No More Roaches

Step 8 Why this works

Boric acid powder is a proven roach killer, what I am presenting here is a way to get the roaches attracted to it (sweet smelling Karo syrup) and to eat it (flour and Karo syrup). Making it into a paste enables you to place it in areas where powder alone would not stay.

I read a lot of information online 10 months ago to come up with this solution but aside from the boric acid powder it's not an exact science - I think peanut butter mixed with boric acid powder would work just as well. The thing that really got me really interested is when I read industry information about folks canceling their pest control service because the baiting method was so effective. I made up the recipe based on common sense, what I read, and what I had in the cupboard. The proof is my roach free house. It's a huge relief and I wanted to share.

Please ask any questions you may have, and please rate my Instructable!

Comments

['wilkinson]

I have moved into my mom and dads house, i'm a full time caregiver for them now. they have a very bad problem with roaches I'm gonna try your recipe will let you know how it turns out, thank you for posting this

[csprinkle]

I live in Mazatlan, Mexico, where we have what are called "American cockroaches".
They are about 2 inches long and about 3/4" wide at their widest. No exaggeration. We also have tiny ones, about a half inch long. They are ALL disgusting, but those big ones scare the hell out of me. I woke to one crawling on the back of my leg and thought I was gonna lose it!
Thanks for posting this instructable...I'll be buying boric acid -- and by the way, you can get boric acid in most pharmacies in the US. No prescription required, but it's usually kept behind the counter and you'll have to ask for it.

[Semper Fi Barbie]

This is awesome! I just moved into a new house last month. Unfortunately, my roomate brought roaches with her. Its not that I can't stand roaches, I can't stand them in my kitchen. And it grossed me out that they started living inside the microwave. I am from Southern California and now live in Florida so I've never seen this before. I think I am gonna give this a try since my furbabies can't keep up with the roach population.

[tmorris13]

Unfortunately, they are in Southern California, as well. I know, as we now have roaches. We think they traveled down from the upstairs unit, since they showed up shortly after our neighbors moved out :( I'm hoping this instructable will help us.

[milesfromneihu]

Excellent 'ible! And those sculptures are a riot.
I caught on to Roach-Pruf back in the States, some time in the '70s or '80s. Loved it, but I always just used the straight dust. I even treated the Chinese restaurant I was working at at the time--one afternoon I pried the wainscotting off the walls and dusted behind. The owner never knew why the roach population dropped so dramatically. My inspiration came the day I placed water glasses for a four-top and one of the ladies pointed out that one of the glasses had a swimmer. Embarrassing, to say the least. But the restaurant got a free treatment that the owner never knew about.
I've moved on since then, and now live in Taiwan, where I can buy boric acid (way cheap!) at the local chem shops.
I think I'll try your sweet bait system; it sounds better than what I've been doing all this time.
Thank you!

[Ninzerbean]

Thank you for writing, cool story!

[gingerchew]

I just did this to my little one-bedroom apartment... it only took an hour and a half, start to finish. I have two questions: 1. Do you think it will really work in an apartment? In my case, there is one other above-ground apt and a basement apt (& both residents said they'd never seen roaches - I moved in a month ago and only saw one the other night, and again the next night, and it could have been the same one for all I know). 2. How long do you think it will take before they are totally gone? I have a definite phobia of the suckers - the first one I found was on my BED, and the second was on my bedside table! THANK you for this superb article!

[Ninzerbean]

I think that if you have more than the one you saw - and I think it may have been the same one twice, that it will be gone in less than 3 days. I honestly don't know if it will work in an apartment because I have no first hand experience of that situation. Your neighbors may or may not be telling the truth, but from my experience in my own house it seemed that the roaches communicated with each other (don't laugh) and sent out the word that my house was no good to be in. I don't know how else to explain the fact that I was not seeing dead ones for 2 years. Read through all the great comments for extra help and hints, the combined knowledge of so many of us is a super resource. You are going to be fine, I promise. It does take a long time to do it right, an hour and a half is right, people don't believe it takes so long to do a house.

[gingerchew]

It has worked! I was sleeping here again within days of baiting. I'm sure that the roaches do spread the word... and thank god! I think I'll just do it again in 6 months to a year (since it's an apartment) if I haven't moved. Thank you again, so much!

[Ninzerbean]

I was thinking of you today as I was re-doing my own house and wondering how you had made out. I figured after 2 years it was time and I had seen two dead one's in the last month. But I don't even want to see dead ones. I should be fine now for about a year for sure. Isn't it a relief? Glad to have helped.

[electrikitten28]

This is amazing! I bug bombed our house once, and it worked. However, i really hate the idea of filling my house with a toxic cloud of poisons. This is perfect for me! I am more afraid of roaches than I am of poisonous snakes. It will be a relief to be free of them. Thank you!

[Ninzerbean]

I wish I could go into business with this but it would mean I would have to go into houses that had roaches - I just would freak. It takes hours and hours to really do your house right, but it sure works.

[artfulann]

I'm getting ready to do this, but husband had an interesting thought. Sometimes our cats like to eat these bugs. Would this hurt the cat that ate the bug that ate the "treat"?

