Mashenka pencil is a long-used remedy for cockroaches and other household pests. Insects not only die, but leave human habitation.
But nowadays there are so many insecticides produced that, when faced with a choice, it is not always possible to give preference to the most effective product. Before purchasing another “weapon” in the war against disgusting arthropods, you need to figure out whether it’s really worth it.
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:
- In case of contact with the mucous membranes of the mouth, eyes or respiratory tract, it may cause irritation, allergies or mild poisoning.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Why do bedbugs appear?
The appearance of bedbugs in an apartment does not indicate the owners’ neglect of cleanliness and cleaning. Synanthropic insects enter the house with purchased second-hand furniture, household appliances, and belongings. They can move through the ventilation duct from neighbors who have arranged pest control. Ectoparasites feed on human blood. During the day they hide in the folds of mattresses, furniture, and cracks. At night they climb into bed and bite people. Bedbugs cause skin dermatitis and spread blood-borne diseases. Insects can infect humans with typhus, hepatitis C, measles and other ailments.
Small parasites with a flat body are able to penetrate a narrow gap. Their size is 3-8 mm, the body is brown. Insects live in colonies; if you do not start fighting bedbugs in time, they will spread throughout the apartment.
Composition and mechanism of action
Real cockroach chalk “Mashenka” has a pure gray-white color and weighs 20 g. Sold in blue or light blue impermeable plastic packaging. It is produced in Russia, but created as an analogue of the Chinese insecticide “Mashenka Serebryanaya”.
The composition contains deltamethrin and zeta-cypermethrin as active substances.
Important: both drugs are included in the group of pyrethroid contact poisons. Thanks to them, the insecticide was assigned a 4th degree of danger for warm-blooded animals.
Chalk and gypsum are auxiliary materials that simplify the process of using the drug and give it shape. Occupies more than 90% of the composition.
The anti-cockroach pencil is intended to help in pest control, as a primary or additional tool. The mechanism of action of the active substances is based on direct contact with insects. Once in the body of arthropods, the poison interferes with the conduction of impulses from the nerve nodes to the muscles, causing complete paralysis, which, in turn, leads to death.
One bar of “Mashenka” against cockroaches is usually enough for a small room. On average, to process an apartment or house, you should stock up on 4-5 pieces. Lines that are not in direct sunlight, but in the shade or covered pieces of furniture, retain their active properties for up to 4 weeks.
How it works
Pencil "Mashenka" against cockroaches has enteric-contact activity. The principle of action of the product can be described in four stages.
- Contact. A cockroach, running over the treated surface, stains its legs, whiskers and belly with the insecticidal composition.
- Absorption. Under the influence of air humidity, the poison begins to penetrate through the shell into the insect’s body.
- Eating. Having reached the shelter, the pest begins to clean its paws with its jaw and eats part of the poison.
- Death. After a few minutes, the cockroach dies.
If the pest population in the room is large, one piece of chalk will not be enough. You will have to combine the product with insecticidal aerosols, gels or traps.
How to use Mashenka chalk against cockroaches
There is nothing difficult about drawing an outline with chalk. But to effectively combat pests, you should study their habits and usual habitats, so as not to leave any chance for insects. You should also not ignore the instructions on the packaging.
Instructions for use
For greatest efficiency, outline each room with a continuous line 2 cm wide around the entire perimeter. The closed loop should be near the baseboards on the walls and floor. This is the only way the cockroach will not be able to pass by the trap.
Entry points for communications, ventilation openings and window sills are all key locations and main “pathways” for household pests.
Additionally, the drug is dissolved in water and sprayed on all living plants in the house. Since there is always moisture next to them, insects often live nearby. The poison remaining on the surface will kill the cockroaches.
Important: active toxic substances do not accumulate in greens, buds and fruits. Therefore, they do not pose a threat to plantings.
Using a spray bottle, it is enough to direct the stream to the place where parasites accumulate and spray everything generously. Returning there again, the pest will receive a dose of toxin.
Poisoning occurs gradually, so there is a high probability that the parasite will bring poison into the nest and infect its neighbors. Cockroaches are cannibals; they eat the corpses of their relatives, and the entire colony becomes infected.
When most of the adults die, there are always young and eggs left in the females, from which new bugs will hatch. These are the hardest to deal with. You should frequently update the lines, and not miss the moment of the emergence of a new generation, which will definitely come. After all, after 2-2.5 months, cockroaches will reach sexual maturity and continue to reproduce.
