How to properly use cockroach chalk “Mashenka” - Review + Video

After many drugs have appeared on the modern market of insecticidal products for cockroaches, it would seem that pencils against these parasites have faded into the background. This cannot be said about Mashenka chalk, which has long enjoyed the trust of consumers. Its low cost and effectiveness of use make this tool indispensable when “uninvited guests” appear.

There are several reasons for this love from customers:

1. When such a remedy is used, the Prussians die in huge populations.
2. The chalk has no smell. In addition, the drug does not generate dust and does not release harmful components into the air in the apartment. This makes it very safe to use. Therefore, Mashenka chalk is most often preferred by those who live with children or pets.
3. After use, this product is very quickly washed off from any areas smeared with it in the room. In this regard, it is inferior to aerosol preparations, which are very difficult to remove from the apartment and the air.
4. Along with the cockroaches, other insects will also die. The fact is that Mashenka’s chemical formula has the same effect on both Prussians and ants or fleas.
5. The product can be used for preventive purposes. By smearing all areas of the apartment just once, you don’t have to worry about parasites appearing in the room. And when they appear, they will die very quickly.

All these properties make this chalk an indispensable assistant in the fight against cockroaches.

Review

“I remember how my parents constantly bought chalk to kill cockroaches with it. Mom coated every wall and places near the baseboards so that the Prussians would not appear again. After these insects appeared in my apartment, I called her and found out the name of this drug. Mom advised me to buy only Mashenka, she said no one could deal with cockroaches better than him. I ignored her advice and decided to call a pest control service; it seemed to me that they would deal with the insects faster. Interestingly, after treatment, they recommended that we coat all areas with Mashenka for preventive purposes. Such chalk will kill cockroaches as soon as they appear in our apartment.”

Victor, Kremenchuk

Cockroach chalk: composition

You can draw conclusions about the safety and effectiveness of a chalk pencil based on its composition, which contains the following components:

• Chalk base. For this purpose, chalk and gypsum are used, mixed together in certain proportions. The base makes up at least 90% of the total mass of the product.
• Active substance. Insecticides (as a rule, these are deltamethrin and cypermethrin, but there are also other substances) that have a detrimental effect on the body of insects and lead to their death. The content of these substances is up to 10% of the total mass.

Many manufacturers use Soviet technology from the 80s to produce crayons, while others use components from Chinese manufacturers.

Description of the chalk

Pencil "Mashenka" is a contact insecticidal preparation - it acts on cockroaches after they come into contact with the treated surface. The product comes in the form of a white pencil, packaged in blue cellophane packaging.

The drug is based on 4 components that complement each other:

• Zeta-cypermethrin (0.10%) – when it enters the insect’s stomach, it blocks the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract;
• Deltamethrin (0.05%) – affects the nervous system of parasites regardless of the site of contact (stomach, body or paws), causes paralysis and leads to rapid death;
• Chalk is a cementing material;
• Gypsum – ensures easy application of the product to the surface.

How does cockroach chalk work?

Insects are exposed to active substances through direct contact with the insecticide. The cockroach touches the chalk strip and the drug gets onto its body. The poison does not act immediately, but after several hours. It gradually penetrates the body through the chitinous membrane. During this time, the cockroach manages to get to its nest with its relatives and infect them. The active substances have a detrimental effect on the nervous system of insects, blocking its impulses and causing paralysis and then death.

The effectiveness of chalk against cockroaches

The effectiveness of chalk is quite comparable to the level of its toxicity. Unlike aerosols sprayed to fight cockroaches, chalk fights the invasion of uninvited guests for a long time, even in the presence of the owners. They can calmly stay at home, and at this time the chalk will perform its function, killing more and more insects.

A pencil will not remove cockroaches once and for all; harmful insects may appear again after a while. But if you use it regularly, you can be sure that you will not encounter any uninvited guests at home. Numerous positive consumer reviews confirm the effectiveness of its work.

To work effectively, it is necessary to use the drug with a valid expiration date and, when applying it, act strictly according to the instructions.

How long does cockroach chalk work?

Once applied to surfaces, toxic substances last for about a week. Then, under the influence of external factors, they gradually lose their properties, becoming less effective, and they can even crumble off walls and other inclined surfaces.

Manufacturers recommend re-treating all cockroach paths 7-14 days after the previous application. It is not enough to simply draw lines in the same places. It is necessary to thoroughly wash the surfaces where the drug was previously applied, and then draw new ones.

Are crayons dangerous for humans and animals?

