Getting Rid Of Cockroaches?

[Stubby]

Hi Folks

I’ve got a little problem with cockroaches this past couple of weeks, although I’ve read that those you see is just tiny number compared to how many there will be nesting in the shadows .

I have seen big cans of spray sold in the supermarkets, but that involves creeping around at night, in the dark, catching the little buggers as they come out to scavenge. So I was wondering if there is anything to buy somewhere that can be put in place and left to work its magic while we sleep?

Thanks

Stubby

[burgerqueen]

Place bottle caps with a mix of sugar and sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) at strategic spots.

The sugar will attract them, the baking soda will bloat them to death.

Dispose of the corpses,

[lional6]

This is the best I have found, its Chinese.

[crazykopite]

40 years ago cockroaches in kitchens were the best thing since sliced bread at night they would come out and get into the crevises of the wood tables that food was prepared on they would eat there way through all the crap that the human eye could not see, along came the stainless steel tables and overnight the mighty cockroach became the number one enemy in the kitchen mix some sugar and bi carb in water to make a paste and leave out that should do the trick however if you do come across one never stand on it as if it is female you could be releasing many eggs that the human eye does not see Good Luck !!!!

[eyecatcher]

I use a small "red disc" about 2 inc diameter, made by canbic.

get it from tesco/big c 2 in a pack for around 40bt, one will last for months indoors, not as long outdoors if it gets wet.

peel the edge off and they poke their noses into the poison

shove them under your units along the skirtings where they like to walk.

in the morning they wil be on their backs dead or trying to turn over.

very effective

my fish love to play with a half dead one.

[CMSteve]

I know this is not going to sound good but,... maybe a good cleaning so they aren't attracted to your place?

[FolkGuitar]

Plain old boric acid, the stuff you soak your tired feet in after a hard day as a mail man, or make a cold compress for tired eyes, is the number one killer for cockroaches. It costs pennies per pound and one treatment will last for years. It is safe for pets and children, and keeps on killing more and more roaches as time goes on. Roaches don't even have to eat the stuff! Just walking over it will do the job. But it doesn't kill them quickly... They have time to get back to their nest and die, where other roaches eat them and die, and so on and so on!!

Years ago there was a big scandal in Harlem, in New York. Some guy was selling this fantastic roach powder that actually got rid of roaches in the tennement buildings. He was selling tins of this fantastic powder for about $40 for a can about the size of a baby powder bottle. People were buying it left and right because it really worked, and the guy was making a mint. Then some company chemist analyzed the stuff and discovered it was plain boric acid. You can buy it in any drug store for next to nothing!

Two ways to use it... In Japan they make little 'cookies' out of it by mixing it with grated onion and potato, and a bit of water, letting it dry out and harden, then placing them behind or under the fridge, in the back of cabinets, closets, etc.

But a much more effective way, and one that works faster, is to put the boric acid powder into a ketchup squirter bottle and spray the powder behind cabinets, in back of closets, under the sinks, etc., etc. and into cracks and crevices. With the 'cookies,' the roaches have to eat some to make it work. With just the plain powder, walking through it get the job done. Absolutely no more roaches in just a couple of weeks.

I've used this in every place I've ever lived... I really hate cockroaches... and never have a problem with them, even when neighbors do.

Edited August 8, 2012 by FolkGuitar

[FolkGuitar]

I know this is not going to sound good but,... maybe a good cleaning so they aren't attracted to your place?

Oddly enough, that doesn't really help as much as you'd imagine. (Of course, it certainly doesn't hurt!) A cockroach and live for a month on the glue on the back of a postage stamp. They don't need 'human' food either. Dead bugs, sloughed off skin (like dandruff,) piece of bird feather, mouse hair, etc.... It doesn't take much to make a roach happy. If an area gets damp and stays damp for a prolonged period (like a few weeks,) roaches will move in and WILL find food to eat, even in the cleanest places. This is a big problem after a house fire. Rebuild after the fire damage, but suddenly you have cockroaches around!

