Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with pesticide

I need to kill one pest while protecting another.

mecran01 — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 09:43:25 -0800

We have spiders and pill bugs in our basement. I want to spray for them, but I also have pet rats that I like to let wander around on occasion, and don't want them to get sick. Is there a natural bug spray that is rodent safe? (I know, our basement sounds like a fun place) My nine-year-old is sleeping on the couch until I take care of the bugs. I also need to figure out how all of the pill bugs are getting into our basement bathroom.

Outdoor insect spray used indoors...what now?

NormandyJack — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 13:35:24 -0800

Outdoor insect spray used indoors...what now? I live in an apartment (in the US). Our bathroom window has a hornets nest. The apartment utilities guy/handyman came by today to remove the window so the exterminator could get at the nest. While he was taking the window off, a small swarm of hornets made their way indoors. The handyman asked if i had anything. I didnt. But i remembered an old bottle of flying insect spray someone had left on our back porch.

Given the imminent threat of angry hornets, the spray was used liberally in our bathroom. I had the forethought to remove things like toothbrushes, but not enough forethought to remove the shower curtain, bathmat, towels, robe, etc (i didn't expect to have to spray poison indoors).

Looking at the can of spray now, it's outdoors only (as usual/expected).

The three listed active ingredients are Tetramethrin .10% , Permethrin .25% and Piperonyl Butoxide .5%.

I have two cats.

What now?

Do I need to throw everything that was in there out?

Do I need to be worried about the cats?

In the event that things do need to be discarded or cats taken to the vet am I in any position to ask for money from my landlord?

Thanks.

Is it safe to eat--next summer?

Anisoptera — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 19:15:54 -0800

Can we safely grow some vegetables or herbs in soil that that apparently has had copious amounts of pesticide, herbicide, and fungicide applied to it two years ago and probably also for several years prior? We rented the place two years ago from the owner, who apparently believed the backyard "garden" should equal "mausoleum." He had several very nice bushes and shrubs going, but after talking to him we found out that he bought these full-grown from the nursery (and had done so every spring for several years) because "they don’t last long." He then showed off his extensive collection of chemical pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides, and said he would leave them for us, just in case of bugs or anything. If the rest of the housing deal weren't so good, we would have run away at that point.

After our two years of organic care, the yard seems to be coming back to life. I actually saw an earthworm! This season we grew a few heirloom vegetables and herbs just to renew the seed. They really didn't seem all that healthy compared to their parents, but I'm not sure if that was the age of the seed (about 4 yrs.) or the condition of the environment.

How can I determine if it's safe to plant edibles here?

Pet-safe Pesticides?

SpecialK — Sat, 17 Mar 2007 18:13:27 -0800

As usual, we skipped spring here in Texas and went straight to what my Yankee self considers summer. And with summer in Texas comes bugs -- fire ants, chinch bugs, and all kids of other assortments of creepie crawlies. Normally I'd simply diazinon the entire yard and just fuhgetabout it, but this year -- I have a puppy. A puppy that likes eating digging in dirt and rubbing her nose in it. My dog's a 1 year old Rhodesian Ridgeback mix, and I love her to death. I don't want to do anything that could possibly risk her, but at the same time -- my yard will become one giant fire ant colony and the homeowner's association will be all over my ass because chinch bugs will have eaten my entire lawn if I leave the yard untreated.

Oh, and ... she also *loves* eating bugs. I haven't had to kill a spider since she moved in. If the pesticide takes a while to build up before it kills the bug, would she be at risk after she eats her billionth roly-poly?

My understanding is that diazinon and other 'apply once' pesticides stay in the soil for the entire season. I also know that they're incredibly harmful to household pets.

What can I treat the yard with that will be safe for my dog? I can keep her inside during the day for a few days to allow it to soak into the soil and do it's thing. But is that enough? What's safe? What do I need to take into consideration?

Pesticide on facial tissue?

fuzzy_wuzzy — Sat, 29 Oct 2005 19:03:43 -0800

Anti-Viral Kleenex: am I putting pesticide in my nose? On the box of KLEENEX® Anti-Viral tissues there is a warning that is normally found on pesticides and other nasty chemicals in the garage: It is a violation of Federal law to use this product in a manner inconsistent with its labeling. But the active ingredients listed are merely citric acid and sodium lauryl sulfate, both of which are fairly common ingredients (separately) in soap and soda pop, etc. I found at least three different shampoos and body washes in my shower that have both chemicals, but the Federal! Warning! is nowhere to be found. So my question is, does the government require the warning label on the box of Kleenex just because it makes the claim of anti-virus properties -- and not for the chemicals involved? Conversely, if a company sold bottles of plain tap water but targeted a non-typical purpose, could the company be required to label them with bizarre warnings? For example, if Miller Lite [basically the same as tap water] was marketed as a "sidewalk moistener", might the overbearing government regulations stipulate warning labels such as "sidewalk may become slippery if product freezes...", etc.