Bugs On The Wall

[Kerio 2]

A health advisory on Borax from Wikipedia, for safety's sake:

Toxicity

Borax, sodium tetraborate decahydrate, is not acutely toxic.[18] Its LD50 (median lethal dose) score is tested at 2.66 g/kg in rats: a significant dose of the chemical is needed to cause severe symptoms or death. The lethal dose is not necessarily the same for humans.

Sufficient exposure to borax dust can cause respiratory and skin irritation. Ingestion may cause gastrointestinal distress including nausea, persistent vomiting, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. Effects on the vascular system and brain include headaches and lethargy, but are less frequent. "In severe poisonings, a beefy red skin rash affecting palms, soles, buttocks and scrotum has been described. With severe poisoning, erythematous and exfoliative rash, unconsciousness, respiratory depression, and renal failure."

A reassessment of boric acid/borax by the United States Environmental Protection Agency Office of Pesticide Programs found potential developmental toxicity (especially effects on the testes). Boric acid solutions used as an eye wash or on abraded skin are known to be particularly toxic to infants, especially after repeated use, because of the slow elimination rate.

Borax was added to the Substance of Very High Concern (SVHC) candidate list on 16 December 2010. The SVHC candidlate list is part of the EU Regulations on the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals 2006 (REACH), and the addition was based on the revised classification of Borax as toxic for reproduction category 1B under the CLP Regulations. Substances and mixtures imported into the EU which contain Borax are now required to be labelled with the warnings "May damage fertility" and "May damage the unborn child".

[Topspin 1]

Agree, everything is toxic if used in excess, or are misused. Our parents and their parents routinely add borax into their delicious meat dumplings.

Don't confuse boric acid with borax. They are different.

It is really choosing between a rock and a hard place. Some borax residue on my wall or mold on my wall. My health was badly affected by mold 2 years back so I rather not have the later.

Of course if new finding shows that borax is really bad, then I will reconsider. First, the authorities in USA need to remove Borax as laundy aid from all their supermarkets shelves in USA and then ban borax to use as dish washing cleaners (I believe the dish washing machine powder Somat found in NTUC is borax based but not was shown on the ingredient)

Borax is also used in science experiments by pre-school and primary school children in USA. You read about it everywhere on the Internet. They use it to make a springy dough and to experiment with crystal formation. Were the school teacher not warned about the toxicity of borax if they are indeed toxic?

Quite a contradictory article actually.

The decision lies with the individual but good that you share the wikipedia article so that everyone is well informed.

[dean 5]

Agree, everything is toxic if used in excess, or are misused. Our parents and their parents routinely add borax into their delicious meat dumplings.

Don't confuse boric acid with borax. They are different.

It is really choosing between a rock and a hard place. Some borax residue on my wall or mold on my wall. My health was badly affected by mold 2 years back so I rather not have the later.

Of course if new finding shows that borax is really bad, then I will reconsider. First, the authorities in USA need to remove Borax as laundy aid from all their supermarkets shelves in USA and then ban borax to use as dish washing cleaners (I believe the dish washing machine powder Somat found in NTUC is borax based but not was shown on the ingredient)

Borax is also used in science experiments by pre-school and primary school children in USA. You read about it everywhere on the Internet. They use it to make a springy dough and to experiment with crystal formation. Were the school teacher not warned about the toxicity of borax if they are indeed toxic?

Quite a contradictory article actually.

The decision lies with the individual but good that you share the wikipedia article so that everyone is well informed.

is this a borax from ebay

[Topspin 1]

is this a borax from ebay

I didn't realise that you attached a link.

From the description, it says Borax.

On the same page, there is another small image. The other image shows 20 Mule Team brand of Borax. I bought that brand.

Just buy the cheapest one you can find after factoring in delivery charges.

Edited December 19, 2011 by Topspin

[Retro266 0]

I bought a old flat with bugs problem and find this works best(*least effort). What I do is stick "housefly trap" (yellow flat sticky paper trap from Daiso, 5pcs in a box) at bugs commonly seen area. It work like a talisman and stick all the bugs. Over time the number will reduce / controlled. Sometimes it will also stick unwanted lizards & cockroaches in the house. You can choose a hidden view area to cover the unsightly view of dead bugs bodies stick on the trap from guests. However you may need to change this "talisman" weekly.

My 2 cents worth.

[dean 5]

I didn't realise that you attached a link.

From the description, it says Borax.

On the same page, there is another small image. The other image shows 20 Mule Team brand of Borax. I bought that brand.

Just buy the cheapest one you can find after factoring in delivery charges.

where to order and ship to singapore? ebay seller don't ship to singapore. how to solve mould on clothing.

