How to fight home insects in the apartment

Outside, the twenty-first century and, it would seem, the chemical industry that produces all kinds of insecticides, has long reached unprecedented heights, but the fight against insects in the apartment for many people still remains very relevant. Insects continue to bother a person with their bites, carry diseases, spoil food, furniture and clothing. In addition, they very quickly adapt to the means intended for their destruction, and it is this fact that makes scientists all over the world constantly look for more and more new methods of dealing with insects that would restrain the growth of pest and parasite populations in modern megacities.

Some unprepared citizens seriously expect that their fight against insects will end quickly after they dab some Dichlorvos or pass once small on the baseboards of the apartment.Practice shows that such a superficial approach to the issue in most cases gives the most minimal result, or does not give it at all.

It should be understood that the destruction of insects in the room is, above all, a complex procedure:

• Often, the necessary actions must be carried out in a strictly defined order, so that not only adult insects but also their larvae and eggs will die, which will prevent the repeated restoration of the population size;
• When fighting with one or another insect species, it is necessary to take into account relevant biological features (for example, bed bugs nests are most often located closer to the places where people sleep, but cockroaches try to keep closer to water sources. Larvae of fleas, about which many people in general do not know anything, often crawling in the dust in the corners of the apartment);
• As a rule, a combination of different types of means and methods of struggle gives a greater result than in the case of using only one means or method.

And now the question is - what do you think is the most important thing when fighting insects in an apartment? High efficiency? Lack of residual odor? Acceptable price? No, no, and again not: the most important thing is security, and it is about it that you should never forget.There are many cases where the struggle with ordinary cockroaches ended tragically, not only for the hapless fighter, but also for pets, neighbors, children ...

Accordingly, in the fight against domestic insects You need to take into account a number of different nuances, which we will discuss in more detail later.

On a note

The word "pest control" (the so-called fight against insects) comes from the Latin word insectum - insect and French des, which means destruction or removal. The complex of measures includes the impact on pests and parasites by special chemical, physical and biological means.

 

Popular methods of fighting insects

Among the methods of insect control today, the most common and effective chemical, that is, with the use of special chemicals - insecticides. Often, they can be guaranteed to destroy pests and parasites in just a few hours.

In accordance with the method of penetration of insect into the body of an insect, the following types of insecticides are distinguished:

• Intestinal - get into the gastrointestinal tract of an insect (for example, with food, water, or with self-cleaning of the legs and antennae by the jaws);
• Contact - enter the body through chitinous cover with a simple contact;
• Fumigants - affect the insect through its respiratory system;
• Mixed action (for example, contact-intestinal).

Physical ways of dealing with domestic insects include:

• exposure to temperature (cold or heat);
• mechanical destruction (including not only sticky traps, but also banal shaking out clothes, using a vacuum cleaner);
• exposure to electricity (for example, electric cockroach traps"Electric shock" lamp traps for flying insects, etc.);
• exposure to ultrasound (mainly ultrasonic mosquito repellents).

On a note

For example, against bed bugs, sometimes treatment of infected objects with hot water or steam is sometimes effective: bloodsuckers die at a temperature of about + 50 ° C. Freezing an apartment at -25 ° C can also give a good effect - all that is needed is to protect the radiators from freezing. You can also pull out the furniture in the cold and hold it for a couple of days.

Clothing infested with lice can be effectively eliminated from parasites and nits, simply by ironing it with a hot iron or by washing in hot water. Or hold on the frosty balcony.

Freezing is effective against cockroaches - the temperature of -8 ° C and lower is destructive for them.

However, processing of high and low temperatures has its disadvantages and does not guarantee a positive outcome of the fight against insects in the apartment. In particular, it is sometimes impossible to freeze the entire apartment without the risk of damaging the heating pipes, and carrying out certain pieces of furniture to the frost may not always ensure the complete destruction of insects in the room. In addition, not all items of clothing and interior can be exposed to high temperatures.

Many popular means of fighting insects are not reliable enough, and sometimes they are simply dangerous to use: treatment with kerosene, denatured alcohol, dust, boiling water, and herbal extracts. It should be borne in mind that watering a plinth or sofa with kerosene, gasoline or alcohol can create many more problems for yourself than the same bugs - especially if the fumes are ignited accidentally.

And, of course, a very effective way to say goodbye to insects in your apartment or country house for a long time, having received a guaranteed result, is to contact a professional insect control service.Experienced disinsectors today are in almost every city, and sometimes there are dozens of such services within many large cities.

