After fully ravaging your house and wallet, Cockroaches can leave behind sneaky little pains that can cause you to spend even more money. Cockroaches have been known to implicate a widespread of diseases from 6 different forms of parasitic worms, E. Coli, and Salmonella. This is due to Cockroaches passively transporting microbes on their body as then move around.
- Tidy up and tidy thoroughly. Buckle down and insure that your household is spick-and-span, cleaned to the absolute max. Cockroaches are attracted to food and grease particles, so make sure there aren’t any crumbs in those couch cushions, the floor is vacuumed up, and your stove top is squeaky clean. While this seems like quite a daily hassle, 15 minutes a day before bed is a small price to pay rather than days of worrying and countless dollars being spent to rectify these nasty pests.
- Lock down the fort. Go throughout your house and tightly seal up any holes, cracks, and/or openings. If you think that it is too small for a Cockroach to weasel its way in, you are wrong. Cockroaches can squeeze their way through the smallest of holes. In fact, the German Cockroach can fit between a crack as thin as a dime with the American Cockroach being able to fit between a space no thinner than a quarter. Also, Cockroaches are thigmotropic meaning that they enjoy the feeling of solid objects in contact with their bodies, hence why that weasel into cracks and crevices.
- Water proof and cool. Cockroaches are attracted to moisture. If you have a leaky faucet or your water heater just blew, you need to soak up all the water and moisture as soon as possible. All it takes is a few droplets for a Cockroach to soak in some, probably less than quality, H2O. Next step is to make sure your household is nice and cool. No I don’t mean the coolest looking house on the block, I mean temperature wise. Cockroaches thrive in warm environments thus why they are generally a problem in summer months and found in tropical forests. If you have ceiling fans or box fans, or even better central air, you want to have them running 24/7. While yes you will probably have them going anyway because it gets hot in the summer months, there may be days you want to shut them off. Don’t do it. You can always get warm through blankets, more clothes, etc. It’s not worth risking it if your house isn’t spick-and-span like in tip #1.
- Go colonial and trap them. If you do happen to find one or two Cockroaches in your house, take action. Become like our forefathers and trap the little suckers. By trapping them early you can prevent future colonies from moving in or reproducing. One easy way to trap Cockroaches that is pretty cost efficient is through petroleum jelly. Take a container that is rather deep with high sides and fill it with petroleum jelly. Then make a small ramp to help the Cockroaches reach the container and add some bait, preferably something with a sweet odor such as sugar or apple cider. The petroleum jelly will cause the Cockroach to sink and suffocate. Finally take the container, that hopefully has a Cockroach in it, and flush the contents down the toilet. Presto, instant homemade Cockroach trap.
As you can tell, it’s not a cakewalk trying to prevent Cockroaches from infesting your home. But it still beats the alternative of shelling out money for some not so honest exterminators to spray your house up and down with various pesticides and chemicals. Think of all the potential diseases that you can now spare your loved ones from and all the money in medical treatment no longer needed. So enjoy a carefree life knowing that you’ve taken the right steps in preventing Cockroaches from affecting your loved ones, your wallet, and your home.