[Topspin 1]

where to order and ship to singapore? ebay seller don't ship to singapore. how to solve mould on clothing.

There are some online merchants who do deliver their 20 Mule team borax to Singapore and do accept Singapore issued credit cards but I just used Vpost so I can just pick and choose the cheapest online. With Vpost, the delivery address is in USA and Vpost will pay on behalf of you first.

As for mold in clothing, I try to keep my wardrobe dry by placing Calcium chloride dessicant (e.g. Thirsty Hippo) but it can be a quite costly to replce. I recycle the dessicant once a while. I had a post with instructions on how to recylce the dessicant but somehow those early post have all been removed from this forum.

Another method is to put half tablespoon of borax into your last rinse (in the same compartment where you place your conditioner). Then dry your clothes as per normal. There will be some borax residue on your clothes and that would help prevent mold from growing hence stays fresh smelling. I really hate the smell of mold on my clothes. Anyway, 20 Mule borax is sold as a laundry aid so it is safe to use it for this purpose.

[Topspin 1]

From my personal experience, those anti mold properties in the paint don't last very long. If the environment is condusive, mold will grow on it again. I personally prefer regularly "maintaining" the surface with borax. It doesn't cost anything really, compared to having to repaint the ceiling/wall.

About a year back I emailed ICI paint to ask them if I can dissolve some Borax crystal into the paint directly before I use the paint on my wall/ceiling. They replied (rather tentatively) that the pH of the paint will be affected and hence not recommended. I have not done any painting since I repainted my moldy ceiling 2 years back but I think I would like to add some borax into my paint to test it out during my next painting.

For the time being, my walls and ceiling are kept mold free by just wet wiping it with borax regularly.

[chiamt02 0]

About a year back I emailed ICI paint to ask them if I can dissolve some Borax crystal into the paint directly before I use the paint on my wall/ceiling. They replied (rather tentatively) that the pH of the paint will be affected and hence not recommended. I have not done any painting since I repainted my moldy ceiling 2 years back but I think I would like to add some borax into my paint to test it out during my next painting.

For the time being, my walls and ceiling are kept mold free by just wet wiping it with borax regularly.

hi Topspin,

i am wondering have you tried baking soda and/or vinegar for your mould problem previously?

can you share your experience with them?

[sin77 0]

If you are talking about book lice or mould bugs, i can confirm that u can solve it by doing 2 things.

1. Use dettol mix with water and then use cloth to wipe all the walls including ceiling. Do that for a few times spread over days.

2. Repaint the walls with sealant + anti-mould paint.

3. Always monitor and think of remedy.

Last time my whole house infected with a lot of book lice (or mould bugs), and drove me bonker! Now can hardly find them.

[dean 5]

Booklice feed on mould on wall that we cannot see with our naked eyes.

Singapore is a humidity country can't be avoided.

Edited March 8, 2012 by dean

[greenlover 0]

the booklice in my flat is coming from the TV console where I have put craftstone as a feature wall...how can I get rid of them? I tried wiping the TV console down with Dettol but I can still see the book lice crawling on them unaffected! I saw some crawling out from the bottom of the craftstones (joint between them & TV console). Can I spray dettol on the craftstones, inlcuding in between the gaps? Worried that as those areas are hard to dry, will result in mould problem

Notice a few greenish patches on some of the craftstones & I wiped Chlorine bleach all over them (chlorine kills mould, no?). Any suggestions? I totally can't use my TV console for fear of these book lice which is irritating!

Suspect they are feeding off the glue used to hold the craftstone to the wooden plank

[sin77 0]

Dry cloth will only spread the mould.

Hair dryer doesn't help much, lice will still be around.

Dettol is to remove the mould, not the lice.

When there's no mould there's no lice.

Dehumidifier will prevent mould growth but will not remove them from wall.

Dettol aerosol spray won't cover the surface thoroughly, mould still grow.

[dean 5]

Dry cloth will only spread the mould.

Hair dryer doesn't help much, lice will still be around.

Dettol is to remove the mould, not the lice.

When there's no mould there's no lice.

Dehumidifier will prevent mould growth but will not remove them from wall.

Dettol aerosol spray won't cover the surface thoroughly, mould still grow.

I agreed wat u said but dettol not effective. I bought mould killers $7++. Repaint whole house with oil base sealer + Nippon odorless all in 1 easywash. Total painting less than $9XX.

[greenlover 0]

if the booklice are now in my kitchen cabinets & I have no mould issues there (orat least none that I can see), what can I do?

Hence for my craftstone wat can I use to kill them with? Man, this issue is seriously causing mi to have sleepless nights. WIll appreciate all e advice