The fight against cockroaches has been going on for centuries. During this time, people were able to thoroughly study the habits, food preferences, physiological characteristics and nuances of reproduction of nimble insects. Many effective chemicals have been invented and tested. Along with them, stores offer a wide selection of catching devices for Prussians. But don't rush to empty your wallet. A trap for cockroaches can easily be made with your own hands from available materials. A device made at home will perform its function no worse than the industrial version of traps.
How effective are homemade devices?
Cockroach traps are an ideal option for ardent opponents of using any poison in your home. Naturalness and safety are the main advantages of such devices. Another important advantage is accessibility and cost savings. After all, almost all the components for making self-propelled guns can literally be at hand.
As for effectiveness, there is no hope for the complete destruction of the entire population of cockroaches that have settled in the apartment. But it is quite possible to mow down rows of pests scurrying around the kitchen or closet. The number of individuals caught is influenced by the following factors;
- the size of the colony;
- availability of additional power sources;
- the selected location for installing the catching device.
DIY cockroach traps
On a note!
In addition to the fact that the trap helps to catch a cockroach at home, it also acts as a kind of marker that allows you to determine the presence of pests in the house and the extent of the infestation.
A homemade cockroach trap also has a number of disadvantages:
- the homemade device looks unpresentable and it is doubtful that it will fit harmoniously into any interior;
- caught individuals have to be disposed of and not everyone will like to kill swarming half-dead cockroaches.
Cockroach trap made from duct tape
A trap made from adhesive tape is quite simple to make; to make it you will need adhesive tape, it must be recently made so that the adhesive substances in its base do not harden and lose their properties, otherwise the cockroach will simply run through, eat the bait and run away satisfied into the lair.
The location for placing the bait must be considered in advance so that after installing the trap you do not have to worry about moving it to a more suitable place where there is a large concentration of cockroaches. If you doubt the effectiveness of the adhesive tape, you can coat it with a thin layer of viscous glue for greater reliability. You can use an alternative to adhesive tape, but you should make sure that it is reliable (sticky); regular tape will not work (cockroaches will run on it). For greater convenience, you can install the trap on cardboard or a thin board.
Choosing bait for cockroaches
To catch a cockroach at home, you need not only an effective trap, but also a good bait that will not leave small pests indifferent. Sweets and fruits are suitable as bait, the main thing is that there is a strong aroma, then the cockroach will not be able to resist the temptation and will try to get to the bait and fall into a trap from which it will not be able to get out. You can use a small piece of onion or a small strip of banana as bait. The bait should be placed in the middle of the trap to ensure that the cockroach sticks.
If you want cockroaches to die immediately after contact with the adhesive tape, you can use anti-cockroach gels. They should be spread in small strips so that the insect does not run away on it.
The trap should be placed in the kitchen in dark corners where cockroaches often hide. The trap should be left in the kitchen for a day. When you remove the sticky tape, there will be cockroaches stuck to it; you can throw them in a bag along with the tape, tie them up and throw them in the trash, or take them away from the house and shake them out on the street.
Do-it-yourself cockroach trap from a jar
To make a trap, you will need a half-liter jar; it should be wrapped in sticky paper or something similar so that the cockroaches can climb inside and place a small object next to the jar, preferably matching the height of the jar, to make the task easier for the cockroaches.
Lubricate the inside of the jar with Vaseline or anti-cockroach gel to make the surface more slippery and the cockroach cannot get out of the jar, but the lubricant should be applied 3-5 centimeters from the neck.
Place a fragrant bait at the bottom of the container so that the insect smells the smell and quickly falls into the trap. You can use beer, wine, fruit juices as bait; they will attract pests. You should pour no more than a few centimeters, the main thing is that it is enough for the cockroach to drown.
The trap should be installed in a place where cockroaches gather; usually the kitchen is where most of the cockroaches live. It is better to place the trap in a closet or on the floor in a dark place. It is recommended to remove all water from the kitchen so that insects wander in search of water.