Despite the fact that the active ingredients of this product belong to toxicity class 4, and being in the same room with them is harmless, manufacturers do not recommend using cockroach pencils in rooms with small children or pets. Although crayons are used in inaccessible places, there is always a risk that the poison will enter the body of a baby or pet.

Unused crayons should be stored where they cannot be found by the youngest members of the family. The beautiful wrapper resembles candy, and the child can taste the crayon. Despite the bitter taste of most crayons, which is unlikely to please pets, a cat or dog can chew the packaging while playing with it and receive a dose of poison.

Is this product safe to use indoors?

In order for the use of chalk to be more effective, it should be applied precisely to those areas where children and pets will not have access. The drug contains zetacypermethrin and deltamethrin.

These substances are very durable. If ultraviolet rays do not penetrate into the coated areas, the effect of the insecticidal agent will last for a very long time (a little more than one and a half months).

If the chalk was used completely in accordance with the instructions, then it will not cause any harm to the residents of the house and their animals. It is necessary to treat rooms with this preparation using protective equipment (gloves). Although such precautions are unnecessary, it is enough to wash your hands with antibacterial soap.

Review

“Once I managed to read that someone’s dog ate a piece of anti-cockroach chalk called Mashenka. This did not lead to any sad consequences, only the dog developed increased salivation. But I still fear for my pets. Therefore, Mashenka only missed all the areas behind the cabinets and refrigerator. As for the baseboards, I didn’t touch them, I’m very afraid that my cats will lick this drug.”

Lyudmila, Ekaterinburg

Advantages and disadvantages of cockroach pencils

Like any drugs, pencils against cockroaches have their advantages:

• effectiveness – within a few hours after application you can notice the result of the product’s action;
• no odor – the product has absolutely no specific odor;
• safety – the pencil is completely safe compared to aerosol products and does not require people to be evicted during treatment;
• simplicity and ease of use - the chalk is easy to use, just apply it in certain places;
• complex effect - affects not only cockroaches, but also destroys other insects - bedbugs, flies, ants;
• easy removal after application - just do normal cleaning and wipe the application areas well;
• can be used for preventive purposes - periodic use can ensure that the problem does not recur;
• Availability – always available for free and inexpensive.

When deciding to use chalk against cockroaches, it would be useful to take into account the disadvantages of this product:

• short period of action, after which re-application of the drug may be required;
• To completely get rid of insects, several repeated treatments may be necessary; treatments are also carried out for preventive purposes;
• the applied product can be neutralized under the influence of external conditions;
• may pose a danger to small children and pets;
• If there is a large-scale infestation of cockroaches, the product may be ineffective.

Characteristics of this product

A simple and inexpensive drug of domestic production helps where modern developments of leading companies are powerless. It permanently eliminates many types of annoying insects. Among them:

• cockroaches;
• bedbugs;
• flies;
• ants;
• double tails and others.

The product is affordable and easy to use, and in dissolved form can be used to control garden pests.

How to properly use crayons against cockroaches

You can use a cockroach pencil in different ways:

• Clean up and thoroughly wipe away any dirt from the area where the lines will be drawn.
• Draw dense lines up to one and a half centimeters wide, crossing the expected paths of cockroaches: along the perimeter of the entire living space on the floor along the baseboards;
• cabinets and shelves with food supplies in the kitchen, as well as mezzanines;
• walls and floor around the slab;
• draw a circle around the place where the trash can is located at a short distance from it;
• batteries and walls behind them;
• areas around the sink, toilet, bathtub and kitchen sink;
• the reverse side of hanging paintings, as well as pieces of furniture on the side adjacent to the wall;
• the perimeter of all walls and ceilings in the apartment.

This treatment can guarantee the best effect in killing cockroaches in the apartment. It makes sense to unite with your neighbors and all at the same time take measures to eliminate the problem in all apartments of the building in order to avoid the reappearance of cockroaches.

You can calculate the number of crayons based on one package for processing one room from 20 to 30 m2.

Composition and principle of action

The cockroach pencil looks like a long gray-brown bar in a blue polyethylene wrapper that weighs 20 grams.

This insecticidal agent consists of the following components:

• gypsum;
• cypermethrin;
• deltamethrin;
• chalk.

The active substances of such an insecticidal preparation are the following chemical components: cypermethrin and deltamethrin. They are safe for both residents and large or small pets (cats, dogs, etc.).

Gypsum and chalk make up 95% of the total composition of such an insecticidal pencil. They give it an oblong shape, and also connect the various components of this product.

Thus, a chalk pencil permanently rids tenants of these parasites in their living quarters.

