Delta Dust Insecticide - Questions & Answers

Per the manufacturer, Delta Dust Insecticide will dry out the insects and they absorb it externally when they come in contact with it. Delta Dust works similar to how a wettable powder affects insects when they walk across a surface that it's applied to. Both have pyrethroids as the active and shut down nervous system. They don't have any research regarding the product absorbing pheromones and odors.

Please check out our article "How to Get Rid of Yello Jackets". If you can get close we highly recommend applying a dust like Delta Dust that is water proof and when the yellow jacket comes in contact with it, the dust will transfer from bee to bee killing adults and larvae.

If Delta Dust is inhaled or ingested in large quantities your dog could have an adverse reaction to the dust. In small quantities, like licking a dead insect, you most likely would not see any reaction other than sneezing as the dust could be irritating to the mucus membranes in the nose and mouth.

The Delta Dust would be an excellent option to use with the B&G Electric Duster for attics, crawlspaces or other large areas. It covers all the insects you mentioned you are looking to control and many others, and is water proof so in protected areas like crawl spaces it will provide a good residual.

You can apply Delta Dust as often as needed, however Delta Dust like any other dust products are meant to be applied only in wall voids, cracks and crevices, underneath appliances, etc.  It should not be applied out in the open.  When you apply Delta Dust correctly in these places, it can last up to 8 months, so you don't need to apply Delta dust but every so often.

When applying the Delta Dust Insecticide in wall voids and around electrical boxes the dust settles down in between the the studs and the sheetrock that make up the insides of your walls.  There is no space for the dust to fall all the way down to the foundation of the home since there are studs, subflooring, pipes, wiring, etc in the walls.  The dust settles down into the cracks and crevices and other areas that the insects crawl through.  This is how they come in contact with the product and how it eliminates them. 

We would recommend to use Dipel Dust and applywhen the flowers begin to shed pollen; this is when the eggs of the moths have hatched and the larvae are beginning to grow but before the seeds have formed. You can apply early morning or late afternoon to minimize bee exposure.

Delta Dust is good to use as part of a scorpion control program. Delta dust can be applied using a hand duster directly behind baseboards, to window and door frames, corners, pipes, storage locations, attics, crawl spaces, and other areas which these pests may enter or crawl. We also recommend that you use a concentrated liquid insecticide such as Demon WP around the outside perimeter of your home to help create a barrier to keep these pests out. You should treat a band of soil 6 - 10 ft wide around and adjacent to the building. Also treat the building foundation to a height of 2 - 3 ft where pests are active and may find entrance. It is important that you do not rely on insecticides alone to control scorpions, you should also make some changes outdoors to make your property less favorable to this pest.

Non-insecticide methods for scorpion control are:

Harborage Removal- Harborage removal is key to scorpion control and will greatly reduce the numbers of scorpions in the area surrounding the structure, making it far less likely that they will enter. Harborage removal includes eliminating piles of lumber, bricks, and other stacked items that create clusters of tight spaces, elimination of vegetation and other heavy ground coverings near homes and buildings, trimming back tree and shrub limbs from walls and roof, and keeping gutters clear of leaves and other debris.

Exclusion- Scorpions and other pests can be kept out of structures to a large degree by installing tight-fitting screens, weatherstripping around doors and windows, and caulking cracks and crevices.

Delta Dust Insecticide should not be broadcast over the entire attic. Instead you should concentrate on dusting the cracks, crevices, voids and other areas where these insects harbor.  This would be done using a hand duster like the Bellow Hand Duster.  To learn more about carpet beetle elimination, please take a few minutes to read our article on Carpet Beetle Pest Control

Cicada Killer wasps thrive in disturbed environments, such as landscaped yards and places where bare soil is exposed. You can discourage the wasps from nesting in your yard by cutting your grass on the highest setting and by adding a thick layer of mulch to flower beds during the Cicada Killer Wasp season. These wasps do not like over saturated lawns either, so over watering during their season will help prevent them. Unfortunately, there is no fool proof way to prevent cicada killer wasps. For current infestations, you would need to use Delta dust in each individual burrow.