The jar should be left for several days to catch more insects, then pour boiling water into the jar so that the cockroaches are cooked and pour the contents of the jar into the toilet. Then you should put a new bait in the jar and repeat the procedure with catching cockroaches until they are completely destroyed. Catching cockroaches at home does not take much time and gives good results, and most importantly, it is completely free and safe for others, which cannot be said about modern insect repellents.
How to catch a cockroach in a bottle?
The method is similar in application to the jar trap. For the trap you will need an almost empty bottle of wine or beer; it is necessary that a few grams of the drink remain at the bottom of the bottle. You can add a spoonful of sugar to the bottle to attract a cockroach. Instead of alcohol, you can pour juice into a bottle or throw in aromatic fruit.
To make the task easier for cockroaches, you can wrap the bottle with a towel or something similar so that the insects can easily get to the neck of the bottle.
The inside of the bottle should be greased with vegetable oil; you can smear your finger with oil and spread it over the bottle. The slippery inside of the bottle will prevent the cockroach from getting out of it.
The bottle should be placed in the kitchen in an area where cockroaches have been observed. The smell will attract insects, and they will fall into a trap from which they will not be able to escape. The trap should be checked every few days and the cockroach bait should be changed. In the same way as with a jar, pour boiling water into the bottle and flush the contents down the toilet. You can place multiple traps to speed up the process of catching cockroaches at home.
Jars for catching insects
Glass jar trap Glass jars are a universal container.
They store food, use it for preservation, and use it to control insects. At home, a jar trap is the easiest way to catch the ubiquitous cockroach without spending effort or money. To make it you will need a 2 or 3 liter bottle. Containers with a smaller capacity will not be suitable, since the Prussians will be able to get out of them. How to make a cockroach trap from a jar:
- Grease the inner walls of a three-liter jar with any fat. The easiest way to do this is with a brush. As a fatty base that will not allow pests to escape from the trap, you can use the most ordinary vegetable oil.
- Place bait on the bottom. Almost any food product is suitable for these purposes: bread crumbs, small pieces of fish or liver, confectionery. But according to observations, the best bait for cockroaches is beer. The Prussians cannot remain indifferent to its smell and will definitely fall into a trap.
- The peak activity of baleen insects occurs at night. Therefore, in the morning it is necessary to inspect the trap and decide what to do with the prisoners. You can, of course, watch them for a while, make sure that a cockroach tipped over on its back cannot turn over on its own, or pour hot water into a jar and pour the contents into the toilet.
On a note!
Some craftsmen recommend attaching sticks to the jar, which will serve as ladders. But there is no need to bother yourself with unnecessary body movements. Cockroaches move well on vertical surfaces and can easily climb into a bottle without additional equipment.
Not only jars, but also other containers can be used as containers for making traps at home. Plastic bottles are suitable for these purposes. If there is an empty container of sunflower oil left, then you just need to cut off the neck, add bait to it, and the trap for cockroaches is ready. For a big catch, you can use a bucket.
Recipe No. 1
Ingredients:
- raw egg yolk;
- 2 tablespoons sugar;
- 40 g boric acid.
How to prepare and use:
Mix all the ingredients. If it turns out too thick, you can add a little water. Otherwise, add a pinch of flour. When the required consistency is obtained, form balls. The diameter should be no more than half a centimeter. The resulting poisoned baits are laid out on stands made of sheets of paper or lids in places where pests were most often seen.
Result:
At night, parasites go in search of food, eat poisonous treats and become fatally poisoned.
Sticky designs
Sticky traps against Germans Traps with a sticky adhesive coating fix the German and hold it firmly. Such devices are not suitable for reusable use and must be replaced as insects adhere. There are several ways to make a trap for cockroaches:
- The most primitive and less labor-intensive option is sticky tape against cockroaches. A sheet of cardboard is placed on double-sided tape, covered with long-drying glue on top, and food bait is placed in the center. Hardware stores sell special glue for insects, which already has added fragrances to attract pests. You can use it.