The principle of action of chalk against cockroaches is that upon direct contact with such small pests, it quickly kills them. Various toxic components of such a product penetrate the outer shell of insects, paralyze, and then kill them.

Compared to various insecticidal aerosols, which kill cockroaches already during their spraying, the pencil from these insects begins to act only after a certain time.

The domestic cockroach simply touches this drug, and then the poison penetrates into its body.

It happens this way: the parasite crosses the chalk strip, which the tenant drew with an insecticidal pencil. Accordingly, the more cockroaches run through it, the higher the expected effect.

Small pests also bring a similar insecticidal agent to cockroach nests on their small legs, and then infect their relatives.

A chalk pencil, as a rule, begins to kill such insects after 4-5 days. During this period, the number of parasites sharply decreases, and their twisted dead bodies increasingly appear on the floor.

In most cases, using an insecticidal pencil, the tenant destroys the entire colony of cockroaches in 2-4 weeks. During this time, a person carries out several sanitary treatments at an interval of 7 days.

To achieve maximum effect, chalk pencil should be applied to baseboards or other surfaces with chalk strips at least 1-2 cm thick.

Then the parasites, when crossing such stripes, become so dirty with them that the poison begins to kill them within a few hours.

Video

How does Mashenka's chalk work on cockroaches?

Precautionary measures

When using a pencil, you must strictly follow simple safety rules:

• You must use the insect repellent pencil exactly according to the instructions.
• Processing should be carried out wearing rubber gloves and a protective mask on the face.
• Make sure that the drug does not get on the skin and mucous membranes, and if this does happen, rinse the affected area generously with running water.
• Strictly control that the chalk does not fall into the hands of a child or into the teeth of a pet.

Instructions for use

It is necessary to draw lines on the baseboards and on the furniture panels. Kitchen furniture requires special attention. If possible, you need to draw the entire perimeter of the kitchen furniture at the back. It is better to outline the trash can with a ring. Make sure that the bucket always stands inside the ring. Mark the sink around the entire perimeter. High-quality treatment is required, since this is the main place where cockroaches drink. Draw ventilation inlets with double lines. It is along them that the Prussians can move from their neighbors. The stripes are drawn bold and clear so that the cockroaches do not step over, but pass with all their limbs. It’s not worth saving on chalk, as its price is very small. The number of insects that are destroyed by the drug depends only on how long the so-called drawings are left untouched.

Advice! You should not remove the stripes until the Prussians are completely destroyed. It is necessary to treat the surface until the cockroaches disappear.

6 rules for effective use

Cockroach chalk is a completely primitive remedy (both in terms of content and use). If you adopt six rules, you can significantly increase its effectiveness.

1. Prepare the room. Before you start painting, do a thorough cleaning, paying attention to hard-to-reach places.
2. Update the “drawing”. A week after application, the activity of the insecticide begins to weaken. Therefore, you need to refresh the layer every seven days.
3. Remember prevention. Even if you haven’t noticed cockroaches in your apartment, just in case, use chalk to clean inconspicuous surfaces (ventilation, hard-to-reach corners, back walls of furniture).
4. Don't save money. The thicker the line, the stronger the effect of the Mashenka chalk. The thickness of the strip must be at least 1 cm.
5. “Draw” on the wet surface. The contact effect of the insecticide is significantly enhanced by exposure to water. Therefore, before applying chalk, wipe the surface with a damp sponge.
6. Close the curtains. Under the influence of direct sunlight, the effect of the chalk is weakened. Therefore, during the daytime it is better to curtain the windows in the treated rooms.

“Mashenka” helps to overcome not only cockroaches, but also other household pests. To get rid of ants, draw stripes along their usual paths. Treatment of bed frames and upholstered furniture will be your salvation from bedbugs.

Chalk Mashenka from the Prussians can be used in different ways:

• Grinding chalk into powder and scattering it on the surface of insect habitat.
• Diluting a pencil in water . Wardrobes, cabinets, baseboards, floors and all surfaces susceptible to insect attack are washed.
• Powdering the room . One of the dangerous methods, as there is a possibility of poisoning from volatile poisons.

Precautions when using chalk in an apartment.

Like all insecticidal products, the Mashenka pencil from the Prussians is toxic. precautions must be taken when using it . If you are drawing surfaces with chalk, you must wear rubber gloves. You can buy them both at a pharmacy and at a hardware store. If the pencil is ground into powder, you need a gauze bandage and glasses to protect your eyes. This way, small specks of chalk dust will not get into your mouth, nose or eyes. Before treating the premises, it is necessary to remove all residents from the house. If you have small children and animals, you need to provide them with accommodation in another place for two weeks. This is due to the fact that we kids and pets can lick or pick up poison from the surface with our fingers. Despite the fact that the concentration of poison in Mashenka crayons is low, it can be more than harmful for an animal or child. Signs of poisoning include vomiting, diarrhea, tremors, convulsions, nausea and double vision. If one of them appears, you should immediately consult a doctor.

