Once a cockroach enters and settles in your home, it can be very difficult to get rid of it. Cockroaches can chew your food, damage the layers of wallpaper, books and electronics, and even some types of cockroaches can spread germs to humans. Exterminate immediately and prevent these pests from returning by using baits, insecticides, traps or antidotes. Use the approach that works best for you.
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Method 1 of 5: Keeping Water and Food away from Cockroaches
Step 1. Cockroaches definitely need a water source
Cockroaches can live up to a month without food, depending on their temperature and body size, but can only survive a week without water at most. Find all the water leak points in your home, and fix any leaks. Once they lose their source of water, the cockroaches will be more interested in eating the gel-based bait you prepared.
Step 2. Clean your house thoroughly
A clean home is key to successfully repelling cockroaches, and the first place to start cleaning is the kitchen. Wash dishes and clean up your food immediately after eating. Clean up crumbs and spills immediately, and keep the place clean. Pay special attention to the top of the stove or stove, because cockroaches love oil.
Step 3. Close the food container tightly, and don't leave the food outside for a long time
Don't put off washing dirty dishes overnight, and don't just put fruit on the table.
Step 4. Mop floors regularly to remove crumbs and sticky stains
Take care not to let the water wet the walls; Remember that cockroaches need water.
Step 5. Take out the trash regularly
Provide a special trash can for food in your home, and don't let it be filled with garbage for a long time. Use a trash can with a lid, not an open one. Dispose of trash in a tightly closed trash can, as far away from your home as possible.
Method 2 of 5: Using Cockroach Bait
Step 1. Use cockroach bait available in the store
Cockroach bait is usually packaged in a container that is safe from the reach of children, or in the form of a gel that can be applied. Cockroach baits are made from a slow-acting poison, which can be mixed with food that cockroaches love. A cockroach will eat the poison and then carry it back to its nest, thereby killing other cockroaches.
- Place bait in places where cockroaches often pass, such as wood trim on walls, under the sink, and in corners of the house. Install it as close to the nest as possible, so that many cockroaches eat it and bring it back to the nest.
- Most cockroach baits contain 0.05% fipronil or 2% hydramethylnon as the active ingredient. Cockroaches will eat the poison and excrete it back in the nest, so other cockroaches will touch it and die.
- Getting rid of cockroaches this way can take up to several weeks. When the first generation of cockroaches is exterminated, the eggs will hatch and more cockroaches must be poisoned so that the nest is completely wiped out.
Step 2. Try making your own cockroach bait
Mix 1 part boric acid powder (not coarse) with 1 part flour and 1 part powdered sugar. Boric acid is sometimes sold as a cockroach-killing powder, but is sometimes also available in pharmacies. The sugar and flour will attract cockroaches, while the boric acid will kill them. Sprinkle the mixture behind drawers and cupboards, under the refrigerator, under the stove and so on.
- You can also try a similar mixture with 1 part boric acid, 2 parts flour and 1 part cocoa powder.
- Wait for at least 3 disappearing cycles of dwindling cockroaches to occur, each cycle lasting approximately 2 weeks. Continue using boric acid until all the cockroaches are gone.
- Children, dogs and other pets can be at risk of eating this mixture. Boric acid is not a strong poison for humans and pets, but it should not be ingested, so place the mixture in places where cockroaches can reach it.
- The boric acid mixture will harden in humid air, so you may need to use a paper or aluminum foil base to protect your floors and furniture.
Method 3 of 5: Using Insecticides
Step 1. Use a simple solution of soap and water
This is an easy way to kill adult cockroaches. Make a dilute solution of soap (you can use bath soap) and water, which is thin enough to spray using a spray bottle. You can splash it, spray it or pour it on the cockroach. Just 2 or 3 drops of soapy water solution is enough to kill a cockroach. Make sure the solution hits the cockroach's head and lower abdomen. If the cockroach is upside down, it's best to put it on its stomach. The cockroach may try to run, but it will suddenly stop and die, or be half-dead within a minute.
- Soapy water kills cockroaches by forming a thin film that covers the pores that cockroaches use to breathe. Due to surface tension, this layer will continue to cover, so the cockroach cannot breathe.
- Throw away the dead cockroach immediately, as it may recover when the water dries up or doesn't cover most of its body.
Step 2. Use an insecticidal spray
Choose an insecticide that is labeled "anti-cockroach", and contains cifluthrin or other insecticide as the active ingredient. Spray into places where cockroaches hide or enter the house including walls, cracks and vents.
- Keep children and pets away when you spray, and follow all safety instructions written on the label of the insecticide product.
- If you're also baiting cockroach bait, don't spray near it. The spray can contaminate the bait and make cockroaches avoid it.
- Using spray to fight cockroaches can make the cockroaches disappear instantly, but on the other hand it can also make them hide further into the walls of the house and make the problem worse. It is very important that you continue to eradicate the nest, not just kill any visible cockroaches.
Step 3. Use a liquid concentrate
Liquid concentrates, previously only used by professional exterminators, are now available to the public. Concentrates are poisons or insect repellent chemicals that must be diluted with water and then sprayed, rubbed or wiped on any surface, crack or crevice to kill cockroaches that pass there. Concentrates are very effective in providing protection against the re-emergence of cockroaches, because generally their repellency reaches 1 to 2 weeks or even more.
