Korean Job Discussion Forums

[demi]

How the hell do you get rid of the roaches for good! My apartments not so bad but its old. The kitchen area doesn't look very nice!
I've used the poison and I'm about to try the smoke cans.
My place isn't dirty and I dont even cook in there so why is this happening to me!!!
Any advice desperately wanted and welcome.

[Qinella]

I know this sounds obvious but have you tried getting an exterminator over there? This is something you demand happen immediately. I wouldn't do a lick of work until my place was thoroughly sprayed if I saw even a single roach. You might want to do the same to get your boss's ass in gear and get your place sprayed.

[Sash]

I heard its near impossible to get rid of them totally in an apartment because they just migrate to the neighbors. The only way to get rid of them is to spray the whole apt building. I saw ONE a few months ago. I've cleaned and kept countertops dry and have also set up baits. I have yet to see another one.

I've also heard that they don't like basil leaves.

[ajuma]

Go to your nearest pharmacy and buy some boric acid in powder form. Sprinkle it under the sink, under the fridge and between cupboard...but NO WHERE that it could possibley come in contact with food you'll eat, dishes you'll use or anywhere that you'll touch with your skin. It's HIGHLY toxic!!

[Homer]

It is a losing battle....

But you can manage the problem with the solutions above.

Personally I would not follow Quins advice (sorry dude) and tell your boss you will not work until the place is sprayed...

[Qinella]

[dogshed]

I haven't had any roach problems here but boric acid has proven to be very effective. It's fairly harmless for people and pets. The powder sticks the roaches and they take it back to other roaches.

When I was remodelling my house I bought a bucket of the stuff and put it under the cabinets and in the walls.

You can used something like a ketchup bottle to blow it under cabinets and such. You can blow it into holes and then seal the holes.

[Mr. BlackCat]

If the North dropped the bomb today the roaches would still be in the apartment, but you'd be dust. It's not exactly a losing battle, though.

The roaches will never just 'go away' but the exterminator option will make them flee to a neighbour's and if you offer no reason for them to come back then you'll just see the odd adventurer. In fact, that may be why they're in your apartment in the first place. Neighbours must have dropped the bomb themselves.

Your boss isn't going to care unless you show that you really do care. You can't exactly strike, though. It's Korea and there's creepy-crawlers all over the place. Wait till summer!

good luck.

[jammin388]

I had wicked roach problems when I lived in China, and like someone said earlier, if you live in an apartment building, you'll never be able to kill em all. What I did was to put screens in all my drains so they couldn't come up that way, and put out some poison bait. Went from seeing a dozen or so every night to just seeing one every now and then. Hope you're able to get rid of them...those things suck.

[Pyongshin Sangja]

The bomb/smoke can is good, but it won't last forever if your neighbours have roaches too. The aerosol cans are a total waste of time and money. By the time you are spraying them, 100 have already hidden. Get an exterminator. CESCO is one, there's a Roachbusters in Seoul somewhere too. They offer a 6-month, no roaches guarantee and cost about W80,000 I think. Weeeeell worth it. Get the wonjang to pay if you can. Or, frankly, move out. Nobody should have to live in an ant-farm. Korea isn't Indonesia.

[ella]

I won't live with roaches. Period. When I discovered my college apartment had them, I got online and found a solution: the Tokay gecko. I bought a Tokay and let it live loose in my apartment. It might sound unusual but introducing a natural predator is an obvious way to keep them out of your home. There are web sites about using Tokays for pest control or I can post more information about it here if you like. Tokays are native to SE Asia, I don't know if you can buy them here or not.

[dulouz]

I redecorated my apt, tore out the old floor mats, put in new wall paper and made my apt as light exposed as possible. Bugs hate light and cleaning out the hidey holes really helped. Not being a slob really helps too. I'll try that someday.

[demi]

Thanks everyone for the input. I told my supervisor today that I want professionals to take care of it immediately. He knows I was considering resigning so more fool him if he procrastinates on this.

[JongnoGuru]

Remember that "immediately" can mean anything from this afternoon until late March to a Korean who's not keen to be bothered. For me, it frequently meant only after I got angry & loud and the situation got ugly. Of course this guarantees that you will be regarded as the hot-tempered, volatile waegook in everyone's eyes and forever.

[demi]

UPDATE ON THE ROACHES!
Well my boss contacted one of those companies that deal with roaches and was quoted 180,000won. Hence, he clearly doesn't want to proceed with it. Instead he came round with those gas cans and we tried to smoke 'em to death! I told him these things are clearly just temporary and not a long term solution. A week later I once again encounter roaches....quite a few of them. They won't leave! Every week I encounter several. Some days are worse than others.

I'm fed up with this bull$hit! If I complain again I think he'll call the company to come and deal with it but I'm not bothered with this whole thing. Is it fair that I've had to live with roaches for 4 months?

I think I'm just going to give my notice next month and leave. That way, I would have completed at least 6 months in this forsaken place. Hopefully that doesn't look too bad to prospective employers here.

My boss is a decent guy. I'll feel guilty if he sorts out the roach problem then I just quit anyway. Maybe its best to not mention it. You see, even if the oraches are taken care of, I want to leave really. Countryside is killing me!