Complete Guide To Cockroach Control In West Palm Beach

West Palm Beach Cockroaches

We have several cockroach species in South Florida; the most common we deal with are German, American, brown-banded, Australian, smokybrown, and Asian cockroaches. You don't need to know the differences between these cockroach species, or learn terms like palmetto bug and water bug, to keep cockroaches out of your West Palm Beach property. Pest control maintenance works to resist all of them equally.

Attractant Reduction

There are many reasons a cockroach could be attracted to your yard and to the perimeter around your property. If you understand what attracts them, you can reduce the number of roaches exploring your exterior walls and foundation.

Open trash and the scent of rotting organic matter: If you forget to put your trash to the curb and it is allowed to sit for a week, cockroaches are going to take notice. The scent of decay is a strong attractant. Make sure your receptacles are free of odors and keep your bagged trash in covered containers.
Cockroaches feed on feces: If you have a dog that leaves droppings in your yard, this can be an attractant for roaches. Make sure to pick up animal waste as quickly as possible.
Cockroaches love moisture and damp habitats: If your exterior is oversaturated, cockroaches will want to be near your property. Clean gutters, repair gutter systems, fix plumbing leaks, and trim vegetation in your landscaping to reduce moisture.
Cockroaches hide in tight spaces and voids: If you have objects in your yard, and particularly next to your exterior walls, cockroaches will explore them and hide in them. This will bring roaches into close proximity of structures on your property and this can increase your chances of an infestation.

Cockroach Exclusion

When cockroaches explore the exterior of your property, they are attracted to every tight space they can find. This is why they get inside. Consider these entry points to exclude roaches:

Replace weatherstripping around exterior doors that have gaps. You may also need to adjust the doors to ensure a good seal.
Replace damaged door sweeps or install sweeps that are missing.
Repair or fill in wood holes that have been created by pests that damage wood. A caulking gun can help with temporary repairs.
Seal gaps around window and door frames.
Repair damaged screens or have screens replaced.
Install weep hole protectors if your home has weep holes.

Sanitation

Interior sanitation is essential. When you keep your interior clean, it makes it more resistant to cockroaches. It also helps to prevent illnesses that cockroaches are associated with. Here's how it works:

When you keep your interior trash receptacles clean and covered with a sealed lid, you prevent cockroaches from finding a meal, reproducing in rotting organic matter, and spreading harmful organisms from your trash to your cabinets, silverware drawer, and food-prep surfaces.
When you turn on your garbage disposal each time food is put down in there, you prevent rotting food from being a food source for cockroaches, and you keep cockroaches from spreading harmful bacteria and parasitic worms to other areas.
When you clean litter boxes and make sure cat droppings are covered, you prevent cockroaches from feeding on this waste and exposing sensitive areas after being exposed to the waste.
When you clean toilets and keep bathrooms sanitary, you prevent roaches from carrying bacteria from toilet rims and other dirty places to toothbrushes. Cockroaches are drawn to toothbrushes because they feed on toothpaste.

Everything you do to keep your home clean will reduce food sources for cockroaches, make it more difficult for them to grow a large population, and make it more difficult for roaches to make you sick.

Humidity

Some cockroaches can be deterred by a dry interior. This can cause them to go back outside. We recommend:

Fixing leaky faucets, plumbing, and garbage disposal units.
Installing ventilation, fans, and dehumidifiers to regulate humidity.
Using fans when taking a shower, bath, or a soak in the jetted tub.

Treatments

If you reduce attractants, seal your exterior, keep your interior clean, and reduce interior humidity, you can manage cockroaches below the threat level. But for the greatest protection, treatments are required. These should be performed by a licensed pest management professional so that appropriate EPA-approved products are used, environmentally friendly home pest control and commercial pest control options are applied where needed, and that field-tested methods are used to ensure the best results.

Do you live in West Palm Beach? If so, let the team here at Native Pest Management help you get control, and keep control, of Florida cockroaches. Contact us today for immediate assistance.