Are bug bombs safe?

It appears that I had a whole bunch of baby spiders hatch in my truck. My pack and all my gear is covered. Not to be a huge baby, but I am absolutely terrified of spiders. I can't even touch my gear or drive my truck. I am wondering if a Raid fogger bomb would destroy the integrity of my gear. Any thoughts on a safe way to kill these little bastards?

If you have the opportunity, definitely remove your gear before setting off the bomb. That shit's usually pretty caustic.

Any idea how to get them out of my pack and out of all my stuff?

Carrie Kupcho wrote:Any idea how to get them out of my pack and out of all my stuff?

Beg, bribe, or bat your eyes until someone will spread out your stuff and lay it in the sun for a few hours.

Spiders love nooks and crannies, so, if you spread it all out so that its exposed to light, they'll leave on their own.

Don't leave it for ages, but a day in UV will not harm your gear and will get rid of the bugs.

I'd bet money that the bug bombs have some weird petro-chemical inthem, which is very bad for your gear.

Apparently, there are some other good reasons to not use bug bombs:
insects.about.com/od/insect…

I live in Provo. Drive down here, buy me Chick Fil A on the way, and I'll clear all the spiders out of your gear.

They're all poison. You don't want to use them.
Get a container of talcum powder and shake it in your truck.
It should get rid of them. Then just wash your pack out
with water and you'll be good to go.

Good luck!

I'd me more concerned with my own health than my gear. Look up the MSDS form for any chemical you are contemplating spraying in an area you will be spending time, you will be surprised at the terrible things that are not on the label of the can.

Especially if you are of child bearing age.

This might be worth a read: washingtonpost.com/national…

I sort of figured the bombs weren't a great idea. I guess I'll buck up and drag everything out in the sun and I'll try the talcum powder. I've never even used a bomb in my house and after reading all the negatives, I don't plan on ever using it. Now if the rain would stop for a day...

AJS wrote:This might be worth a read: washingtonpost.com/national…

The suspense was killing me! And then she she left me hanging....did it kill the fleas or not?

I like how in her article she assumes everyone else, you the reader, would let a company waltz into your house, hose it down with poisonous chemical and not ask any questions or do any research. Though I am not against the use of these kinds of chemicals I certainly wouldn't blindly trust a $15/hour (or whatever they make) pesticide "technician." My wife would probably be way harder on them than I would.

It's going to be a really long and boring read, but the EFSA report on whatever pesticide you use will be the most comprehensive resource.   Most bug bombs use pyrethroids.  Most likely permethrin. It's generally safe for human exposure.  But might cause some skin irritation if you are exposed directly.  It's extremely toxic to cats.  Not to dogs.  Bifenthrin is another possibility.  But bifenthrin doesn't break down as quickly as permethrin.  A weeks worth of sun exposure, and permethrin is just about completely gone.  

All that said, the pesticide should be the least of your concerns.  The solvents used to deploy the compounds are much worse for you than the pesticides themselves 

This thread is from 2011. I think the spider situation has been resolved by now.

"Isaac Ngari" made an account and resurrected this thread so that he could post a link to the pest website he's promoting.

Justin Meyer wrote:

This thread is from 2011. I think the spider situation has been resolved by now.

"Isaac Ngari" made an account and resurrected this thread so that he could post a link to the pest website he's promoting.

Nah. At six years later, the spiders are now in first grade and are learning their ABCs.

They still live in the cam lobes, though. RIP OP.

I do hope the OP has been able to get back into their car by now