It often happens that insects after baiting appear again after a long time. This suggests that they live with their neighbors. In order to prevent such a turn of events, prevention is needed.
Places where insects may appear are treated monthly. These include:
- door and window openings;
- ventilation holes;
- communications inputs and outputs;
- area around electrical outlets;
- baseboards.
Just because dirt and disorder reign behind the wall does not mean that all residents of the house should suffer from it.
Features of using a pencil against bedbugs
If there is an invasion of bed parasites, a white block will also help. The insecticide, due to direct contact, remains on the beetle's legs. Then, through the proboscis, it enters the gastrointestinal tract and blood. The action is also delayed - 1 hour. An infected individual can also poison its nest neighbors.
To use the Mashenka pencil against bedbugs, you need to draw a contour around the perimeter of the room. But these insects do not have such an active life as, for example, cockroaches, and live mainly near beds and other sleeping places. Feeding on human blood and moving only in the dark, they try not to move away from their nests.
After wiping the bedbug chalk into powder, you need to treat hard-to-reach areas in beds and sofas. After adding a little liquid so that the consistency becomes similar to sour cream, fill the cavities and lubricate other places where traces of parasite activity were found. Another crushed preparation is stirred in water to spray the upholstery of furniture.
Tip: bedbugs make nests on the back of carpets that hang on the wall or lie on the floor. To ensure that pests are removed, products of this kind are sent to dry cleaning. Bed linen, the contents of sofa drawers and cabinets in which insects have been noticed must be washed at the highest possible temperature according to the type of material.
This insecticide does not affect eggs, so the treatment is repeated, 2 weeks after the first.
Can it be used against fleas?
It is not a fact that fleas appear only in an apartment where there are animals. Neighborhood pets and furry street dwellers can cause an invasion of blood-sucking parasites in any home.
If you have a four-legged friend in the house, then before you start fighting fleas that bite people, you need to cure him. These insects need animal blood, and will not live long on a human “diet.” But they multiply at tremendous speed and can become a real problem. Within a week, all things located up to 1.5 m from the floor will be contaminated.
First of all, you need to arm yourself with a vacuum cleaner and process all accessible places, especially upholstered furniture and carpets. Under the latter, it doesn’t hurt to sprinkle dry wormwood, which is sold in every pharmacy. The smell of this plant can repel any insects, but it quickly wears off - you need to remove the old grass and add new grass once every 2 days.
Important: the vacuum cleaner filter, after getting rid of most of the insects and their eggs, will have to be destroyed or treated with a liquid insecticide.
In case of flea control, the floor and baseboards are treated with chalk. If there is a heavy infestation of parasites, carpets should be dry cleaned. The place where the pet sleeps is covered with powder obtained from a Mashenka pencil, and then washed in hot water.
How to use against ants
A common problem in private houses and apartments located on the ground floor is ants. If left undisturbed, they do not harm people, but they can significantly spoil food. Fighting these insects with chalk is similar to the procedure for getting rid of cockroaches.
Ants are easier to control due to their natural habits. They follow established paths and do not run erratically unless there is an obvious threat. It is enough to watch the insects and remember their routes. The stripes must cross the paths so that the pests are sure to step on the poison. In order to lure them to a specific place, it is enough to drip sugar syrup, honey or sweet jam.
While a flea or cockroach can jump over a line, an ant lacks such abilities. A line 2 cm wide will become insurmountable. The insects will bring grains of toxin to the nest, where they will “treat” the female and other inhabitants with them. After a short period of time, the colony will die.
To increase the efficiency of processing, look for anthills on the street, close to the house. Having found a shelter, sprinkle it around with powder obtained from chalk, or fill it with liquid mixed with an insecticide. The principle of operation is the same.
Instructions for use
You can get rid of bedbugs, cockroaches and ants once and for all if you use the insecticide correctly.
Preparatory actions
for processing in two stages:
- All people and animals are removed from the premises. Aquariums are tightly closed with a lid. Food and dishes are packed and hidden in cabinets. Clothes and bedding are washed in hot water. Mattresses and carpets are exposed to the sun or frost.
- Furniture is moved away from the walls and the room is wet cleaned. To block escape routes, door frames, ventilation grilles and windows are washed with a strong bleach solution. As soon as the moisture has dried, you can begin treating the room.
One pencil will be enough to cover a surface area of 30 square meters. m.
Room treatment
Before using Mashenka chalk, it is recommended to wear protective equipment. Hands must be protected with rubber gloves.
