is highly effective. Roaches can’t resist the Gel and will quickly consume your offering. The Traps should be placed around the apartment and will be a tool that will alert you to any activity you may have missed or did not know existed. Once a spot is located as active by a Trap, place some gel close to it and you’ll get these guys too. Once the Gel and Traps have been installed, the problem should be resolved in 2-8 weeks depending on how many egg sacs you may or may not have on the property.
Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:
Roach Control Article: http://www.germanroaches.com/roach-control
Roach Gel: http://www.bugspraycart.com/bait/gel/maxforce-magnum-roach-gel-1-oz
Roach Traps: http://www.bugspraycart.com/traps/pheromone-and-food/roach-trap-6-pack
Filed under treatment by
My mother’s house is about 30 feet away from a rental house that has a serious cockroach problem, and as a result most of the houses in the immediate area, my mother’s included, have a problem now too. We initially tried traps and bombs and these aren’t cutting it. I was glad to come upon this site and find products that will probably take care of things, but until the landlord of that neighboring house evicts the tenants and gets the roaches eradicated (he has Terminix going in there regularly even now), my mother’s house will be vulnerable to more infestation. We will be getting some of your baits to get things started inside, but which one of your sprays would be recommended as a barrier to be put down outside the house? Thanks for such an informative site!
Definitely the CYPERMETHRIN. This active is both fast working and repellent by nature. Spray it on the building and in the turf. If you cover the entire area between the two houses, you’ll stop any from migrating to your mothers house. ‘
I also suggest you apply some COMPLETE GRANULES to the turf first, prior to spraying, as they will help provide longer protection and overall better results. They’ll also take care of any that may be nesting in the turf which cockroaches will commonly do.
As you now know, German cockroach infestations can get large and when left uncared for, will spread from house to house throughout the neighborhood. Be sure to treat the inside with some ROACH GEL so you’ve got the inside protected. And be sure to spray the yard again if you find out the tenants are about to be evicted. Many times the act of tenants leaving can cause a large exodus of roaches from the infested house seeking a new location and during this time, they’ll leave the rental house in droves. It’s then that you’ll want to refresh your granules and Cypermethrin to make sure you’ve got the area well treated.
Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:
Cypermethrin: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/liquid/viper-cypermethrin
Complete Granules: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/granule/complete-insect-killer-granules
Roach Gel: http://www.bugspraycart.com/bait/gel/maxforce-magnum-roach-gel-1-oz
Cockroach Control: http://www.germanroaches.com/roach-control
Filed under Blog by
Hi, I really appreciate your site, it’s the most informative one yet!
I recently went to a family members’ home to visit and didn’t realize until it was too late that they have a german roach infestation. I am pregnant and the point of the trip was to get some stuffed animals I had there when I was a kid. I am concerned because I thought that I wouldn’t have a problem as long as I washed the toys immediately, but my husband won’t allow them in the house. And after I mentioned that I had seen one in the car, I don’t blame him! However, I was wondering if there was a way to prevent the roaches from entering the house on/in the stuffed animals. I have them outside in garbage bags at the moment and I also cleared out my suitcase and inspected it and put all of the clothes in garbage bags to be washed at the laundromat. Please help! My husband and I are horrified that these things are going to end up in the house!
No doubt roaches can live on and in stuffed animals. The folds, spaces and voids of the material is an ideal location for them when given the chance, they’ll readily take advantage of any they can find close to food. To be sure the ones you have are roach free, storing them out of the home in plastic bags is the first step. Next, you’ll want to place some of the ROACH GEL into each bag too. This will readily be found and consumed by any roaches that might be present and once they eat it, they’ll die. The use of the gel is by far the safest method of treating given the item that’s infested and with you being pregnant. In fact the gel doesn’t have to contact the animals at all; you only need to have some placed in the bag and they’ll find it since they will no doubt be starving.
Once the gel is applied, let it sit in the bags for at least 2 weeks. In fact I would say to let the treatment sit for 6 weeks to be 100% sure you don’t miss any egg sacs that might hatch following the initial treatment. This is the general guideline we use when treating homes and apartments and the same time line applies regardless of what you’re targeting. By waiting it out this long you’ll be sure to break the cycle.
Here’s a direct link to the roach gel and more information on roaches:
Roach Gel Explained: http://www.germanroaches.com/roach-control#roach_bait
Roach Gel in Cart: http://www.bugspraycart.com/bait/gel/maxforce-magnum-roach-gel-1-oz
Roach Control Article: http://www.germanroaches.com/roach-control
Filed under Blog by
We live in an apartment and about two months ago out neighbors upstairs said they say three big roaches in their apartment. and then a month after they told us that we started seeing some in our apartment i’ve living here for over 11 years and never have i had a roach problem until now. My husband said he saw a very big one run behind the stove and ever since i’ve been seeing small baby ones and i am worried for my kids and our dog. i have never seen a big one only small ones and i mostly see them in the kitchen and the bathroom but i have seen them in the living room.we have never seen them in the bedrooms and i don’t have enough money for an exterminator so please HELP ME MY KIDS ARE SCARED!
