Pest Control San Antonio – Getting Rid Of Cockroaches

Many homeowners find cockroaches to be the most disgusting pest that can invade their homes. In addition to being disgusting, a cockroach infestation is a health concern. Cockroaches do carry disease, and for many, a cockroach infestation can also trigger allergies and asthma.

There are several dozen cockroach species that live in America. In general, it’s not necessary to know the particular cockroach species in your home to effectively treat them. The first step to curtailing cockroaches is keeping a clean home and take effective preventive measures to reduce access to your home by cockroaches.

While there are those species of cockroaches that are comfortable nesting in your living space, most prefer to nest nearby in a warm moist space. Favorite nesting areas for cockroaches are mulch, the garage, and the attic. Keep windows and doors closed and repair any cracks with caulk or similar material to reduce access to your living space by cockroaches.

Not only will cockroaches enter the home from outside, we humans often unwittingly bring them into our home. A preferred nesting location for cockroaches is cardboard. When we bring cardboard boxes into our home, particularly if they’ve been stored in a place with a cockroach infestation, there’s a very good chance we brought cockroaches in our home with the cardboard.

Cockroach Condo – Get this out of your house

Cockroaches can live a considerable length with no food or water. However, with ready access to food and water, cockroaches will breed prolifically. That is why it’s vital to keep your home clean, eliminating their supply of food and water to keep their population down.

Cockroach management is rarely effective through chemical means alone. Your home must be kept clean to manage cockroaches. The more clutter present in your home, the more nesting and hiding places you provide to cockroaches within your home. The more food in your home that the cockroaches can access, the more likely the cockroaches will choose that over any bait you provide for chemical control.

Keeping a clean home means more than just taking out the garbage and doing the dishes regularly. Vacuuming, mopping, and wiping down services will all help to reduce the amount of cockroach pheromone in your home. Cockroach pheromone is produced by cockroaches in your home and acts to attract others of their species. Reducing cockroach pheromone in your home will help stop a small problem from becoming a larger one.

Once you have a clean home and have taken all recommended preventive measures, there are a few types of chemical options you can use to help control a cockroach infestation. Again, make sure your home is clean and you are taking recommended preventive measures before you resort to chemicals.

Recommended cockroach control chemicals come in three types: bait, barrier sprays, and dust. Foggers are not generally recommended for cockroach infestations. For most household applications, the bait will be sufficient with no other chemicals required.

Chemical treatment of cockroaches does require some patience. It can take several weeks to completely eliminate the cockroach population in your home. Do not be surprised if when you first start the chemical control measures, you begin to see more cockroaches rather fewer. Healthy cockroaches are very good at hiding from you. Dead or dying cockroaches are not. Seeing more cockroaches immediately after beginning chemical control measures is actually a good sign – it means the chemicals are working.

A simple step-by-step process for eliminating cockroaches would look like:

thoroughly clean and keep cleaning your home
discard any unnecessary cardboard boxes or similar material
take effective preventive measures, including repairing any cracks or gaps in door thresholds through which cockroaches may enter your home
place cockroach bait stations in the kitchen and bathrooms
optionally, you may spray the perimeter of the house with a barrier spray
optionally, you may spray poison dust under appliances or other areas of the house not access my people or pets were cockroaches may choose to hide

An informed homeowner, with both patience and discipline, can overcome a cockroach infestation.