Chalk "Mashenka" for bedbugs

If there are bedbugs in the house, the Mashenka chalk will help cope with the invasion of parasites. The insect will run along the line, the poison will remain on its paws, and then through the proboscis it will enter the gastrointestinal tract and be absorbed into the blood. The infected individual returns to its nest, the poison reaches all members of the colony, and they die.

Draw a solid block around the perimeter of the room. Bedbugs are not as mobile as cockroaches; they like to live close to a person’s sleeping place and do not travel long distances. Treat secluded places in furniture with powder or dilute the preparation with water to obtain a solution with a consistency reminiscent of liquid sour cream. Sprinkle or spray with this product in hard-to-reach cavities, places where traces of parasite activity are visible.

Advice

According to the Vredstop website, bedbugs love to make nests on the back of carpets hanging on the wall. Remove all carpet items and dry clean them, this way you will destroy parasite eggs.

Wash bedding and all contents of cabinets and drawers at maximum temperature. If the fabric cannot be exposed to hot water, hang the items outside in winter to freeze. Remove clocks, paintings, and jewelry from the walls and chalk the back walls with chalk. Look where the wallpaper falls away from the structures; bedbug nests can often be found there. Treat all cracks and bubbles. Since the poison does not affect eggs, after 2 weeks repeat all work to combat parasites.

We cannot always choose clean neighbors for ourselves. If behind the wall there is dirt, disorder, insects run freely throughout the apartment, then soon they may move in with you.

For prevention, carefully treat all places where uninvited guests may appear:

• window and door openings;
• ventilation holes;
• pipeline route locations;
• area around sockets.

Chalk “Mashenka” - treating an apartment for fleas

Fleas can even attack an apartment where there are no pets. The neighbor's dog scatters insects all over the floor, and they run through the cracks towards you. Stray cats in the entrance covered the entire doormat with parasites. Ground fleas from the street penetrate into basements and first floors. There are a lot of options, and in any case you will have to expel insects from your home.

If you have a four-legged pet, first get rid of fleas with medications intended for animals. At the same time, you need to free your apartment from parasites. These insects multiply at tremendous speed, and very quickly all things located no higher than 1.5 m from the floor level will be infected. It is undesirable to use drugs with high toxicity; for such treatment the whole family will have to leave the house for several hours.

First, arm yourself with a vacuum cleaner and clean all hard-to-reach places, crevices, upholstered furniture and toys, this way you will collect the bulk of both insects and their eggs. Burn the filter or treat it with an insecticide. Take Mashenka crayons and draw stripes along the floor and walls. The cat's or dog's bedding can be covered with powder, and after a while washed in hot water.

Does Mashenka chalk help against ants?

Chalk "Mashenka" can save you from ants. If insects have attacked your apartment, draw stripes along the entire perimeter of the room, like against cockroaches. Look where the ants' paths go: these insects usually do not run chaotically, but move along the same route. Draw stripes on their paths so that insects are sure to step on the poison. You can drop sugar syrup, honey, or some other treat attractive to parasites onto the strips.

Cockroaches and fleas may jump or fly over the drawn lines. Ants do not have such abilities, and a line 2 cm wide will become an insurmountable obstacle for them. They will bring pieces of the “delicacy” to the nest, feed all the inhabitants, and treat the female laying eggs. After some time, the entire family will be destroyed.

In the garden, you can sprinkle powder on the ground around the anthill. If there are aphids on the plants, make a water solution and spray the affected bushes with a spray bottle. This way you can deal with 2 types of pests at once. The same liquid composition can be poured directly into the anthill. Remove the top layer of soil and pour the powder or pour the liquid preparation into the place where insects accumulate. The principle of action of the drug in any form is absolutely the same.

So, the Mashenka chalk can be used not only for drawing lines in an apartment infested with harmful insects. This universal remedy has also found use in powdered and dissolved form. As soon as you notice that single scouts have looked into the house, take a white block and draw a protective outline to prevent the parasites from having any chance. The crushed preparation can be poured into cracks and hard-to-reach places, and the solution can be poured over indoor plants and loose wallpaper. The sooner you get down to business, the easier it will be to deal with unwanted visitors.

