Despite all the precautions we take to avoid creepy crawlies, like roaches, or flying insects, they always find their way in. Be it from the sewer through the drains, or the neighbor’s garden outside, or your clothes from a bus ride back home. They’re in your cabinets, your shower, and your garage; the whole house and they are seemingly reproducing even faster than you can keep up with.
Are Bug Bombs the Right Choice for You?
So you have a bug bomb (total release foggers) set? It’s highly recommended that you try other methods while trying to reclaim the space from pests fiends through pest control. Or you call in the exterminators who are experts at residential pest control.
There are a few instances where using bug bombs would be preferred. Even if they are consumer-level bug bombs. Here are some methods to try before using bug bombs in spaces:
Keeping the Home Clean
Keeping our home clean by diligently doing household cleaning chores:
- vacuuming
- wiping surfaces routinely
- ensuring clean food preparation
- clearing dustbins daily
Sometimes all you need to do is clean.
Keeping Damp Areas Dry
Drying all wet, soggy regions and fixing any spillages would prevent roaches. By destroying their water sources, your home becomes less attractive.
Reducing House Accessibility
Sealing all openings and closing holes between door and window edges. Use any method to lessen availability and it will prevent roaches from getting and making a home of spaces.
Apply Natural Pesticides
Sometimes instead of using synthetic insecticides, we could use natural and non-toxic alternatives to standard bug bombs. Here are the top 3 natural roach control solutions:
Diatomaceous Earth
Diatomaceous earth (DE) is fine dust created by grinding up the fossilized shells of diatoms, which are microscopic ocean organisms.
So how does Diatomaceous earth powder work? DE is abrasive and breaks down the waxy layer of the cockroach’s hard exoskeleton, killing it through dehydration. It is very versatile and easy to use. Sprinkle it:
- behind appliances and food processing equipment
- under furniture
- inside cupboards
- in the kitchen on food handling surfaces
Since it’s easy to clean up with a vacuum, diatomaceous earth works for roaches in cars and trucks, too.
Boric Acid
When cockroaches crawl through the boric acid powder, it gets all over them, sticking to their bodies. When the cockroach cleans itself, it ingests the powder. The acid will make its way into the nervous and digestive systems, causing death shortly after ingestion.
Boric acid is considered so effective because cockroaches eat other dead cockroaches. After the cockroaches eat the one that died from the boric acid, the acid gets into their system, and the cycle continues.
What Are Bug Bombs, and How Do They Work?
Bug bombs are aerosol chemical insecticides, that work by spraying the chemical insecticide into the air in a confined space. There are many types, the most common being roach bombs and flea bombs. This could take a couple of hours to allow the fog from the bomb to reach all crevices the bugs may be hiding and exterminate them effectively.
However, bug bombing is toxic to humans and our pets.
What to Consider When Using A Bug Bomb
Turn off pilot lights or other sources of ignition before using
The chemicals in a bug fogger can be highly flammable, so be sure to turn off anything that may cause a fire. Including appliances, pilot lights, and electronics.
In some cases, the vapors from the bug bombs could be just enough to set off the smoke detector. So it would be wise to cover or disconnect them while bug bombing roaches or bed bugs.
What To Cover When Bug Bombing
A lot of safety precautions are needed when using bug bombs because as mentioned before, the chemical insecticides, usually pyrethrum-based, are just as dangerous to the bugs as they are to the health of humans and pets. They could cause nose and throat irritation, difficulty breathing, and other allergic symptoms from the chemicals.
Clothing
While the chemicals from a bug bomb may not directly ruin the clothes, the contaminated clothes could come into contact with your skin after. Chemical insecticides from a bug bomb can cause some serious health effects when they come into contact and are absorbed by the skin.
Before you use a bug bomb, make sure you cover all the clothes and wash all clothing that may have been contaminated.
Electronics
While items like a door handle, light switches, bulbs, and kitchen top or eating surfaces can withstand bug bombs, electronic devices can not. Exposing your electronic gadgets to bed bug bombing chemicals can cause irreversible damage to your electronic gadget.
The chemical compounds used to make a bed bug bomb and a roach bomb, are corrosive and may cause long-term damage to electronic devices. Bug bombs also contain water, which when exposed electronic circuit board can lead to corrosion, making the electronic gadgets fail. When using bug bombs within a kitchen space, store all kitchen appliances inside the cabinets and seal the cabinets with some tape around the edges.
Exposed Food and Food Preparation Surfaces
There should be no cooked food in the kitchen when using bug bombs because ingesting contaminated food could cause serious health emergencies. It would be best if kept inside the fridge or covered tightly in sealed containers.
What Do You Do When You Return After A Bug Bombing?
Ideally, the treated house should be left for a few hours. Upon return, immediately open all the windows. It is advised to use protective clothing while airing out the home. One person should go inside to open all the windows, open doors, and run the air conditioners for two to three hours before letting anyone else back to the house.
Once the house air has cleared, it’s time for some serious cleaning. Wash anything that could have come into contact with chemical residue with some warm water and some liquid dishwashing soap. Clean other surfaces like floors and walls with soapy water and wash bedding that may have been contaminated.
Areas we treat beg bugs
We treat bed bugs in Palm Beach County Florida and Martin County Florida including the following areas:
We also treat beg bugs throughout South Florida and particularly in the hospitality industry.
Conclusion
Cockroaches among other bugs are notoriously difficult to get rid of because they are resilient and they’re great at hiding. If you’ve tried DIY methods of getting rid of them, like eliminating food and water sources or sealing up gaps in your home, but you still have a cockroach issue, it is time for help. Call us today and we can go over all your options for your situation. Let us take care of the dirty work.
