If you are going to fight cockroaches with the help of dust, then perhaps the first thing that is important to know is that the products sold today under the guise of such are not actually dust.
The fact is that initially the word "dust" was called DDT powder (dichlorodiphenyltrichloromethylmethane), intended specifically for insect control. Of all the insecticidal agents known by the middle of the 20th century, it was one of the most effective (in truth, even today the vast majority of modern synthetic insecticides cannot surpass DDT in their strength).
But as it turned out later, the dust was extremely toxic and dangerous for humans, animals, and the environment in general. After numerous checks and confirmations, DDT was banned for sale and use for any purpose, and today it is not used at all in the civilized world.
So, if you take any dust from cockroaches available for sale today and read its instructions, it turns out that, in fact, there is no DDT in its composition. So, such funds are called "dust" only conditionally.
Nevertheless, the word itself turned out to be very popular among the people, and it was not possible to abandon it. Today, the word "dust" does not define the composition of the product, but only indicates its powder form. Translated from English "dust" means dust, fine powder.
After the abolition of DDT to combat cockroaches, bed bugs, fleas, ants, flies and other insects, products in the form of powders began to be produced and actively used, but based on completely different active substances - chlorpyrifos, malathion, synthetic pyrethroids, etc. They are safer in application and are also quite effective. It is these “dusts” that can be bought today in any market, in hardware stores and on the Internet.
The photo below shows an example of packaging dust from cockroaches Chisty Dom:
Review:
“I thought that the cockroaches were long gone, but no. I returned from vacation last year, and what do I see? Cockroaches started up in the apartment, so small, nasty, mustachioed, terrible disgusting! It was clear that now they would not leave so easily. I washed the kitchen, toilet, bathroom and immediately ran to the store for poison. I have never poisoned cockroaches, I don’t know what to buy at all. The saleswoman gave me dust Chisty Dom, said that she poisoned cockroaches with it. It was quite inexpensive, about 50 rubles. Somehow I didn’t dare to pour this poison on the floor just like that, scattered it on bottle caps and put it behind the stove, under the refrigerator and in the kitchen wall. Plus I put it in the pantry and under the bathroom. I had no idea that such an inexpensive remedy would work so quickly. On the third day, I didn’t see cockroaches anymore, and, by the way, I didn’t find their corpses either. Very satisfied with the tool. I didn’t remove the lids after that, I just change the dust in them from time to time ... "
Marina, Kaluga
On a note
The good old dust, which was used to poison insects in Soviet times, cannot be bought today.But even if you manage to find this rare powder, it is still better to refrain from using it, since DDT, according to some reports, has carcinogenic and mutagenic properties.
Fortunately, today there are many much safer insecticidal dusts: Phenaksin, Absolut, Pyrethrum, Ecokiller, Fas, Tornado, etc.
How do cockroach dusts work and how effective are they?
According to the principle of action on insects, dusts used today are divided into three types:
- Nerve-paralytic action - their majority. Once in the body of a cockroach, the agent disrupts the nervous system of the insect, leads to its paralysis and fairly quick death. For example, dusts based on pyrethroids (permethrin, cypermethrin, deltamethrin, lambda-cyhalothrin) and organophosphorus compounds (chlorophos, chlorpyrifos, karbofos) work according to this principle;
- Acute intestinal action - such agents destroy cockroaches by entering their digestive tract. The above pyrethroids and organophosphorus insecticides have both nerve-paralytic and acute intestinal effects. But, for example, boric acid and borax have only an intestinal effect;
- Leading to dehydration of the insect body. So, for example, diatomite acts as part of the insect dust Ecokiller.
Dusts from cockroaches are good because for the most part they act in contact. That is, the insect does not have to eat the powder or bait with the preparation - it is enough for the cockroach to simply run through the scattered dust. In this case, dust particles will stick to its paws and abdomen, and then through the integument of the body the active substance will penetrate into the body - this is called the contact action.
However, the intestinal action also makes a significant (if not the main) contribution to the work of the remedy: all modern dusts act faster if they enter the stomach of an insect. At the same time, it is not necessary to make an attractive bait, because, simply getting dirty in the powder, the cockroach will inevitably swallow some of it when it cleans its paws and antennae.
On a note
That is why it is not necessary to make baits based on boric acid - you can simply scatter it in places where insects accumulate.
With proper treatment of the premises with dusts based on pyrethroids and organophosphorus, the majority of cockroaches die on the first night, and the rest are poisoned over the next few days. When using the Ecokiller dust (based on diatomite), the process can take one to two weeks, as well as when using boric acid.
