Why Do I Have Cockroaches in My Home?

The sight of a cockroach scurrying across the kitchen floor is enough to send shivers down any homeowner’s spine, and with good reason. These home invaders wreak havoc: they carry diseases, aggravate allergies (especially in children), ruin food, and on rare occasions, even bite. Not to mention, they’re just plain frightening. Homeowners who suffer from this roach problem all wonder the same thing: what was it about their house that attracted the cockroaches? If you understand what made the roaches take up residence in your home, you’re one step closer not only to know how to remove these resilient pests but also to keep them away.

What Attracts Cockroaches

Let’s start by addressing the worry of every homeowner with roaches. You can breathe a sigh of relief because your cleaning habits probably aren’t what caused the cockroaches to seek refuge in your home; in fact, even the tidiest of residences can attract these pests. The reason that even immaculately clean houses are susceptible to roaches is simple: the roaches are looking for food. Cockroaches are always on the hunt for their next meal, and the crumbs and food residue, not to mention your fully stocked pantry, are inviting places for hungry cockroaches looking to feed.

Why Cockroaches Might Take Up Residence in Your Home

Roaches have virtually the same needs as humans. They seek food, shelter, and water, and our homes, unfortunately, provide the perfect haven for them. We’ve got leaky faucets and wet bath mats where they can drink, pantries full of food for them to eat, and tons of cozy crevices where roaches can shelter and lay eggs.

How to Keep Cockroaches Out: Best Practices

Cockroaches thrive on very little, and they’re nocturnal, which means you may not even notice them until they’ve spawned another generation. Their ability to go undetected makes removing them problematic, and whipping out pesticides and spraying every surface is not enough. You must have a plan of attack. That plan of attack begins with roach prevention, especially if you’ve had problems in the past, as it’s much easier to stop an invasion than it is to remove one. You can prevent roaches by taking away the things they look for in your home—food, shelter, and water.

Food

Food is the first place you should start when roach-proofing your residence. The first line of defense is ensuring your counter tops, stove tops, and floors are all free from food and crumbs. You’ll also want to make sure to remove crumbs and grease from hard-to-reach places like under the fridge or stove, where food debris can build up and go unnoticed. Remember that the most important order of business in roach prevention is regular kitchen cleaning, so it’s not enough to clean the floors once a week. Wipe down the counter tops and sweep every day to prevent the accumulation of food that roaches find irresistible. Besides keeping your kitchen free of food residue in difficult-to-see places and implementing a daily cleaning routine, the next order of business is storing all pantry food in sealed containers so that roaches can’t access it. If you have pets, cover pet food dishes as well.

Water

Water is another critical area to tackle when it comes to roach prevention, as oriental cockroaches, also know as waterbugs, seek watering holes. Look for places around your property where water collects and remove standing water, such as in plants, clogged rain gutters, and the drip plate under your refrigerator. You should also repair any leaky faucets.

Shelter

Lastly, address roaches’ ability to make your shelter theirs by sealing your house correctly. Close any area that cockroaches can use to gain access to your home, such as cracks in the exterior walls, vents, and gaps between the door and floor. Tears in window screens are another roach access point.

What to Do in Case of a Roach Infestation

What do you do if, despite your best efforts to keep them out of your house, you find yourself with a cockroach infestation? Because they carry potentially disease-causing pathogens and can aggravate asthma and allergies (aside from being incredibly unsightly), the best solution is to hire a professional to remove them. Budget Pest Control has plenty of experience liberating homes from these resilient pests. When it comes to cockroach control, our friendly, knowledgeable team is your best resource for long-lasting solutions to eliminate roaches. Let our professionals give you the peace of mind you’re looking for and contact us now.