[elektrified]

Plain old boric acid, the stuff you soak your tired feet in after a hard day as a mail man, or make a cold compress for tired eyes, is the number one killer for cockroaches. It costs pennies per pound and one treatment will last for years. It is safe for pets and children, and keeps on killing more and more roaches as time goes on. Roaches don't even have to eat the stuff! Just walking over it will do the job. But it doesn't kill them quickly... They have time to get back to their nest and die, where other roaches eat them and die, and so on and so on!!

Years ago there was a big scandal in Harlem, in New York. Some guy was selling this fantastic roach powder that actually got rid of roaches in the tennement buildings. He was selling tins of this fantastic powder for about $40 for a can about the size of a baby powder bottle. People were buying it left and right because it really worked, and the guy was making a mint. Then some company chemist analyzed the stuff and discovered it was plain boric acid. You can buy it in any drug store for next to nothing!

Two ways to use it... In Japan they make little 'cookies' out of it by mixing it with grated onion and potato, and a bit of water, letting it dry out and harden, then placing them behind or under the fridge, in the back of cabinets, closets, etc.

But a much more effective way, and one that works faster, is to put the boric acid powder into a ketchup squirter bottle and spray the powder behind cabinets, in back of closets, under the sinks, etc., etc. and into cracks and crevices. With the 'cookies,' the roaches have to eat some to make it work. With just the plain powder, walking through it get the job done. Absolutely no more roaches in just a couple of weeks.

I've used this in every place I've ever lived... I really hate cockroaches... and never have a problem with them, even when neighbors do.

We recently have the same problem. Lots of cockroaches. I hate them too. We also have a child and pets so chemicals in the house are not an option. Do any of the members know where in C.M. they sell Boric Acid and perhaps what they call it in Thai?

Thanks!

[Wavefloater]

FolkGuitar and others mentioned using boric acid as an effective solution to the problem. The same was said in a previous discussion about getting rid of those little red ants that quickly find sweet food and meat in our homes here in Thailand. Of course, the biggest problem with the red ants is that they also find their way into our clothes, beds, and towels sometimes, where they deliver an annoying burning-itching bite (sting?). It seems that the main problem with the boric acid approach is simply finding it here in Thailand. I rarely see roaches, but the ants are definitely a problem, so I would love to find a source for boric acid (borax?).

I see this is in the Chiang Mai section of the forum. I live near Pattaya and finding a place to purchase it here would be ideal, but if anybody has found a source anywhere in Thailand, could you please let us know. I tried to find the original post about using it for red ants, but I never seem to have any luck with the TVF search.

Edited August 8, 2012 by Wavefloater

[FolkGuitar]

Boric acid is sold by virtually every decent drug store in the world. It is NOT a difficult item to find but you might need to know the Thai name for it at some drug stores. For those who can't find drug stores, there are at least three chemical supply companies in Chiang Mai; two on Suthep Rd, on the same side as Wat Suan Dok, (one about one block east and another about 2-3 blocks east,) and another on the north side of Old City, facing the moat. The chemical supply houses will call it Boric Acid.

Boric acid can be used as an antiseptic for minor burns or cuts and is sometimes used in dressings or salves. Boric acid is applied in a very dilute solution as an eye wash. Dilute boric acid can be used as a vaginal douche to treat bacterial vaginosis due to excessive alkalinity.^[14] As an anti-bacterial compound, boric acid can also be used as an acne treatment. It is also used as prevention of athlete's foot, by inserting powder in the socks or stockings, and in solution can be used to treat some kinds of otitis externa (ear infection) in both humans and animals. The preservative in urine sample bottles (red cap) in the UK is boric acid.

It is toxic if taken internally in large quantities, i.e. about 10g per Kilo of body weight. A man weighing 90k would need to eat more than a pound of boric acid to be fatal.