Mashenka: why hasn’t it lost its popularity for decades?

The most popular among crayons is “Mashenka”, developed by Soviet technologists. The effectiveness of the chalk is evidenced by its history. Created back in the 80s, inexpensive, easy to use, it still helps fight the “red invaders”, proving its effectiveness to more than one generation of consumers. And in the future, “Mashenka” is unlikely to lose its relevance; it will be in demand as long as cockroaches exist.

How to use Mashenka chalk against cockroaches: instructions

Like all products of a similar purpose, Mashenka chalk is used to combat harmful insects by applying it in lines along the floor, walls, around ventilation outlets, cracks, crevices, and especially intensively along baseboards. The lines must be continuous, dense and wide enough to prevent the possibility of jumping or stepping over them, so that the poison particles are guaranteed to fall on the legs or bellies of the cockroaches.

Precautions when using chalk in an apartment

Chalk "Mashenka" is considered low-toxic, but can still pose a threat to children and animals, so it should be used in places inaccessible to them.

All work with this pencil should be done with gloves and a mask to protect your hands and face.

Where to buy this product

The Mashenka pencil is available for free sale in the hardware departments of many stores. It is inexpensive - from 12 to 20 rubles per package, depending on the manufacturer.

The effectiveness of chalk in the fight against bedbugs

The pencil helps in killing bedbugs if they have appeared in the apartment relatively recently and have not had time to lay eggs.

Before using it, prepare the room:

1. wet cleaning is done;
2. furniture is moved away from the walls to find possible habitats of bedbugs near the baseboard;
3. all items from the closets are washed due to the possible presence of bedbug eggs in them;
4. if things cannot be washed, then they are treated with steam or taken out into the cold;
5. all carpets are dry cleaned;
6. upholstered furniture (sofas, armchairs) are dismantled down to the wooden frame.

You can use bedbug repellent:

• Like a pencil. Draw them on surfaces: cabinets, backs of sofas and beds, back surfaces of paintings and photographs, sockets, door jambs, window sills and windows.
• Like powder. Mashenka chalk crumbles well and can be used to fill cracks behind baseboards and folds of upholstered furniture. The only drawback: if you pour it on the floor, drafts can cause the powder to rise into the air.
• Like a solution. The chalk is dissolved in water until it becomes creamy and all the cracks are filled with a brush and the surfaces are treated.

After treatment, be sure to ventilate the room and do a thorough cleaning after 2 weeks.

Analogues of Mashenka chalk and what to do if Mashenka doesn’t work

In situations where the colony of cockroaches in the house is very numerous, even with the correct use of Mashenka, the result may be unsatisfactory. In this case, it is necessary to carry out a comprehensive treatment - use insecticides in the form of an aerosol, gel preparations, and use crayons after the treatment is completed for preventive purposes.

In addition to Mashenka, the modern market for barrier products to combat cockroaches is represented by crayons from other manufacturers:

• A clean home - manufacturers guarantee a quiet life without insects.
• Brownie - when used, the result will be noticeable within a week.
• Eurogard is a proven long-lasting pencil.
• Tornado is a chalk for repelling crawling insects; when applied in damp areas of an apartment, regular line renewal is required.
• Titanic has an advantage over its analogues: thanks to its unique formula, it destroys cockroaches even a month after application.
• Rubit – one chalk kills all insects in an area of ​​30 m2.
• Global - copes with its task and provides good results.
• Nika - has residual activity on absorbent surfaces for more than 35 days and up to 2 months in hard-to-reach places.
• Blockbuster - when calculating the number of packages per area to be treated, it should be taken into account that its weight is 2 times less than the weight of crayons from other domestic manufacturers.
• Chinese anti-cockroach pencils can only be purchased through Chinese product websites or in special stores. The active substance is stronger compared to products from domestic manufacturers, but the level of toxicity is also higher.

How it works, indications

Highly active synthetic pyrethroids deltamethrin and zeta-cypermethrin are the main toxic components that make up Mashenka’s pencil and are characterized by intestinal contact effects. How they act on cockroaches depends on the method of their penetration into the body.

The toxic substance, falling on the pest, destroys it from the outside, corroding the chitinous covers. This chalk preparation has an equally effective effect when it penetrates through the spiracles or the digestive system.

Poisons that enter the body of an insect have an extremely negative effect on the functioning of the nervous system. Toxins trigger the process of blocking the transmission of impulses along nerve fibers through the membrane of one cell to another. Gradually, the cockroach loses the ability not only to move, move in space and eat, but also to breathe. He dies as a result of complete paralysis.

