FAQ
Why use roach bait or ant bait?
What’s the difference between an aerosol and a bait?
Can I use an aerosol insecticide if I have baits or gel out?
What’s the difference between a bait and a gel?
How do Combat® baits work?
Why aren’t ants and roaches trapped in the bait stations?
How long will a roach bait or ant bait last?
How do I store extra roach bait or ant bait?
Why are there different baits for large and small roaches?
How do roaches transfer the bait?
Do roaches always die on their backs?
Why do I see more ants after I use the product?
How do ants transfer the bait?
What are flying ants?
How does Fipronil kill roaches and ants?
Why do Combat ® Quick Kill products have less active ingredient than the Source Kill products?
Can I place Combat® products in an air duct?
My child accidentally ingested Combat® Ant Killing Gel. Are they at risk?
Are Combat® products safe to use around household pets?
Why use roach bait or ant bait?
Answer: Roach baits and ant baits are a preferred tool of pest control professionals for roach control and ant control and minimal risk for human exposure to insecticide. Unlike sprays, they not only kill the insects you see, but also work to kill the entire nest/colony, the source of the infestation. Because the insects seek out the roach bait or ant bait and transfer the insecticide to other insects, less insecticide is used than with spray treatments. There is also minimal risk of exposure to insecticides because roach bait and ant bait is contained in bait stations or applied in hidden areas in the case of roach killing gel and ant killing gel.
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What’s the difference between an aerosol and a bait?
Answer: Aerosols will only kill the bugs that you see, so you have to kill them one or a few at a time. If you see one roach, there are usually at least 200 more hiding somewhere in your home. Baits do not kill the insects right away, giving them time to return to the nest and share the roach bait or ant bait with other ants and roaches to eliminate the source of the problem. Roach bait, ant bait, roach killing gel and ant killing gel are also easy to use. They can be placed in those areas where roaches and ants usually are and will work continuously day and night to kill the source, providing you with long term control.
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Can I use an aerosol insecticide if I have baits or gel out?
Answer: NO. Aerosols are repellents to insects. If sprayed insecticide contaminates the bait or gel the food in the bait will become less attractive to the insect and lose its effectiveness. Also, for baits to be effective, the insect has to go back to the nest. If the insect is killed before returning to the nest, the roach bait or ant bait will not be transferred to the other insects, ultimately failing to kill the source of the problem.
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What’s the difference between a bait and a gel?
Answer: Roach baits and ant baits usually refer to solid insecticide bait products that are food and insecticide combinations that attract pests, and are sold in prefilled plastic bait stations. However, a bait can come in many forms, including solids, granules, gels, or liquids, and can be applied in a variety of ways. Roach killing gel and ant killing gel contain more water than do solid baits, so they are generally more attractive to insects. Gels are a type of bait that is usually applied using a syringe or similar device allowing targeted application in hard to reach places such as cracks and crevices where insects hide. Roach killing gel and ant killing gel are the preferred form used by professionals.
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How do Combat® baits work?
Answer: Combat® roach bait and ant bait are made of mostly food ingredients and a small amount of insecticide. The food ingredients are formulated with nutrients that Roaches and Ants need to survive, attracting pests to the bait. Insects eat the bait and return to the nest, where they share the bait with others, contaminating and killing the roach nest or ant colony. Combat® roach baits and ant baits contain insecticides optimized for speed of kill and transfer to achieve maximum control. Combat roach killing gel and ant killing gel work in the same way as do solid baits, except that the food and insecticide combination is in a gel form, instead of concealed in a bait station.
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Why aren’t ants and roaches trapped in the bait stations?
Answer: BAITS ARE NOT TRAPS OR MOTELS and bugs will not stay in the bait stations. Roach bait and ant bait work to kill the nest, the source of the infestation. “Source kill” happens when ants and roaches eat the bait in the bait station and then carry it back to the nest. Because the bait is transferred back to the nest, baits are more effective than traps, which only kill the insects that come to the traps.
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How long will a roach bait or ant bait last?
Answer: A Combat® roach bait and ant bait will last up to 3, 6, or 12 months (as stated on the specific product’s label). Time starts from when the bait is placed in your home.
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How do I store extra roach bait or ant bait?
Answer: Combat® roach bait and ant bait have a long shelf life. However, once opened extra roach bait or ant bait should be stored in a cool, dry area out of reach of children. It is also suggested to store baits in an airtight bag to keep the food components in the roach bait or ant bait from developing an off odor. Place all baits within 3 months of initial opening for best results.
