How does insecticide kill cockroaches

Cockroach sprays are solvent based and the spray produces large droplets. Although fast knockdown performance is a must for those with a phobia for cockroaches, the real power in a crawling insect aerosol is to use it as a preventative treatment. It is not uncommon for some products to claim 6 months of protection, although this only really applies to treatments to surfaces that are not cleaned or exposed to the sun.

Nevertheless, using your cockroach spray to treat the inside of cupboards, under the cooker, fridge and storage units and in the bathroom and laundry, will provide excellent protection against cockroaches. This allows you to get into cracks and crevices and under cupboards and appliances — all the places cockroaches love to hide. You cannot see a degree valve and the manufacturer may not always say it has one on the can, but it is vital for a cockroach spray.

A degree valve allows you to spray the can upside down! Without it, spraying under cupboards can be tricky. In addition to attracting more cockroaches with the pheromones in their feces, the insects can cause other problems.

It's really the biggest problem with cockroaches. Buczkowski plans to investigate tertiary kill with other cockroach baits and possibly look at horizontal transfer of insecticides in natural settings rather than just in the laboratory.

The other researchers involved in this study were Gary Bennett, Purdue entomology professor, and Clay Scherer, global product development manager for DuPont Professional Products.

Materials provided by Purdue University. Note: Content may be edited for style and length. Science News. Story Source: Materials provided by Purdue University. Carefully check large appliances and furniture or items that have been in storage for cockroach egg cases and destroy them. If you have an infestation, eliminate food sources by cleaning up crumbs on floors, in cracks and crevices, or on counters.

Wipe up spills and clean dirty dishes as soon as possible, and keep food in sealed containers or in the refrigerator. Throw trash away in containers with liners and tight lids, and empty them frequently. Regularly vacuum cracks and crevices to remove any food sources, including cockroach eggs or droppings, since feces contain pheromones that attract other roaches and feed young ones.

Frequent vacuuming also goes a long way in preventing cockroach allergies. Eliminate Habitat and Prevent Entry. Removing cockroach hiding places and entry points will drive cockroaches away and prevent future infestations. Inside the home, seal cracks in dark places like cupboards or building cracks with caulk, repair water leaks, and remove moisture in crawl spaces and other dark areas by increasing ventilation.

Weather-seal doors and gaps around windows, and caulk around escutcheon plates that surround pipes or faucets that provide access to the wall voids or any other area that roaches could easily enter or hide. Eliminate clutter, especially piles of magazines, newspapers, cardboard or rags.

Outside, remove stacks of wood and trash to minimize potential moist habitats, and trim shrubs and branches to increase light and ventilation. Avoid aerosol sprays of pesticides or foggers. They indiscriminately contaminate all surfaces in the treated area and are an inhalation and asthma hazard. Recognized that when you use cockroach control pesticides, you should be ready to deal with these potential consequences:.

If you determine that pesticides are necessary, take these precautionary steps to reduce the potential for adverse effects:. There are many roach control products sold, including bait, gel, granule, and aerosol spray formulations. When using these chemical products, take precautions to minimize human, pet, and environmental exposure. The information below will help you understand the risks associated with the active ingredients in these products. Baits and Gels Baits are formulated as granules or solid blocks, gels, or liquids.

Some bait products already have the active ingredient in the bait station, and others are packaged as a liquid that you pour into a bait container provided in the package. Gels typically come packaged with a syringe or a tube for dispensing.

Place bait stations near the areas where you have seen roaches, but be sure they are out of reach of children and pets and not near food that could become contaminated.

Be sure to spray any aggregations or areas with fecal spotting. Avoid spraying walls, floors, baseboards and countertops since cockroaches spend very little time in these areas. Any roaches that do happen to traverse these areas are unlikely to remain on treated surfaces long enough to absorb a lethal dose. Dusts — A few insecticides used for cockroach control are applied as dusts or powders. Most familiar to householders are boric acid and diatomaceous earth.

For controlling cockroaches, boric acid tends to be more effective. Roaches succumb to boric acid after crawling over treated surfaces. Boric acid retains its potency almost indefinitely as long as the dust deposit remains dry. Insecticide forms of boric acid are sold in bulk cans or a plastic squeeze bottle with a narrow applicator tip. For best results, the dust should be applied as a fine deposit barely visible to the naked eye.

Cockroaches tend to avoid heavy accumulations of the powder, much as we would avoid walking through a snowdrift. Another potential hiding place for German cockroaches is the void hollow space under kitchen and bathroom cabinets.

This area can be treated by puffing powder through preexisting cracks at the top of the kick panel. Accessing areas behind dishwashers, stoves, etc. Never apply boric acid onto countertops or other exposed surfaces, especially those used to prepare food.

Traces of powder should be wiped off with a damp cloth. Boric acid should not be injected into electronic equipment as the dust could damage the components. Baits — Most householders will achieve better results against cockroaches with insecticides formulated as baits. Used correctly, it is possible to achieve results comparable to professional extermination. Cockroach baits contain a slow-acting insecticide combined with a food attractant.

Pests find and ingest the bait and crawl away to die. Non-exposed roaches may succumb as well after indirectly ingesting trace amounts of toxicant expelled in the sputum and feces of exposed individuals.

Several excellent cockroach baits are sold in stores and online. Some come in ready-to-use plastic stations usually 12 to a box , while others come in a large plastic syringe. Popular consumer brands include Combat, Raid, Ortho, and Hotshot. Professional versions of the products sold online include Maxforce, Advion, Advance, Avert and Alpine.

Effective ingredients in such products include fipronil, indoxycarb, dinotefuron, abamectin, and hydramethylnon. The key to success with baits is proper placement. When using the plastic-style bait stations, it is important to place them flush against corners and edges of cabinets, countertops, etc. Installing stations away from edges and corners will be far less effective.

Use a broom handle to slide stations back into hard-to-reach areas, such as the wall-floor juncture behind stoves and refrigerators. Placing a bait station behind or beneath the infested appliance will entice cockroaches living inside to emerge, feed, and be killed. While ready-to-use plastic bait stations are convenient, gel-type baits applied with a syringe often are more versatile and efficient. The syringe makes it possible to inject many small pea-sized dabs of bait into cracks, corners, edges and other places where roaches reside.

Cockroaches are not drawn to baits from long distances; they come upon them during their foraging activities. Therefore, the more dabs of bait put out, the more likely they are to be found and eaten. More than a dozen placements alone may be necessary to treat corners and edges in cabinets under a kitchen sink the equivalent of an entire box of ready-to-use plastic stations. The larger the infestation the more placements that will be needed. Large infestations may also require periodic replenishment of bait consumed by the roaches.

When using syringe-type applicators, avoid putting out large globs or lines of bait— many, smaller-sized placements are better. Besides treating cracks, corners and edges, be sure to bait wherever you see fecal spotting or cockroaches themselves. Do not spray around your bait placements with cleaning agents or other insecticides, as this could discourage cockroaches from taking the bait.