- A more complex design involves the production of cardboard boxes, on the inner walls of which adhesive mass and bait are applied. For greater efficiency, boric acid is added to it. Having tasted such a meal, the insect has practically no chance of survival, even if it manages to get out into the wild.
- Also, to reduce the number of cockroaches in heavily infested areas, ordinary adhesive tape is used, which is often hung for flies. It must be placed near sources of moisture and food, where Prussians usually come to fish.
EG euroguard (Euroguard) insecticidal traps for cockroaches and ants
The EG euroguard insecticidal trap consists of an attractive bait that is effective for 6 months. The maximum effect can be noticed after two weeks of use. The design of the trap is safe for humans and pets in the house. The active ingredients do not emit toxic fumes and do not emit odor. After contact with the bait, the cockroach becomes a carrier of poison and, after returning to its habitat, dies, infecting up to 50 individuals.
Recommended for use in:
- residential premises;
- children's institutions;
- production areas;
- medical institutions.
You can purchase insecticides in the form of traps and houses for cockroaches in our specialized store. The products undergo the required quality control and will help ensure effective protection of any home. The product is safe for humans, but has a damaging effect on insects.
Features of using traps at home
Using traps at home In order for a cockroach trap to be most effective, it is necessary to eliminate all sources where individuals could profit. The only treat that should be available to them is the bait placed in the trap. It is desirable that it has a distinct smell: unfiltered beer, fermented kefir, cocoa, liver.
Industrial traps
The market offers a variety of traps. Most of them are a housing with an insecticidal bait hidden inside. These traps are harmless to people and pets and are easy to use. Cockroaches that have tried the insecticide manage to return to their relatives and poison them.
The traps remain in effect until the bait is eaten or dries out, becoming unattractive to cockroaches. The following received positive consumer reviews:
- "Raptor". A round plastic body with holes hides the bait inside. Chlorpyrifos, which is part of the composition, paralyzes the insect, causing suffocation. This is a delayed-action remedy; the cockroach dies after half an hour, having managed to bring the poison to the nest.
- "Raid". The bait contains abamectin, which sterilizes and kills insects. The population dies out, unable to reproduce.
- "Combat". The new generation insecticide hydromethylnon is not addictive and destroys adults and offspring.
Glue-action traps, electric and ultrasonic, are produced.
Preparing the room before wallpapering
To effectively get rid of baleen insects, you need to prepare the walls before gluing the wallpaper.
- We remove the old wallpaper and immediately throw it away, as there may be unwanted “neighbors” lurking there.
- We get rid of adhesive paints and lagging layers of whitewash.
- Get rid of all debris in the room, wipe the floor and walls from dust with detergent.
- Fill all cracks and holes in the walls.
- Cover or foam all technical cracks that appeared during repairs.
- The walls should be treated with a solution of 72% laundry soap, soda and water. Laundry soap should be grated on a coarse grater, mixed with a spoon of soda and a liter of water. Use this solution to thoroughly wipe the walls and joints. After the walls have completely dried, you can begin gluing wallpaper.
Fighting cockroaches
Methods of fighting cockroaches are becoming more sophisticated and effective every year. Insecticide production companies are constantly improving the composition of their products in order to destroy pests as quickly as possible and without harm to humans. All manufacturers of cockroach repellents claim that their product is the best and is a panacea for pests.
Let's take a detailed look at all the methods of fighting cockroaches and see if they are as good as the manufacturers claim, since cockroaches are very tenacious creatures and are able to adapt to various conditions. Most poisons have no effect on Prussians, and they reproduce quite calmly and do not pay attention to the poisonous traps laid out.
