There are over 4000 species of cockroaches and about four of them are known to be pests, the usual suspects are the American, the German, the Asian and the Oriental cockroaches. Cockroaches in general all around the world live in a variety of environments quite happily; the ‘pest’ ones can adapt to different environments but really prefer the warm condition found inside buildings, our buildings!

Cockroaches are known to carry diseases like dysentery, typhoid and poliomyelitis, this is mainly due to that they can live just about anywhere and feed on anything including anything rotting, unsanitary and faecal; the list goes on and doesn’t get any more pleasant.  It’s very easy to see how diseases are spread many of the items that they can and will feed on are already contaminated and then as the cockroach moves to different areas the diseases are spread along with them. However the cockroach loves nothing better than finding our warm homes and kitchens and restaurants, so you see the problem is not just where they are now, it’s where they’ve been before! Even though they are associated with filthy and unsanitary conditions they can invade clean well kept homes as well this makes cockroach extermination very important.

Cockroaches need food, water and shelter water is very important, some cockroaches have been known to live a few months without food but a lot less without water so that is why they are often found in kitchens and bathrooms. Making sure all the plumbing is effective with no leaks and no standing water is a first line of defence against cockroaches.

The next in the list of important cockroach extermination methods is to make sure food and food particles do not accumulate in places cockroaches like to be, this includes uncovered food containers, unwashed dishes, pet dishes, litter trays, waste bins again the list goes on but it is important, all these conditions are very easily rectified add to that checking under fridges and stoves make sure that they are clean and dry.

We may still need to get rid of the cockroach’s this can be done in a few different ways, insecticides including non-residual and residual sprays plus ‘dusts’ and baits are used especially in combination with each other for best results in cockroach extermination.

When using any insecticide it is important to read any instruction for use that the label contains prior to use, follow the instructions, they are only there to protect you and your family including pets during this process. Insecticides are poisons and should be treated carefully!

A residual type spray will leave a fine deposit on the surface applied to that is toxic to the cockroach that will last for a long period of time at least two weeks, this needs to be applied to areas the cockroaches run and hide especially cracks and crevasses. Non-residual insecticides only eliminate cockroaches on contact. Some short lasting spray insecticides contain ingredients like resmethrin this is an irritatant to the cockroaches and can flush them out of hiding places forcing them to a place treated with a residual insecticide, this ‘flushing’ action can be useful to determine where the cockroaches are but have a care that it doesn’t just move them to a different location in the house.

Insecticide dusts are useful in that they can penetrate areas that sometimes the sprays cannot reach, for the best results they do need to be applied to dry locations and if used correctly they can have a longer  useful ‘life’. Boric acid powder is amongst the best cockroach insecticides for homeowners; it still needs to be handled correctly as per the instructions but can be very effective in cockroach extermination whilst being relatively safe to use in the home.

Baits are used in areas that sprays or dusts can’t be used for whatever reason simply put a bait is a food type like honey or peanut butter mixed with an insecticide like boric acid it is sensible to be placed inside a child and pet proof container and to be really effective it needs to be the only food source available other than obviously more ‘baits’.

For best results a combination of different insecticides and techniques will work well but obviously add to the overall cockroach extermination costs.

I can’t impress on you enough that if you see any signs of cockroach infestation you must take swift and immediate action as well as diseases in favourable conditions a female can produce 300 to 400 offspring in her life time and in some cases a female only needs to be impregnated once to be able to lay eggs for the rest of her life, so this action must  include scrupulous cleaning and disinfecting there are some home items that can be effective against cockroaches like bay leaves or baking soda but for a serious infestation in the home you will need to use insecticides in some form to effectively perform full and complete cockroach extermination.