 

Insecticidal products and traps

As a rule, chemical preparations for controlling domestic insects are produced and sold in the form of aerosols, liquid concentrates, gels, powders, soaps, pencils, as well as spray solutions.

Examples of aerosol products produced in cans: Dichlorvos (today there are different types of them, significantly different from the old Soviet Dichlorvos), Raid, Neofos, Raptor, Combat, Prima-71, Armol and others.

Some concentrates of modern insecticides, in particular the so-called microencapsulated means are very effective and economical in application. Such concentrates are adapted to domestic use, diluted with plain water, after which the prepared solution is sprayed, for example, from a conventional spray bottle.

Examples of concentrated broad-spectrum drugs, positioned by manufacturers as microencapsulated: Xsulat Micro, Delta Zone, Lambda Zone, Get, Hangman, Kukaracha. The first four of these funds, in addition, are characterized by an almost complete absence of odor and show good results in the fight against insects in the country (wasps, hornets, garden ants, flies, etc.)

Microencapsulated products are often used by professional disinsection services. In cases where the unpleasant smell is not critical, Tetrix, Diazinon, Sinuzan and others will also be involved.

For insects that eat the remnants of food from the table of a person, insecticidal gels are used in the form of poisonous baits - they are effective in fighting cockroaches, wood lice, silverfish and domestic ants. For example, such gels as Globol, Exil, Clean House, Dohloks, Antitarakan, Absolute, Great Warrior, etc. are used.

As for insecticidal powders, which are also collectively called dusts, they, as a rule, are scattered in places of the greatest accumulation and possible occurrence of insects. For example, Koba powder, Pure House insect dust, Neopin have proven themselves well. Powders help to destroy not only cockroaches, but also fleas, ants, bed bugs (if there is a contact action in the insecticide).

Today insect pencils are also very popular - they rub the surfaces inside and outside the furniture, draw lines on the walls, floor and ceiling, door and window boxes. Among insecticidal pencils in Russia, the most famous, of course, is the chalk from cockroaches and bedbugs Masha.

On a note

Insecticidal soaps in the fight against insects in the apartment are used less frequently than other forms of drugs. For example, soap can be used when washing clothes infested with body lice. Best known dust soap and Green Soap.

More recently, Getpe Chlorpyrifos-based insecticidal soap for bed bugs has also appeared on the market.

When fighting with cockroaches or bedbugs in the house, permethrin smoke bombs can also have an excellent effect. (for example, Quiet Evening, City) - this method is not widely known, but its efficiency is comparable to the professional treatment of an apartment with the so-called cold fog, and at the same time it will cost almost five times cheaper. Insecticidal smoke, formed by a sword, evenly fills the whole room, destroying adult individuals and insect larvae even in the most secluded crevices and hard-to-reach places.

In addition, when dealing with domestic insects do not forget about the various types of traps, a classic example of which is sticky paper for flies. However, it should be borne in mind that the action of traps is usually stretched in time and cannot provide a quick effect in the fight against insects.

In residential premises, traps of the following types are used more often:

• Sticky (suspended against flies and food moths, as well as folding sticky traps for cockroaches and ants);
• Electric ("houses" against cockroaches, lamp against night butterflies and to fight against flying blood-sucking insects, including at the cottage).

With the right approach, some insect repellents can provide a good effect. Here, first of all, it is worth to distinguish borax, boric acid and dry chamomile powder (otherwise called pyrethrum powder - it contains natural pyrethroids).

 

The procedure for processing apartments from insects

In many cases, before cleaning the apartment it is useful to clean the room first. If you plan to spray the drug, then it is advisable to hermetically pack clothes, dishes, children's toys and other small things in plastic bags. Furniture is moved away from the walls, freeing access to the baseboards and sockets.Windows and doors tightly closed before starting treatment.

When processing the apartment should not be tenants and pets. Be sure to use personal protective equipment. Drugs should be used in accordance with the instructions.

Here are some typical processing errors:

• The drug does not smell, and therefore I will not use a respirator;
• Why dilute so much, it is better to make the solution harder, 10 times more concentrated than what is written in the instructions, then the effect will be better;
• What happens to a cat is not a cockroach;
• Why process it everywhere, because I see insects only in one corner - therefore I will process only there;
• Here I am treated the apartment from bedbugs, they really disappeared for a month, then small larvae appeared again - well, that means the preparation did not help, dummy, does not work.