Edited August 8, 2012 by FolkGuitar

[Wavefloater]

Boric acid is sold by virtually every decent drug store in the world. It is NOT a difficult item to find but you might need to know the Thai name for it at some drug stores. For those who can't find drug stores, there are at least three chemical supply companies in Chiang Mai; two on Suthep Rd, on the same side as Wat Suan Dok, (one about one block east and another about 2-3 blocks east,) and another on the north side of Old City, facing the moat. The chemical supply houses will call it Boric Acid.

Boric acid can be used as an antiseptic for minor burns or cuts and is sometimes used in dressings or salves. Boric acid is applied in a very dilute solution as an eye wash. Dilute boric acid can be used as a vaginal douche to treat bacterial vaginosis due to excessive alkalinity.^[14] As an anti-bacterial compound, boric acid can also be used as an acne treatment. It is also used as prevention of athlete's foot, by inserting powder in the socks or stockings, and in solution can be used to treat some kinds of otitis externa (ear infection) in both humans and animals. The preservative in urine sample bottles (red cap) in the UK is boric acid.

It is toxic if taken internally in large quantities, i.e. about 10g per Kilo of body weight. A man weighing 90k would need to eat more than a pound of boric acid to be fatal.

Thanks FolkGuitar. This gives me a completely different impression of what people in the "red ant" thread were saying. It seemed that according to the posts in that thread, it was a difficult item to find. (Something about its availability being banned in Thailand (for the most part) because too many unscrupulous meat venders were using to make old meat look fresh -- apparently an unhealthy thing to do.)

But you're saying that it's a common item in drug stores. So, if i visit the village drug store or Boots in Pattaya, will they'll have it? Failing that, does anyone know of a chemical supply shop in or around Pattaya?

Edited August 8, 2012 by Wavefloater

[eyecatcher]

When I went to Tesco the first time for the Canbic roach trap, I picked up the box and asked the assistant "I have some cockroaches; is this good for them?"

"No" she said "it kill them"

a sense of humour no less?

[AnkertilBrewer]

Just my own odd take on reality, but I when geckos wander into my house, it's a welcome event. They'll eat the flies, ants, MOSQUITOES, and cucarachas. For the mammoth roaches you'd need a Tokay gecko, but for the smaller varieties your typical wall gecko will do. They will also take down fledgling centipedes, scorpions, and any other invertebrate they can chomp on.

Of course, geckos are not a practical solution to an existing problem. Just saying I wouldn't shoe them out of the house. They can find their own way out if they want, and if they stay, there might be a good reason.

But then again, I left a spider handing in the corner of my living room for 3 years because it's web kept filling with mosquitoes and other little pests. Oddly, nobody ever noticed the web except me. Periodically the spider would take it down and make a new one in the same spot.

[FolkGuitar]

Boric acid is sold by virtually every decent drug store in the world. It is NOT a difficult item to find but you might need to know the Thai name for it at some drug stores. For those who can't find drug stores, there are at least three chemical supply companies in Chiang Mai; two on Suthep Rd, on the same side as Wat Suan Dok, (one about one block east and another about 2-3 blocks east,) and another on the north side of Old City, facing the moat. The chemical supply houses will call it Boric Acid.

Boric acid can be used as an antiseptic for minor burns or cuts and is sometimes used in dressings or salves. Boric acid is applied in a very dilute solution as an eye wash. Dilute boric acid can be used as a vaginal douche to treat bacterial vaginosis due to excessive alkalinity.^[14] As an anti-bacterial compound, boric acid can also be used as an acne treatment. It is also used as prevention of athlete's foot, by inserting powder in the socks or stockings, and in solution can be used to treat some kinds of otitis externa (ear infection) in both humans and animals. The preservative in urine sample bottles (red cap) in the UK is boric acid.

It is toxic if taken internally in large quantities, i.e. about 10g per Kilo of body weight. A man weighing 90k would need to eat more than a pound of boric acid to be fatal.

Thanks FolkGuitar. This gives me a completely different impression of what people in the "red ant" thread were saying. It seemed that according to the posts in that thread, it was a difficult item to find. (Something about its availability being banned in Thailand (for the most part) because too many unscrupulous meat venders were using to make old meat look fresh -- apparently an unhealthy thing to do.)

