Cockroaches?

Question

We have a leak in one fo our walls and my husband accidentally put a small hole in it, I guess they have been breeding in it, coz now we have millions of the little horrors, in 3 different varieties (lucky us!) no matter what i do, they keep breeding and multiplying, a few minutes ago I even found an albino in the shower! How can we get rid of them? we have tried extermination, sprays, baits boric acid, but apparently its not just here, its the whole town, and breeding season. HELP!!!!!

Answer 1

If you see a cockroach in your house at night, don’t panic – cockroaches are very active at night and one may have just wandered into your home. If you see a cockroach in your house during the day, however, you could have a pretty severe cockroach infestation and a visit from a pest control professional is in order.

To prevent having to share your living space with cockroaches, gather as much cockroach information as you can. Here is some information on cockroach prevention and cockroach control to get you started.

American Cockroaches:

If you see a reddish brown cockroach with yellowish markings on the back of its head, you’ve got an American cockroach – the largest house-infesting cockroach – on your hands. Found in food storage and food processing areas, as well as in unsanitary homes in all 50 states, American cockroaches can spread at least 33 kinds of bacteria, six kinds of parasites, and seven human diseases, so American cockroach prevention is important. This pest frequently hangs out in sewers and basements, particularly around pipes and drains. American cockroaches spread germs by picking them up on the spines of their legs and bodies as they crawl through sewage, decaying matter and other filth, and spread these germs onto food or food surfaces. If that weren’t bad enough, American cockroaches can also cause allergic reactions in children. To prevent American cockroaches from infesting your home, practice good sanitation – keep your home clean and vacuum often. If you see an American cockroach, you can fight the pest with a baiting program or by sealing cracks – both actions can quickly reduce an American cockroach infestation.

Brownbanded Cockroaches:

The brownbanded cockroach gets its name from the two lighter brown bands they have across their dark brown bodies. Male brownbanded cockroaches have full wings and can fly indoors, and the females have underdeveloped wings. Brownbanded cockroaches hide their egg cases in and under furniture and prefer warmer, drier, and higher locations than urban cockroaches. These pests are often found in kitchens (specifically the food preparation areas), bathrooms, and other rooms in the house, so brownbanded cockroach prevention and brownbanded cockroach control in these rooms is particularly important. Cockroaches, including brownbanded cockroaches, can spread 33 kinds of bacteria, six different kinds of parasitic worms, and at least seven other kinds of human diseases. Brownbanded cockroaches spread germs by picking them up on the spines of their legs and bodies as they crawl through sewage, decaying matter, and other filth and spread these germs onto food or food surfaces. If that weren’t bad enough, brownbanded cockroaches can also cause allergic reactions in children with allergens such as droppings, secretions, cast skins, and roach corpses. To prevent brownbanded cockroaches from infesting your home, practice good sanitation – keep your home clean and vacuum often. If you see a brownbanded cockroach, you can fight the pest with a baiting program or by sealing cracks – both actions can quickly reduce a brownbanded cockroach infestation.

Oriental Cockroaches:

Oriental cockroaches are 1-inch long, shiny, and very dark in color. These pests like to hang out in sewers and other wet, decaying organic matter. Sometimes called “water bugs” because they emerge from drains and “black beetle cockroaches” because of their smooth bodies, Oriental cockroaches prefer filth in temperatures between 68 and 84 degrees – a cooler temperature than most cockroaches enjoy. Oriental cockroaches prefer to hang out in sewers and enter buildings through drains, so good Oriental cockroach prevention and Oriental cockroach control can start with making sure these areas are well protected. Oriental cockroaches can also be found in basements, crawlspaces, leaf piles, and firewood stacks. Cockroaches, including Oriental cockroaches, can spread 33 kinds of bacteria, six different kinds of parasitic worms, and at least seven other kinds of human diseases. Oriental cockroaches spread germs by picking them up on the spines of their legs and bodies as they crawl through sewage, decaying matter and other filth and spread these germs onto food or food surfaces. If that weren’t bad enough, Oriental cockroaches can also cause allergic reactions in children with allergens such as droppings, secretions, cast skins, and roach corpses. For effective Oriental cockroach prevention and Oriental cockroach control, practice good sanitation – keep your home clean and vacuum often. If you see an Oriental cockroach, you can fight the pest with a baiting program or by sealing cracks – both actions can quickly reduce an Oriental cockroach infestation.

You can locate a pest management professional in your area in regards to a cockroach problem.

Answer 2

It may not be 3 different varieties. Roaches change appearance as they grow and mature. The albino you saw had just shed it's shell. They do this as they grow. If you saw one, you really are infested. You're going to need professional help.

The baits are always a good idea, but take months to get rid of a large population. Most sprays you can buy aren't very effective. You need to make sure the leak in the wall is fixed. Roaches need water to survive.

If you are seeing large numbers of them, try a vacuum to suck them up. I'd suggest a shop vac instead of your regular household vac.

I worked as an exterminator for several years. For problems like you are describing, it always took several months to completely eliminate the problem. Longer for multi-family homes and apartments. I had the best results using a combination of active pesticide sprays and dusts to kill as many as possible now, baits for them to eat and share,l and IGR's(Insect Growth Regulators) that disrupt the growth hormones in the young roaches and cause them to grow up sterile, thus breaking the reproductive cycle.

If you've already hired an exterminator that isn't doing these things, complain and check your contract for any guarantees.

Answer 3

Try diatematous earth. It comes in a powder and you can get it anywhere they sell pool supplies. It is not poison so you can dust it anywhere. It is ground up limestone that has skeletal remains in it. These scratch up the bugs and they then dehydrate and dye. they get it all over themselves when they walk through it and carry it back to the nest. It will take a week or so but if you keep powdering they will eventually all die. Be sure to powder outside as well. It will also kill fire ants. I put it in with my fertilizer and spread it several times a year.
An other method although it is a little more expensive is to get the electronic things to plug in your outlets. It produces a high frequency that drives them away. But again if you don't kill them they will just keep breeding outside.

Answer 4

You have to do a combination of both insecticide and growth inhibitor. Get some really good spray from the feed store or a chemical place (like diazinon or liquid seven) and also get a growth inhibitor which sterilizes the roaches so they can not breed. Spray both together at the same time and together they will kill the roaches and make the survivors sterile. Good Luck.

Answer 5

Boric acid, it is very effective when used properly for killing cockroaches and most other insects. You can also get a house lizard, they are natural enemies and will eat them.

Answer 6

to answer ur question, ,, lets take CRAB as an analogy,, whenever crab teaches its kid to walk the right way,, it teaches sideways,, I think same goes to the cockroach,, the papa cockroach teach baby cockroach to run towards,, and not away from Jeffy,, (or do you have doughnut crumbs sticking on ur hands?)

Answer 7

YUCK! I'm sorry for your plight!...I was gonna say an extremely clean home and boric acid always does the trick..

Answer 8

call the pest control people