How to Get Rid of Roaches in the Kitchen

Roaches make your skin crawl, and for good reason. They hide in dark moist cracks and crevices in your home like under floorboards, behind baseboards, in wall voids, under shelving, and inside appliances. If you spot roaches in the kitchen, you'll want to take action fast.

There are several ways you can get roaches out of your home and keep them gone for good, but it can take a lot of time and persistence to get rid of them. The tips outlined in this article will show you how to get rid of roaches in your kitchen.

What are Roaches?

Roaches are small brown insects that live in different areas of the home. They are often found in dark, damp places, including around pipes, underneath sinks, in cracks behind cupboards, and in storage areas, such as closets and pantries. They prefer a temperature of at least 75 degrees, so a warm kitchen is a magnet for roaches.

Roaches also frequently nest in places with a food and water source, like kitchens, where there are easy-to-access crumbs and spills. Roaches are primarily outdoor pests, but depending on where you live, these may be more prevalent indoors.

These pests can cause a lot of problems in homes, including:

• health concerns - roaches do not transmit disease, but they can spread bacteria and other germs that can cause food poisoning or make you sick. Roaches have also been identified as a potential asthma trigger.
• food contamination - roaches can carry bacteria like salmonella and giardia that can contaminate your food and cause food-borne illnesses.
• bad smell - dirt left behind by roaches can stain or damage your floors and walls and create a bad odor.

A Clean Kitchen Keeps Roaches Away

Roaches love a dirty kitchen where there are plenty of places to hide and food to eat. Keep your kitchen clean by sweeping up crumbs, keeping food in sealed containers in the fridge and pantry, and cleaning up spills immediately. Your kitchen will look much better, and the roaches will be less likely to come into your home.

A clean kitchen is essential for reducing the risk of infestations of all kinds since a sink full of dirty dishes is way more attractive to bugs than a clean countertop. Regularly scrub your kitchen with a caustic detergent and water to kill cockroach eggs and nymphs and make your kitchen less attractive to roaches. Keeping your kitchen and other areas of your home clean and organized will also help reduce your risk of a cockroach infestation in your home.

Be sure to throw out any roaches that you find and make sure your family does not come into contact with them.

How to Prevent Roaches

Your kitchen features many places for roaches to hide, so it's important to keep all of your cabinets, drawers, and shelves clean and free of crumbs and spills. Vacuum inside the cabinets monthly to ensure that all crumbs are swept out.

One of the best ways to prevent a roach infestation is to seal up all the potential points of entry into your home. These areas include:

• Holes or cracks in your walls
• Uninsulated pipes
• Open windows
• Cracks around doors and windows
• Unprotected electrical outlets
• Open drains

If you want to prevent roaches in the kitchen, you need to seal all of these entry points. You can start by closing off any cracks around doors and windows, and make sure all electrical outlets are properly covered.

A dripping pipe serves as a water source for roaches so if you have any plumbing issues, you should address them right away to prevent future roach problems. You should also seal all cracks in your foundation or exterior walls, and make sure all drains in your home are covered.

Be sure to examine any items that you bring into your home; storage boxes from the garage, a used refrigerator that you purchased online, and even luggage from your vacation can all bring in roaches that may be looking for a new home.

It’s vital to keep the interior of your home clean to prevent roaches but it’s also important to keep your surrounding property roach free-as well or they will eventually make their way inside. Keep garbage and pet food sealed up tight, keep firewood piles away from the house and keep weeds and other vegetation that roaches can hide in trimmed and away from the house

Getting Rid of Roach eggs

Roach eggs are very small, and often hard to find. It is important to search your home thoroughly as they can hide in many places.

Roach eggs are microscopic and can be very hard to find, but they are a sign of a thriving roach population. Boric acid is a great way to get rid of roach eggs and is an inexpensive way to get rid of roach infestations.

Using Baited Traps for Roaches in the Kitchen

Setting up baited traps for roaches is a great way to catch large populations and stop infestations before they spread. Start by purchasing a few boxes of active ingredient bait (such as D-Fense). Bait your roach traps with roach food, then place a few traps around the areas where you believe roaches to be hiding.

Keep in mind that bait isn’t effective right away, so place baited traps in places you think roaches frequent over the long term. Once baited traps are set up, monitor them regularly to ensure they’re still active.

When the roaches eat the bait and get caught in the trap, just seal the trap and dispose of it. You can also set out more traps the next day, then seal them and throw them away when you’re done.

Are There Natural Ways to Get Rid of Roaches?

Most people turn to pesticides or harsh chemicals when trying to get rid of these unwanted house guests. Pesticides are a quick fix however, they could potentially be dangerous to children and pets.

Try these natural ways to get rid of roaches without using harsh chemicals;

• Spices- Sprinkling pungent spices such as cayenne, garlic, cinnamon, or onion powder around your home can deter roaches from entering.
• Essential Oils- Mix ¼ cup of Tea Tree, Eucalyptus, or Peppermint oil with 2 cups of water and spray liberally around the entry points of your home to ward off insects of all kinds.
• Plants- Plant mint, catnip, or bay leaves around the perimeter of your home to repel bugs.
• Natural powders– Borax, Diatomaceous Earth, and baking soda are all simple, safe, and effective roach repellants.

One of the best ways to do this is to take care of the condition of your home. If there are dirty dishes in the sink, unplugged electrical sockets, or dirty carpets, these will be places where roaches like to live.

By keeping your home clean, you will make it less attractive to these pests. You can also try to avoid storing food in places where these pests like to live. This can be as simple as keeping your food in the fridge or in sealed containers. Be mindful of how you store your food so roaches won't have access to it.

Exterminating Roaches in the Kitchen

Maybe your natural repellants aren’t working or you’ve tried every pesticide in the hardware store but you’re still spotting roaches in your kitchen, it may be time to call in the big guns. A professional exterminator, like Drive-Bye Exterminators, can rid your home of roaches quickly and safely, saving you a considerable amount of time and headache.

The benefits of hiring a professional for roach infestation include:

• They know what species of roach is present
• They have a plan in place to deal with any kind of infestation
• They are licensed and follow guidelines set by government agencies and organizations.
• They use safe products and follow guidelines set by government agencies and organizations.
• They can examine your home and point out things you can do to prevent future infestations

Get Help with Roaches in the Kitchen

If you have a serious infestation and are looking for a long-term solution, hire the professionals at Drive-Bye Exterminators. We are experienced and qualified to handle any size of roach infestation.

We can help you get rid of roaches in the kitchen and guarantee the job will be done the right way.