Neighbors moved and now we have a problem...

[jarrod]

Our house is set on the end of the street, so we have 2 houses along one side of our house. Both houses are now empty, overgrown, ect. We have noticed our house has become a new home for our old neighbors pests . Spiders, cockroaches yuck, yuck, yuck. Long story short we need to set off bug bombs or something, and are worried about our tanks. Anybody else every had to do this? What should we do to protefct our fish, ect? Will it be ok to shut the tanks down for about 5 hours?

 

[buzz]

You'll probably be fine for several hours...Can you cover the tank with say, Seran wrap or something, and keep powerheads going in the tank? Never tried it, but maybe that would seal it to keep the water from being contaminated?

 

[jferrier]

Very few pesticides will do damage to spiders. Why not try baitraps for the roaches first?

 

[scubamedic]

I live in rural East Texas back in the woods. Roaches are a BIG problem. I use the roach bait things and have had very good luck with them. We have the big wood roaches so I have to use 2 different ones. One for the big roaches and one for the small ones. I also put them everywhere they will go. It seems if you just put them in the kitchen the roaches will move to the bedroom or bathroom, so put them everywhere.
I can't tell you much about getting rid of the spiders. We have the big daddy long legs and I just pick them up and throw them outside. I occasionally find a brown recluse in the bathroom and I just kill it.
Good Luck.

 

[iechy]

Here in New Orleans we get big ole flying roaches that can carry off small children. I use combat roach bait and never see any in my house. If I see one I change the traps and don't see another for over 6 months usually.You might want to try that first so you don't have to worry about your tank. Even if you cover your tank until you can't smell it any more doesn't mean it's not still in the air, it has just diffused. If you have to resort to fog etc. then I would turn off skimmers and wet/dry filter etc for as long as you can.

 

[slick]

Why don't you call the city and ask them to send someone out to clean up the yards? I forgot to look to see where you live so I don't know about the weather there but why don't you guys just shut your windows?

 

[broomer5]

Jarrod
You're in quite a pickle.
Nice saltwater tanks vs bugs in the house.
I think you should have a great concern about setting off a bug bomb. Very bad news for saltwater tank - and an option I would not be able to even consider over here.
I've got too much time and money invested in the tanks to set off a toxin like that in the house. Plus I would hate to lose the fish/inverts that I have ...... as I'm sure you guys would hate to lose too.
I'd rather do the other approaches mentioned for the roaches, and figure out another way to deal with the spiders.
I wish ya luck on this one my friend.
Think long and hard on the bug bomb though ( in my opinion )

 

[slick]

Oh sorry I mis read the first post. Definatly don't set one off inside your house.

 

[wamp]

I agree, don't set one off... I had the orkin man in my house a while back. Everything in tank started dying, never could figure it out until one day a light bulb in my head went off. I asked another company and they said he should not even be spraying in that room. Well he was and they were dying.. Once he quit coming and a new guy started, I never had the problem again.

 

[jarrod]

Thanks for the input. I really don't want to set off bombs and I should of stated this to begin with, but I have a 15 month old son and it would be hard to keep the chemicals off of everything that seems to find a way into his mouth lol.
I'll try the roach motels. We've only seen a couple and killed them right away. Last time neighbors moved (before tanks & son)we got infested and I don't want that to happen again. Spiders I can handle but roaches....NO.

 

[sebae0]

not to discredit anything that has been said so far, i have used bombs b4, i covered all my tanks with blankets making sure they didnt touch any of the water, got lucky maybe but i didnt lose anything. it was a last resort watched a friends cat an got fleas that could take down cats lol. by the way dont ask me to watch your cat plz hehehehe. i would try the other options first like i said mine was a last resort.

 

[eng50]

The best way to get rid of spiders is to use your choice of spray poison and spray it on the webs. Do NOT remove their webs, deal with them for a little while. Spiders are "leg lickers" and will clean thier web after you spray it and hense die. It took a long time for me to learn this, as my wife was crazy about removing webs, and we sprayed all over and they never went away. Once we found out about the web thing, they are now quite under control!! Good Luck, and Hope this helps...
Bill
PS remember that spiders although pests, they keep other more nuisance pests at bay..ie mosquitos flies etc...so be careful what you wish for...just something else to think about...

 

[wrassecal]

I have professional pest control spray my baseboards, under cabinets, outside, garage etc. every three months. there is no mist or spray or added chemical smells. The only place I let them spray in the room with the tank is the fireplace. I have never had a problem. If it is that bad I would recommend talking to your pest control companies and finding out what can be used that will not go "airborne". Then cover your tank with a blanket just in case and don't let them spray anywhere near the tank.

 

[musipilot]

Simple, cheap, fast, permanent solution. Get a cat. Even though I'm allergic, I did this in an apartment I rented years ago because the roaches were a nightmare. About 3 days after we got the cat, we saw the last roach, and never saw another again.

 

[azonic]

damn you americans got it rough....I've seen cockroaches while I've vacationed in florida..If i had to see them on a regular basis in my own house I think i'd shoot myself.

 

[tcreef]

Lizards, geckos,snakes.........thats your answer. 3 geckos per square foot should do. If we treated our own enviroment like we try to create in our reeftanks then adding this clean up crew would be all the rage. I have live wild madagascar geckos for sale..........excellent detrivore. call for prices.

 

[jarrod]

You people crack me up!
I did find a mom roach with a zillion babies a few weeks ago. Nesting between the background and tank. Lined up with the pump so you couldn't see them. Thank goodness I found them and killed the nasty things. I'm going to try the traps to hopefully get anymore of them that may be hanging around somewhere.
I just wanted to know my options in case they do get bad. Hopefully they wont.
I do have a cat and she's good at catching bugs, birds, and I guess mice (never have seen one since we've had her). I also used to have the meanist iguana. I don't remember how many times he bit me! I'll go ahead and throw this in-we also have 3 dogs. 2 basset hounds and 1 mutt. The mutts the best one of the three.
Bill thanks for the tip on the spiders! That's never crossed my mind. I usually let them hang around, unless it's a fiddle back or we have a spider in every corner of every room lol.
Thanks again!

 

[snowbear]

How about those plug-in electronic deals? I KNOW they work great for mice, and don't seem to bother the dogs and kitties. They claim on the box they work for insects also. I saw 'em at Costco the other day in a 4 pac. Might be worth a try?
I sure wouldn't bomb the house if I could help it, but if I had to, I'd cover the tanks with visqueen (heavy plastic sheeting) and seal any openings with tape.