Preparing the apartment
To start poisoning Prussians, you must first prepare and create conditions in the apartment that will no longer attract pests, then the effectiveness of the chosen means for combating cockroaches will be much higher.
What attracts cockroaches to an apartment?
At home, cockroaches receive unlimited access to food and water, and the optimal temperature for the life and reproduction of pests is constantly maintained in homes. First, you should begin to restore cleanliness and order; after eating, you need to wash the dishes immediately, and not leave them for later, as many people like to do. A few crumbs of bread left on the table can provide food for hundreds of cockroaches, so you should wipe the table frequently. Wet cleaning in the kitchen should be carried out at least once every 3 days.
All products must be well hidden in places where the pest cannot get into, for example, the refrigerator. A cockroach can live without food for up to two months thanks to a unique system that allows it to regulate metabolic processes in the body. But there is good news, without water, pests die within 10 days, for this reason it is necessary to hide not only food, but also water and wipe the dishwasher dry before going to bed.
You should seal all the cracks through which cockroaches can enter the house, pay attention to holes in the walls where pipes pass, and if you notice a small hole, try to cover it. The most favorite way for cockroaches to move in multi-story buildings is the ventilation hole; there should be a mesh in it to prevent them from entering your home.
If all recommended measures are followed, cockroaches may leave your apartment even without the use of insecticides, but in most cases, such preparation has a positive effect on the outcome of the battle with cockroaches.
How to poison cockroaches
Modern means for controlling cockroaches are presented in various forms, which allows you to choose a more suitable means for exterminating cockroaches at home. The products that can be found on the market come in the form of aerosols, gels, traps and crayons. Also, the destruction of pests can be carried out using traditional methods, which have low toxicity and in many cases cope well with the task.
Cockroach crayons
The most common option for exterminating cockroaches at home in the last decade. Killing cockroaches using crayons is a fairly simple task that does not require any special skills. It is enough to identify places where insects accumulate and try to circle with chalk all the places where cockroaches run.
Usually chalk is used to deter cockroaches around baseboards, cabinets, radiators and window sills in the kitchen; you can apply chalk along the outside of the bathtub.
The crayons are safe for people and animals, and their cost is very low. Eliminating cockroaches using crayons can take several months; if there are too many pests, it is recommended to update the lines every few weeks.
The chalk is 98% gypsum and chalk and only 2% insecticide. Chalk serves to better secure toxic substances on various surfaces.
Gels for cockroaches
The most effective drugs, according to many people who got rid of pests with these means. Gels are sold in syringes or tubes; they are convenient to squeeze out and apply to surfaces where cockroaches often run.
How to fight cockroaches using gel? They are applied in dotted lines, at a distance of 2 every 2 cm, or in small dots. Gel is the best option because it has low toxicity for people and animals and is more effective than crayons. The most common gels are:
- Global;
- Raptor;
- Absolute;
- Brownie;
- Dohlox.
Cockroach traps
Traps come in different types and differ in their operating principles. The simplest traps are made from cardboard and a sticky substance applied, which allows the cockroach to be firmly glued. A cockroach stuck to the trap has no chance of escaping, and all you have to do is throw away the trap with the caught pests. Such measures will help get rid of a small number of pests, and in case of severe infestation of the apartment by insects, more effective means should be used. The advantage of such traps is that they are completely safe to use indoors with children.
There are also poisoned traps, they have a more pronounced effect and several of these traps can destroy all cockroaches. Traps have the shape of a small square or circle with small holes located through which pests penetrate the smell of the bait. A cockroach that has tasted the bait becomes infected and dies within a few days, but once infected, the pest is able to transfer a particle of the insecticide to other pests, which will also die later.
How to fight cockroaches using poison traps? They should be placed in the kitchen, bathroom, toilet and pantry; the traps have Velcro that allows them to be glued in any place.
Thanks to the closed body, the trap is safe for pets and small children.
Aerosols
Such products are sold in pressure cans; when sprayed, the substance penetrates into all crevices and destroys even the most cowardly pests that tried to hide away.
