Did you know there are more than 70 species of cockroaches in the United States? Many types of cockroaches in Florida exist, and most are willing to invade your home for a solid source of food and water. That makes cockroach control in this state more important than ever. What can you do to prevent these problem pests? What can you do to treat them if they’ve already invaded? This post can help.
Understanding Cockroaches
Before you can begin to approach cockroach pest control, it’s essential that you understand a bit more about this pest. While there are lots of species that invade Florida homes, most have pretty similar patterns of behavior.
Cockroaches will range in color from dark brown to red to black, depending on the species. Most will be about one to three inches in length, and they should have antennae. They all have six legs, and they usually have wings, though they don’t typically fly. All of them want the same thing – shelter, food, and water, and for the most part, people’s homes provide that really well. Cockroaches lay their eggs in protected spaces you may not even be able to access, and one female can lay thousands of eggs.
They communicate with each other using pheromones to help them found mates, great hiding spots, and food sources in your home. They are most active at night, and while you may see a few during the day, you’re more likely to get a good sense of just how many cockroaches are living in your home if you walk in a dark room at night and flip the lights on.
Cockroach Prevention
No matter what species you’re dealing with, cockroach prevention all starts the same way – keeping your home as sealed as possible. You have to end access to the entry points into your home. Look outside your home for these spaces. It may be that you have a gap where utility pipes come into your home. Maybe your crawl space isn’t as well sealed as it should be. It could be that your window screen is loose or your door sweep isn’t functioning as it should. Seal every crack and crevice you can find to prevent them from entering.
In addition to sealing things up, you’ll want to be sure that you keep your outdoor trash cans well away from the house. Only place trash in those cans with a well-sealed bag, and make sure the lids to your trash cans fit as tightly as possible.
Keeping your yard well-trimmed can help too. Mow your grass on a regular basis, and keep bushes and trees trimmed and away from the base of your house to help avoid giving cockroaches an entry point.
Cockroach Removal
If you find yourself with a cockroach problem, there’s not a lot you can do. Those DIY methods off the shelf of the hardware store will do little to deal with an infestation. Instead, you’ll spend quite a bit of money on solutions that won’t really eliminate the problem. Instead, contact a professional to handle it.
Before your pest control professional arrives, though, there are some steps you can take to deal with the problem. Be sure you sweep and mop or vacuum your floors on a regular basis. That will help keep crumbs to a minimum. You may also want to limit food consumption to one area of your house to help prevent crumbs from getting everywhere. Beyond that, your best bet is to clear the clutter. Don’t leave dishes in the sink, if you have stacks of old newspapers or boxes, dispose of them quickly, and make sure the cockroaches don’t have any place to hide.
Need a bit of help eliminating cockroaches in your home? Contact us today.