In those rooms where dusts are not removed during cleaning (for example, in basements), they work (retain their effectiveness) for 6-8 weeks.This allows you to use them not only for the rapid destruction of cockroaches, but also for long-term preventive protection of the premises from the penetration of new insects from the outside.
In general, the dusts used to control cockroaches are practically as effective as the more familiar aerosol preparations, and in most cases turn out to be more effective than glue traps and insecticidal crayons.
Features of dusts that need to be considered when baiting cockroaches
Nevertheless, some features of their use in the fight against cockroaches are associated with the specific preparative form of dusts.
First of all, you need to take into account the following nuances:
- Dust works passively, that is, the cockroach itself must run over it or eat it in order to get poisoned. Because of this, dusts, unlike aerosol insecticides, are difficult to poison cockroaches quickly. But you don’t have to spend a lot of time and effort on such a passive fight against cockroaches - the powder is simply poured where insects are often, and after that the pests are poisoned by themselves;
- To increase the effectiveness of the use of dusty, it is sometimes advisable to use it in conjunction with food baits. The baits make cockroaches seek out those places where the poison is scattered, or even eat the dust itself mixed with food bait;
- Do not forget that dusts are dusty and, in general, reduce the level of cleanliness in the room. Therefore, it is advisable to use them using special bait stations (closed boxes with holes through which insects can climb inside). This is all the more true if children and pets live in the treated room;
- In most cases, dusts cannot be used to properly process vertical surfaces - walls, legs of chairs and tables, furniture doors. In this regard, cockroach pencils and gels are more preferable.
On a note
Ceteris paribus, poisoning cockroaches with dust will be the more effective, the smaller its particles - a fine powder clings to the paws and whiskers of an insect more easily and is more likely to remain on them until the cockroach begins to clean itself.
The essential advantage of dusts in comparison with other means is a successful combination of high efficiency, availability and low cost. Insecticide dusts are now sold in many hardware stores and are very inexpensive (compared, for example, with aerosol preparations). It is largely due to the ease of purchase and low cost that dusts have retained their popularity as a means of fighting cockroaches, and are used no less than other types of means.
On a note
Another advantage of insecticidal dusts is the ability to use them in the fight against fleas and bed bugs. Since these parasites feed on nothing but blood, they cannot be attracted to poisoned baits.
And further: We tested Phenaksin powder on cockroaches - and these monsters, at least henna ...
Types of insecticidal powders: choose the most effective
As a means of combating cockroaches, the following dusts are quite popular today:
- Dust Chisty Dom based on cypermethrin and karbofos, reinforced with piperonyl butoxide. By the way, many aerosol insecticides have a similar composition.The drug is sold at a price of about 50 rubles per bag of 50 grams. One such package is sufficient for a complete surface treatment of 10 m²;
- Ecokiller - in fact, diatomite, it is mountain flour. It stands out among other dusts with almost absolute harmlessness for pets and humans. It is not toxic to mammals, when it enters their body or in the digestive tract it is inert, but it has a lethal effect on insects, because due to its abrasive properties it violates the integrity of the external integument, which leads to rapid dehydration of the body;
- Powder from ants and cockroaches Fas-Double, containing zeta-cypermethrin, es-fenvalerate and piperonyl butoxide as active ingredients. Its properties are quite similar to Chisty Dom dust. It costs about 70 rubles for a bag of 125 grams;
- Phenaksin based on fenvalerate, safe enough for humans (it is important to buy Phenaksin powder from cockroaches, and not granules that are used in gardening to protect the site from the bear);
- Feverfew powder - it is as effective against cockroaches as it is against ants, bedbugs, moths and other pests and parasites. Its active ingredient is crushed Dalmatian chamomile flowers, which is a source of natural pyrethrins. The tool is quite effective against cockroaches, but its main advantage is safety. For people and pets, Feverfew is much less toxic than other dusts (with the exception, perhaps, of Ecokiller dust, which is also safe to handle);
- Powder from cockroaches Regent. Its active ingredient is fipronil;
- Dust Absolute. Contains fenthion and deltamethrin, a fairly effective drug, but requires careful use;
- It is also worth noting borax and boric acid (sometimes called boric powder from cockroaches). They are sold, including in pharmacies, and are used both for simple scattering in places where cockroaches move, and for preparing poisoned baits. Practically safe for humans and pets, since they can be poisoned only by purposefully eating a significant amount of powder;
- The so-called cable powder (thiuram) is a product used in the rubber industry as a vulcanizing agent. There are many reviews about its effectiveness against cockroaches. But it is unlikely that you will be able to buy thiuram in ordinary stores;
- Dust Tornado with cypermethrin and boric acid.
…And others. Many of them are produced by the domestic industry, others are imported drugs.
