How to Get Rid of Cockroaches

Many disgusting creatures often enter our house without us even knowing it. Sometimes, these creatures can be for our benefit, whether we like it or not, such as spiders, which control the fly and beetle population. But some bugs are especially gross, requiring our full attention and care even if we spot just one. I’m talking about cockroaches, and if you find one, you’ve probably got many more hidden around your house somewhere, waiting until nightfall to sneak out and munch on the goodies in your cabinet, bringing germs and disease into your house. But with a little effort, you can make sure that they don’t return.

First, if you haven’t actually seen them, you need to determine if you have cockroaches. You can do this by looking for their droppings, or tiny pellets or stains, which would be found on the floor and in your pantry, and possibly on you sofa or other soft materials. Alternatively, you could wait until night and sneak around your house, looking for those too-often illusive creatures. After you realize that you have them, you need to find out where they are coming from. Sometimes they enter through the vents and drains, which you can’t practically seal, so look for cracks between the floors and wall, as well as around windows and doors, particularly if you have a basement.

The next thing to do, of course, is to kill the roaches. Plenty of methods are sold which would eliminate the cockroaches in your house. You could dust the house with boric acid, focusing on floors, windows, and doors. Although it is not toxic to humans or pets, it can irritate the lungs, so try not to breathe it in. Plus, it doesn’t actually repel the roaches. Instead, they take it back to their nest and feed it to their hatchlings. Cockroach baits are also an effective method at eliminating roaches, which is similar to boric acid. The roaches take the food laced with poison back to the nest, slowing killing all of the roaches that eat it. Cockroach traps are little pieces of plastic with adhesive inside, which lures the bugs in and traps them. The downside of these traps is that they need to be thrown out and replaced quite often, especially if you have a lot of roaches. A final method of getting rid of roaches is to apply a liquid concentrate to you house, which used to be available only to professional exterminators. The concentrate can be bought and sprayed or mopped onto almost any surface. Typically, these liquids either kill or repel the bugs for at least two weeks, also helping to prevent re-infestation.

The final step in getting rid of roaches is the concept of keeping them away. Of course, keeping your kitchen clean and devoid of crumbs and such will prevent them from being attracted to your house. Also, seal any open food, and never leave dirty dishes out overnight. Keeping the trash away from the house after you have disposed of it will also keep them from entering. Any kind of dripping fixture, whether it’s a pipe, a faucet, or the dishwasher, will attract cockroaches, since they love water. Nonetheless, if none of these methods work and you truly have a cockroach infestation, call a professional.