[jayinhongkong]

If you want to see BIG bugs, check out India or Singapore. The last time I was in Phuket, we had enormous beetles crawling around our room in the Hilton. I've also seen cicadas in the New Territories that were bigger than a kitten. They were dead, and a tiny kitten was rolling them around like they were toys. I wish I'd had a camera. :P

[kombuchakid]

Actually I have never seen cockroaches big or small at my home in India and I think I know why.
In a spray bottle mix a bit of peppermint with 100 ml of water and a few drops of cypress essential oil.
Spray this along the edges of the room and in any nooks and crannies say weekly and you will never see a creepy crawlie there.
The peppermint doesn't have to be an essential oil, even a tincture will do.

[jayinhongkong]

No roaches at my place in Mumbai either, just massive crows and mosquitoes.

[Keith]

Apart from keeping your house clean, you are also pretty dependent on your neighbours.

I have seen cockroaches slipping into our apartment through the front door and water pipes

[srvblooze]

While it's true that having ANY kind of roach in one's house sucks, the reality is that there are many different types of cockroaches- particularly in a hot, humid environment such as HK. And that's the key word: "type".

Most kinds of roaches are pretty easy to control because they don't breed too quickly. The one you really don't want is the German cockroach. That's because they breed quickly and often and have 30-40 children each time.

They can look similar to something called an Asian roach (but german roaches have two parallel bands starting at the tip of their heads) so if you can't tell the difference you should probably consider taking it to a pest control company.

[axptguy48]

Cockroaches and other critters are a fact of life in tropical climates.
- Lizards and spiders eat the bugs. Be nice to them.
- Combat brand roach bait works well. Find it at the grocery store. You'll see more roaches the first few days but then they disappear.

[Alby]

Originally Posted by Keith

Apart from keeping your house clean, you are also pretty dependent on your neighbours.

I have seen cockroaches slipping into our apartment through the front door and water pipes

Originally Posted by axptguy48

Cockroaches and other critters are a fact of life in tropical climates.
- Lizards and spiders eat the bugs. Be nice to them.
- Combat brand roach bait works well. Find it at the grocery store. You'll see more roaches the first few days but then they disappear.

Try to see if your friends or neighbors have a geeko living around their house that their willing to hand over....living with one small geeko is a lot easier - hardly ever see the thing and no roaches and other bugs!

[axptguy48]

Originally Posted by Alby

Try to see if your friends or neighbors have a geeko living around their house that their willing to hand over....living with one small geeko is a lot easier - hardly ever see the thing and no roaches and other bugs!

What about Gecko poo? Where does it go and how much? Lizards leave these little pellets which in any case are far better than roaches.

[Alby]

Originally Posted by axptguy48

What about Gecko poo? Where does it go and how much? Lizards leave these little pellets which in any case are far better than roaches.

hmmmm good point never noticed pellets of poo but then again that could be due to my fabulous helper

[axptguy48]

Originally Posted by Alby

hmmmm good point never noticed pellets of poo but then again that could be due to my fabulous helper

Our lizards were quite nice about it this fall. They only ever "went" in the kitchen. Potty trained almost.

Agree that a fabulous helper makes lots of stuff happen behind the scenes.