How to get rid of cockroaches - wow, it really works

[LynneSin]

Frustrated that all the spraying both by the exterminators and with my can of Raid (Country Fresh is nowhere near being country or fresh smelling!!!!) I have finally found a way to rid of my cockroaches.

It took some bitching on my part, shelling out a few dollars and some great advice from the folks here at DU.

I insisted that management spray the entire building not once, but TWICE within a few weeks. They are also providing those Combat Roach motels for me, which I have heard worked really well.

But the sprays aren't fun to breath and it's a real pain to remove all the dishes from my cupboards and put them back. So I went to level 2 - the natural way to remove the bugs.

One of the maintenance folks at our apartment building told me how he got rid of the cockroaches in his house. He has a son with severe asthma and these things are the worst for asthmatics. He confirm that the Boric Acid and the Combat Gel are the best ways to go. I asked if he'd take care of my home and my neighbor's (she's a retiree on a fixed income) and I'd pay him some cash for doing it.

I've been about a week and the most I've seen are a few dead ones. He put boric acid on every corner every crease along my apartment. He put it underneath appliances and even my computer (found them under there). Boric Acid is very safe (except for the buggies). The acid gets on their skin and when they go back to the colonies the other buggies help get the stuff off and it kills them too. The guy came when I was home and showed me where to use the Boric Acid.

The second is the Combat Gel, which he put in the corners of places where the buggies go. They think it's tasty food but it actually sterilizes them. In fact the buggies take that back to the colony and share the food thus making more of them unsterile.

It's been a week and I've yet to see a cockroach crawl across my computer desk or wake up in the middle of the night and go to my kitchen and see them.

If you have the bugs get at least the boric acid and also the Combat stuff. BTW, the Boric Acid is cheap. You can find it at the Dollar Store for like a buck a big container.

[celestia671]

1. Yeah, boric acid works pretty well...

Now if only we could do something about the cockroaches currently occupying the White House!:evilgrin:

[dweller]

2. Boric acid is toxic

to pets tho' so keep that in mind.
Put it where the cats, dogs, birds, ferrets, lizards, mice etc can't reach it.

dp

[2bfree]

3. Old remedy.......

We had them bad when I was little, the place was crawling with roaches! :puke: Mom heard that you mix equal parts boric acid, sugar and corn meal and put a tablespoon or so in an old lid and stick it where ever they like to go, replace every few months. Worked like a charm, I still do. If I were you I would do the lid thing so you wouldn't have to keep sprinkling boric acid everywhere. I really, really hate roaches.

[liberalmuse]

4. Boric acid worked for me...

and caulking all the cracks I could find. Never saw a roach again. I have a dog, but she was fine (made sure she couldn't get to the powder). I'm glad your roaches are gone! They make crappy roommates. :)

[LuLu550]

5. sounds like there may be a job for you

in the Bush administration..you are a killing machine! ;-)
(just kidding!)

[SOteric]

6. Is boric acid safe for pets?

I'd hate to rid myself of buggies at the expense of my little companion's health.

[BiggJawn]

9. NO! put it where they can't get at it!

Under the fridge, stove, sink, get a "ketchup squirter" and use that to "puff" the powder into crevases and crack and under the floor cabinets, than wipe up the exposed excess.

[liberalmuse]

11. No...

make sure you put it in the cracks behind the stove, cupboards or fridge where your pet can't get to it. Granted, most pets don't want the stuff anyway, but it can still irritate their skin if it gets on them. I've heard the main thing it does is stick to the hairs of the cockroach, and is carried back to the nest where it will severly dehydrate the entire colony.

[morningglory]

17. When I was a child here in Florida they sold boric acid "pills".

People would put them in the corners for the bugs to chew on, and we had a dog who ate one and died a horrible death, but the powder sprinkled around does not seem to attract the dogs. They can't just gulp it down, dog-like without getting the bitter acid on their tongues.

[yankeeinlouisiana]

7. Boric Acid is great!!

My husband did our kitchen last week and they're dying. It only takes one in your house and then you have lots. I never had to deal with these things before moving to Louisiana. They're disgusting!! I rarely go outside after sunset during the warm months -- which is about 8 months down here.

Unfortunately, our house isn't insulated and they can get in through cracks the thickness of a quarter!! Gross!! I don't even like saying the word. We just call them critters, unwelcomed guests or BUG!!

Also, get rid of any corrogated (sp?) cardboard. It's the perfect place for them to lay their eggs. Ick!!

[Oilwellian]

15. There's nothing else like a Louisiana roach

I fondly remember my first experience with one right after moving there. Fortunately, it was across the room from me on the wall and measured about 3 inches long. I remember how relieved I was that there was about 10 feet between us, when all of a sudden it FLEW across the room right at me! Needless to say, I let out a blood curdling scream.

Another experience I had with them....one night I was going upstairs and at the top of the stairs on the wall, there was this huge black spot. I thought one of my sons threw something at the wall and knocked a hole in it. When I got to the top of the stairs and turned the light on, the black spot turned out to be hundreds of baby roaches that had just hatched from an egg that was freaking covered up by the paint on the wall! That's right...the roaches in Louisiana lay eggs on your walls and mask them with paint to make it look like just another bump on the wall.

Let me say this...I REALLY miss the food in the New Orleans area but I don't miss the flying roaches! I haven't seen a one since moving to Virginia.

Lynn, I found Boric Acid to be the ONLY solution to curtail roach infestation. By the way, are you coming to DC next month for the rally? I'm making plans to stay at the same hotel you suggested last year and GregW has given a tentative nod for coming as well. I'd love to see you and everyone else again.

[Another Bill C.]

8. Borax powder

If you blow borax powder into all the cracks and crevices you can find, it'll help. Borax powder is made up of small sharp crystals which scratch through the roaches' wax coating. Roaches can't drink water so it causes evaporation of their precious body fluids and consequent dehydration.

[Fight_n_back]

10. I found the best way

was constructive engagement.

[liberalmuse]

12. You asked them nicely to leave?

Or did you blow them away with a pistol? LOL, what does 'constructive engagement' mean?

[dweller]

14. Flyswatters and heavy

boots aimed precisely.
around here, if you jump 'em with a shoe, they just run with it stuck to their backs.

dp

[Fight_n_back]

16. Trade agreements and

cultural exchanges. It was Reagan's solution for South Africa

[dmr]

13. Isn't it great?

When I lived in Florida, I had a disgustingly awful time with them when I moved into a new apartment. I filled pop bottle caps with boric acid and put them in strategic places, and bay leaves in my kitchen drawers (bay leaf is a repellent) - ewwww, I had to wash my spoons and forks before I could eat - ewwwww ..... But, it worked! No more problems, ever!

In case someone has pets, boric acid is toxic, so be careful.

I also had a huge problem with fleas, where they were eating my kitty alive, even numerous trips to the vet, and bug bombs didn't fully do the trick. (vet told me, that even with the carpet being cleaned they can survive and lay dormant in the carpet until an anmimal moves in). Then one day I read in Action Line about using Borax (not Borateam) (remember the 20 Mule Team Borax commercials?). Just sprinkle it (I used a powder sugar shaker) on your furniture (and under cushions) and carpet, let it work in and vacumn the next day or two. I borax twice a year. Anyway, after the first treatment I never saw a flea again. It kills the fleas, it is safe for pets, safe on furniture, and freshens up unwanted odors. Google Borax and fleas.

EDIT: I just remembered, I also removed my electrical plates, and blew in the borax powder.