Get rid of cockroaches in an apartment using folk remedies

Insects in a house or apartment are a source of unsanitary conditions and problems. The first question when pests appear is “What to use to get them out?” Sometimes the use of chemicals is unacceptable for one reason or another.

Do not use acute insecticides if:

• There are children of primary school age in the apartment;
• Allergy to drug components in family members;
• Seriously ill people who cannot leave the premises;
• There is no one to house fish, reptiles or amphibians during disinfestation.

Folk remedies for cockroaches will get rid of insects or scare them away from the apartment. There are a large number of methods that have come down to us from time immemorial, some of them are effective (not like insecticides), others do not work. We will tell you about the most popular and effective folk remedies.

How to remove cockroaches using folk remedies

Folk remedies against cockroaches - essential oils

A good folk remedy for cockroaches that disorients insects in space is essential oil. The fact is that when a cockroach finds a source of water and food and leaves pheromones along its path, other individuals use this smell to find a place to live comfortably. A different scent will make them get lost and scare them away from their home.

The following essential oil is suitable as a folk remedy for cockroaches:

• Geranium;
• Vetiver;
• Eucalyptus;
• Melissa;
• Lemongrass.

Essential oil can be applied to surfaces with a regular cotton swab. But if you need to treat a large area, it is better to add oil to water.

Tips for using essential oil

• Try to treat as many surfaces as possible on which cockroaches could move.
• Especially carefully lubricate areas near water - bathtub, faucet, drains. The elements can be lubricated with clean oil.
• Pay attention to the trash can, this is where cockroaches go first.
• In places where it is impossible to lubricate the surface, place a piece of cotton wool soaked in essential oil.
• Be careful, essential oils in large quantities affect people's well-being.

About boric acid products

Effective ways to control cockroaches

Whiskered parasites are attracted to warmth, humidity, and the availability of food in the form of crumbs and remnants of human food. These insects have good adaptive abilities. Such parasites tend to settle even where there are no suitable conditions for them. Both a private and an apartment building can become a habitat for domestic insects. The best results in the fight against cockroaches are professional insecticides.

They kill cockroaches instantly and en masse or repel them with odors that are not detected by the human sense of smell. Such products are safe for the health of people and pets. The most toxic insecticides are prohibited for use where they live:

• preschool children;
• pregnant women;
• people suffering from individual intolerance to chemical components;
• old people and disabled people.

Folk remedies made from natural and completely safe ingredients will help you get rid of cockroaches.

Household parasites multiply intensively in unsanitary conditions. Constantly maintaining cleanliness in the apartment is a sure way to prevent the appearance of cockroaches and reduce their population.

Freezing

This extreme method is suitable for non-residential premises and gives a temporary effect. Cockroaches do not tolerate low temperatures well. Once the optimal climate balance is restored, there is a high probability of re-infestation by domestic parasites. Such a plan can only be implemented in winter. To create a temperature shock in a residential apartment, you must perform the following steps:

1. Turn off heating devices.
2. Open the windows wide.
3. Leave your home for 4-5 hours.

Attention! Radiator pipes need to be protected with thermal insulation. A sudden change in temperature can cause them to burst. Care should be taken to preserve indoor plants that will not withstand such thermal effects.

In this way, you can not only remove adult individuals, but also destroy the larvae. The method will only take effect when the temperature drops to -10°C. Parasitic insects will have their life processes slowed down and eventually die. This temperature should be created throughout the entire apartment. Otherwise, “stasiks” will begin to concentrate in warm places.

Duct tape

The manufacture of simple traps is considered a folk remedy. You can fight cockroaches using double-sided tape. It is glued onto a piece of cardboard or other dense material with a flat surface. Any sweet bait, for example, a drop of jam, jelly or honey, is placed in the center of the sticky trap. The more such simple designs there are, the higher the chances of significantly reducing the number of domestic parasites.

Homemade traps

There are other types of homemade traps. They allow you to successfully fight cockroaches in your apartment. Such designs have no restrictions on use. Homemade traps for domestic parasites are safe to use in homes where there are small children and pets. You can make a trap from a plastic bottle.

Insects will not be able to get out of it. The simplest traps for cockroaches based on honey or beer - products adored by domestic parasites - give good results. Such traps can be made from a tin or glass jar, as well as a bowl with oiled sides. Use as bait:

• bread crumbs;
• sugar crystals;
• sweet paste:
• leftovers of any food.

House parasites are omnivores. Trapped cockroaches can be killed using boiling water. Such methods cannot be called a radical solution to the problem. After some time, the cockroaches will breed again.