Etc. In general, who in that much. There are a lot of mistakes in self-processing; however, if you follow the instructions for the corresponding drug, use personal protective equipment and study the process in advance (for example, on the Internet), then you can save yourself from 95% of possible problems.

During processing, all surfaces, including the floor, walls, ceiling, door and window frames, furniture and objects in the apartment are sprayed with the preparation. Particular care should be taken of the places of possible insect cover, as well as their paths and places of possible egg laying (in the case of bugs) - baseboards, corners, edges of the floor covering, various slots, furniture upholstery folds.

After two hours, and in some cases after two or three days, the apartment is aired and general cleaning is carried out with careful removal of dead insects. It should be borne in mind that if the pets will later eat the disoriented or already dead insects, they can get serious poisoning.

If poison baits are used (including with boric acid), they are laid out on the paths of insects and in places of possible shelter. The gel is applied here in the form of dashed lines. From time to time, the bait needs to be renewed, and the gel should be applied again, as it dries out over time and loses its appeal to cockroaches and ants.

 

Fighting insects on your own: what you need to know?

If the decision is made to carry out the fight against insects in the apartment on their own, then you need to take into account some nuances in advance.

First, once again, we need to take care of security. It is mandatory to use protective clothing, a gas mask or respirator, gloves. Remove from the premises of children and animals. Food can be taken in the treated room no earlier than after 8 hours.

Secondly, it is necessary to use those methods and preparations that will be effective precisely for the type of insects with which the room is infected. For example, it is useless to use poison baits to fight bloodsucking insects like bedbugs. To combat these parasites, it is better to use aerosols, sprays and powders.

When using sprays to destroy the moth it is also useful to handle the ceiling (it is often forgotten). Poisoned baits for cockroaches and ants should be placed on their paths (especially behind the stove, refrigerator, near the sink and trash can).

Thirdly, it is absolutely necessary to process all the cracks, corners and other shelters where insects can hide.Otherwise, the processing of the proper effect may not have, and after a couple of days the insects will reappear.

The use of folk remedies such as kerosene, gasoline, alcohol and denatured alcohol is generally better to give up, because otherwise it will be necessary to violate the elementary fire safety measures.

Self-control of insects in an apartment can indeed be effective with the proper and appropriate use of certain means, but it takes a lot of time and effort, requires some perseverance and certain skills. Sometimes it is better to call specialists.

 

Insect control forces disinsection services

In some cases, self-control of insects in the apartment still does not give the desired effect. So, the call of experts is often necessary:

• With a high degree of infection of the premises by insects (that is, when there are a lot of them);
• And also if self-processing, despite all efforts, for some reason does not give the desired result (these reasons are not always obvious);
• If there is not enough knowledge, self-reliance or the process of insect destruction is unpleasant;
• If in addition the neighbors' apartments are badly infected;
• If you want to save time and energy.

To call a disinsection team, it is enough to call the SES or a selected private firm, place an order and pay for the service. After clarification of the specifying details, the employees of the company set the day and time of their arrival.

The apartment must be prepared the same way as for self-processing. After checking the package of documents provided by the staff, the premises must be left at the specified time. Specialists will do all the necessary actions themselves. After receiving the work you need to check the availability of the warranty card, which may be necessary if you need re-processing. Then should be carried out in the general cleaning.

Feedback

“I am writing about my impressions using the hot mist bed bug etching method.” Expensive, but by 5 points. No repeated treatments were required, the insects died out the first time, and the next day we quietly cleaned. It smelled only at first, it disappeared the very next day and without any consequences. So I recommend. ”

Semyon B., Moscow

After the destruction of insects in the apartment is sometimes useful to take measures to prevent re-infection. For example, you can close the ventilation holes with a grid or a grid with small cells (this will help protect you from neighboring bedbugs and cockroaches), hang moth preparations in cabinets, periodically lubricate the box of entrance doors with tansy or wormwood (helps from so-called basement fleas).

Insecticide crayons and gels can be used for prophylactic application on baseboards, places behind furniture, refrigerators, etc. In the bathroom and toilet, you can put sticky traps to intercept the defectors from the neighbors in time. When buying food, you should always check them for the presence of moth larvae, and keep the apartment clean by regularly cleaning and avoiding littering.

If you have personal experience of successful (or not) insect control, then do not forget to leave your review at the bottom of this page - perhaps it will be useful to a considerable number of people and will be of benefit to them.

 

5 important rules for choosing a service for the destruction of insects

 

A rather original approach to fighting cockroaches in the house.