An Exterminator of Roaches: 10 Ways Roaches Get Into Homes
Did you know that roaches can last for up to 30 days without food? They can also survive without water for up to a week. These tenacious pests are even rumored to be able to withstand a nuclear blast. When your home is the site of a bug invasion, you know you need to find an exterminator roaches fear. But you’re probably wondering how they got into your home in the first place. Read on to learn 10 ways roaches sneak into your home and how to stop them.
1. Pipes
Although roaches can live without food for some time, they must find a water source. It’s also important for you to understand they all it takes is a single drop of water to sustain a cockroach for a long time. Areas that often go overlooked when mitigating a roach infestation include under sinks, in basements near washing machines and drains, and underwater heaters. Water dishes for your pets also function as an unintentional water source for roaches.
Inspect your home for leaks in pipes and water-bearing appliances, like dishwashers and washing machines, and make sure to clean up any standing water you encounter. Check the water collection container under your refrigerator. Fill pet dishes at set points during the day whenever possible rather than leaving full water and food dishes on the floor. Sprinkle a thin layer of borax powder under sinks, water heaters, and appliances.
2. Food Containers
It should go without saying that open containers invite pests and give them a reason to stick around. However, many people are unaware that a box doesn’t need to be open for a roach to get inside. These very flexible, flat critters can wiggle through the flaps on boxes, rolled-up chip bags, and other crevices that are big enough for an insect to enter. They also eat glue, which makes it easier to get into cardboard food containers.
Transfer any food, including pet food, to an airtight, plastic container, make sure to vacuum inside of cabinets, pantries, and under kitchen appliances regularly, and limit eating to specific rooms. Rinse cans and bottles before putting them into the trash and make sure that your trash cans have tight-fitting lids. Never leave dirty dishes sitting in the sink. Unload the dishwasher right away.
3. Cracks and Gaps
Like most pests, cockroaches originate outside. However, they are attracted to the warm and friendly environments – not to mention unlimited access to food and water – that are found in the average home.
Pest-proof your home by keeping doors and windows closed or guarded by tight-fitting screens. Plug or repair cracks in walls, around windows, under doors, and around the foundation of your home. Also, make sure that areas around pipes are sealed. This pertains to pipes within the home as well as the space around pipes coming from outside the home. This tip has the extra advantage of making your home more energy efficient.
4. Boxes and Bags
Roaches don’t just appear out of thin air. When they aren’t invading homes through doors, windows, and attic, they’re coming in with shopping bags and boxes. You won’t notice them crawling around inside your grocery bags, either. They get into bags, boxes, and containers during shipping and while being stored in warehouses or storage rooms. Once in, they hide under flaps and in crevices in containers until you take them home with you.
Before bringing boxes into your home, inspect them thoroughly for signs of insects. For example, you might notice patches of tiny brown spots, egg sacks, insect legs, or insects themselves. Don’t use paper and plastic bags from the supermarket. Bring your own reusable bags when shopping.
5. Human Transference
Here’s another fun but disgusting fact. Some female roaches only breed one time and stay pregnant for life, releasing egg sacs regularly whether a male is present or not. That means, hypothetically, that a single roach carried in by a visitor to your home can lead to an infestation in a matter of weeks. They can also be carried by unwitting children coming from outside, deliveries, and solicitors.
We’re not suggesting that you screen visitors or search everyone that comes to your door. However, it wouldn’t hurt to inspect packages before you bring them in, unpack suitcases or overnight bags as soon as you return home from a trip, and avoid allowing the laundry to pile up. Roaches love big piles of potentially damp, soiled clothing.
6. Windows and Doors
Why sneak into a home with the groceries or a delivery when you can just crawl in through doors and windows? Short-hanging doors with gaps underneath, small holes in screens, and deteriorated weather stripping all allow ample space for roaches to enter your home.
If you live in an older home with sagging doors and window frames, make sure to replace them with new, tight-fitting ones. Install old cracked or crumbling weather stripping, or add it to the bottom of windows and doors. Keep doors and windows closed, especially during hot or rainy weather, or make sure that screens are installed and in good repair. An exterminator of roaches can help you make sure these areas are secure.
7. Vents and Ductwork
A bug exterminator can tell you that dryer vents, ductwork, and exhaust fans are other common entryways for pests. Have your ductwork thoroughly cleaned and inspected twice a year, seal any cracks around ducts and vents, and makes sure that vents and exhaust fans close completely and are in good working condition.
8. Exterior Walls and Siding
Not only can roaches live inside walls or under siding, but they can also enter your home through gaps around pipes, cables, and vents. Replace siding panels that are loose or cracked and double caulk around any cable or wiring that’s coming in from outside. If you believe that your home is already under attack, an initial consultation with an experienced roach exterminator will likely include a thorough inspection of your home inside and out.
9. Crawl Spaces and Attics
Unless they’re finished and in daily use, basements, crawl spaces, and attics tend to be sometimes damp, dark places that go unattended for long periods of time. They also act as a catchall for unused or unwanted items that make great hiding places for roaches and other pests. Garages can also fall into this category at times.
Take time to make the effort to seal any cracks or crevices in these locations, place any items that are being stored in tightly sealed plastic containers, and spread a layer of borax in corners, underwater heaters, cabinets, and shelving.
10. Chimneys and Soffits
Roaches may or may not get on your roof and climb down the chimney on their own. One thing that you can be sure of is that birds and other animals that nest in chimneys will bring them in for food or carry them in nesting materials. Once they reach the chimney, it’s just a short trip into your home. Soffits and fascia around the roof edges are also entry points for roaches and other vermin.
It doesn’t take much time or investment to install a chimney cap, and it will help you avoid other issues. Inspect the area around the eaves to make sure that the screen is intact and well-fitted.
Do You Need a Professional Exterminator for Roaches?
Despite your best efforts, pests can still invade your home. Once there, they multiply quickly. What’s more, they’re almost impossible to eliminate without professional help.
You don’t have to share your home with uninvited guests a minute longer. A fast, effective exterminator of roaches is just a phone call away.
