The cockroach. Nothing says, “Yuck”, like the sight of a cockroach; dead or alive. Roches can be found in our homes, our favorite restaurants, our places of work, and even in our schools and libraries. No place is safe from a cockroach. They are equal opportunity 
inhabitants. If they have food, water and shelter, the cockroach will set up residence just about anywhere if allowed to.
Once they have infested an area, they multiply quickly. This is where the real danger resides. Cockroaches pose a serious health threat if left to spread and populate. Cockroaches carry bacteria that can cause food poisoning, diarrhea, allergies and even skin rash. It is important to get rid of them BEFORE they infest your home or business.
Keeping cockroaches from invading your home is one thing, it is an entirely different matter once they’ve already infested your home. Getting rid of roaches involves more than just spraying insecticides or setting bait traps. You need preventive measures, so they don’t have a reason to enter the home and professional remediation services for when they do. In this blog, we’ll discuss both preventive AND remediation strategies.
What type of cockroach is in my house?
There are over 4,000 species of cockroach on the planet. Lucky for us, only a couple types of roach call the United States home. The most popular are the German and American cockroach.
The American cockroach has a reddish-brown color and is often larger than its German cousin; about 1.5 inches. American cockroaches are most common in homes, sewers and basements, particularly around pipes and drains. American cockroaches are resourceful feeders and will eat cheese, beer, tea, leather, bakery products, starch in book bindings, manuscripts, glue, hair, flakes of dried skin, dead animals, plant materials, and soiled clothing.
They prefer moist, warm areas above 84 degrees and thrive in crawl spaces, sewers and summer weather.
The German cockroach has a light-brown body with two black stripes down the sides of its backside. This roach variety measures less than a half inch in length. They are attracted particularly to meats, starches, sugars, and fatty foods. Where a shortage of foodstuff exists, they may eat household items such as soap, glue, and toothpaste.
The German cockroach is the most common cockroach species on the planet. They are most often associated with restaurants, food processing facilities, hotels, nursing homes and other institutional facilities.
How to make sure cockroaches do not invade your home
The best defense against cockroaches, is a strong offense to eliminate the very things that attract cockroaches to your home in the first place.
- Remove sources of food – all earths creatures need sustenance (food) to survive. But when it comes to cockroaches, they can (and will) each just about anything. Start by cleaning up spilled or leftover food. In the pantry, rotate your food so you don’t forget about the cereal box at the back. Don’t leave dishes on the county or sink, wipe down countertops, empty and clean cabinets, behind the refrigerator, under the oven, store your garbage in a bin with tight fitting lid – and empty regularly.
- Clean your kitchen appliances
- Keep food in sealed containers
- Limit food consumption to one room in your home
- Clean your floors frequently
- Empty pet food containers when not in use
- Seek out and address water issues
- Fix leaky plumbing and pipes
- Dry sinks, tubs, and showers after use
- Empty the pet water dish
- Eliminate their hiding places – In addition to food and water, roaches need shelter so they can breed and grow. Cockroaches are small, so they can hide easily. Their favorite hiding places include stacks of paper, cardboard boxes, and just about any cluttered space they can find.
- Keep your home or work clean – Removing clutter, sweeping floors, wiping down counters … these all make for a cleaner/healthier living environment, and at the same time it makes your home less enticing to them.
What are the signs of cockroach infestation?
Cockroaches like it warm and humid. During winter, they seek shelter from the cold, and your home is the perfect place to bed down. They enter the house through sewer connections, under doors, around plumbing, and through air ducts.
The first sign of a problem is seeing a cockroach. They prefer to come out and feed in the darkness, but if you see one during the day then you most likely have a serious cockroach problem.
Cockroach feces look like coffee grounds or black pepper. They like to stay out of sight, so they often travel along the baseboards, under appliances, and in the cracks and crevices of your pantry and counters. Look for the coffee ground like feces trail they’ll most likely leave behind.
If the infestation is bad, you’ll most likely catch wind of a strong, musty odor in the home as well.
How long does it take to get rid of cockroaches?
Cockroaches have lived on this planet for over 350 million years. They 
outlived the dinosaurs and countless other species, but just because they’ve lived this long doesn’t mean you can’t rid them from your home. As a matter of fact, it doesn’t take long to get rid of them when they invade your home.
If you followed the preventive measures listed earlier in this post, and still you have cockroaches in your home, then a multi-step remediation strategy, administered by a certified pest professional, is your next best solution.
The following steps are most popular for ridding your home of cockroaches, but options vary between different pest control companies:
- Spray/Barrier – this is a very popular option, but mixing the chemicals correctly, for proper coverage, is essential and should be handled by professionals.
- Bait – this is an easy DIY approach, but on it’s own it will only kill roaches that come across it. There are still eggs to kill as well.
- Clean-up – clean the house, inside and out. Especially the kitchen and anywhere else you store or consume food.
- Repair – fix leaks around plumbing and dripping faucets, seal cracks and openings to the home.
The last word ...
Cockroaches are the gift that keeps on giving if not addressed properly. Preventive measures are your best defense, but if you find you still have them then call Sigma Pest Control.
At Sigma Pest Control, our pest technicians are trained to help manage pests of all kinds, including cockroaches. Regardless of whether you have one cockroach or a thousand, we will design a right program for your situation.
We offer free inspections, and our professional and courteous customer service speaks for itself. No sales pressure, no gimmicks, and no hidden costs. You get first rate service and an end to your cockroach problems. Call Sigma Pest Control for a free inspection – 540-94-SIGMA.
