Roaches

We had some roaches when we first moved in and tried the usual stuff. Then I just decided to clean clean clean everything often and consistently, and never left food or crumbs on the counter or dirty dishes in the sink overnight. We haven't had a roach in a long time because there is nothing for them to find now.

Just to let you know if it is a house you can get rid of them. It takes time though. You can't just bomb once and have a pest control technician come out just once either. She has to keep clean as well. NOT saying she is dirty. Only feed pets at feeding time then pick it up when finshed. If she has pets. If she lives in an apartment it is very hard to get rid of them. Hope this helps.

Ok please trust me on the this. We had a problem with those huge ugly bugs creeping around freaking me out. I did some research and ended up using Combat Platinum gel under the sinks where the drain pipes come into the house. Mainly the bathrooms and kitchen area. I also put some on the underside of some of the drawers. This stuff WORKS! It lasted for about 8 months and then we started seeing some again and put it down and again I haven't seen them since. I bought mine at Walgreens but I'm sure you can get it just about anywhere. Good Luck.
C.

There is a product called Riddex. It's great for roaches, mice and other unwanted critters. We've been using it for years. You plug it in to an outlet. It takes about 2 wks to work, but no more bugs. If a bug gets in your house, you find it dead. You can't use this product if you have hamsters or other such "pets". You can check it out on line.

Start using borax in your laundry. 21 MuleTeam borax is located in the same area as clothes detergent. Borax naturally repels roaches. Get rid of any bird feeders/bird houses. Roaches love bird poo. You can make a paste out of bacon grease and borax, just make sure to hide it where no domestic animals can get to it.

The ONLY way I've been able to get rid of roaches of all kinds for good is to use a pest control service. They come every couple of months to spray.

Is your friend in an apartment or house? If she's in a house is it pier-and-beam or slab? We're in pier-and-beam and couldn't get rid of the giant roaches until we had an exterminator spray boric acid under the house (they call it and "underdust"). We'd put out various traps and what not but they kept coming back until we had the whole house sprayed but especially under the house. The exterminator said that unless you figure out where they're entering your house (basically, their favorite spot to hang out) that they'll just keep coming back.

In the meantime, those countertop "roach motels" worked for us, you just have to make sure the opening is big enough for those giant roaches to fit in!

Roachproof! It is in powder form, sold at Lowe's or H.D. You can put a thin line of it at the very back of your cabinets, in the weep holes at the foundation line, etc...

You were not specific on the Roaches your friend has. If its the big roaches like most people have been discussing they are easy to get rid of. But if they are the German Roaches, they are VERY Hard to eradicate! We've done almost everything everyone has suggested, and still have not gotten rid of them completely. German Roaches live in all your appliances, the Fridge, stove, I've even seen them come out of the back of my coffee maker. So it is hard to get rid of them using all the powders and roach baits cuz u can't really get them into your stove,fridge, and coffee maker, so we hired an exterminator who came 2 times to treat them, and it came w/a 90day warranty, but it ran out and they still were not gone. So I called a few other exterminators, and one guy I talked to said that it takes treating them monthly for a year before they are all gone! So he charges like $125 for the first treatment, and I think it was around $50 a month after that, but I had just spent all that money on the 90-day warranty guy so I haven't started with the other guy yet! But Im beginning to think that is the route I will have to go. So if that is what your friend has, tell her to pay the money the first time to go w/a year-round treatment before wasting money on ALL those other remedies! Good Luck!

When I lived in Kennedale 13 years ago, we had a TERRIBLE problem with those big roaches. I kept spraying and they kept coming back. Then, one day, I decided I was going to clean out ALL my kitchen cabinets and drawers. THAT's when I found where they build their nests. They were up high on the wall in the back of the cabinets BEHIND the drawers! I just happened to open a drawer when the cabinet door was opened and I saw them. DISGUSTING! When I got rid of those, I never had a roach problem again.

pull everything from the cabinets and using a clean paper towel or hand towel, spray the cabinets with vinegar or bleach and wash out with clean water. remember the key is to use clean cleaning products because if there are roach residue, it can be spread by using the same water/cleansing cloths. after cleaning the cabinets/pantry/linen closet/closets, might want to leave the items out for a bit and place roach bait or spray bug spray in the corners. following the aforementioned procedures, re-clean areas with bleach/vinegar, etc... one more time before placing items back in cabinets. always empty all trash cans daily and clean each one with a bit of bleach/clean cloth. try and keep bathrooms/kitchens as clean as possible ie no toothpaste/foods exposed... might try www.marthastewart.com for ideas as well... good luck.

Try diatomaceous earth. It is a non-toxic alternative. We used it, especially when we lived in an apartment. We never allowed the complex to spray inside our apartment. You would think all the neighborhood roaches would've flocked to our non-pesticide treated place, but they didn't since we used the de. You have to puff it very lightly in cracks, crevices and on little ledges like over doorways. You can buy it and the puffer at places like Lowe's. It is very common. It is great for all kinds of pests and completely safe for humans. Good Luck to your friend.

