Gel baits are an effective tool in the war against cockroaches, especially in commercial accounts.
German cockroaches are more than just nuisance pests – they can be detrimental to human health, given the many pathogens they can carry and allergies they can trigger. To provide your customers peace of mind from these pests, it is important to understand their biology, behaviour and how best to control them.
German cockroaches have incomplete metamorphosis, going through the life stages of egg, nymph and adult. Depending on the temperature and humidity, it takes approximately four to six weeks for these cockroaches to develop from eggs to viable adults. An adult female can live up to 28 weeks and produce up to five oothecae, or egg cases, that have 30-40 eggs each. This means she can be responsible for producing upwards of 200 offspring in her lifetime.
Before beginning a German cockroach treatment, make customers aware of these biological facts as well as German cockroach behaviours and their necessities of life: food, water and harbourages. Removing one or more of these can increase the chances of a successful treatment. Stress the following preventative measures to your customers:
- Hygiene is critical and must be dealt with appropriately
- Proper food storage is important to eliminate food sources
- Reorganisation of cluttered areas and disposal of unnecessary items can help remove potential harbourage areas
- Leaks from pipes and appliances should be repaired to remove water sources.
Treatment expectations should also be discussed with customers upfront. For example, it is common to have cockroaches for up to two weeks after an initial treatment. It will take time for newly hatched cockroaches to develop and feed on the bait. Customer communication and involvement is essential.
Baiting for German cockroaches has become common practice in most pest management plans, but it must be understood before it can be implemented. For the best long-term results, choose a product with a bait matrix that is highly attractive to cockroaches, resulting in increased feeding such as Advion Cockroach Gel Bait, which features indoxacarb as the active ingredient.
For an added boost to your German cockroach control program, use a sprayer to apply liquid Arilon to areas of reported activity, harbourages, cracks and crevices. This creates a non-repellent spray treatment, boosting performance whilst at the same time ensuring German cockroaches are not deterred from the gel baits, which is a risk when using traditional synthetic pyrethroids. For cockroach treatments, using repellents and non-repellents together is a bad mix. Using Advion (gel) and Arilon (insecticide) together, however, is proven to control German cockroach adults and nymphs – a powerful tool for your pest management strategy.
The use of both products together provides excellent control, ensures customer satisfaction and reduces callbacks. Bruce Fuller of B&E Fuller Pest Control in Brisbane has been using the combination of Advion and Arilon with great success for both commercial and domestic jobs.
“The first time I used it was in a bakery that had a major problem with German cockroaches,” said Mr Fuller. “I found, after one treatment, that we had them totally under control. I was so impressed with it that all my commercial applications are now Advion and Arilon.”
Dale Hudson, Business Manager, Syngenta
