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Electronic Cockroach Repellent (Does it WORK or SCAM?)

A cockroach infestation can be difficult to eradicate, with new episodes of infestation popping every season. Once you have successfully eradicated cockroaches, getting a new batch of roaches from outside is very common. These include a number of routes from your neighbors to luggage and groceries. One solution to preventing new roaches from moving in is to use repellents.

Electronic cockroach repellents are devices that emit ultrasonic sound waves that repel roaches. However, my personal experience with electronic cockroach repellent was not good enough to suggest that someone use it. Nonetheless, electronic cockroach repellent is not a complete failure; it works when you have a very low infestation. Therefore, I will score electronic roach repellents 4.5 out of 10 in efficacy, convenience, and price.

I have written a complete article on does ultrasonic pest control work on roaches? Please read it to get a more detailed view.

I have been using several types of roach repellents to tackle this problem, including chemical repellents such as mothballs to natural cockroach repellents such as peppermint oil. I recently came across electronic roach repellent and will share my personal experience about it in the blog below.

Tired of cockroaches? Invest in only these products and follow the guide to eliminate roaches!

Use these products, and you will be roach free in less than a week.

1. Advion Cockroach Gel Bait (Review)
2. Gentrol IGR Point Source (Review)

Other Products to try:

1. Combat Roach Traps (Easy than gel baits)
2. Hot Shot Foggers (To kill in masses – 95%)
3. Pet Safe Killers (Uses Essential Oils)
4. Ortho Defence Outdoor Roach Killer (Prevent Roaches)

How Does Electronic cockroach repellent work?

Cockroaches have an excellent sense of smell to communicate with each other and stay away from dangers. However, cockroaches do not have any specialized hearing organ-like ears. Instead, they can only sense vibrations via their antennas.

Electronic cockroach repellent works on the principle that high-frequency sounds are detected by the antennal hair cells of roaches, which activate neural pathways in the brain of cockroaches. The brain then perceives these high-frequency ultrasounds as dangerous and keeps roaches out of the effective area.

However, a study conducted by Fangeng Huwang et al. in the Journal of Insect Science concluded that these devices failed as an effective pest management tool to repel or eliminate roaches.

Therefore, the manufacturer of these devices claims electronic roach repellents to be effective; however, studies rule out these claims.

Have you heard about cockroach milk? Read this interesting article to know more!

Is Electronic cockroach repellent Effective?

Manufacturers claim electronic roach repellents repel roaches effectively and kill them. However, most customers, including me, are not entirely satisfied with the results.

The electronic cockroach repellent is available on Amazon from 12 USD to 50 USD by different manufacturers. I was surprised to see that many of these products received excellent reviews, even five stars. But I think that these reviews are fake.

WTF? I saw reviews about chocolate bars under the reviews of electronic roach repellents (See it Yourself Here!).

I purchased an electronic roach repellent and killer on Amazon for 19 USD and used it for four months. The product claimed that I would start seeing more bugs within the next few days, and then slowly, the product would start kicking in.

However, I saw a spike in roaches, but after using it for more than 20 days, roaches started to disappear but not in numbers to call it a win. When I compared the results with peppermint oil, the peppermint oil was the winner.

I will give peppermint oil 8 scores out of 10 and roach repellent 4.5 scores on the same scale. However, the electronic roach repellent is a clear winner in ease of use.

Should you buy electronic cockroach repellent? I think that if you have a few extra dollars to spare and your house doesn’t have a lot of furniture to block the ultrasonic waves, then you should give it a try.

This is the best electronic cockroach repellent of all: Neatmaster Ultrasonic Pest Repeller.

Alternates to Electronic cockroach repellent

Electronic roach repellent and killer is not the ends of the world. Instead, there are far better solutions available to repel and kill roaches. One very effective device, easy to use, and an excellent alternative to electronic roach repellents, is the (IGR Device) Insect Growth Regulator.

1. IGR Device

The device does not work on the principle of sounds like the electronic cockroach killer, but it releases hormones that stop roaches to molt. Molting is when roaches shed their skin to become white cockroaches (Also known as Albino Roach).

The presence of these hormones signals the roaches not to shed their skin yet, and this way, the small roaches will never grow into adult roaches hence exterminating them.

All you have to do is install one device per infested room in a hidden place, and you will be all good for 3 months.

For better results, invest in a bait to finish the adult roaches. Also, make sure to seal all entry points so you don’t have roaches from the outside. The complete recipe is as follows.

2. Natural Repellents

Natural repellents such as clove oil, peppermint oil, and neem oil are effective roach repellents. Studies have shown that peppermint oil not only repels roaches but also has the ability to kill them.

Natural roach repellents are easy to use; all you have to do is mix 10 drops per 20 ml of water and spray it around the corners. It will effectively ward off insects, including bugs, mosquitoes, and cockroaches, for the next 10 to 12 hours.

Additional Read!