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Suggestions...PLEASE!!!

Posted: Dec 20, 2009

Okay, so our new neighbors upstairs apparently brought a "gift" with them to share with all of the tenants...

COCKROACHES.

We've found two so far today, and have lived here for well over a year without ever having them before, so my assumption is the new tenants upstairs brought them with them when they moved in.

Now that I'm done panicking and gagging, I'm still mortified that I have these eight-legged filthy bandits anywhere near me, I thought I would ask on this board if any of you ladies (or gentleman) have had to deal with these beasts before and, if so, what remedies did you find most effective?

My husband can't tolerate the sprays commonly used, so I'm thinking maybe there are alternative EFFECTIVE treatments out there to render them extinct pronto. I've never dealt with them before but know people who have, and those people have said for every one you see, there are 100 hiding elsewhere.

I'm going to have nightmares all night...ugh.

TIA for any suggestions!

;

From CBS news - lalala

[ In Reply To ..]
The stuff that puts the nip in catnip is a turnoff for cockroaches.

One form of the chemical in catnip repels cockroaches 100 times better than DEET, the basis for commercial bug repellents, Iowa State University scientists told a meeting of the American Chemical Society on Monday.

Chris Peterson and Joel Coats said they began studying catnip a few years ago when a summer intern told them it was resistant to insects. The pair boiled catnip leaves and distilled the active ingredient, a chemical called nepetalactone.

Peterson also has found roach-repellant compounds in an inedible softball-sized fruit called the Osage orange or hedgeapple, but doesn't know which specific chemical creates the roaches' "yuck" response.

The Osage orange is sometimes sold in groceries because of folk wisdom that putting the fruit in cupboards or basements will repel just about any bug, they said. The fruits are filled with a sticky substance that turns rubbery when exposed to air, they said.

The discovery could lead to new nontoxic methods for curbing the tenacious insects, which are more than just an annoyance around the house. The rate of asthma among children, particularly in cities, is rising. Scientists say the reason is an allergic reaction to roach excrement.

"We've been chasing cockroach treatments for three years," Dr. Peyton Eggleston, a pediatrics professor at Johns Hopkins University Children's Center, told the Baltimore Sun. "If you could do it with a repellent, that would be great."

The researchers tested repellent power by flooring a cage with treated and untreated filter paper, and measuring how much time the roach spends on each side during a five-minute test.

Although most people would prefer to kill roaches outright, a repellent might be an effective way to keep them out of the house after the exterminators have left.

So far, they have only studied the small brown German cockroaches, rather than their thumb-sized American cousins. They are just beginning to look at mosquitoes.

Roaches have sense organs on their antennae, feet and mouths. The "feelers" seem to be the spot affected by both catnip and osage oranges, the researchers said.

They have not tested the effectiveness of spreading catnip leaves around the house. While it might help turn away a swarm of cockroaches, it could lead to a new infestation -- writhing, blissed-out cats.

cock roaches - mb

[ In Reply To ..]
About 28 years ago my husband and I bought a condo. A week later water roaches started appearing (we had them tested). Anyway we went to the condo board and no one would admit they had them until a year later when we sold it. My husband sprayed once a month but we had to leave for the night. I wanted to tell you that unless the tentants upstairs spray or put something down to kill them they will not go away. In our condo we could not get rid of them because we were connected to five other condos. They travel through the walls and they multiply fast. Good luck.

BTDT - Happy MT Robin

[ In Reply To ..]
I had the same problem years ago in an apartment. What finally worked was diatomaceous earth. It's the white powder stuff that you use to clean out pool filters and it's absolutely awesome as a pest repellant/killer. It works much better than borax (which never worked for me). You put it in a little squeeze bottle and spray it in every crevice you can reach, behind the fridge, behind the stove, etc. It gets under the carapace of the critters and suffocates them, essentially, Plus they bring it back to the nest on their feet and it helps wipe out the nest. The other thing that I have used with success is Combat roach baits. You can get them pretty much anywhere. I've used the small ones for the little critters and the big ones for those big black bugs and they are just awesome.

I've pasted a link to a place that sells the stuff online, but you can probably find it at a garden center, or certainly at a pool supply store where you live.

Good luck with the little critters. Be sure and talk to your landlord/building management, too. They may have something in the lease that allows them to go inspect and/or require a certain standard of cleanliness in the place.

Boric acid. It's fantastic. It's a white powder and I found it at Home Depot. - Olive

[ In Reply To ..]
One uae and they never came back.

EEK - ROACH HATER

[ In Reply To ..]
Inexpensive, 100% natural and VERY EFFECTIVE: diatomaceous earth. Find it at your local nursery/online.

you must get FOOD GRADE though, not the stuff for the swimming pool.

It is petrified or fossilized diatomes with microscopic razor sharp edges that pierce the exoskeleton of those roach bas-turds and they die! Also works for FLEAS, TICKS, SILVERFISH, any pests that creep and crawl. It also has health benefits. Look it up.

OR, since you say apartment... tell your landlord to spray, just kick hubby out for the day.

Robyn and Roach Hater, Question - EEK

[ In Reply To ..]
I've been googling this and just want to double check - Is this stuff pet friendly? We have a little dog and it appears from what I'm reading it's 100% pet safe, I'd just feel better checking with someone who's used it.

Robyn, I know you have cats from your posts. Was there any problem with your kitties and this product?

My husband's going to go out today and try to get some of this (it's a lot cheaper than those chemical sprays, too!) and the squeeze bottle if it's pet safe.

Thanks to everyone for their suggestions...I'm ready to do battle with these beasts before they take over (or at least chase them back upstairs from whence they came, lol!).

Yes, very pet friendly. - Happy MT Robin

[ In Reply To ..]
I think I had 4 or 5 cats at the time and there was never any problem with it. I didn't have too many places where I put it where the cats could get to it, but if they did get it on their paws, they never had any problems.

EEK - ROACH HATER

[ In Reply To ..]
NOT THE STUFF FOR POOLS!! That has silca and is HARMFUL to pets and people. Get the FOOD GRADE.

We used the food grade stuff on our cats and dog. We fostered a dog for a couple of weeks and he came with fleas and ticks. we dusted the whole yard and pet sleeping areas as well as the pets after they were washed with a natural flea shampoo. You can also dust your carpets with it. FOOD GRADE.
There is a huge difference. Research it online please!

Good luck to you and your roach battle. (I'd leave a bottle of the stuff on your neighbor's door also, with a red bow!)

See, that part is good to know - I didn't know that part. - Happy MT Robin

[ In Reply To ..]
My landlady had done it and I had no clue that there was a difference between the stuff from the pools and food grade. Thank you for pointing that out.

The only thing that worked for us is - Gumby

[ In Reply To ..]
having an exterminator come and put this jell-like paste in the cabinets, cracks, bathrooms, etc. It didn't have a bad odor and the cat and dog were fine with it.

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