There is no single answer for every pesticide. What matters is the specific product, where and how it was applied, and what its label says. The useful news is that you can get all of it.
The information is required to be available to you
When pesticides are applied in a multiple dwelling, the applicator provides the building owner or agent with the pesticide label information and warnings before the application, and New York law requires the owner or agent to make that information available to occupants at reasonable times upon request.
What to ask for
- The product name and its EPA registration number
- Where it was applied and where it was not
- What pest it was targeting
- Whether there are re-entry, drying or cleaning instructions
- Anything specific for children, pets, pregnancy, asthma or a fish tank
The label governs all of it. Different products carry genuinely different instructions, and a rule someone heard about one product may be wrong for another.
Say your concern before the visit
Say your concern before the visit rather than after, so that any product-specific precautions or treatment choices can be considered. An infant, a pregnancy, someone with asthma, a cat that gets into cabinets, a bird, a fish tank.
Two things worth holding together
Pests are themselves a health issue. Cockroach and mouse allergens are established asthma triggers, and NYC's indoor allergen law exists specifically because of that link. Living with an untreated infestation is not the safe option.
At the same time, improperly used pesticides cause real problems too, which is why NYC Health emphasises using products according to their labels and why NYC requires that pesticides in this context be applied by a licensed professional.
The part most people do not know
Several of the most effective parts of a building pest program involve no chemistry at all. NYC's rules require sealing openings, removing debris and repairing leaks, and state that pesticides must not substitute for those measures.
The use of pesticides must not substitute for the pest management measures described in this section.
28 RCNY §54-04(a)(4)HPD's own guide for building owners goes further, instructing them to use pesticides sparingly and only through a licensed professional, and stating that pesticide use cannot and does not replace those practices.
Use pesticides sparingly.
HPD — Indoor Allergen Hazards, Owner RequirementsIf your goal is to reduce how much pesticide a building needs over time, sealing openings and correcting leaks are a large part of how you get there.
What to tell your building
Before the visit, could you let me know what product will be used and whether there are any re-entry instructions? I have a small child and a cat.
Pest control in an apartment building requires treatment, repairs, access and information working together. See how the pieces fit.
Send this to your building
If other apartments have the same problem, one message to your super or managing agent does more than ten calls about one unit. Copy this and send it however you already talk to them.
Edit it before you send if you want. No sign-up, nothing collected, and we do not see who you send it to.
Where this rule comes from
If you own or manage the building, the same rules are covered from that side in our NYC pest compliance reference.
Sources
- NYSDEC — Requirements for Pesticide Applicators to Provide Product Labels (ECL §33-0905.5)
- 28 RCNY Chapter 54 — Indoor Allergen Hazards rules, including the §54-04(a) work practices (PDF)
- NYC Administrative Code §27-2017.8 — Integrated pest management practices
- HPD — Guide to Local Law 55 of 2018 Integrated Pest Management Practices for Mice, Roach and Rat Violations (PDF)
- HPD — Indoor Allergen Hazards (Mold, Mice, Roaches and Rats)
We are a pest control company working in Bronx and Brooklyn apartment buildings, and this is general information rather than advice about your apartment or your lease. Where our sources conflict with each other, we say so on the page rather than picking one quietly.