
Bug Bombs Don’t Get Rid of Bugs, Study Suggests - Pharmakon
http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/02/bug-bombs-don-t-get-rid-bugs-study-suggests
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clubm8
The only bugs I've had issues with are fruit flies and cockroaches.

Fruit flies are easily dealt with by putting cider vinegar in a container and
rubber banding saran wrap over it (with a couple holes) - they get in but not
out. That, combined with taking out the trash twice a week solved the issue.

For cockraoches, there are bait traps so that they take poisoned food back to
their buddies.

Both resulted in no bugs for the rest of my lease.

The key for both was utilizing the solution when you see the first bug.

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HillaryBriss
just a footnote: boric acid, which is a common cockroach poison taken back to
the nests, is that it's toxic to human kidneys

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azinman2
Do bait traps leave it behind in such a way to be toxic to humans?

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HillaryBriss
idk about bait traps. a long time ago I used the boric acid that is sold in a
big squeeze bottle and i just put lines of the stuff near cupboard doors and
on the floor. looking back now, i don't think that was a great idea. i
wouldn't want to ingest any of it.

~~~
clubm8
>idk about bait traps. a long time ago I used the boric acid that is sold in a
big squeeze bottle and i just put lines of the stuff near cupboard doors and
on the floor. looking back now, i don't think that was a great idea. i
wouldn't want to ingest any of it.

then uh, don't lick them?

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HillaryBriss
now you tell me

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mhb
_Even before the treatments, the middles of countertops, floors, and other
areas heavily trafficked by humans (but not bugs) had residue_

There's pesticide in the middle of countertops before the bug bomb was used?

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ceejayoz
I imagine the residents had previously tried such things outside of the study.

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cascom
I don’t understand why people would poison themselves like thi (bug bomb),
especially when safe alternatives like Diatomaceous Earth are available

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casion
Likely because people don't know it exists.

I worked in pest control when I was younger (friend's family business) and I
live in an area where there's 2 very common unwanted pests. Pest control is a
somewhat common topic and nearly every person I know (except myself) has
"bombed" their house multiple times.

Your post is the first time I've heard of DE.

~~~
mikeash
I highly recommend the stuff. Works great, supposedly harmless for us mammals,
and ridiculously cheap. I bought a bag for a few bucks years ago and I’m maybe
a quarter of the way through it now. Any time I see unwanted bugs, I dust
around likely entrances and they stop coming.

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andrewl
Breathing certain forms of diatomaceous earth can cause silicosis and other
lung problems:

[http://npic.orst.edu/factsheets/degen.html](http://npic.orst.edu/factsheets/degen.html)

Apparently breathing the _amorphous_ form causes only mild and reversible lung
inflammation. Breathing the _crystalline_ form can be more dangerous.

~~~
mikeash
Good to know. It sounds like normal household use is fine, but frolicking in
the stuff might be good to avoid.

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rasz
These is also
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ant_chalk](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ant_chalk)

I was introduced to this product in early 2000 (my keyboard developed an ant
nest after a lan party), seemed shady AF and a typical Chinese scam, but
worked great and got rid of ants in a ~week.

~~~
masonic
Not legal in the U.S., and very toxic.

Borax solutions like Terro work very well. Diatomaceous earth is a natural
solution for exterior boundary use.

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cannonedhamster
Diatomaceous earth doesn't work well in wet areas unfortunately. Bug bombs are
useless.

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ourmandave
They may not work on bugs so well, but when it's time to clean out the pantry
of food I don't want to eat I've been known to leave a counter door open "by
mistake".

"Sorry honey, must not have been closed all the way. Guess all this Hamburger
Helper has gotta go."

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gruez
Can you explain this more? How does leaving a pantry door force you to get rid
of food?

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masonic
"Even before the treatments, the middles of countertops, floors, and other
areas heavily trafficked by humans (but not bugs) had residue"

How can there be residue from the bombs _before they were used?_