The first cockroach corpses are observed on days 4-5. Starting from this time, the population declines sharply, and after 30-60 days the colony can be completely destroyed.

Chalk Mashenka is indicated for use both in advanced cases, when the infestation of a room by insects is very high, and when there are only isolated pests, as well as for the purpose of prevention against their penetration.

Symptoms of poisoning in cats and dogs

The first sign of possible crayon poisoning from cockroaches in an animal will be packaging damaged by teeth and the absence of crayon in it.

After some time, all or some of the symptoms of poisoning may appear:

• lethargic state of the animal;
• vomiting and diarrhea;
• refusal to drink or, conversely, excessive drinking;
• elevated temperature.

What to do if your pet has eaten poison?

In case of insecticide poisoning, it is necessary to show your pet to a veterinarian as soon as possible. When visiting him, it is better to have the packaging of the drug with you so that the doctor can accurately prescribe treatment based on the active substance.

Before visiting the doctor, you can give the animal an activated carbon tablet and give it plenty of water.

When to use a chalk pencil

Today, an insecticidal pencil against cockroaches is used not only by residents of private households or apartments, but also by employees of hospitals, clinics, as well as owners and employees of warehouses. It comes with detailed instructions for using the drug.

According to the recommendations specified in the instructions, this insecticidal agent can be applied to office furniture, as well as to corridor baseboards and dorm walls. However, there are also places where you cannot use a cockroach pencil.

For example, such chalk cannot be used in a kindergarten, because small children can easily climb into those places that are usually treated with insecticide.

Accordingly, a child can lick the insecticidal chalk from his fingers with his tongue and become poisoned by it.

In such a situation, adults do not immediately guess the reasons for the sudden poisoning of their child in kindergarten. This leads to serious damage to the baby's health.

In addition to licking his fingers, a child can instantly become poisoned by an insecticidal pencil from cockroaches by chewing on the crayon!

Also, this drug should not be used in poultry or livestock farms.

After all, a chicken that accidentally pecks a poisoned cockroach first poisons itself, and then passes the insecticidal poison along the food chain to humans.

In addition, with extreme caution it is necessary to use chalk against cockroaches in a private household or apartment in which a pet lives - a cat or a dog.

Such a drug can only be used in places with which these animals will not come into contact.

What to do if a child ate a crayon?

At the slightest suspicion that even a small amount of chalk components have entered the child’s body, it is important to consult a doctor as soon as possible. When calling an ambulance, listen to the recommendations and follow them until the doctor arrives. Be sure to show the packaging so that doctors understand what exactly caused the poisoning. The child will receive emergency assistance and his life will be safe.

The use of special insecticidal pencils has its advantages and disadvantages. If a problem with cockroaches arises, you first need to analyze the situation and choose the right method to combat them. If the insect population is not too large, instead of sprays that are particularly toxic, it is wiser to use cockroach chalk.

Pros and cons of the drug

It seems strange that a small white block can solve the problem of harmful bugs scurrying around the house.
Especially when it comes to a room where children, pets or people suffering from allergies live. In such a situation, you need to be wary of any foreign substance, especially a toxic one. Positive qualities of the insecticide:

• low toxicity;
• no odor;
• low cost;
• easily applied to all coatings and simply washed off;
• multifunctional - works against several types of pests.

This is interesting: the development was originally created in the 80s to protect supplies in military units. Only in the early 90s the drug appeared on the public market, having proven itself well.

The negative side of using a pencil should be considered in more detail:

1. In case of contact with the mucous membranes of the mouth, eyes or respiratory tract, it may cause irritation, allergies or mild poisoning.
2. Another disadvantage is the visual unaestheticness of its use. Not everyone will like seeing an apartment covered in white stains. When the insect infestation is small, its habitat is primarily in the kitchen or pantry. But in advanced cases, you will have to outline the entire apartment, not excluding cabinets, chests of drawers and sections from the inside.
3. The drug does not last long. The lines need to be periodically updated, having previously erased the old “drawings”. Efficiency decreases especially quickly when exposed to direct sunlight.
4. Chalk “Mashenka” is not a brand. The name is not protected by copyright, so the drug is produced by many companies specializing in the production of insecticides. When choosing a product, you need to pay attention to this and give preference to a product that is produced by a company with a good reputation.

The appearance of chalk from different brands is almost the same. The main difference lies in the level of efficiency.

Summarize and draw conclusions

Having studied the information, we can summarize the above. The main point is that it is an effective remedy. But you always need to take into account related factors. For example, if you live in a country house, the infestation of the premises by cockroaches is minimal, so it will be quite easy to deal with them, just do not forget about the offspring, which must be immediately neutralized in order to prevent new young animals.