[NachoMahma]

.  Boric acid can be poisonous but any residue left in the bugs should be safe.(PDF at beyondpesticides.org)

[artfulann]

thank you for the link!

[Ninzerbean]

Based on all of the comments I would say no, besides that there won't be any around to eat very soon. But read all the comments and decide yourself, I personally think it will be fine.

[annfill]

I really enjoyed your instructable- funny and informative.Thanks

[Ninzerbean]

My pleasure

[chinasanchez]

This is a great instructable but i wonder if it would work for scorpions.

[sam12587]

I'm sorry - I don't see those comments. May web browser is probably hosing up again. I'd always thought they were the same thing - my bad.

[Ninzerbean]

Hey if it worked that is all that matters.

[sam12587]

Good instructable. I got a house with the same issue. I had to gut the bathroom and the plumber had me sprinkle borax all over the space & walls the tub & shower would occupy. Then after he'd installed the new pipes & tub/shower surround he told me to put borax in all the walls as I dry walled the room & to wear a mask so I wouldn't breathe it in . I did. I haven't seen one bug inside since. I have seen them outside but not in my house. I didn't even mix it with sugar and they still eat it and since it's in the walls my family is safe. This is the same chemical put in ant traps & some roach traps. I also use borax to make organic laundry soap - not sure what "yuvaliat" is concerned about. My understanding of this chemical is that it's only toxic to mammals if breathed in or if eaten by the pound (yuck). great instructable - I never could figure out how it could be stuck to stuff. If my walls fail me then I'll definitely be doing this.

[Ninzerbean]

There has been a lot of comments here about the differences between borax and boric acid which is not the same thing, I am glad you don't have bugs and that is what is important.

[CraftyLuna]

i just mixed up the stuff and put it all over my house, in all the places you said.  This old Atlanta house has at least FOUR different species of roaches that I've seen, and every night if you want to get a drink of water from the kitchen they are ALL OVER the counters, so I really hope this works. Those electronic sonic pulse things that you plug into the walls?  Such a joke. The roaches were actually nesting behind them. 

[Ninzerbean]

 Yes, it really works, you are going to love getting up in the night and not seeing roaches, I know I do. I got one of those sonic things for rats that were living in my ceiling and I have to tell you that they really work for rats, I had no more after the first night I plugged it in, then a year later I found evidence of rats in my loft in the garage so I got another and now I have no rats there either. Just thought I'd tell you in case...

[Mobileaction]

 I live in Sydney Australia and I have heaps of large ones (we call them Cockroaches) and the small German ones which are the worst because they get into the appliances. Kettle, dishwasher, fridge and even telephone base. I opened the base of the cordless kettle and 60 came out which I killed. I am about to try the boric acid paste. Wish me luck!

[Ninzerbean]

OMG, poor you, but don't worry because this is going to work, it's now been way over a year since I did this in my house and still there are no roaches.

[tmross4]

If you mix honey and boric acid into a paste, it's good for all the ants that like sweet stuff. I put some on a plastic coffee can lid and then placed another, slightly smaller lid that I pucned some small holes into, on top to give a tight fit, then hung the whole thing right in the middle of an ant trail on the outside of my house (high enough so kids and pets could get to it), and within a week, no more ants!

[hannahruth0]

Thanks for the super funny, well-written ible! I picked up plain boric acid at the local drug store, used pancake syrup from Walmart, and used whole wheat flour I had. Total cost = $10. Hopefully the roaches like it. I gobbed it all kinds of places.

[Ninzerbean]

They will love it!

[yuvaliat]

Thank you so much, I'm going to try that, we have so many of them, it's really disgusting, I'll update after I'll do it. Will mice also die if they'll eat it? Thanks, Liat.

[Ninzerbean]

Dear Liat, I know how you feel. Been there. I don't know if mice will die as it's not a very toxic poison to animals but I'm sure they will eat it. Have you tried rat poison? Let me know how you fare - it works so wonderfully fast.

[yuvaliat]

Well, now I'm not sure what to do I read a lot about boric acid since yesterday and it seems to be quite toxic, see for example:
http://www.pesticide.org/boricacid.pdf

We're growing organic vegetables (just for ourselves), so we don't want to use toxic things.

Thanks,
Liat.

[Ninzerbean]

That's a great article but I don't understand your concern as it confirms my instructions on how best to use it - out of possible reach of humans and pets. The article is clear that of all pesticides type things it is "the least toxic" - not to bugs of course, but to humans. I don't know how putting the bait inside your walls and behind kitchen drawers will affect your organic garden. I personally don't advocate using the powder alone - that is not in my 'ible. The point is that by making it a paste you have the ability to place it in areas powder wont go, and it won't be vacuumed up as a powder would. Do what you think is best for your situation. I really care about not being exposed to toxic chemicals.

[ClareBS]

Great instructable. About 35 years ago when I was a student and lived in old inner city housing I discovered boric acid. All I did was sprinkle it along the cracks between the walls and floors. The roaches would walk in it then carry it on their feet back to their lair and their friends and family would groom the roach with dirty feet and, voila, they all died. I didn't have to worry about pets at the time so I didn't have to hide it. And thankfully, they don't live where I do now.