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The science Zero-COSHH chemistry

Chemistry without
the COSHH file.

Two actives. Both GB BPR authorised. Both carry zero COSHH classification. And one of them, by mechanism, cannot be out-evolved. That's the difference between treating an infestation and managing a chemistry-supplier relationship.

The actives

Two ingredients. One system.

An adulticide that cannot be out-evolved, paired with an insect growth regulator that prevents the next generation from reaching adulthood. Together they collapse a colony in roughly ninety days.

Adulticide · 95–100% mortality 72h
InsectoSec DE
Diatomaceous earth — fossilised marine diatoms ground to a fine powder. On contact, microscopic silica edges abrade the insect's waxy cuticle. Water leaks out. The insect dehydrates. It cannot evolve a defence against this — there is no molecular target.
SUPPLIERAndermatt UK
REGULATORYGB BPR PT18 authorised
COSHHZero classification
APPLICATIONHand duster · cracks & voids
ANNUAL CADENCE4 quarterly applications
USE WHERESkirting · risers · voids
IGR · 90-day reproductive suppression
PelGar Sumilarv 0.5G
Pyriproxyfen — a juvenile hormone analogue. Suppresses the metamorphosis of nymphs into reproductive adults. Existing eggs do not hatch into a fertile generation. A single placement suppresses reproduction for ninety days.
SUPPLIERPelGar UK
REGULATORYGB BPR authorised
COSHHZero classification
APPLICATIONConcealed harbourage placements
RESIDUAL90 days
PAIRED WITHInsectoSec DE
In combination

Adult kill plus reproductive suppression.

Two complementary mechanisms — one against existing adults, one against the next generation. Neither needs the other to function, but together they close the lifecycle.

InsectoSec DE

Mechanical desiccation. Adults and nymphs die within 72 hours of contact at harbourage points. No sub-lethal escape.

Sumilarv 0.5G

Reproductive suppression. Eggs cannot mature. The colony does not regenerate. 90-day residual from one placement.

Colony collapse in ~90 days

Adult kill mechanically. Reproduction suppressed chemically. No resistant survivors to repopulate from.

First principles

Why mechanical kill matters.

Synthetic chemistry attacks a target inside the insect. Mechanical chemistry abrades the insect's outer wax layer. There is no genetic adaptation against the second.

Synthetic pyrethroids work by binding to voltage-gated sodium channels in the insect's nervous system. That binding site can mutate. In the UK, it has — the kdr (knockdown resistance) mutation is now genetically dominant across virtually all sampled bed bug populations. Some studies have measured the same population requiring fifty-five to two thousand times the label-rate concentration to achieve 90% mortality.

A diatom skeleton is not a binding site. It is a physical edge. There is no analogue to the kdr mutation against a desiccation mechanism. The insect cannot evolve a thicker cuticle in a single generation, and the cuticle is the only target.

Pyrethroid resistance in UK bed bug populations is documented across multiple peer-reviewed studies. Both Zhu et al. (2013, Nature Scientific Reports) and Wang et al. (2023) are referenced for the underlying genetic and operational data.
Resistance to label-rate pyrethroid · selected UK cities
London2,017× to 90% mortality
Manchester810×
Birmingham410×
Newcastle55×
InsectoSec DE · all citiesno pathway
In practice

What zero-COSHH means on site.

The COSHH classification doesn't just affect the documentation file — it determines what your site has to do during and after a treatment.

Care home · Meridian
No exclusion zones

No resident displacement. No exclusion of resident-accessible areas. Treatment timing follows the resident activity schedule, not a re-entry interval.

Commercial kitchen · Helix
No food-prep restriction

Treatment can run during service hours without contamination concerns. No closure of the kitchen. No EHO question about chemical residues near food contact surfaces.

Hotel · Vesper
No room-out-of-service

Room can be re-let immediately. No 4-hour re-entry interval. No "treatment notice" left for housekeeping. The treatment record is the only artefact.

Regulatory context Statutory pest-control obligations under the Food Safety Act 1990, the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, the COSHH Regulations 2002, and the Health and Social Care Act 2008 remain with the operator. GreenTech's chemistry choices and authorisation status reduce the scope of the operator's COSHH documentation burden but do not discharge statutory obligations.
Specialist equipment

The right tool, then the right active.

Pyrethroid spray applies one tool to every job. Zero-COSHH chemistry needs a specialist toolkit — and our technicians carry it.

Hand duster

Bellows or pump mechanism. Delivers diatomaceous earth into wall voids, riser cavities, and skirting runs without airborne dispersal. Standard issue for every GreenTech technician.

DE · primary application
Gel bait applicator

Syringe-precision placement of insecticidal gel into cracks adjacent to harbourage. Used in Helix for the IGR component, with horizontal-transfer dynamics that reach voids dust cannot.

Helix · IGR placement
Electrostatic sprayer

Charged droplets attract to surface edges and undersides — the harbourage points conventional sprayers miss. Used selectively where surface coverage matters more than crevice penetration.

Surface coverage · 30–50% less waste

Same evidence. Better chemistry.

The audit-ready compliance pack is unchanged whether you treat with pyrethroids or with InsectoSec DE. The site experience isn't.