There are three ways to use an insecticidal pencil
- Simple lines. Various lines 1–2 cm thick are drawn on the surface with chalk. In places where insects accumulate, the lines are made even thicker. All joints and cracks are processed. Particular attention is paid to the interior spaces of the furniture.
- Grated chalk. Using Mashenka pencil powder is a fairly effective way to kill bedbugs, cockroaches, and ants. The chalk must be crushed so that the powder resembles flour or soda. It is poured into electronics, books and other things that cannot be sprayed with aerosols. After the pests are destroyed, the powder is removed using a vacuum cleaner.
- Solution. The prepared powder can be dissolved in water and applied using a spray bottle. It is used to treat all habitats of bedbugs and cockroaches. The solution can be poured behind radiators, baseboards and into various crevices. It is not recommended to spray wallpaper with it. Washable wallpaper will then take a long time to wash, but paper wallpaper may come off.
The effectiveness of the treatment also depends on the correct location for application of the drug. Therefore, the apartment should first be carefully inspected in order to identify the places of greatest concentration of cockroaches, bedbugs, and ants.
Be sure to outline with chalk those places where insects can gain access to food and water:
- kitchen sink;
- trash cans;
- stove;
- dinner table;
- fridge;
- cabinets in the kitchen.
Is Mashenka chalk against cockroaches dangerous for humans?
Despite the low level of toxicity for humans, a baby crawling on the floor may well be poisoned by this drug if he erases a streak with his palm and then puts his fist in his mouth. The same applies to kittens and puppies, who will be interested in licking the bright features. Adult animals and people consciously avoid such things, but they will also feel uneasy after the drug enters the body. The degree of intoxication depends on the amount of toxin consumed.
Advantages and disadvantages
The product “Mashenka” does not spread in the air, due to which it has low toxicity for humans and pets.
The insecticide has no specific odor and does not cause negative reactions in people prone to allergies.
Other benefits are:
- reliable and long-term fixation on the treated surface;
- no traces, easy to remove during cleaning;
- economical consumption - one chalk is enough to renovate a small apartment;
- no need to carry out preliminary preparation of the room (the process of applying the product can be started at any convenient time);
- inability to develop immunity to the constituent ingredients of the product;
- affordable cost combined with trouble-free action against bedbugs;
- effective prevention of the appearance of blood-sucking parasites in the future.
There is no need to leave the apartment during treatment, and after the procedure there is no need to ventilate the room for a long time. Traces from using a pencil are easily washed off from treated surfaces. This product can be stored at different temperatures (from −30 to +400 degrees).
Remedy for bedbugs "Mashenka"
Some users consider the disadvantage of the pencil to be the lack of immediate results - it often takes at least 7 days to destroy the entire colony of parasites. In addition, it is not recommended to use the product if there are young (“crawling”) children living in the house. By touching the chalk lines and putting the product in your mouth, your baby can get seriously poisoned.
It should be taken into account. The drug becomes ineffective when the home is massively colonized by parasites. In this case, it is recommended to use it together with other insecticides.
Security measures
The treatment is carried out by relocating household members to another home for a couple of weeks. Before returning, it will be enough to do a thorough wet cleaning and collect dead insects with a vacuum cleaner.
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.
The principle of the effect of chalk on insects
Pencil Mashenka against bedbugs is applied in places where insects move. Together with the auxiliary components, pyrethroid compounds get onto the legs and proboscis of parasites. They enter the digestive system and are absorbed into the blood. The insecticide blocks the nerve impulses of bedbugs. They lose orientation and the ability to move, then paralysis and death occur.
Attention. Insects can infect each other with insecticide. Bed bugs that do not reach the chalk line receive poison contact from their relatives. The viral spread of the drug allows it to infect larvae of any age.
The product does not provide an immediate effect of killing parasites. About 70% of bedbugs die within 3-5 days. The remaining individuals disappear after a week. The poisonous ability of the drawn lines persists for a period of 1 month.
Analogs
The prototype is a Chinese pencil. As the domestic version of the insecticide became popular, similar products began to be produced that are not inferior in effectiveness, but differ in composition.
The most popular crayons: table
| Name | Active substances | Price |
| Clean house | alpha-cypermethrin | from 20 to 35 rub. |
| Tornado | cypermethrin | from 30 to 40 rub. |
| Global | chlorpyrifos | from 13 to 20 rub. |
| Titanic | cypermethrin and fipronil | from 40 to 60 rub. |
| Brownie | deltamethrin | from 20 to 30 rub. |
Price of bedbug repellent
The cost of the Mashenka insecticide varies slightly. Approximate product price:
- In household goods stores - 25-40 rubles.