Chinese cockroach dusts are also popular today. It is believed that these remedies are very effective, because the Chinese are not particularly worried about safety and add the most powerful poisons to their powders. In fact, however, it turns out that Chinese dusts from cockroaches contain the same active ingredients as, for example, the usual Chisty Dom or Fas, and they do not surpass domestic insecticidal preparations in terms of efficiency. At the same time, it is more difficult to buy a Chinese insecticidal dust than a domestic one, and therefore the pursuit of them, in principle, does not make much sense.
On a note
The previously popular Halek cockroach powder (manufacturing country - Syria) today, for obvious reasons, is almost impossible to buy. And as is often the case, when a drug disappears from sale, the brand name quickly acquires a bunch of myths and becomes almost a panacea for all ills.So it happened with Halek dust - in reviews, the drug is often called the most effective remedy that mows cockroaches in an apartment cleanly and for many years. In some ways, this story resembles the situation with tire powder (cable), that is, thiuram, which many managed to test 15-20 years ago, having taken it from the factory in one way or another, and are now actively looking for it.
In fact, dust Halek can hardly be called some kind of unique remedy - the active substance in it (cypermethrin) is standard for many insecticidal preparations.
By and large, to fight cockroaches, you can buy any of the dusts listed above, but it is advisable to decide in advance on the requirements for the product. If the drug is used in a house where pets and children live, then it is advisable to purchase the safest products. And, for example, in the basement, cellar or attic, you can use the most powerful drugs, because there is no one else to poison yourself besides cockroaches.
Review
“We recently moved out of a small family, that's where we saw enough cockroaches. I never thought there were so many of them. Miraculously managed to poison them. We were advised to dust Phenaksin, we scattered it wherever possible - under the beds, along the baseboards, on and under the cabinets, in the bedside tables, under the sink. Already after they scattered, they saw cockroaches crawling out of the cracks, but then they left for the day. When they returned, there was literally nowhere to step, so many of their corpses lay everywhere. They crunched underfoot. We swept the whole thing away, and then powdered the skirting boards again, but only where the child didn’t get them.”
Alexandra Voynichuk
How to poison cockroaches with dust?
To treat the area of \u200b\u200bthe apartment from cockroaches, the dust is simply applied in places where pests accumulate and move - on the floors along the baseboards, around the toilet and bin, under the sinks in the kitchen and in the toilet, as well as in other places where cockroaches are seen most often.
And further: Do not write off the chalk from cockroaches Masha - it really works, we checked it during the experiment ...
Important!
Using insecticidal dusts against cockroaches, it is necessary, if possible, to completely eliminate all sources of water available to insects in the room - drops in the sink, leaking pipes, unfinished tea on the table. If the cockroach drinks a lot, the insecticide is more quickly excreted from the body, and the drug has less effect. In situations where the dose of poison received by the cockroach is minimal, but sufficient for poisoning, access to water can save his life. This is especially true for boric acid and Ecokiller powder.
In the case of using dusts based on synthetic insecticides, it is desirable to carry out the treatment at night. 3-8 hours after scattering the powder, it must be collected with a broom, and the treated areas should be washed so that pets cannot get dirty in the remains of the dust. In rooms where neither pets nor children appear, dust can be left on surfaces for a longer period, up to several weeks. In general, the effectiveness of the remedy is usually maintained for 6-8 weeks.
In residential premises, you can also use bait stations (they are also called houses, traps). You can buy them or make your own from cardboard boxes or cigarette packs.The essence of their application lies in the fact that the powder is poured into the box, holes are made in it through which cockroaches can climb into it, and such a trap is set where the cockroaches are most likely to find it.
Inside the bait station, along with the dust, you should put a strong-smelling bait - bread soaked in vegetable oil, an apple or a piece of sausage. Pets will not open such a station and will not get dirty in the dust, and cockroaches will easily climb inside and get poisoned.
To increase the effectiveness of cockroach control, along with dusts, it is advisable to use cockroach traps, gels or insecticidal sticks. The more different types of funds will be used, the less likely the cockroaches will survive. In addition, many of these additional tools are also quite effective and inexpensive.
As noted above, dusts can also be added to food baits, which significantly speeds up the process of extermination of cockroaches. Let's look at a few of these options...
Dusts as components of poison baits
Usually, borax or boric acid is used as a poisonous component in cockroach baits, although other powder containing insecticides may well be suitable.
Poisoned baits for cockroaches can be prepared, for example, according to the following recipes:
- A puree is made from one boiled potato and one boiled egg, a tablespoon of powder is added to it and everything is thoroughly mixed;
- A spoonful of boric acid or borax is mixed with a spoonful of powdered sugar and a spoonful of flour, all this is kneaded in water to obtain a doughy mass;
- To 60 g of starch, 30 g of vanilla sugar, 60 g of powdered sugar and 200 g of boric acid are added, everything is diluted with water and kneaded to a dough consistency.