But you're saying that it's a common item in drug stores. So, if i visit the village drug store or Boots in Pattaya, will they'll have it? Failing that, does anyone know of a chemical supply shop in or around Pattaya?

Unless there is a 'real' governmental ban on the stuff, a drug chain such as Boots would certainly carry it. Or PharmaChoice. But I'd bet that your village shop has it too. It's just waaaay too common an item not to have it. It's as common as Hydrogen Peroxide.

This กรดบอริก 'could be' the Thai name for it. I just used 'Google Translate' for Boric Acid and it came up with that.

Edited August 8, 2012 by FolkGuitar

[Wavefloater]

Boric acid is sold by virtually every decent drug store in the world. It is NOT a difficult item to find but you might need to know the Thai name for it at some drug stores. For those who can't find drug stores, there are at least three chemical supply companies in Chiang Mai; two on Suthep Rd, on the same side as Wat Suan Dok, (one about one block east and another about 2-3 blocks east,) and another on the north side of Old City, facing the moat. The chemical supply houses will call it Boric Acid.

Boric acid can be used as an antiseptic for minor burns or cuts and is sometimes used in dressings or salves. Boric acid is applied in a very dilute solution as an eye wash. Dilute boric acid can be used as a vaginal douche to treat bacterial vaginosis due to excessive alkalinity.^[14] As an anti-bacterial compound, boric acid can also be used as an acne treatment. It is also used as prevention of athlete's foot, by inserting powder in the socks or stockings, and in solution can be used to treat some kinds of otitis externa (ear infection) in both humans and animals. The preservative in urine sample bottles (red cap) in the UK is boric acid.

It is toxic if taken internally in large quantities, i.e. about 10g per Kilo of body weight. A man weighing 90k would need to eat more than a pound of boric acid to be fatal.

Thanks FolkGuitar. This gives me a completely different impression of what people in the "red ant" thread were saying. It seemed that according to the posts in that thread, it was a difficult item to find. (Something about its availability being banned in Thailand (for the most part) because too many unscrupulous meat venders were using to make old meat look fresh -- apparently an unhealthy thing to do.)

But you're saying that it's a common item in drug stores. So, if i visit the village drug store or Boots in Pattaya, will they'll have it? Failing that, does anyone know of a chemical supply shop in or around Pattaya?

Unless there is a 'real' governmental ban on the stuff, a drug chain such as Boots would certainly carry it. Or PharmaChoice. But I'd bet that your village shop has it too. It's just waaaay too common an item not to have it. It's as common as Hydrogen Peroxide.

This กรดบอริก 'could be' the Thai name for it. I just used 'Google Translate' for Boric Acid and it came up with that.

Thanks again!

I've written down the Thai language version you supplied and will see my local chemist on the way home from work.

[mnodi]

Just my own odd take on reality, but I when geckos wander into my house, it's a welcome event. They'll eat the flies, ants, MOSQUITOES, and cucarachas. For the mammoth roaches you'd need a Tokay gecko, but for the smaller varieties your typical wall gecko will do. They will also take down fledgling centipedes, scorpions, and any other invertebrate they can chomp on.

Of course, geckos are not a practical solution to an existing problem. Just saying I wouldn't shoe them out of the house. They can find their own way out if they want, and if they stay, there might be a good reason.

But then again, I left a spider handing in the corner of my living room for 3 years because it's web kept filling with mosquitoes and other little pests. Oddly, nobody ever noticed the web except me. Periodically the spider would take it down and make a new one in the same spot.

Those big house spiders (about half as big as your hand and super fast), I found one in our kitchen a few months back happily munching on half a big roach. I no longer gently eject them from the house anymore, but don't tell the wife and kids!

[Stubby]

Place bottle caps with a mix of sugar and sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) at strategic spots.

The sugar will attract them, the baking soda will bloat them to death.

