COCKROACHES
What are cockroaches?
Nothing is worse than discovering a cockroach scurrying across a surface in your home. One of the most common species of cockroaches invading our Arizona homes and businesses is the American cockroach.
American cockroaches are the largest home-invading cockroach living in the United States. Adults grow to between one and two inches in length.
This species of roach is not only identified by its large size but also by its unique color pattern. Flat and oval in shape, the American cockroach is reddish-brown with a pale yellow marking on the edge of the pronotum (located right behind the head).
Fully developed wings give American cockroaches the ability to fly short distances. However, like most species of roaches, American cockroaches prefer to move from place to place using their six spiny covered legs.
Are cockroaches dangerous?
Cockroaches are one of the most unwanted pests to invade homes. They are not only annoying to deal with and difficult to eliminate, but they are also quite dangerous.
Cockroaches spread disease, bacteria, and parasites to food and surfaces. Before making their way into your home, American cockroaches were traveling through sewers, drains, garbage piles, and in other less than sanitary areas.
Why do I have a cockroach problem?
Cockroaches live outside but will migrate indoors while searching for food and water. They will take advantage of any openings in exterior walls, the foundation, or around wires or cable to get inside. They can also move indoors through spaces around vents and drains.
Since German cockroaches have adapted to indoor life, their preferred mode of transportation is often hitchhiking. Homeowners often unknowingly introduce German cockroaches into their homes inside things like storage boxes, grocery bags, delivery boxes, and secondhand furniture or appliances.
Once inside, no matter the mode of transportation, these prolific breeders will quickly take over any space they enter.
Where will I find cockroaches?
When inside our homes, both American and German cockroaches live in areas that provide them with damp, dark living conditions. These insects are nocturnal and hide their flat bodies during the day in tight cracks and crevices and emerge at night to forage for food.
The most common areas of a home that cockroaches invade are bathrooms, the kitchen, pantries, crawl spaces, and wall voids near windows and doors. Some of their favorite hideouts include:
- Inside drawers
- The backs of cabinets or counters
- Behind cupboards
- Under sinks
- Behind tubs or showers
- Behind wood trim or baseboards
How do I get rid of cockroaches?
Locally owned and family-operated, Zona Pest Solutions is the best choice to get rid of American cockroaches from your home or business. American cockroaches breed quickly and invade multiple areas of a home, making them difficult to control.
Our residential or commercial pest control programs offer the hassle-free services needed to maintain pest-free properties. Trust our professionals and our modern pest control services to rid your Arizona property of dangerous, disease-spreading American cockroaches.
Discover why your Scottsdale neighbors choose Zona Pest Solutions for their pest control needs. Give us a call today!
How can I prevent cockroaches in the future?
Below are some tips to help you keep scavenging cockroaches out of your Arizona home and away from your family.
- Do your best to maintain a clean kitchen. Keep floor, tables, and counters free of food debris and sticky spills.
- Avoid leaving dirty dishes in the sink overnight and regularly remove garbage from your home.
- If possible, limit eating to the kitchen or dining rooms to reduce the number of crumbs throughout your home.
- Repair leaky pipes or faucets that can provide cockroaches with a source of water.
- Keep storage areas neat and organized to reduce hiding spots for cockroaches and help you identify an infestation sooner rather than later.
- Inspect your home’s exterior walls and seal up any cracks you find.
- Place covers over drains and vents entering your house.