First, there is nothing to be scared about so tell everyone to stay calm. As our GERMAN ROACH CONTROL ARTICLE explains, these guys can most definitely be controlled with the right products and a little patience.
Second, in the article you’ll see several control options with one of the most common employed being a bait. No doubt you’ll get the best results if you use 2-3 different baits but if you’re on a limited budget, get the MAXFORCE GEL and with this product alone I’m sure you’ll knock out any roaches currently in your apartment as well any that might enter in the coming months. All you’ll need to do is refresh the placements every 2-3 months and you should be able to keep them at bay.
Lastly, doing this work yourself will no doubt save you plenty of money compared to using a service and since we’re selling what the professionals use, you can in fact get the same results with a little help from us on how to use the products we’re recommending.
Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:
German Roach Control: http://www.germanroaches.com/roach-control
Maxforce Roach Gel: http://www.bugspraycart.com/bait/gel/maxforce-magnum-roach-gel-1-oz
Filed under Blog by
i hear scratchin or diggin in my bedroom but Never see any creepy crawlies…I have owned my 75yr old home now 9 yrs and yes im a clean freak ne who…2 days ago i seen a huge flying bug on my tv stand killed it and studied it…it was huge…lol so i wasn’t to concerned until i found the same bug flying throughout my house….killed and looked it up and this monster flying creepy crawler is a wood roach…eew my question is
A: is that the digging in my wall i hear cus everyone thinks i’ve lost it cus they don’t hear it but i have good ears its faint but i hear it
B: If possible then how do I get to them in my wall i read ur articles and i do have branches over my house but i keep my gutters clean…i do have air-conditioning but is secured the way u described drips are caught in a bucket and then water used in my hanging plants on the porch… so that leads to my last question C: why now…if this is infact a nested situation
It’s quite possible the sound you’re hearing in the wall is coming from an active roach population. They will readily invest hollow voids and when active (especially the large ones), you might be able to hear the sound of “pitter patter” as they move about their nest sites. This sound would be faint and really hard to notice unless you were right alongside an active nest.
As explained in our LARGE ROACH CONTROL ARTICLE, it’s best to use a dust for crawl spaces or wall voids. And in that article along with our article on GERMAN ROACHES, you’ll see the dust we suggest is the DRIONE. Fast acting and long lasting, it’s ideal for these areas.
I also suggest you do some treating outside. Although you’re collecting the water and recycling it, just having a container of it sitting around will increase the local humidity which in turn will lure roaches. This is especially true in the summer months when the air temps can get high. This is also the season when large roaches will forage inside the home so it’s if you don’t get them while they’re active just outside the house, more are likely to get inside. I suggest either spraying the entire area with the CYPERMETHRIN listed in our article or baiting the area with the MAXFORCE GRANULES. Use one or the other; both are effective with the spray being working much faster compared to the bait.
Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:
Large Roach Control: http://www.bugspray.com/article/largeroaches.html
German Roach Control: http://www.germanroaches.com/roach-control
Drione: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/dust/drione-dust
Cypermethrin: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/liquid/viper-cypermethrin
Maxforce Granules: http://www.bugspraycart.com/bait/granule/maxforce-gran
Filed under Blog by
First off, I’d like to say that this site has been the most helpful site I’ve found so far. I only wish I could have found it sooner. Unfortunately, we have had roaches in our apartment for a while and have been already sprayed three times for it. We try to be as clean as humanly possible because of this issue and also because we have a dog. But we are fed up with the returning roaches. Yesterday, we had the pest control guy used gel instead and we are getting our landlord to caulk opens cracks. We have also laid bait traps in all the places we have seen the roaches. My questions are if I wanted to use the bait gel you mentioned, should I wait until the cracks are caulked? And how long does the gel take to start being effective. I know you mentioned in your article that it might a few days to see some dead roaches, but I’ve seen three live ones so far today since the gel and traps went down. Thank you so much for your help.
There is no need to wait when wanting to use ROACH GEL. Since roaches feed all the time, the sooner you have some out for them to find the sooner you’ll have acceptance and start seeing dead roaches. And again, as our ROACH CONTROL ARTICLE explains, it will take several days for roaches to die. Even then it doesn’t mean you’ll actually see any dead ones. Most will die hidden somewhere out of sight and since roaches are cannibalistic, many will be consumed by other roaches upon death. This process will leave nothing behind but more roach feces.
Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:
Roach Gel: http://www.bugspraycart.com/bait/gel/maxforce-magnum-roach-gel-1-oz
Roach Control: http://www.germanroaches.com/roach-control
Filed under Blog by
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