Dispose of the corpses,

Are you serious burgerqueen? Never heard that before but anything's worth a try. Having said that, as much as i destest cockroaches, i would like to think that this, or any method of killing the little critters, is as humane (if that's the right word), as is possible.

Stubby

[Stubby]

This is the best I have found, its Chinese.

Thanks lional6, I think something like that is just what I’m looking for, a simple load it and leave it solution. Is this product in the supermarkets, and I've just happened to miss it among the other sprays and repellents? It it's not in the local supermarkets, please let me know where I can purchase it

Stubby

[Stubby]

40 years ago cockroaches in kitchens were the best thing since sliced bread at night they would come out and get into the crevises of the wood tables that food was prepared on they would eat there way through all the crap that the human eye could not see, along came the stainless steel tables and overnight the mighty cockroach became the number one enemy in the kitchen mix some sugar and bi carb in water to make a paste and leave out that should do the trick however if you do come across one never stand on it as if it is female you could be releasing many eggs that the human eye does not see Good Luck !!!!

Thanks crazykopite, another vote for the sugar and bi carb.

Not sure it was healthy letting them crawl all over the table tops eating their way through tiny food particles though. I mean, doesn’t their feces (which they drop everywhere), contain bacteria and germs harmful to humans, potentially causing salmonella, food poisoning, diarrhea, and other gastrointestinal illness?

Stubby

[Stubby]

I know this is not going to sound good but,... maybe a good cleaning so they aren't attracted to your place?

Thanks Steve, now why didn't i think of that

[Stubby]

Okay everyone, there' are too many replies to respond to each, but i have read them all and surely have a number of solutions now - for sure

Thanks one and all for taking the time to respond. I never thought there would be so much knowledge on the topic. Just to end on a light note, here are a few facts about our unwanted house mates:

• Cockroaches have been around since the time of dinosaurs!
  
• A cockroach can live almost a month without food.
  
• A cockroach can live about two weeks without water.
  
• Some female cockroaches only mate once and stay pregnant for life!
  
• A cockroach can live for up to one week without its head!
  
• Cockroaches can hold their breath for up to 40 minutes!
  
• Cockroaches can run up to 3 miles an hour.
  

Stubby

[watcharacters]

40 years ago cockroaches in kitchens were the best thing since sliced bread at night they would come out and get into the crevises of the wood tables that food was prepared on they would eat there way through all the crap that the human eye could not see, along came the stainless steel tables and overnight the mighty cockroach became the number one enemy in the kitchen mix some sugar and bi carb in water to make a paste and leave out that should do the trick however if you do come across one never stand on it as if it is female you could be releasing many eggs that the human eye does not see Good Luck !!!!

I'm wondering where you came across this nugget of information?

[biggunguy]

and they hide so well in bedframes, that you will NEVER EVER see them there... only when you spray they will fall down...

i cant really talk about my experience with cockroaches (in another asian country), im still traumatized much...

once they found a proper home in a building, you wont get rid of them with any spray or trap... they breed very quickly...

if i was you, i would call a professional sprayer... pesticides for the whole house, from cellar to the roof...

you will have to throw away all your food and spices and shower gel and all things anyway...

the rest, you can leave in the house being sprayed - thoroughly... between books and everywhere...

then you might have a chance...

and regarding trash and waste in the house - it makes an enormous difference...

maybe get a strong vacuum cleaner, instead of a broom for the next time to clean the tiled floors and everything daily and dispose of the dust bags immediately and as far as you can...

Edited August 8, 2012 by biggunguy

[biggunguy]

or you deploy the natural born killers...

Edited August 8, 2012 by biggunguy

[ripstanley]

Boric acid is sold by virtually every decent drug store in the world. It is NOT a difficult item to find but you might need to know the Thai name for it at some drug stores. For those who can't find drug stores, there are at least three chemical supply companies in Chiang Mai; two on Suthep Rd, on the same side as Wat Suan Dok, (one about one block east and another about 2-3 blocks east,) and another on the north side of Old City, facing the moat. The chemical supply houses will call it Boric Acid.