Application of essential oils

Household insects cannot tolerate strong and persistent plant odors. Essential oils are distinguished by precisely these aromatic properties. Their rich smell repels domestic parasites. Thanks to this, essential oils are an effective means of fighting cockroaches. They are able to quickly expel domestic parasites from residential areas.

Use:

• geranium;
• mint;
• lemon;
• eucalyptus;
• cedar;
• lemon balm;

Attention! Essential oils have an exceptionally repellent effect on cockroaches. It is recommended to use them in combination with poisonous baits.

A few drops of essential oil are added to the water. The resulting solution is used to treat areas where domestic parasites accumulate and the points of their entry into the home - the ventilation shaft, all kinds of cracks. The composition is sprayed with a spray bottle and applied with a rag or sponge. For better effect, add a few drops of acetic acid.

The recipe for preparing a repellent solution is as follows:

1. Pour 15 drops of essential oil into a liter of cool water.
2. Extracts of mint, eucalyptus, lavender, fir, and lemon balm are used.
3. Carefully treat areas where domestic parasites are concentrated.
4. The procedure is repeated many times until the pests are removed from the residential area.

On a note! If you have family members who suffer from allergic reactions, you must first make sure that the body accepts the essential oil used normally.

Ammonia

Acrid odors repel pests, including cockroaches. Ammonia is an effective means of getting rid of domestic parasites. A few drops of the substance are diluted in a bucket of water. The solution is used to wash floors and wipe kitchen surfaces where cockroaches are concentrated. The procedure should be repeated twice. The second time - after drying. In this way, you can temporarily eradicate domestic parasites.

Borax for cockroaches

The sodium salt of boric acid, called borax, acts similarly to ammonia. Poison for domestic parasites is prepared from the following ingredients:

• 200 gr. borax;
• 60 grams of powdered sugar;
• 30 gr. vanilla;
• 60 grams of potato starch.

The components are mixed, rolled into small balls and placed in places where cockroaches are concentrated at night. Based on borax, you can prepare another poison for domestic parasites. One tablespoon of a toxic product is mixed with potatoes and a hard-boiled egg. The operating principle of the resulting bait is similar.

How to remove cockroaches by freezing

For cockroaches, lowering the temperature to -8-10°C is detrimental. This method allows you to completely get rid of insects and their larvae. But it is not suitable for everyone. In an apartment, freezing threatens to rupture heating and water pipes. And for industrial premises, houses and cottages - this is an ideal option. Know that cockroaches will hide from the cold wherever they can, so it would be good to cool the room for several hours and, if possible, take the furniture out into the cold. Such an event can only be carried out in winter. This method has many disadvantages, but if everything is done correctly, one hundred percent results are guaranteed.

Methods for removing cockroaches from the house

Catching cockroaches one at a time and destroying them with a blow from a newspaper or slipper is an extremely ineffective strategy. To remove large black cockroaches or small red insects, it is necessary to act on the entire colony and not allow the parasites to multiply. To achieve this goal, several methods are practiced.

• Etching. In this case, obviously poisonous food remains are placed on the cockroaches or problem areas of the apartment are treated with toxic agents with a pungent odor. Cockroaches eat the poison or inhale toxic fumes, after which they quickly die. In general, the method is considered effective, but it has a drawback - only those insects that come into direct contact with the poison die. Other cockroaches remain alive and can reproduce successfully.
• Freezing - parasites cannot tolerate low temperatures, so they can be removed using extreme ventilation of the room. The disadvantages of this method include the fact that it can only be used in winter, and besides, not only insects, but also communications and indoor flowers can suffer from a decrease in temperature.
• Treating the premises with insecticides - in this case, toxic substances make it possible to remove not only insects that have come into direct contact with the toxin, but also their relatives, which the cockroaches subsequently successfully infect. The method is very effective because it helps to remove the entire colony, but it may require a temporary move from the apartment, at least for a couple of days.

Recommended reading: How to clean mink fur at home

To remove parasites from an apartment with minimal effort and time, it is worth familiarizing yourself with all existing methods.

Folk remedies for cockroaches with boric acid and borax

One of the once popular folk remedies against cockroaches is boric acid and its derivative, borax. Any of these substances, even in small proportions, causes inevitable death in the cockroach. But there is one condition if they don't find water. Even a drop of water will save their life, so before using this product, make sure that there is no moisture anywhere in the open.

• Boric acid or borax can be sprinkled in pure form, behind baseboards and in corners.
• This folk remedy is dissolved in water and all surfaces are washed. Since the substance is not toxic to humans, it is suitable for use in the kitchen.
• In order for the product to work for sure, boric acid is added to the bait so that the cockroach eats the poison. The substance can be mixed with flour, sugar, potatoes, egg yolk and bread. Place the prepared balls near the trash can, under the bathtub and sink, in the dark corners of the room.