Step 4. Use pesticides that are commonly used for commercial purposes
If the cockroach attack in your home is so severe, as a last resort you may want to use the strongest pesticide. Look for pesticides that contain Cypermethrin. Professional baits, glue traps with pheromones, and professional sprays are much more effective than products purchased over-the-counter at the nearest convenience store. Cy-Kick CS is a micro-encapsulated product that is highly effective against cockroaches. You may have to buy them online, as these pesticides are not sold at hardware stores. This pesticide can kill live insects, while providing a residual effect for three months. Spray around your house and hidden places like basements.
- The downside is that these products will kill all insects, including cockroach predators such as spiders and millipedes.
- Use this method only as a last resort, and do not use it when children and pets are around. The poison is very strong and can harm anyone who eats it.
Method 4 of 5: Using Traps
Step 1. Use the cockroach trap available in the shop
Cockroach traps lure cockroaches in and catch them with adhesive. Buy some traps and place them where cockroaches are often seen. While effective at killing large groups of adult cockroaches, the traps have no impact on the nest.
Step 2. Use a jar
A simple and effective way to lure and trap cockroaches is with a jar placed against a wall. It will let the cockroaches in, but can't get out. Any bait can be filled in the jar, including coffee grounds and water, but sometimes just water is sufficient in dry climates. Again, this is a good way to get rid of adult cockroaches, but it doesn't affect the nest or the eggs.
Step 3. Use a soft drink bottle trap
Take a plastic soft drink bottle and cut off the top in the groove. Flip the top and insert it into the bottom of the bottle so that it forms an inward funnel. Plaster at the joints with masking tape. Pour a small amount of soapy water into a bottle and place the trap where cockroaches usually pass. The cockroach will get into the bottle and drown.
Method 5 of 5: Prevent Cockroaches From Coming
Step 1. Remove garden waste from outside your home
Cockroaches love piles of wood and other cozy hiding places, and when the weather gets colder, they will move inside the house to keep warm. Make sure your wood pile is located far from the house. Remove piles of hay, leaves, twigs and other garden debris.
Step 2. Seal crevices in your house to prevent cockroaches from entering
Seal the cracks in the exterior walls of the house so cockroaches can't get in through them. Also seal any cracks you can find in the house. This may take some time, but the payoff is great, as you've eliminated most of the hiding and breeding places that cockroaches love.
- Seal any cracks or gaps in every cupboard in your kitchen.
- Seal all cracks in the floor, and on both sides of the doors and windows.
- Cover all pipe openings in the bathroom and kitchen.
Step 3. Install a cockroach trap
Even if you have successfully removed the cockroach nest, you can prevent the cockroaches from returning by placing traps that will kill the cockroaches before they become difficult to control. The best approach is to seal any cracks near potential entry areas such as drainage or ventilation, and place the following traps:
- Spray pesticides on it (eg with Raid), either in gel or liquid form. This will be the second line of defense should the cockroach get in or through the filter wire, at least it will weaken it.
- Cover all gaps with a filling, putty or other material that can harden. If the gap is in the siding or other wood, once you've covered it with putty, grease it with resin or broom it with polish. Putty is safe for children when it has hardened, which is about 4 to 6 hours after installation.
Tips
- If you hit or step on a cockroach make sure to thoroughly clean the place and the object you hit/step on. When the mother cockroach dies, the eggs can still hatch if not removed properly. Prevent cockroaches from coming back to your home and remember to eradicate the nest.
- Always keep food and other objects away from cockroaches, and take your trash out every night before bed.
- When you find a nest of cockroaches, spray a non-stick liquid (eg brand GooGone). This liquid will enter the respiratory pores of the cockroach, making it die and leaving an odor that cockroaches don't like.
- Install fluorescent adhesives or patch lights all over your kitchen cabinets and keep them on at all times. Cockroaches don't like light and these things will prevent them from eating crumbs. Another option is to leave the kitchen cupboard doors fully open and turn on the kitchen lights. This won't kill the cockroaches, but it will make your home feel less attractive to them. Also install a layer of self-adhesive and insect repellent.
- Be sure to clean the area where the cockroach was hit or crushed, as cockroaches are cannibals.
- Cockroaches can hide in toasters and eat crumbs. Make sure to clean it regularly and turn it on for about 3 minutes to get rid of food odors.
- Store pots, pans, bowls and plates face down so that no dirt or cockroach eggs accumulate in them.
- Always plug the drain plug into the bath tub so that cockroaches don't emerge from the drains.
- Close the opened cereal package tightly by placing the entire package in a sealed bag until it is tightly closed, then put it back in the box. Do not allow crumbs to collect in the box as cockroaches can live quite a long time on crumbs alone. Packaging with plastic clips or the like will not keep them away from your food. Do this for all packaging boxes or bags. Also make sure that flour, sugar, oatmeal and so on are always in tightly closed containers. This may seem trivial, but it is very useful.
- Throw the dead cockroach down the toilet bowl and flush it thoroughly, so that the cockroach is carried out of your house.
Warning
- When you spray the cockroach repellent solution on the kitchen cupboards, hold your breath and spray quickly, or buy a respirator mask to help breathe while spraying. Use a high-pressure spray bottle to get your job done faster.
- Insecticides, cockroach baits and other chemicals can be toxic to humans (especially children) and pets. Make sure that you carefully read the warnings on the label, and actually use them according to the written instructions.