From the mass obtained according to any recipe, balls the size of a pea roll, which are laid out in those places of the room where cockroaches catch the eye most often. It is only important to place the bait so that children and pets do not get to them.
Review
“I made potato balls with boric acid, spread them around the apartment, and after about three days all the cockroaches disappeared, and we didn’t even see dead ones. Then after a while they reappeared (apparently, one of the neighbors poisoned). We got rid of them again with boric acid in two days. Then the same thing happened in the new apartment, again boric acid helped. And you don't need any dangerous chemicals."
Lilia, Samara
When the cockroaches managed to be poisoned, it is important to take measures to prevent their reappearance in the apartment in the future, and the main thing here is to block the pest access routes (repair and putty all the cracks in the walls, between the pipes of the risers, ceilings and floors, insulate the cracks in door frames and window frames). Such measures will guarantee that cockroaches will no longer enter the apartment in the future.
Safety measures when working with insecticidal dusts
All work using insecticidal dusts should be carried out in a respirator, rubber gloves and long-sleeved clothing. It is allowed to replace the respirator with a dense cotton-gauze bandage, which will protect the airways from getting dusty agents into them.
At the end of the recommended time after treatment (it is indicated in the instructions for the preparation), the apartment is thoroughly ventilated, it is cleaned, all dust is swept away and then washed off.
If the dust is poured where children and pets can get it, then they must be removed from the premises before the end of cleaning after processing.
If people who are prone to allergic reactions live in the house, then it makes sense to abandon the use of products containing "chemistry" (synthetic insecticides from the group of pyrethroids, organophosphorus, neonicotinoids, etc.) and limit the use of glue traps, gels, boric acid or powder Ecokiller.
Review
“For as long as I can remember my childhood, my grandmother always poisoned cockroaches with dust. Smelly was, an infection, but worked. Now I also bought dust and was very surprised that it does not smell at all. I decided - they modernized the tool, made it safe. But somehow it didn't impress me at all. I scattered this dust under the bedside tables, under the sink, even poured paths on the shelves. I did everything according to the instructions, and washed it off after a day. But cockroaches keep running. Now I’m thinking about what to do…”
Pavel, Voronezh
What can replace dusty in the fight against cockroaches?
Sometimes it makes sense to replace dusts with other means. For example, if you use aerosol poisons, you can get rid of most of the cockroaches in the apartment in just 2-3 hours, and then immediately bring the apartment into a residential form. With dusts, such speed cannot be achieved. Therefore, if the priority is the fastest possible destruction of all cockroaches, then it is better to give preference to aerosol preparations (in cans or in the form of concentrates for dilution and subsequent spraying).
On a note
From sprays and aerosols, it makes sense to choose preparations based on the so-called microencapsulated insecticides that are odorless and remain after drying on the surface in the form of a thin imperceptible film (Get, Xulat Micro, Delta Zone, Lambda Zone, etc.).
Also, cockroaches are quite effectively (but not quickly) destroyed by glue traps. Perhaps, if there is no hurry, then glue traps, due to their safety, are even more preferable than dusts. It is enough to put bait in the center of such a trap, and most of the cockroaches will soon be caught. With a competent approach and a relatively small number of cockroaches in the room, all pests can be completely removed with this remedy in one to two weeks.
Also very effective against cockroaches are insecticidal gels (Domovoy, Absolut, Globol, Dohlox, Fas, Kapkan, etc.), the use of which can be combined with the use of dusts. Gels are well suited, for example, for the treatment of vertical surfaces. It is not unreasonably believed that gels are today one of the most successful preparative forms of insecticidal agents.
It is an integrated approach, that is, the simultaneous use of several different types of funds, as well as preventive measures (blocking migration routes) that in practice gives the greatest effect in the fight against cockroaches. Therefore, if possible, then the use of dusts should always be combined with other types of drugs, and at the same time, do not forget about the possible presence of cockroaches in neighboring apartments.
Review
“Somehow I didn’t have a relationship with poisons. There were so many cockroaches in the hostel, they even ran around the table during the day, sometimes even found them in bed. I tried different dichlorvos, crayons, all to no avail.I decided to buy dust Chisty Dom, check it out. I scattered it everywhere where it would not fall under my feet, and indeed, after a couple of days, the cockroaches disappeared. But not for long. Five days later, she began to notice them again, bought another pack, processed again. Another week of rest, and again they. No matter how much the sea, but it is impossible to win. Apparently, the remedy is working, but if there are these parasites in the neighboring rooms, then they will return in any way.
Oksana, Zhitomir
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