Finding cockroaches in your Owensboro home can be upsetting. However, these pests are more stressful to endure during the holiday season, as they can ruin the entire experience.
Cockroaches are no joke and are worse than you may think. These pests are unsanitary and pose many health risks to humans. Through their droppings and saliva, cockroaches spread infections such as dysentery and gastroenteritis. These infections hurt the stomach and intestinal tract and are painful to go through. Furthermore, cockroaches often infest food items and spread deadly pathogens on foods you eat. Although rare, it is possible to trigger an asthmatic or allergic attack by ingesting these pathogens.
No one wants to find cockroaches in their home while enjoying the holiday season. Cockroach infestations are dangerous as they risk making you and your guests sick.
Prevention is the most effective way of controlling cockroach infestations. This guide is here to help you stop roaches from becoming a problem in your home.
What Do Cockroaches Look Like?
Before you implement our tips, here is a refresher on the appearance of cockroaches. While there are different species of cockroach, they all share several characteristics.
Cockroaches are oval-shaped, with wings that lay flat on their backs. They have six legs and a pair of antennae. Roaches also range in shades of red, brown, and black. The most common species in this area is the German cockroach. These guys are about half an inch long with a light brown body and two dark stripes on their upper backs.
How To Make Your Property Less Attractive To Cockroaches
The primary way to approach cockroach prevention is to remove or reduce the factors that attract them in the first place. Roaches need moisture-rich areas with access to food, and they also love clutter.
To cut down on these factors, here are some specific steps you can take:
- Use dehumidifiers and fix leaky plumbing to address moisture issues.
- Take out the trash often and get lids for all garbage bins.
- Clean up food and drink spills right away as cockroaches can survive on small bits of food.
- Store food items, including any pet food, in containers with sealed lids.
- Always clean your kitchen by mopping the floors and doing any dirty dishes.
Four More Prevention Tips For Cockroaches
Alongside the steps mentioned above, entry points into your home also require your attention. Any crack or hole in your house is a way in for cockroaches. You can deter roaches, and other pests, entry into your home by following these four steps:
- Repair or replace screens that are broken or torn.
- Use caulk or foam to fill cracks and crevices around the exterior of your house.
- Install or replace weather stripping.
- Fit door sweeps onto doors leading into your home.
The Best Way To Keep Cockroaches Out
Cockroaches can be difficult to deal with on your own, even with your best efforts. Thankfully, the experts at Action Pest Control provide reliable cockroach control treatments that will keep roaches out of your home year-round.
We also can remove any cockroach infestations you may already be dealing with, and we save you time and money as our pest elimination services are effective and safe. To find out more, give us a call or send us a message online.