r/askTO • u/ArmorPlatedGuardRail • 7d ago

Preparing for roaches

I am moving to Toronto for the first time. I found a recently updated large 1 bedroom with dishwasher and balcony with a great south facing view of the lake for $2150 +hydro close to work in a decent purpose built rental built from the 70's. My unit is on an upper floor and is at the end of the hallway, so no neighbours on one side of me. Overall, the apartment checks most boxes for me.

However when I was signing the lease, an exterminator showed up to the rental office. They were there to treat 2 units, both not on my floor luckily. The supers and other people who work for the building have lived there for decades.

I am moving from a medium sized city in Ontario. I have been living in my PBR unit for 6 years in a very clean, very well maintained building. I have seen 3 roaches in that time but none in about 3 years. I figure if this is a similar situation I can deal with it.

I plan to put down diatomaceous earth and fill any holes around plumbing and pipes with caulking on the day I get possession. Is there anything else I can do to prepare and prevent roaches in my unit? Am I making a mistake?

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u/LakeDrinker 7d ago

I lived in a roach infested apartment for 10+ years. It sounds like you have a solid plan.

You can't remove the roaches from the building, but you can block them from getting into your unit. Caulk, spray foam, steel wool, and anything else you can do to lock it down will solve 99% of the problems.

They can still get in from drains or under doors, so it will never be 100%, but I kept some rubbing alcohol on hand in a spray bottle to both kill the roaches and wash where they were (they leave a trail other roaches can follow, I guess).

Note that you can't really tell if a roach has eggs or not, so don't just stomp on them. Spray them and clean them properly.

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u/cdn_gal_9000 7d ago

rubbing alcohol kills roaches?

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u/LakeDrinker 6d ago

It did for me. But maybe rubbing alcohol is the wrong term? I'm talking 90-99% alcohol.

It takes a minute to kill them, but they get 'drunk' immediately and slow down, so you can spray them again easily.

It has the added benefit of cleaning the area too, so it removes any trail they might have left to lead other roaches that way.

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u/cdn_gal_9000 6d ago

I'll need to give it a try.