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Indoor Pest Control
Indoor Pest Control
Why be Concerned?
Indoor pest control products include mouse and rat poison, flea foggers and shampoos, and sprays for roaches, ants, and spiders. All contain toxic ingredients, but the toxicity of the products vary. Particularly toxic are older products that have been around for a number of years.
Generally, bait stations are less hazardous than sprays because the chemicals are contained and less likely to spread around the home.
Many aerosol spray pesticides now use flammable propellents such as propane. These can ignite if used near a flame, such as a pilot light or gas stove. Flammable propellents are examples of hazardous "inert" ingredients.
What You Can Do
- Choose safer methods of dealing with indoor pests. Explore our FastFacts solutions to common questions or choose a fact sheet from the list below.
- Support Washington Toxics Coalition.
- Sign up for our email alerts.
Read Our Fact Sheets on Indoor Pests
- Managing Fleas in Your Home (43kb PDF file)
- Spiders, Ants, Flies, and Cockroaches (188kb PDF file)
- I Smell a Rat: Solving Rodent Problems (43kb PDF file)
- Clothing Moths: Prevention and Control (39kb PDF file)
- Protecting Your Home from Carpenter Ants (42kb PDF file)
- Getting Ahead of Lice (80kb PDF file)
- Is This Pesticide Safe? How to Evaluate Your Risk of Harm from Using Pesticides (488kb PDF file)
Learn More
- Research pesticide products and ingredients (Pesticide Action Network Database)
- Find information on pests and pesticides (Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides)
- Learn about less-toxic pest control options for schools and child care facilities (ManageSafe)
- National news and alerts about pesticides (Beyond Pesticides)
- Pesticide Information Profiles from EXTOXNET
Disposal
Unwanted pesticides are considered household hazardous waste and must be collected as such. They should not be discarded in the trash or flushed down the drain. Click here for information about disposal of household hazardous waste in your community.