Boric acid can be used as an antiseptic for minor burns or cuts and is sometimes used in dressings or salves. Boric acid is applied in a very dilute solution as an eye wash. Dilute boric acid can be used as a vaginal douche to treat bacterial vaginosis due to excessive alkalinity.^[14] As an anti-bacterial compound, boric acid can also be used as an acne treatment. It is also used as prevention of athlete's foot, by inserting powder in the socks or stockings, and in solution can be used to treat some kinds of otitis externa (ear infection) in both humans and animals. The preservative in urine sample bottles (red cap) in the UK is boric acid.

It is toxic if taken internally in large quantities, i.e. about 10g per Kilo of body weight. A man weighing 90k would need to eat more than a pound of boric acid to be fatal.

Thanks FolkGuitar. This gives me a completely different impression of what people in the "red ant" thread were saying. It seemed that according to the posts in that thread, it was a difficult item to find. (Something about its availability being banned in Thailand (for the most part) because too many unscrupulous meat venders were using to make old meat look fresh -- apparently an unhealthy thing to do.)

But you're saying that it's a common item in drug stores. So, if i visit the village drug store or Boots in Pattaya, will they'll have it? Failing that, does anyone know of a chemical supply shop in or around Pattaya?

Unless there is a 'real' governmental ban on the stuff, a drug chain such as Boots would certainly carry it. Or PharmaChoice. But I'd bet that your village shop has it too. It's just waaaay too common an item not to have it. It's as common as Hydrogen Peroxide.

This กรดบอริก 'could be' the Thai name for it. I just used 'Google Translate' for Boric Acid and it came up with that.

Thanks again!

I've written down the Thai language version you supplied and will see my local chemist on the way home from work.

I bought borax online from a company in Phuket. For 500 grams it was 260 baht including EMS postage to Phayao Here is the link http://www.healthfoo...s=borax&x=7&y=7

[CMSteve]

I didn't mean it as a jab, well not completely.... I believe in actually taking care of problems rather than covering up with the closest band-aid. Setting traps, leaving poisons, and attacking with sprays will never get rid of the infestations. As you said, there are many many more that you will never see and yes, they are survivors.

There are two ways to completely rid yourself of roaches.

FAST WAY - Professional Exterminator. - current infestation can/will be killed but they will come again if there is something to eat.

SLOW WAY - Clean up. Go find that hidden food scraps, pet droppings, pile of dandruff.... Don't give the roaches a reason to come into you home. This DOES NOT mean you are dirty, they come to everyone's houses, but it means something, somewhere was missed.

I know this is not going to sound good but,... maybe a good cleaning so they aren't attracted to your place?

Thanks Steve, now why didn't i think of that

[FolkGuitar]

I bought borax online from a company in Phuket. For 500 grams it was 260 baht including EMS postage to Phayao Here is the link http://www.healthfoo...s=borax&x=7&y=7

While borax is 'related' to boric acid, the two are actually chemically different. That being said, while I have no idea of the effectiveness of borax as a roach killer, I do know that boric acid is extremely effective. I'd love to know if the borax works as well. Borax is a great water softener though, and a handful thrown into the washing machine along with laundry soup will improve the cleaning power.

[FolkGuitar]

There are two ways to completely rid yourself of roaches.

FAST WAY - Professional Exterminator. - current infestation can/will be killed but they will come again if there is something to eat.

SLOW WAY - Clean up. Go find that hidden food scraps, pet droppings, pile of dandruff.... Don't give the roaches a reason to come into you home. This DOES NOT mean you are dirty, they come to everyone's houses, but it means something, somewhere was missed.

You left out PERMANENT WAY.... Boric Acid. Kills the ones that are already there, and kills any that come later. Cost to treat the average home; about $3. Time to treat the average home; about 15 minutes. Well, OK... not permanent... You might have to repeat squirting the powder around again in a couple of years if everything gets washed away somehow.

[terminatorchiangmai]

Aswin powder ( big c , tesco), works for ants , termites and cockroaches.