Roach issues

[Heather1070]

I'm frustrated tonight after dealing with a roach issue. My Airbnb is an older home that was the home my husband and I lived in for 10 years before building our forever home right next door. We've had great success with turning our old house into an Airbnb. We live in a very rural area with the closest hotel is a half hour away. There is a popular lake and race track near us, so we get a lot of bookings for these attractions during peak season, and a lot of contract workers in the winter months. I've always gotten rave reviews, especially from urban dwellers who love watching cows and fireflies. Even this weekend a couple from New York said they hadn't heard crickets since they were kids!

This week I had a booking Monday-Wednesday and another one Friday-Monday. The guests Monday night said they had to leave bc they found two cockroaches and two spiders. Again we live in a very rural area, so having bugs is not out of the question. I apologized, refunded her my payout amount and chalked it up to a fluke. I immediately called a pest control service but they can't come for two weeks. So I went ahead and sprayed what I could and kept my next booking. Well darned if tonight the people staying found 3 roaches and decided to leave. So again I sent them a refund. So now I'm out about $600. I'm not one to be squeamish about bugs, but I know some people are, so refunding is frustrating, but I did it. I take a lot of pride in our Airbnb and want people to have the best experience possible.

Tonight I am just so frustrated. I've never had a pest service come spray for cockroaches. I have one scheduled to come in two weeks. I went ahead and cancelled all my bookings until then, there were two more between now and when the exterminators are coming. How long should I block it off after that? Should I expect for the extermination to have dead bugs and I'll have to clean up a couple of days after spraying? The pest control service is coming June 23rd and my next booking starts July 7th. Should I be okay to keep the weekend of June 26-28th available?

[Anonymous]

@Heather1070 It really depends on which chemicals the pest control service is using, so you'll have to ask for their advice on when it's safe to return to the house. Perhaps back that up with your own research. You'll want to schedule a day for extra cleaning, as fumigators don't tend to clean out the dead bugs and it'll take some extra washing and airing out to get the smell out.

Unless the service you're using is strictly non toxic, you might want to alert the nearest upcoming guests that pesticides have been used. People with some neurological conditions can have severe reactions to these chemicals, and guests who are concerned about that should get the opportunity to cancel for a full refund. 

[Helen427]

@Heather1070 

There's an old trick we used to do to catch roaches, put out a glass of beer and they drown.

Fumigating the whole house is  one way of removing them as are smoke bombs - can't recall the name of them but they also kill fleas and are not as strong smelling chemical wise - you let them off & leave the house closed for the day & let it do it's job whilst you go out.

Don't vacuum for at least 24 hours to allow it to take full effect.

Friends of ours used to have a problem with them and had their property fumigated , best to air the place out for 24 hours after you have left it closed up to rid the smell.

Dead cockroaches will keep surfacing for a couple of weeks after as there mates come looking for there peers...

May I suggest you include a piece about the fact guests may from time to time encounter insects that are part of the ecological system.

You shouldn't be having to apologise for having cockroaches on a rural property.

We get them in the city to as they come out from the rocks underground.

We also have Native ones that live in the trees in New Zealand, and Australia have quite large ones as @Kath9@Cathie19 can vouch for.

All the best 

from across the miles 

[Inna22]

@Heather1070 I think there is a difference between a spider and a cockroach. The problem is that cockroaches can travel home with your guests in a suit case and are extraordinary invasive. I would never complain about any bug in a rural home but would leave one with roaches. Hopefully they can fumigate fully. Sign up for a regular service if they offer it so you do not wait next time and loose reservations 

[Kelly149]

@Heather1070 our bugs here could carry away a small animal, so here is a tip I learned from pest control people: when you have large roaches <only> then they have quite possibly come in from outside, so to control that you want exterior perimeter pesticide spray, and address any obvious gaps where they could gain entry and also choose preventative measures to limit their access to food and water. If however you have large and tiny roaches then this is the time to be horrified because you likely have an entire colony that is 'circle of life' hatching INSIDE the house. For this you want a comprehensive investigation to find where they're living, what they're eating/drinking and then you want an eradication plan. Good luck!

[Sarah977]

@Heather1070  While basically everyone is disgusted by cockroaches, spiders, ants, and other critters endemic to rural and tropical areas are a fact of life. Even when you get a handle on the cockroach situation, it would be good to mention in your listing description that as this is a rural area, it wouldn't be unusual for guests to encounter a spider, ants, or other bugs. And that if they are insect-phobes, it would be best if they didn't book your property. It's much better to mention the warts (all listings have them- could be a noise factor, could be a long flight of stairs, could be no, or slow Wifi) than to have upset guests and feel you have to refund them.

Cockroaches are also endemic to my area. I bought some cockroach killer gel, and put a tiny dab in the very top corners of cupboards, under drawers, etc, places where the buggers like to hang out, but where no one and nothing would come in contact with it, as it's quite toxic. It has done the trick, so you might do that after getting a fumigation so you don't need to keep fumigating the whole place. It's possible that guests might then encounter a dead one, but not scurrying about live ones.

I find if I mention the insects endemic to my area to guests in a very casual way when they arrive, i.e. not to leave food or food wrappers around, as the ants or other insects will immediately be drawn to it, they take it in stride.

But I tend to get well-travelled, adaptable guests. I know there are city slickers who have some romantic notion of staying in a remote, rural place, yet scream and want to leave if they happen to see a spider or an ant. Not much you can do about those types, except discourage them from booking in the first place.

[Mark116]

@Heather1070  You might want to check for any leaky pipes, and that kind of damp will attract roaches.  I would consider anyone complaining about a spider in a rural area, even an urban area is a dumb jerk.  But I have to agree with @Inna22 I would not stay in a place where I saw roaches.  Hopefully the pest control company you are working with is a good one and will be able to give guidance on what attracted the roaches in the first place.