You don’t need to use insecticides to get rid of unwanted guests in the home. Numerous inexpensive and reliable remedies are widely available.
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The house is infested with bed bugs. How to get rid of them?
Bed bugs are considered a very annoying pest because they are resistant and reproduce quickly.
Their existence is shrouded in many myths. Among the most common are that they are only found during the summer, can fly, jump and only bite overnight. In reality, bedbugs are year-round intruders in the house, moving about by climbing and dispensing their stings when they feel like it.
Bedbugs can be eliminated from your home without having to throw out your favorite mattress or carpet.
As a first step in removing these wingless insects, we identify the infested surfaces. There are not only mattresses and upholstered furniture, but also surfaces behind paintings, cornices, or crevices in walls and wallpaper. We then vacuum them thoroughly, or use a steam cleaner if necessary.
A fabric that has come into contact with bedbugs should be washed at 90 degrees Celsius for at least 30 minutes. Thyme oil is an effective pest and parasite fighter that can be added to washing powder. Nimba oil is also a suitable option. Both can be used as preventive measures in aromatherapy, or regularly drizzled on a paper or cotton napkin and placed under a sheet.
Keep in mind that bed bugs prefer a cluttered environment. So, make sure the interior isn’t unnecessarily cluttered. Cleanliness, ventilation and hygiene should be a matter of course.
Ants in the house. What should we do about them?
Ants and winged ants become a thing of the past in the home when we prevent them from communicating with each other by leaving a pheromone trail. Plain soapy water, chalk or essential oils will help.
Essential oils for ant control
You can make essential oil sprays by mixing two cups of water with five to ten drops of essential oil. Essential oils like tea tree, peppermint, lemon, or cinnamon are good choices. Nimba oil is effective against ants, as well as house bugs.
Diatomaceous earth for ant control and other remedies
Another option for ants in the house is sprinkling food grade diatomaceous earth, cornstarch, cayenne pepper, coffee grounds, baking powder or a yeast and sugar mixture on the ants.
These harmless remedies will also help when we wonder how to get rid of pharaoh ants. It is much more effective than relying on insecticides, because the ants can detect them.
For winged ants in the house, we use duct tape or sticky fly traps in the places with the highest incidence of flying ants.
Kitchen moths and clothes moths
After sorting out the food that has been infested with moths, we treat the kitchen shelves with a natural spray consisting of water, vinegar and citric acid. As a precaution, place the food in glass or plastic containers.
Does lavender repel clothes moths?
Moths in the kitchen and moths in the wardrobe can be repelled by placing scented dried lavender, cloves or eucalyptus in cloth or cotton bags. A clove of garlic will also help.
How to control cockroaches and fleas in the home
With cockroaches, a mixture of sugar and powdered borax in a ratio of 1:3, scattered in the place of the presence of cockroaches, will turn. The sugar acts as bait for the cockroaches and the borax kills them.
Borax powder to kill cockroaches
Borax is a non-toxic crystalline substance – a salt of boric acid. It is used to kill ants and cockroaches, but also as an additive in cleaning and laundry detergents and cosmetics. Baking soda has a similar effect to borax.
For fleas, use pure borax in the incriminated areas; it does not need to be combined with sugar or any other ingredient. After 24 hours, vacuum the surfaces. Take care that children or pets do not come near the borate salt.
If fleas have been brought indoors by a dog or cat, precautions should also be taken. For example, buy a natural flea collar for your pet.
Does borax kill bed bugs?
Boric acid is an effective insecticide if ingested by the insects.
According to a study published in Journal of Economic Entomology researchers found that bed bugs can be killed by boric acid-but only if it is ingested. Boric acid kills bed bugs when consumed in concentrations greater than 2 percent, and even 0.5 percent caused 100 percent death, although more slowly. Excessive exposure to boric acid dust did not seem to affect bed bugs, however. The use of boric acid, on the other hand, effectively killed German cockroaches regardless of the route of contact.
