Cockroaches, like rats, are nocturnal pests. This means that they’ll only come out at night to scavenge for food, the reason why it’s rare to see them in broad daylight. If you see one during the day, then it means only one thing. There’s a cockroach infestation in your home, and you need to do something to get rid of them.
Dangers of Cockroaches
You don’t want cockroaches in your home. They are known carriers of a variety of pathogenic organisms that cause diseases. If you have a weak or compromised immune system, then you have more than just a cockroach bite to worry about. You are also at risk for severe allergic reaction, asthma attack, gastrointestinal problems, skin allergies, salmonella infection, typhoid, poliomyelitis, dysentery, and other serious diseases. It is for these reasons why it’s important that you get rid of cockroaches in your home.
Signs of Cockroach Infestation
As mentioned earlier, cockroaches usually scavenge for food at night, so it’s rare to see one during the day. However, there are some signs that you can look for to confirm the presence of cockroaches.
Those little black pellets that you see in nooks and crannies, under large furniture, under the kitchen sink, and behind the stove or the refrigerator are not spilled coffee grounds nor are they black pepper. These are cockroach feces made by smaller roaches, while large cockroaches produce cylindrical-shaped feces. If you see little black pellets resembling black pepper or coffee grounds littering the floor, especially the kitchen and areas that are dark and damp, then you can expect a cockroach infestation.
Upon entering a room that you rarely use, like the attic or the basement, do you smell a strong, musty scent? If you answered yes, then there is a very high likelihood that your home has a cockroach infestation. Roaches emit pheromones – a very unpleasant, oily and musty scent – that attract other roaches for mating, and a very strong scent is a very good indicator of just how severe the cockroach infestation is.
The number of cockroach carcasses littering the property is also a good indicator of a roach infestation, so is the number of oothecae or cockroach eggs found in nooks and crannies. This means that the population of cockroaches is thriving in your home. They’re breeding and dying, and since cockroaches can lay up to 14 egg capsules per mating period, each capsule containing about 16 eggs, you’ll soon have hundreds of them infesting your home if you don’t do anything to get rid of them.
Getting Rid of Roaches
Cockroach prevention is easy. You only have to maintain a clean home and yard; seal up holes and cracks that cockroaches can crawl through; remove their water and food source; set traps, among others, and you’re home will be roach-free.
However, for severe cockroach infestation, you’ll need the help of experts. They can get rid of the whole cockroach population in your home and leave your home protected against these pests for months. Since most pest control companies use products to totally get rid of them, you need to ask the company if the products they’re using are green, organic, and environmentally-friendly.
Jennifer Daggett regularly writes for the blog of admiralpest.com. She’s also a frequent guest blogger for similar pest control-related blogs.