If you have the BIG Roaches, they are called waterbugs also. They are looking for water. When you finish in your sinks and tubs, wipe all the water out. Less clutter always helps. And the Roachproof is the best thing. If you do not have kids or pets, put is around the bottom of you cabinets and dishwasher for a few weeks. You can buy it at most dollar stores also.

I see that you've received a lot of responses that involve borax or boric acid. Here is another view. I wouldn't touch that stuff, especially if I were pregnant, planning on becoming pregnant, had small children or any child with respiratory problems. Most especially if it was in powder form.

I would stick with a professional pest control person, the drugstore roach control products, or at least go visit a DIY pest control store (there is one in Plano).

It took us six agonizing months to get rid of roaches in our former rental. The pest control guy was out there about every 2 weeks for a while (we were trying to stay away from synthetics). But they were coming from our neighbors, who all had full garages and sheds with tons of paper and cardboard. We finally had to use synthetics and that got it under control.

She has my sympathies. Ugh. I hate roaches!!!!!!!!!

Roach motels , and sprinkle Borax powder, (you get it in the detergent area, nad 20 mule team borax will work the same, just different name on box. Sprinkle it around all the creveces , corners, edges, you get the idea. It may look kind of funny, but not near as bad as the roaches . They carry it back to their (home) and then it does it's think. I think it is hard to completely ever get rid of them, but using those two products I think you'll notice they seem gone, so you can sweep up the power from the borax, and then occasionally put some out again to keep them away. It is so much cheaper than any product I've found, and works better.

ok not a hundred percent on what the brand and name is but it looks like a shot syringe and is either brown or black think it is by raid and you push the syringe to put a thin like on counter edges and under draws

You are going to think I am crazy-but this is what my mother did for ever and taught me and I tell my daughter. Save toilet paper rolls and paper towels (the cardboard inside only-no paper). Put elmers glue inside on bottow and sprinkle boric acid powder. Let the glue run the length first and immediately sprinkle about a teaspoon or more as you tip the tube. Hide behind ref,;under sinks in back of your cleaning supplies, anywhere you can safely put them without danger of your children finding them. Behind the sofa, under headboards of beds, etc. They crawl through and go off to die. It works!

We place a fogger in every room and after that I mix self rising flour sugar and baking soda and place it on my cabinet shelves and under the edge of my cabinets. I also put them in the hot water heater closet and under beds. Works real well for me.

You did mean roaches like the common German cockroaches, right? I was looking at the responses, and it seemed as though the responses were about those huge water bugs that come up through the sewer. I found out after having a rental property sit empty for a while that you MUST keep water in the drains. I went to show the house and was horrified by those big nasty things. Not to mention the embarassment. Needless to say, they did not rent it.

As for the regular nasty ones that you may find in your pantry or trash you really need a professional. If you have an infestation you could spend loads just trying to eradicate them. A professional will give you a warranty. That way you pay once. I prefer to use non-toxic in my own home around my children and pets.

I use Green Rain.

http://www.yellowbook.com/profile/green-rain-llc_###-###-...

Hi Frances,

I read through the responses and have a combination to offer:

3 parts Diatomaceous earth
1 part boric acid

We are in a pier-and-beam house that was empty for a long time, very heavily wooded, and not kept clean by the previous owners. YUCK! We sprinkle this combination under the house and around the outside of the house every year.

Inside, we use straight DE (diatomaceous earth) in the cracks and crevices.

This works on ALL insects! DE is a very fine silica that destroys the exoskeleton. So, when we first treated, we found LOTS of dead waterbugs, cockroaches, ants, etc in the house - all dead. We have pets and small children and work very hard to not use chemicals, but the boric acid does seem to help a lot; we just keep it out of the house.

Good luck!

M.

Roach Ball Recipe

White Flour
Boric Acid
Confectioners Sugar or Brown Sugar
Water

Mix 50/50 flour and boric acid. Sprinkle in some confectioners sugar (about 1/4 of the amount of flour used). Make a dough by adding in water, don’t make it runny. Roll the dough into small marble sized balls and place them in corners, dark cupboards, behind heavy appliances, along floor boards and around the garbage.

Make sure they are out of site of kids and animals. If you have little ones and pets running around, keep the balls behind furniture and heavy appliances and inside cupboards.

Within a month the roaches should be gone.

If the infestation is particularly bad:

Double the effort by making a mix of 50/50 boric acid and brown sugar then pour the mixture in a thick line around the entire room and entrance ways. The roaches will get the stuff on their bodies and carry it back to the nest. Once there is no trace of cockroaches left (usually within the month), vacuum up the powder.

More tips:
You can also use Borax as a substitute for the boric acid, but the boric acid is more effective.
Add some bacon grease to the roach ball mixture, makes them a little more tempting and hard to resist.
Replace old, hardened roach balls with fresh ones as needed.