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Why are there different roach bait for large and small roaches?
Answer: Large and small roaches have different food preferences. Each roach bait is specially formulated to be attractive to specific roach species. Since roaches usually have several food sources, a bait has to be very attractive so that roaches will eat or come in contact with it for the bait to be effective.
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How do roaches transfer the bait?
Answer: There are several ways in which cockroaches transfer bait to other cockroaches: through the eating of roach feces, roach regurgitation, consumption of dead cockroaches and their remains, and by contact. Nymphs (baby cockroaches) tend to stay in the nest and feed mainly on cockroach feces, making baits very effective in controlling the roach population. If a cockroach dies from eating roach bait, its carcass will contain enough insecticide to kill other cockroaches that feed on its remains. Dying cockroaches may also regurgitate and other roaches ingest insecticide in that way. Lastly, some insecticides, like Fipronil, can kill by contact. As cockroaches nestle together in the nest, they can transfer insecticide to one-another by contact.
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Do roaches always die on their backs?
Answer: Roaches do not always die on their backs: it depends on the type of death. If they are exposed to a nerve poison, like most insecticides, they get hyper-excited and twitch. The loss of muscle control generally causes them to flip, and they do not have the ability to right themselves. They then typically twitch on their backs until they die.
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Why do I see more ants after I use the product?
Answer: Increased ant activity to an ant bait means that the ant bait is working. When ants find a food source they like, they recruit other ants to bring it back to the nest. The more ants you see, the more ant bait is being carried back to the nest, the more ants are contaminated, ensuring colony elimination.
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How do ants transfer the bait?
Answer: Only a fraction of ants (older workers) leave the colony to forage for food. These foragers carry food back to the colony and feed it to other workers, larvae, and the queen(s). Ants share food by a process called “tropholaxis,” where they regurgitate food to feed another. Interestingly, adult ants cannot digest solid food. They transport it to the ant larvae in the colony, who digest it and regurgitate part of it to feed adult ants. Lastly, some insecticides, like Fipronil, can kill by contact. Ants that walk through ant bait stations will pick up insecticide on their bodies and can transfer insecticide to other ants as they interact with them.
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What are flying ants?
Answer: Flying ants are those individual ants that find new ant colonies. Most of the time, all ants in an ant colony (workers and queens) are females. One or more times per year, a mature ant colony produces flying ants termed “sexuals” or “reproductives” because some flying ants are males and some are females. Normally, sexuals produced by colonies in the same area fly at the same time on the same day, improving the odds of a successful mating flight. Males die after mating while females drop to the ground, chew off their wings, and burrow into the ground to create a new colony.
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How does Fipronil kill roaches and ants?
Answer: Fipronil is a broad spectrum insecticide that disrupts the insect nervous system. Once an insect eats bait containing Fipronil it typically will die in 6 to 24 hours. This gives the insects enough time to return to the nest and share the roach bait or ant bait with others while still providing the quickest “source kill” on the consumer market.
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Why do Combat® Quick Kill products have less active ingredient than the Source Kill products?
Answer: Combat® Quick Kill products contain the active ingredient Fipronil at 0.001% or 0.01% or 0.03% or 0.05%, while Combat® Source Kill products contain the active ingredient Hydramethylnon at 1.0% or 2.0%. These two active ingredients work differently from each other and their relative percentages are tailored to each specific target pest and Combat® roach bait or ant bait formulation.
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Can I place Combat® products in an air duct?
Answer: This is NOT A RECOMMENTED USE. Insects are not likely to be found in an air duct, but may enter the home through openings around the ductwork. Place baits in a protected area within 4 to 6 feet of the duct.
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My child accidentally ingested Combat® Ant Killing Gel. Are they at risk?
Answer: The active ingredient in our Combat Ant Killing Gel has a wide margin of safety. Although it is unlikely that a child would experience adverse effects if a small amount was ingested, our medical line is available 24/7 at 866-338-8517 to field questions or concerns should any unintended exposure to the product occur.
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Are Combat® products safe to use around household pets?
Answer: The active ingredient in our Combat Ant Killing Gel has been designed specifically for ants and has been shown to have a low order of toxicity in animals such as (non-insect) household pets. Although it is unlikely that a pet would experience adverse effects if a small amount was ingested, medical personnel at our medical line also have veterinary expertise with our products and are available 24/7 at 866-338-8517 to field questions or concerns should any unintended exposure to the product occur.
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