When you have roaches, flies, ants, or another household pest, you have two goals: getting rid of the pests fast and making sure they stay gone. Before you set off a bug bomb from the grocery or home improvement store, we’re sharing whether or not bug bombs are effective against pests and, more importantly, are they safe to use.
Do Bug Bombs Work?
Also called bug foggers, these work by releasing an insecticide mist into a confined space, and the spray settles onto surfaces, walls, and floors. For the insecticide to work, the pest must make direct contact with it, so anything that is resting on a surface or flying through the air will probably be killed. This makes foggers effective against flies, bees, and mosquitoes.
The problem is that for pests that tend to hide or live in hidden spaces, like cockroaches, ants, and spiders, they don’t get hit with the “bomb.” The mist doesn’t reach the nooks and crannies where most pests build nests and colonies, and it won’t even treat areas that are covered by furniture, like a couch or a table. While you may see a few dead insects when you come home, the majority of the infestation is unaffected. In fact, because the insecticide contains a repellent, it often just drives these pests further within your home’s walls and hard to reach areas.
Are Bug Bombs Safe?
Not only do bug bombs not work against the majority of pests in your home, they can be dangerous. The more serious concern is the threat of fire or explosion. Because the propellant is flammable, homeowners need to ensure that there is nothing that could cause anything to ignite, and this includes a pilot light in a stove or a hot electronic device.
It’s also important to realize that many people get sick from bug bombs. The EPA has a list of precautions that need to be taken to safely set off an insect fogger, including using them in a specific amount of square footage, leaving the house for a set amount of time, and cleaning the affected surfaces and airing out the space thoroughly afterward. Even with these precautions in place, the CDC has reported complaints of the following symptoms after usage:
- Cough
- Respiratory pain or irritation
- Headache
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Rash
While these symptoms are mild, they do affect children more seriously and frequently.
What to Do When You Have Pests
If you can’t set off a bug bomb, what’s the best way to get rid of roaches, ants, and other pests? Call a professional pest control company. At Stomp Pest Control in Raleigh, we use effective treatments that get into the areas where pests hide and nest to eliminate them completely, and we use a safe, plant-based insecticide that can be used even around children and pets.
In addition to exterminating the pests, a professional can ensure they stay gone in a way that DIY solutions don’t. With affordable pest control packages you’ll have a barrier around your home, keeping pests from getting in your home in the first place.
Call Us for Pest Control in Raleigh
Don’t risk your health and safety with DIY insecticides, leave pest control up to the professionals. If you’ve seen spiders, roaches, mice, or other insects or pests (or you want to make sure you don’t see them!), give us a call at (919) 231-3292 or fill out the form below to learn more.
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