Reviews

Galina: You cannot succeed in the fight against cockroaches while the apartment is dirty. Various crumbs and specks, unwashed dishes - what insects love. Therefore, put things in order, and then any remedy will have an effect.

Natalya: From time to time I use vinegar for cleaning - it is poison for cockroaches, and no poison is needed. I treat all surfaces in the house with the solution. There are no cockroaches, no fleas, no ants. I hope my review will help you in the fight against parasites.

Semyon: Our method of struggle is quite simple: my wife simply spread geraniums. In each room there are several pots of different types - it’s beautiful and there are no cockroaches.

Homemade cockroach traps

Traps for catching cockroaches have been used for a long time. They are easy to make and you will be able to get rid of a small part of the insects. Regular tape is used as an adhesive trap; in the middle of the strip you need to drop some jam or honey. The surface of the tape is not too sticky, but some individuals will remain glued. Another simple trap is made from a small jar. Spread the inside of its neck and two centimeters wide walls with vegetable oil. Also drop some food bait (honey, beer, onion) inside; the cockroaches will get inside the jar, and the oil will prevent them from crawling back out. Periodically throw insects down the drain and set a new trap. Be prepared for the fact that a bunch of cockroaches in a jar is not a sight for the faint of heart.

More folk remedies for cockroaches at home

• Cockroaches do not like the smell of ammonia. If you are ready to tolerate this aroma, add one spoon of alcohol to a bucket of water and wash the floors with this solution.
• Pyrethrum powder is safe for humans as it is Dolmatian chamomile. Fresh powder should be scattered in places where insects accumulate at the rate of two grams per square meter of area. Pyrethrum is also added to food poisoning baits.
• Cockroaches will leave an apartment that smells of turpentine, kerosene or alcohol. Apply the product with a brush to the baseboards, in the corners, behind the furniture. You will have to endure the lingering aromas, but the insects will immediately leave your home.
• Mix alabaster and flour, sprinkle on the baseboards, near the trash can. The cockroach will eat the bait, the alabaster will harden, and the insect will die.
• Fresh peelings of cucumbers emit aldehyde, which is very unpleasant for cockroaches. But it will take a lot of cleaning and it’s not very aesthetically pleasing.
• The Prussians are repelled by the smell of bay leaves, rye stalks, elderberry flowers and geraniums.

Folk remedies for cockroaches are not as effective as chemical remedies. But if there is no way out, use them correctly, not only where a large number of cockroaches live, but also in places where they move. Do not forget about preventive measures and act together with your neighbors. This is the only way to get rid of insects for sure.

Where do cockroaches come from in an apartment?

Contrary to stereotypes, cockroaches can appear not only in an unkempt, dirty home, but also in a clean, tidy apartment. There are several main reasons for their appearance.

• Migration from neighbors. If people live next door who do not take care of home cleanliness, and parasites breed in their apartment, then sooner or later all the other residents on the floor will encounter unwanted guests, cockroaches will run from apartment to apartment through opening doors. Sometimes insects can migrate through ventilation holes, cracks in walls, and adjacent balconies.
• Migration from a garbage disposal or basement. Especially often, residents of the 1st and 2nd floors suffer from parasites; if utility services do not maintain cleanliness and order well, the proliferation of insects among sewage and garbage becomes inevitable.
• With purchases and parcels. You can accidentally bring cockroaches into your home along with newly purchased household furniture or appliances if the insects are found in the store and get into the goods. Sometimes parasites can even travel from country to country along with sealed parcels.

Thus, cockroaches can accidentally get into absolutely any apartment. But at the same time, it depends on the owners themselves how quickly and abundantly the insects will breed around the house and how easy it will be to remove them.

• The main condition for cockroaches to reproduce is access to water and food debris. Parasites are extremely unpretentious and can survive by feeding on crumbs, rotten garbage, low-quality food, microscopic food particles in the sink and on the table. In this case, it is enough for food waste to appear in open places at least from time to time - parasites do not need to eat every day; they can easily go without food for several weeks.
• Warm temperatures in the apartment and the presence of many secluded corners behind furniture and baseboards also contribute to the proliferation of parasites. The more cluttered the room is, the more difficult it is to control the appearance of colonies and remove them in a timely manner, since insects hide in hard-to-reach places and lay their eggs there.

Important! In general, insects can appear in absolutely any apartment, but it will be easier to remove them from a clean and neatly tidied home than from a room in which there is unsanitary conditions.