- In online stores - from 9 rubles.
Often in markets, online resources or in hardware stores you can find another type of insecticide called “Silver Mashenka”. The instructions for this product and its composition are completely identical to the previous product. However, the cost of such a pencil is traditionally somewhat higher - in the range of 39-50 rubles.
Reviews
“We brought cockroaches into a new house with things when we moved. It didn’t help much in the summer, but in the winter, along with the cold, we managed. The cockroaches did not disappear immediately. At first they became somewhat sluggish and “pale”, and then disappeared completely.”
“Using the Mashenka chalk we got rid of cockroaches in the apartment and ants in the country house. Now we keep a few pieces in the pantry, as a reserve.”
“An old and proven remedy was recommended by a neighbor. Not immediately, but within a week there was no trace left of the insects.”
“As soon as we got rid of the bedbugs, cockroaches crawled in from the neighbors. Exterminators were called, but the effect was temporary. As soon as they started appearing again, we used Mashenka chalk for cockroaches, and surprisingly, it helped. Now we renew the lines at the baseboards every few months and don’t worry about pests.”
Insect control should always be approached comprehensively. Sometimes even the help of specialists is not effective, and repeated treatments are required, which cost a lot of money. Chalk "Mashenka" is an accessible, cheap, but effective means of getting rid of unwanted pests.
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.
Terms of use
The chalk can be used in three ways.
The first option is considered the most convenient. To do this, they need to draw lines along the movement routes of insects.
In the second case, before use, the chalk is crushed to a powder state and only then scattered in places where parasites are located. In this case, the drug is placed in a thick layer. When pouring the powder, be sure to use a gauze bandage or a respirator to protect your respiratory system. This method is best used for closed places - for example, the inside of a sofa or bed.
The third method is preparing a solution. To do this, combine the chalk with water. The finished solution should ideally resemble liquid sour cream. Ideal for processing cracks.
To treat your home, you should move furniture away from the walls, provide access to baseboards, remove carpets from the walls and take them to dry cleaning. Without it, you will not be able to destroy egg clutches, which are most often found in carpets. Clothes from closets need to be washed, steamed, and taken outside. Paintings are also removed from the walls and processed.
If possible, the bed and sofa should be disassembled down to the wooden base. Before processing, put on protective clothing, do not forget about your face and hands. The rooms around the perimeter are subject to chalk treatment, one line is made above the baseboard, the second on the floor. Additional lines are drawn when cracks are found or near wallpaper that has come away from the wall. The bed frame around the perimeter, the bottom of the mattress, the back covers of furniture, and the backs of paintings are also coated. Insects begin to die a few days after treatment. One chalk is enough for a room of about 30 square meters.
Is it possible to completely remove ants using Mashenka chalk?
Ants are characterized by differences in the characteristics of their life activity when compared with representatives of other insect species. For example, to kill a cockroach or bedbug, you can use a drug with contact or intestinal action, after which you can expect the death of the infected individuals. This scheme allows you to reduce the pest population. All females are capable of reproduction, so if they are destroyed, the number of pests will be reduced as quickly as possible, and new individuals will not be able to appear.
In the case of ants, the queen, who lives in the anthill/nest throughout her life, is responsible for reproduction; she is not responsible for obtaining food and building housing. The induced functions are assigned to working individuals, who catch the eye of the owners of the house or apartment. If only the worker arthropods are destroyed, new individuals will continue to reproduce as the female continues to lay eggs.
So, we can conclude that the impact needs to be directed at the uterus, which can only be reached by destroying the anthill, which is quite difficult, since it cannot always be located around the perimeter of the home. Most often, arthropods set up an anthill outside the building. If destruction of the queen is impossible, then the use of contact insecticides is required, which the workers will deliver inside the nest.
Taking into account the fact that Mashenka chalk does not contain attractants, it is necessary to apply stripes on the premises as often as possible, due to this the likelihood of picking up particles with a toxic substance will increase. The ants will carry the poison inside the anthill, and when in contact with their fellows, they will quickly spread it to all healthy individuals. This scheme has a fairly high probability of destroying not only the working ants, but also the queen.
When using chalk along with bait, the effectiveness will increase several times. To do this, after applying stripes throughout the premises, you need to leave attractive food for arthropods near them. While looking for food, they will quickly fall into a trap and receive a dose of poison.
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.
Advantages of the drug Mashenka
The pencil has many positive aspects. Below are the main advantages of Mashenka chalk.
