Are pesticides harmful?

What's the best way to air out/clean an apartment after its sprayed with pesticides?

• on saturday (the 9th of june) my apartment building is being sprayed with pesticides, and while I was told it was Orkin who uses non-toxic pesticides, and that's who my landlord was using, just in case I am allergic to the pesticides, what is the best way to air out/clean the apartment so I can sleep at night? also anyone have any experience with Orkin pesticides?

• Answer:

  I hate to say it, but it really depends on what they are spraying. I also feel like I need to point out that if they pesticides are non-toxic, how are they killing the pests? So the first point is that it depends on what they are spraying. Some pesticides such as so-called natural pesticides (which people tend to equate with non-toxic) tend to cling to dust. Some tend to not cling to dust. Some break down in sunlight, some break down quickly, some break down slowly... It just depends on the chemical properties of the pesticide more than anything. I would suggest finding out exactly which pesticide they are spraying and then reading up about that pesticide. You can type in the pesticide name and then MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet) and find out loads of info. This is a user-friendly website that has information about *some* chemicals. It's a nice site and I like to use it for work. http://extoxnet.orst.edu/pips/ghindex.html Personally, if you could, I would recommend not spraying, but baring that, I suppose airing out the house wouldn't hurt. Most products have a half-life, meaning that is the amount of time it takes for 1/2 the chemical to break down. On the chemical's labelling for Orkin, there should be a re-entry time as well, and hopefully your Orkin person is aware of that. Anywho, good luck!