In multi-storey buildings the situation is much more complicated, because there is always a risk that, having eliminated their own cockroaches, new ones will come from the neighbors. There is no need to despair; prevention will help here, although not to the maximum. It would be correct to remove insects together, come to an agreement with neighbors, this is a common problem, in severe cases, use other means in combination, contact specialized services.

Let's consider the advantages and disadvantages of Mashenka.

Flaws

• Short period of action (7 days);
• Ineffective against large numbers of insects;
• Dangerous for children and animals.

Remember that use should only be carried out in compliance with safety precautions. Don't neglect the rules. Ventilate the room, do not forget about wet cleaning, wear gloves, respirators, and do not apply chalk in places where there may be children and animals.

Remember about sanitary standards in the premises. In order not to attract “mustachioed guests,” take out the trash as often as possible and wash the area under and around the trash can. After each meal, wash the dishes and sink, wipe the sink dry.

Analogue

Nowadays there are absolutely no problems with choosing a variety of drugs that help drive out “uninvited guests.” It can be a gel, aerosol, powder and others. But if we talk specifically about the analogue, then this is, of course, a Chinese pencil. It appeared on the market long before the Mashenka chalk, and became the basis for its production. Previously, it was more effective because it had a greater concentration of the active substance, and for this reason it was more in demand, but at the moment they are absolutely identical.

There is no difference in the method of application; it is also applied for the same period of time. The safety measures that must be followed are also the same.

There are other crayons that are used in the fight against insects, their differences are in the active ingredients. The most popular include Tornado, Clean House, Titanic, etc. Regarding the cost, but it is quite low, starting from 13 rubles and up to 60 rubles.

Useful materials

Read other articles about cockroaches:

• To successfully combat these parasites, you need to know where they come from in your apartment, what they eat? What is their life cycle and how do they reproduce?
• The most common types here are red and black. How are they different and what to do if you see a white cockroach in your apartment?
• Interesting facts: what nicknames did people come up with for these insects; did you know that there are flying species; some myths about where the mustachios disappeared and what it could mean?
• Can cockroaches cause physical harm to humans, such as biting or getting into the ear and nose?
• A detailed article about how to get rid of them, the most effective methods of control and prevention.
• There are now many treatments on the market against these parasites. Therefore, we wrote an article about how to choose a drug that is right for you, described the best products available today, and compiled a rating of insect repellent drug manufacturers.
• And of course, we couldn’t ignore all sorts of folk methods, in particular the most popular is boric acid.
• Well, if you yourself cannot cope with uninvited guests, then we recommend turning to professionals. They have modern fighting technologies and will save you from misfortune once and for all.

Below is a list of drugs that have proven themselves:

• Powders and dusts: FAS, Clean House.
• Crayons and pencils: Mashenka.
• Traps: Foresight, Combat.
• Very effective gels: Dohlox, Global.
• Aerosols: Raid, Raptor.
• Strong sprays: Executioner, Regent, Get, Cucaracha, Karbofos.
• Find out if electronic repellers help?

How to choose a product and what exactly it is suitable for treating the room

Recommendations to help you choose the right drug:

If possible, consider products that have instructions in Russian on the label. This makes it easier to use. It is necessary to decide which form of release is suitable for processing a home under given conditions. For example, gel and chalk are products for cases when there are still few insects. A concentrate or powder (a liquid can also be prepared from it) can help deal with severe infestation of an apartment. Substance consumption. Chinese funds are often spent slowly

However, it is important to determine approximately how many bottles or Chinese cockroach poison you will need in a black box in order to immediately order the required volume. This will allow you not to disrupt the processing scheme, i.e.

because when ordering online, medications may arrive later than required. Then the processing efficiency will decrease. Considering that it is not always possible to read the instructions and evaluate the effectiveness of the drug in another way, you should read reviews of Chinese products. This will help you navigate among a wide range of similar drugs.

It is recommended to order products with the expectation of a full course of treatment of the room

How to use the drug "Mashenka"?

The best place to store Mashenka chalk against bedbugs is a warm place, because the active ingredients of this drug disintegrate when exposed to sunlight.

Label "Mashenka"

Considering the type of home, you can choose one of several methods to destroy parasites:

The so-called chalk drawing. Dusting the room with crushed preparation (it is important to consider that this method is dangerous, because there is a risk of inhaling dust). Finally, you can do a wet treatment, that is, coat the apartment with chalk dissolved in water.