How to fight cockroaches using aerosols? Before use, read the instructions written on the can and prepare the room. To effectively poison cockroaches, you should move furniture away from the walls and hide things and food so that the insecticide does not get on them.
Before treatment, remove people and animals from your home and wear a respirator. Shake well, spray the can and start spraying, paying special attention to remote and dark places. After treating all rooms, close the windows and doors to the room and leave it for several hours so that the insecticide has maximum effect on pests. Then you need to open the windows and leave the room to ventilate for several hours. Although manufacturers of insecticides assure that they are safe, it is better to ventilate the apartment a little longer.
Aerosols can effectively poison cockroaches when their number exceeds 500. The advantage of this product is its high effectiveness against pests; the aerosol, when sprayed, penetrates with the air throughout the room and the cockroaches inhale the poisoned oxygen.
There are several types of aerosols, some destroy pests immediately, but cockroaches that were in a cocoon may survive and will have to repeat the procedure after a few weeks. The second type of aerosol acts slowly and destroys insects within a few weeks, but hatched cockroaches will die after disinfestation.
Then you can take a rag and a bucket of water and do a wet cleaning to remove excess insecticides.
Pest control services
Calling specialists is the best option for busy people; they will come and determine the degree of infestation of the room and the places where cockroaches may be hiding. Professionals use specialized equipment and insecticides that kill cockroaches much faster.
After the disinfestation is completed, you should leave the room with the windows closed for the time specified by the experts; after the time has elapsed, you should ventilate the room for several hours, and then do a wet cleaning without using detergents.
Most cockroach extermination companies provide a guarantee for a certain period of time and, if pests appear, they will re-disinfest for free.
Traditional methods of fighting cockroaches
Folk methods were passed down from generation to generation and performed the task well.
Baits with boric acid
Boric acid is the most common method of fighting cockroaches among people. It is safe for others, has no odor, costs pennies and kills cockroaches. Boric acid can be purchased at any pharmacy; previously it was often used for disinfection by dissolving in water.
To prepare the bait, you will need an egg yolk, a spoonful of boric acid and flour; all ingredients should be mixed well until a dense, homogeneous mass can be formed into small balls. You can add sugar or flavoring to the resulting dough to further attract cockroaches. The resulting bait should be placed in the dark corners of the room.
Boric acid can be used without adding various components, simply sprinkled in a thin line on the floor where pests are often found. For the acid to affect the pest, it must eat it, so pure powder will be less effective.
Dust from cockroaches
It can also be classified as a folk method of fighting cockroaches; it was used to poison pests back in Soviet times. Nowadays the dust is sold under the name “clean house” and has a pungent odor. It should be poured in different parts of the apartment, like boric acid. After applying the dust, you should leave the room for 24 hours, after which it is good to remove all remaining powder.
Basics of drug use
It is a well-known fact that cockroaches pose a danger to humans. They can travel through the sewer and then get onto food and spread the infection. Before exterminating harmful insects, it is necessary to assess their main locations and identify the “paths” along which they move. Prussians are thermophilic and love places with high humidity. Previously, in Rus' there was a method of combating these insects in the winter cold. On a frosty day, they opened the doors and windows of the house wide and waited for a while. Cockroaches cannot tolerate temperatures below -5 degrees. Therefore, in the cold they quickly die. Now, thanks to an effective drug, you don’t have to resort to such a radical method.
The processing procedure begins with careful study of the instructions for use. Then the drug is applied to the main “paths” of insects and the places where they are most concentrated. It is necessary to treat surfaces next to the garbage container, kitchen furniture, partitions between rooms, and baseboards. You can use a dry powder mixture or prepare an aqueous solution of Pyrethrum. The resulting solution must be sprayed into the room. It is worth remembering that it is better not to treat polished and nickel-plated surfaces due to the high probability of their damage.
