Talstar P Professional Insecticide - Questions & Answers

Talstar P (Talstar One) is completely safe after it has dried. Your pets are safe to enter the area even if there is a dew. It will not cause the active ingredient to "reactivate" to a state that could be harmful. Also, after dilution there is only a large enough amount of active ingredient to kill small insects.

Normally as long as an insecticide like Talstar has had at least 6 hours of dry time after it has been applied, then it is considered rain fast to most rain conditions that would come afterwards. If you had a heavy down pour for a few days that started 7 hours after then you may need to reapply at that point. But standard summer rain showers should not break down the residual.

When storing any insecticide such as Talstar P, an extreme temperature is anything below 35 degrees and anything over 90 degrees.  Storing above or below these temps for more than a few hours can decrease the effectiveness of the product and cause it to separate as well as the potential for the chemical to break down.  Freezing and unfreezing is biggest concern so products should not be left outside in a shed over the winter.  If any product is only exposed to sub freezing temperatures for a short period of time and the product looks exactly the same as before it was exposed, it should be fine.

The active ingredient in Talstar is not protected like that of the Suspend Polyzone. Talstar will last 30 days outdoors. Suspend Polyzone features a proprietary polymer layer that protects the active ingredient from weather, irrigation and mechanical abrasion. This controlled release formulation, which resists erosion, ensures your treatment will continue to control targeted pests for up to 90 days outdoors. It also stays right where you put it, so if you want to increase the effectiveness of your treatments, put the science of Suspend Polyzone to work for you.

We recommend using 3 products together to get rid of roaches. A roach bait gel, an IGR (insect growth regulator), and a residual insecticide. We offer all three products in the Roach Control Kit 2. This professional kit includes 1 packet of Demon WP Insecticide (which makes 4 gallons of finished solution) for spraying the outside perimeter of the home and inside underneath appliances, behind cabinets, under toilets and sinks, etc. You'll also get 4 x 30 gram tubes of Advion Roach Bait Gel--one of the best roach baits on the market. Advion can be applied up high in the kitchen in the corner of cabinets and in cracks and crevices in kitchens and bathrooms. The bait contains a slow-acting poison that attracts and kills feeding roaches, who also spread the bait to other hidden roaches by contact or by sharing food. Finally, 20 Gentrol Point Source stations provide an IGR (Insect Growth Regulator) that will stop roaches from laying eggs, helping to halt the infestation. The combination of an IGR with roach bait is a highly effective roach control strategy that is widely used by pest control professionals. Demon WP must be applied with a 1 gallon pump sprayer. It is very important that you do your part by making sure your home is impeccably clean while trying to get rid of a roach infestation. Poor sanitation will lead to roach control failure.

Talstar is a great product to spray indoors and outdoors for spiders and over 75 different pest. It will dry clear and is odorless.

Yes, Talstar works great for mosquito control. Talstar can be used in your mister. The key is to apply it to all shrubs, trees, and other foliage around the house or where you are trying to provide relief.  It should be directed not only on top of the leaves and plants, but on the underside of the leaves as well which is where the mosquitoes hang out during the heat of the day.  Talstar should be applied every 30 days for optimum control.

Talstar granules are one of the most effective chinch bug treatments on the market. Chinch bugs infest the base of grass plants and are often found in the thatch layer. Irrigate the treated area with up to 0.25 inches of water immediately after application to activate (release from the granule) the insecticide. Chinch bugs can be one of the most difficult pests to control in grasses and the higher applications rates will be required to control populations that contain both nymphs and adults during the summer. It may also be necessary to remove the thatch layer if it exceeds 1 inch in thickness to allow the Talstar to penetrate down to the soil.

If you have a few small spots the St. Augustine runners might fill it in this season (of course water, fertilizer, and lots of sunshine helps). If large portions of the lawn were damaged it will likely be late spring or later of next year before the lawn recovers. Very heavily damaged areas may need to be resodded.

The best products for flea control outdoors would be Talstar P mixed with NyGuard IGR. The Talstar is the insecticide that will kill the fleas and leave a residual, and the NyGuard is the birth control that will halt the infestation from growing. Mix these in your sprayer together with water and spray any areas outdoors where you are having a problem with fleas or any other insect. For indoor control, you would use Ultracide which is a flea aerosol. It comes ready to use and has both the adulticide and igr (birth control) to provide you with the same type of control indoors as you have outdoors. You will need to go through and vacuum all flooring and furniture prior to using the product. Once vacuumed, use the Ultracide to spray down all carpets, hardwoods, baseboards, rugs, pet bedding and furniture to eliminate the fleas. After application you will leave the home until the product has had time to dry which normally takes about an hour or so. Once dry, all pets, children and adults can re-enter the home and resume normal activity. You will need to vacuum daily for 14 days and then do a second application of the Ultracide. You can see more tips for treating in our article How To Get Rid Of Fleas Indoors.

Yes, Talstar P is labeled for only spider mites and clover mites. While it might kill broad mites as well it is not labeled for them so we cannot recommend it for this use.

Talstar P will kill crickets. Apply Talstar P as a crack and crevice or spot spray to areas where pests hide, such as baseboards, corners, storage areas, closets, around water pipes, doors and windows, behind and under refrigerators, cabinets, sinks, furnaces, stoves, the underside of shelves, drawers and similar areas. Do not use as a space spray. Pay particular attention to cracks and crevices. We recommend treating the outside perimeter to help stop insect pests from coming indoors to start with. Apply Talstar P to a band of soil and vegetation 6 to 10 feet wide around and adjacent to the structure. Also, treat the foundation of the structure to a height of 2 to 3 feet.