These methods are almost the same in terms of effectiveness. Of course, the easiest way to treat your home from parasites is with a pencil. To get rid of house bugs in a room of several tens of square meters, you need to use one piece of chalk.

If you need to use several bedbug pencils at one time, it is better to wear protective gloves. After finishing the treatment, wash your face and hands thoroughly with soap. If dust from the product gets into your eyes, rinse them with water.

To prepare the room for bedbug treatment, you need to move the furniture and also check for cracks in the baseboard. After all, this is the favorite habitat of bedbugs. The paintings need to be removed and also processed. If possible, the bed or sofa should be disassembled.

Mashenka from bedbugs

Before use, remove the chalk from its packaging. There is no need to remove the film from the bottom. It is by the bottom that we take it. Use a pencil to cover all surfaces

It is important to note that the lines should be bold

"Important! The following areas need to be treated:

• The entire room, as well as walls, baseboards and floors. We process the damaged baseboard several times. For these purposes, you can dissolve the pencil in water.
• The backs of furniture and carpets should also be treated.
• Finally, we apply chalk to the frame of the sofa, the old wallpaper and the back of the paintings.”

Proper Use

In order to get the maximum effect, as the instructions for use say, it is necessary to treat every room in the room. It is necessary to draw a line about 2 centimeters wide; it should be a contour that is not interrupted. You can close contours on the floor, baseboards, and walls.

The most dangerous places through which “uninvited guests” enter the home are: ventilation, window sills, communications. Give them maximum attention.

In addition, it is necessary to treat house plants. The thing is that a flower pot provides moisture, which attracts cockroaches, so they are often found in the area nearby. To do this, chalk is dissolved in water and the plants are sprayed with a spray bottle. The water dries out and the toxin remains on the surface.

There is no need to worry about plants, since it does not absorb poison and does not retain it, so plants, fruits, buds will not contain toxins.

Also, a spray bottle is used in places where the largest number of cockroaches are noticed; to do this, spray the area generously.

The chalk works as follows: as you receive a dose of toxin, poisoning gradually occurs. The big plus is that one cockroach, returning to its colony, will infect the rest. And such an infection occurs due to the fact that these insects are cannibals and do not hesitate to eat the corpses of their relatives.

There is one very important point. Many owners, having won the fight against insects, think that the situation is under control, but this is a mistaken opinion. The thing is that, having gotten rid of the adults, there is another threat - the younger generation.

When the adults are infected, they die, but the eggs in the females remain intact, they develop and the young hatch, which worries you again

It is important to skip this moment; they need about 2.5 months to develop, but an invasion can occur earlier. In order not to give them a chance, you need to regularly update the outline with chalk.

Another scenario: they may appear again from your neighbors. Therefore, do not forget about preventive actions.

As a preventative measure, it is necessary to treat:

• Window openings;
• Door openings;
• Ventilation holes;
• Gaps near communications;
• Gaps near electrical outlets;
• Skirting boards.

Security measures

Further contact with surfaces that previously had chalk marks is safe. No grains of the substance remain in the air. When machining while the core is being worn, the chips fall off rather than moving around like dust.

How to protect yourself and your loved ones:

• Do not unpack the crayon completely. Remove only part of the packaging and hold it while drawing lines. Cellophane will protect the skin from contact with the poison. If by chance the wrapper tears completely, you should work with rubber gloves.
• Wear a mask or respirator. This is necessary in order to protect the respiratory tract from poisoning - some crayons generate dust when drawing lines.
• Protect children. Draw in places inaccessible to children. If age allows, you need to explain to the child what these lines are and why they should not be touched.
• Keep your pets safe. For warm-blooded animals the harm is minimal, but it does exist. You need to try to limit your four-legged friend’s access to the marked areas. It is best to give it to relatives, friends or a pet hotel for a while.

Even after a while, when the chalk has worn off on its own, you should not forget that it was applied. General wet cleaning is the only measure to neutralize active substances that probably remain on surfaces.

Two months after use, all previously treated areas are washed with soda solution. The chalk application procedure can be repeated as necessary.

Studying reviews

If we take into account the reviews of people who have already tried the product in their homes, we can draw the following conclusions:

• Easy to apply and no need to prepare the room before use.
• Allows you to get rid of both cockroaches and ants, which is important for residents of one-story houses.
• Great price.
• Good prevention if there is a risk of infection from neighbors.

Regarding negative reviews, these are rather the shortcomings that we talked about earlier, toxicity and danger. Whether to use this drug is up to you, but be aware of the associated factors.