Cockroaches are common pests invading Baltimore. Encountering these unpleasant little creatures across your kitchen or living space is a sight bound to make most people uncomfortable. But it doesn’t just end there. These pests adapt well to filthy environments, which means they carry various bacteria and viruses.
Overlooking a cockroach infestation poses an imminent threat to your and your family’s health. These unsightly pests can transmit diseases and trigger allergic reactions through droppings, saliva, and shed skin.
So, if you are wondering how to kill cockroaches in your Baltimore home, read on!
Identifying Common Cockroaches in Baltimore
Several species of cockroaches infest Baltimore homes. However, the most common ones include the following:
American Cockroach
The American cockroach is the largest infesting species in the U.S., growing up to two inches long. It has a reddish-brown appearance with a unique yellow band on the pronotum behind the head. Adult roaches have wings that enable them to fly short distances; however, they are commonly seen running across surfaces.
German Cockroach
The German cockroach is a small species of cockroach that grows about ⅝ inches long. It is light brown in color, and its distinctive feature includes two parallel black stripes running across their backs. While they may develop wings, German cockroaches rarely take flight.
Oriental Cockroach
The oriental cockroach, also known as a water bug, is another large species that can grow a little more than an inch long. These cockroaches have dark brown or black bodies that are smooth and shiny. They prefer to live in dark, moist areas, such as crawl spaces, basements, sewers, etc.
How To Tell If You Have Cockroaches
Cockroaches are nocturnal creatures, which might render it difficult to determine whether you have an infestation.
However, several signs besides spotting live roaches can indicate an infestation in your home. Some of the most noticeable ones include:
Droppings
Cockroach droppings are dark in color and typically look like tiny round peppers or black pepper.
Large species like the American cockroach will leave behind droppings cylindrical in shape with blunt edges like a grain of rice.
You are most likely to find droppings in and around nesting and feeding spots, including under appliances, along baseboards, under or around cabinets, etc.
Stains and Smears
Cockroaches leave dark smear marks as they crawl, which are a mixture of feces and oil. You can spot these stains on high-activity surfaces, such as the walls and other hiding spots.
Strong Odor
A cockroach-infested area usually gives off an oily and musty odor produced by decomposing bodies of dead roaches and pheromones.
Eggs
One of the telltale signs of a roach infestation in your home is the presence of eggs. These hard egg casings, also known as ootheca, can contain up to 50 eggs at a given time.
How To Kill Cockroaches
The primary step to preventing cockroaches from entering your Baltimore home is to practice good cleanliness and hygiene. That includes eliminating access to food sources and water and decluttering your home to reduce hiding spots where roaches can seek shelter and breed.
Upon taking these essential preventive measures, you can then use some elimination techniques to get rid of existing roaches by following these steps:
Cockroach Traps
Easily available at your local supermarket, traps are a common and convenient way of killing cockroaches. These work by using attractive baits containing poisonous chemicals that lure the insects toward them. Once trapped, they cannot escape and ultimately die of starvation or by consuming the poison.
Insecticide Bait
Insecticide baits are a highly effective method to kill large and resilient cockroach populations. Ingesting the bait mixed with slow-acting poison will kill the cockroach, whereas non-exposed roaches will also die as the affected cockroach carries the poison back to the colony.
Boric Acid
Boric acid is a potent natural solution for various problems, including killing cockroaches. Strategically sprinkling boric acid over surfaces where cockroaches travel the most can effectively reduce large cockroach populations in a short time.
The powder sticks to the roaches’ bodies as they come in contact with it, and upon grooming itself, it will ingest the substance, ultimately poisoning them to death.
Baking Soda
Baking soda and sugar is another effective way to kill cockroaches with minimal effort. Mix baking soda with a tsp of sugar and place it in high-activity areas. The sugar will act as bait to attract the cockroaches, while the baking soda will kill them by destroying their digestive systems.
Call Phenom Pest Protect
There are many cockroach control hacks that might or might not work. Severe infestations require the long-term application of the appropriate solutions with extreme diligence. If you are looking for the most surefire and guaranteed way of eradicating cockroaches from your Baltimore home with minimal effort, contacting a professional pest control exterminator is the way to go.
At Phenom Pest Control, we are a team of highly trained and experienced pest professionals offering customizable pest control solutions tailored to your specific cockroach problem with 100% guaranteed results.
Call us today to schedule your free inspection, and we will devise an effective plan to give you a healthy, roach-free home!