You can use Talstar P to spray the plant and soil to get rid of these tiny pests. Since you know exactly where the ant colony is, you can treat it directly. Talstar P is a liquid concentrate that you mix with water and spray directly in the infested areas. You can use 1 oz of concentrate per gallon of water. Talstar can also be used to help eliminate ants in the yard and as a general insecticide to keep other nuisance pests out of your home

We would recommend Talstar P for your use. Talstar P is labeled to be used in poultry houses and chicken pens so it should not harm your chickens. You must make sure your chickens are out of the area while you apply Talstar P and then they can return to the area as soon as it is dry. You should dilute 1 ounce of Talstar P per gallon of water and using a hand pump sprayer apply the solution on all door frames, window frames, areas where utilities (cables, pipes, wires) enter into the structure, a band of soil 6 to 10 feet adjacent to the structure, also to a height of 2 to 3 feet on the foundation where pests may be active or may find entrance. As the stink bugs crawl over the treated area, they will receive a lethal does of the insecticide and usually die within a few hours. You should treat every month starting in August and ending in November for best results.

Talstar P would be a great choice for indoor and outdoor tick control. We also recommend adding an insect growth regulator such as Archer IGR to Talstar to stop the ticks from being able to mature while you are trying to eliminate the infestation. You will use 1 oz of Talstar +  1oz of Archer IGR per gallon of water per 1,000 sq ft area. Do not make spot applications. Treat the entire area where exposure to ticks may occur. Use more water (not more product) when treating areas with dense ground cover or heavy leaf litter. Ticks may be reintroduced from surrounding areas on host animals. Retreatment may be necessary to achieve and/or maintain control during periods of high pest pressure. All of your pets should be treated with a product that is specifically labeled for use on pets for tick control.

You can also help by creating a "tick safe zone" in your yard. You should have an area that is at least 9 ft wide between your yard and any wooded area. Trim back trees to allow as much sunlight as possible into your yard. Keep grass as short. Remove as much leaf litter as possible. A clearly defined, well manicured border between your yard and any wooded areas or weedy lots will reduce the chance of ticks infesting your yard.

Talstar P mixed with an Insect Growth regulator such as Nyguard IGR would be a good choice for tick control. Talstar P would work to kill ticks that come into contact with treated surfaces while the Nyguard would work to help stop juvenile ticks from reaching sexual maturity. You should remember that ticks may be hidden in tall or dense brush so higher treatment volumes may be needed to treat the entire plant, not just the top side of the plant where it is easiest to spray. You should try to get the application on the underside of leaves and all the way to the bottom of the plant. We recommend treating the entire infested area (no spot treating). When you are dealing with an area that has a high tick population you may be required to treat once a month from spring through to the first frost, no matter what product you use. Be sure all pets are treated with a product labeled for tick control. The problem on your property may be that ticks are being reintroduced into the area on a consistent basis by wildlife such as deer, raccoons or birds. You will be required to use non-chemical means to reduce the tick population in addition to insecticides. As with most pests you can modify the environment on your property to make it less favorable to ticks. Keeping grass and weeds cut short in tick infested areas increases tick death during hot weather, discourages wildlife and will reduce the amount of vegetation which may need a pesticide application to kill ticks. Clear away yard debris such as old firewood or leaf piles. Remove old or abandoned bird nests and rodent nests. Patch fences where wildlife may be gaining access to your property. It may also be helpful to have the ticks identified. By identifying the type of ticks you can better understand what type of animals may be bringing them to your property and you can modify the environment to make it less favorable for that host animal. You can contact your local cooperative extension office to request an insect identification.

You can use a hose-end sprayer to apply Talstar P. You shoul use 1 oz per 1000 sq ft, and we recommend using 1-3 gallons of water per 1,000 sq ft. Keep in mind that it is most important to use the correct amount of concentrate and then think of the water as a carrier, so it is better to use a bit more water than to use too little. For example, to treat half your yard, you would use 7.5 oz at a rate no higher than 1 oz per gal of water, but usually it is best to use a rate of 0.3 or 0.5 oz per gal of water with a hose-end sprayer. You can always start with a small area and test using just water to get an idea for how heavily you tend to spray and how fast you walk when spraying.

Yes, you can use Talstar P in both food/feed and non-food/feed areas of food-handling establishments like restaurants as a spot or crack and crevice spray. Be sure this is not while the restaurant is in operation, and that you are not contaminating food, utensils, or food-handling surfaces. Please see Page 6 of the product label for complete directions on using Talsar in Food/Feed Establishments.

Normally termites to not eat anything that is alive and healthy so while there may be some in the ground around your flower beds, there could be something else actually destroying your plant like root aphids or the like. That being said, you use use a product like Talstar P to soak the ground around the flower beds to eliminate any termites and most other pests in that soil and it will not harm your flowers. Talstar is a concentrate that would be mixed at the rate of 1 oz to 1 gallon of water and poured as a drench on the soil where you have the activity. 

Yes, Talstar P is labeled to kill chiggers. You will mix one ounce per gallon per 1,000 sq ft and it has an outdoor residual of 30 days.

Talstar P (Talstar One) is specifically listed for only clover mites and spider mites in/around homes and yards and also mites in animal facilities only.