I have small children in my home so I must be careful about what I use. I would like to find a way to kill roaches, especially german roaches quickly and permently without costing me an arm and a leg. Any suggestions?
Welcome, tazqueen.
Important matter, killing cockies. Cecil himself has addressed this question, so try his column for starters.
(I see this is one of two attempts to start this thread. Even if the board is so slow that it refuses to show you that your post has gone through, usually it has.)
According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica cockroaches have been around, unchanged, for about 320 million years. They are among the oldest fossil insects found so far.
It would seem then that the cockroach is a successful adaptation that is able to survive despite all the bad things that can happen to an insect in a world full of predators.
Some form of control is your only hope, forget about “getting rid” of them. Wipe up ASAP all spills, crumbs from opening bread or cutting cake or children running around eating cookies. This will help but cockroaches have a catholic diet so it isn’t possible to remove all of their sources of food. Any place that handles food is likely to have them so you can bring them home from the store.
I used to work in a large state mental hospital in Iowa. A couple times a year they would do their best to de-roach the kitchens and dining areas. After the spraying, cockroaches were swept up
into piles and shoveled into baskets. Unfortunately, they have a high birthrate, are small and can hide easily. Just a few escaping can bring the population back in a hurry because they are so prolific.
What can’t be cured must be endured. Of course the exterminators will promise success - provided you will let them come around and poison everything in sight twice a year.