Can anyone give me some info re the automatic fly spray dispensers?
Has anyone found one that works well? I guess the product in them is pretty potent or is there one that is based on a natural product?
Thanks



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/15/2019 12:15AM by amwilliams.

I know some people are anti them - but over summer, I wouldn't be without ours. We have Mortein automatic sprays and I just looked at the can and the ingredients are Transluthrin and Permethrin. Google both of those for info, they are both insecticides, but Permethrin also comes in cream form to treat Scabies!

No spiders in the house, flies do come in but they die. I am all for them

Just be aware that they turn any white plastic yellow. This includes fridge doors, heat pumps and small appliances left sitting in the open in your kitchen. If you have an open-plan kitchen-dining-living room it's best to site it away from the kitchen. I used to use one and yes, it was effective, but I didn't like the overall effect of the spray being indiscriminatly sprayed anywhere near where food was being prepared or eaten.

This is our first summer without flies thanks to 2 x spray dispensers that go off every 5 minutes in our kitchen/family area.
I am a convert.

I would love to use them and last year bought 2 dispensers and 6 cans from a pest control company, however, after using for 6 weeks or so I found I developed an allergy to the spray. I got contact dermatitis under my wedding/engagement rings. I know it was the spray not only because of timing (and the fact it resolved when I took them down) but I had the same reaction when our area in West Auckland was sprayed by aerial spray planes for the Painted Apple Moth. We were advised at the time it was totally safe but to remain indoors and close the windows. I had dermatitis over about six months during the spraying program. I didn't think the can were similar but they obviously are. Having said that no one else in my family has the same problem, I am obviously sensitive to it. I have since gifted it all to my daughter who has no problems with it at her house.

It's important to know the dispensers coat EVERYTHING in insecticide. If you have one in your kitchen, that includes your bench and anything on it (food, plates, cutlery, glasses, pens, phones, toasters.....). If you have one in your bedroom, you're breathing it in continuously as you sleep, it's settling on any exposed skin, and your linen, floor, etc, will be coated in it. It's especially important to be aware of the exposure level if you have infants in the house.

Institute of Environmental Science and Research Limited - Health Risk Assessment of Domestic Automatic Insecticide Dispensers
[www.esr.cri.nz]

A couple of extracts from the report are below. Please click on the link to read the full report:

Exposures were considered in terms of a realistic worst-case scenario; installation of the automatic insecticide dispenser in the bedroom of an infant (<1 year). The dispenser was assumed to operate 24 hours per day. Daily exposure was assessed as the aggregate of inhalation during eight hours of sleeping, dermal exposure during eight hours of sleeping (assuming exposure of the head only) and during one hour of crawling (contact with insecticide formulation deposited on the floor) and oral exposure due to non-respirable particles being ingested during sleep and deposition of insecticide formulation on food. It was assumed that only one meal per day would be affected and that deposition on food was the same as deposition on the floor of the bedroom. Adult exposure potentially associated with insecticide formulation reservoir installation was also considered, assuming an accidental two second activation of the dispenser. Exposures were aggregated over all identified exposure routes. Absorption of all compounds was assumed to be 100% following inhalation or oral exposure and 10% following dermal exposure.

While most assumptions made in this exposure assessment will tend to overestimate exposure to components of automatic insecticide dispenser formulation, these results suggest that use of such dispensers under the conditions of this scenario may lead to undesirably high exposure to the component chemicals. The two largest components of the aggregate exposure estimates are from inhalation during sleep and consumption of contaminated food. This suggests that these dispensers are probably best installed in well ventilated living spaces, rather than in bedrooms or food preparation areas.

EXPOSURE SCENARIOS
Several studies have modelled exposure to pesticides or pesticide behaviour due to indoor release, either spraying or by evaporation (Berger-Preiss et al 2009; Bremmer et al 2006; Matoba et al 1993; Matoba et al 1995; Matoba et al 1998c; Vesin et al 2013). Exposure pathways relevant to the current assessment include:
a) Exposure during installation of the insecticide reservoir (dermal and inhalation)
b) Inhalation exposure by room occupants
c) Dermal exposure by room occupants
d) Dermal exposure to residues deposited on room surfaces (floor, furniture, etc.)
e) Ingestion of insecticide following deposition on food or food contact surface or due to hand to mouth behaviour in young children
The first of these exposure routes is assumed to be relevant only to adults and will be infrequent, with material from manufacturers suggesting that a single reservoir refill should last for 4-15 weeks, depending on use parameters. For the remaining scenarios, the most sensitive group will be the very young (<1 year), due to their activity patterns (crawling on surfaces), their hand to mouth behaviour and their low body weight.

You can get dispensers that only operate when it is light. This is the style I always had as flies weren't usually an issue at night, and I didn't want to use so much spray with it going every 15 minutes or so all night long. The brand we had with a photosensor was Pestrol.

[www.pestrol.co.nz]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/28/2019 05:03AM by Jenna.