Cockroaches In Your Home
The problem with cockroaches
Cockroaches are insect pests that can infest homes, apartment buildings, grocery stores, restaurants, and any place they can find food, water, warmth, and shelter. Cockroaches cause health related problems as they can carry disease-causing germs and transmit them to household surfaces, food, or food contact surfaces. People catch these germs when they touch contaminated surfaces or eat contaminated food. Also, cockroach feces and body parts can cause asthma and allergic reactions in some people.
Because kitchens have food and provide warmth, cockroaches are more likely found there but can spread to other parts of the home. They do not like wide-open areas but will spend most of their time in the tight cracks, crevices, and walls of building structures. These are called harborage locations. Within the walls cockroaches travel along plumbing, electrical, and gas lines to spread throughout a building.
What can be done?
Treatment with pesticide sprays, powders, foggers, or bug bombs will kill some cockroaches but does little to eliminate the cockroaches where they live. Cockroaches that are not killed by the chemical leave the contaminated area and spread to new harborage locations. Additionally, the use of a pesticide will leave chemical residue in the home environment that can be harmful to some people. For safe and effective use of these pesticides, they should only be applied by a licensed pest control operator (PCO).
Safer treatment products are bait stations, baiting gels, egg stoppers, and sticky traps. Bait stations and gels are solid pesticides which cockroaches eat or rub against with their bodies. The cockroach will not die immediately but take the pesticide back to the harborage area and spread the chemical to other cockroaches killing them as well. Egg stoppers are not actually a pesticide but a chemical that attacks cockroaches' growth processes and eliminates the possibility of them reproducing. Sticky traps are also effective and safe as they do not use pesticide chemicals but rely on a sticky substance to trap the insects.
A large cockroach infestation should be under the treatment of a PCO to provide elimination of the insects without spreading the infestation and to provide the safest use of a pesticide product. Cockroaches are rarely eliminated with a single treatment and follow up treatments may be needed. If management, tenants and the PCO work in cooperation, a cockroach infestation can be controlled and possibly eliminated.
The best thing a resident can do is to eliminate what cockroaches need. Cleaning and maintenance are important because by removing food, water, and harborage locations cockroaches are placed under stress. A stressed cockroach is more easily killed by the pesticide baits. Lack of food will also encourage the cockroaches to eat the baits. Elimination of harborage locations will reduce places where the cockroach can live and prevent further access into your home.
According to the Structural Pest Control Act, any pest control operator (PCO) contracted to do pest control work needs to be licensed by the State of Illinois. Only a licensed PCO can use professional pesticides. Use of pesticides purchased from a store need to be used according to the directions. The Illinois Department of Public Health regulates the application of pesticides. Currently, the role of the DuPage County Health Department is to only advise and document. We do not have an ordinance to enforce cockroach control in housing situations. However, some of the municipalities in DuPage County will enforce control and we can work along with them on a consulting basis.
Summary Tips
Eliminate food & water sources
- Keep kitchen counters, cabinets, drawers and floors free of all food debris.
- Keep food packages closed, preferably sealed tightly in containers.
- Do not leave dirty dishes out. Remove food and water bowls for pets during the night.
- Empty garbage and recycle containers often.
- Repair any plumbing leaks.
Eliminate harborage areas
- Seal (caulk, foam, or spackle) openings in the wall especially around utility lines.
- Caulk cabinets together and to the wall and floor.
- Caulk the top and bottom of baseboards to the wall and floor.
- Remove clutter to reduce harborage areas.
Treatment
- Use bait stations, baiting gel, traps, and the egg stopper products according to the directions.
- Minimize or eliminate the use of spray or fogging pesticides.
- Contact a PCO if needed.
- Protect your food from any chemical treatment.