Baking soda is a popular DIY solution for pest control. After all, it’s cheap, it’s readily available, it’s non-toxic, and it’s present in just about every home kitchen.
We get why people try to use baking soda as an alternative approach to pest control. But the real question is…does it work?
Keep reading to find out!
Baking Soda for Pest Control
Does baking soda really work for pest control?
Unfortunately, it doesn’t. (We wish it were that easy!)
There’s actually no evidence that baking soda kills pests, despite what online blogs might tell you. (Common claims are that baking soda poisons, cuts, or dehydrates pests. In fact, a white powder that actually dehydrates pests is diatomaceous earth, so it’s possible people get them mixed up.)
Baking soda is registered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a fungicide, meaning it can be applied to your plants to help get rid of fungal diseases. However, that doesn’t mean baking soda works against bed bugs, co*ckroaches, rodents, ants, or other types of pests.
When it comes to baking soda, we recommend sticking with its proven uses: in baking, cleaning, and deodorizing your refrigerator.
Why is using baking soda a problem?
Of course, the obvious problem with using baking soda for pest control is that it isn’t effective at eliminating infestations.
What’s more, it gives homeowners a false sense of security. You might think that the baking soda is working to get rid of the pests plaguing your home. All the while, it’s doing next to nothing…and the pest problem is growing!
That’s why it’s a big problem to rely on untested DIY solutions for pest control. It doesn’t just do nothing: it makes the problem worse. Depending on the pest in your home, this could have serious consequences for your health (in the case of co*ckroaches, rodents, and bed bugs) or your property (in the case of termites and carpenter ants).
What You Should Use Instead of Baking Soda for Pest Control
Instead of baking soda, essential oils, household cleaning products, and other ineffective home remedies, we recommend using proven, professional methods.
A pest control pro can help you in important ways. First, the pros know how to determine what kind of pest you’re dealing with–including where they are in your home and the extent of the problem. Then, they use their experience, knowledge, and tools to create a multi-pronged approach to tackle your pest problem as efficiently as possible. Finally, a pest control pro can help you understand how to keep the pests away for good!
When you get help from the professionals, rather than DIY solutions, you can trust that your pest control will work. Professional pest control offers the kind of peace of mind that you just can’t get when you’re trying to do it yourself, crossing your fingers that the home remedy you found is effective.
In addition to the help you can get from professionals, there are also a number of things you can do as the homeowner to curb an infestation (depending on the pest). For example, this might include washing and steam cleaning your belongings (for bed bugs), cleaning and storing away food (for co*ckroaches, rodents, and ants), or trimming back shrubbery around your home (for termites). For more tips, we recommend checking out the rest of our blog!
Need Effective, Quick Pest Control?
Skip the baking soda: for pest control that really works, you can count on ScherZinger Pest Control.
ContactScherzinger Pest Control, a trustedpest controlcompany in the Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky areas, including Dayton, OH, and now Columbus, OH. We’ve been pioneers, engineering new standards for ways of eliminating and controlling bugs and pests. Contact us by phone at 1-877-748-9888 orthrough our website,Facebook, orTwitter.
