How to Get Rid of Cockroaches in Sydney Homes and Businesses

Are you finding cockroaches running out of control in your kitchen or office meal room?  

This short article will show you how to get cockroach control Sydney jobs done safely and give you some tips to prevent their return to your home or business.

 

Within Australia you can find 5 prominent species of cockroach, which have all been introduced and account for only 1% of the 450 species in Aus. These are the Smoky-Brown, American Roach, Australian, Brown-Banded and the German cockroach.

They are of the insect order “Blattodea” and were the progenitor of termites 300,000,000+ years ago. There has also been a species known as the “Oriental Cockroach” but have for a while been rarely encountered and therefore will not be discussed.

A number of factors result in roaches being considered a pest; their odour, rate of reproduction, food contamination by droppings and regurgitating as well as their facilitation in spreading disease.

There is the misconception among many that cockroaches are “clean” because of their grooming habits. This is untrue due to their habits which involved travelling through sewers, urinals as well as garbage and refuse. They consume almost any foods as well as faeces and harbour diseases such as Salmonella, Diarrhoea and Typhus.

The Benefits of Low Toxic Cockroach Control

There are many good reasons for treating Cockroaches, here are a few good points:

1. Prevention of loss of goodwill

Cockroaches or parts of their bodies found in foods sold to the public result in loss of business and goodwill. Fines may also be imposed following prosecution by Environmental Health Departments. Publicity resulting from such prosecution is damaging to reputable companies.

2. Elimination of contamination and taint.

Food fouled and tainted by the characteristic odour of cockroaches is unfit for human consumption. Odours may remain even cooking or processing.

3. Elimination of disease.

Cockroaches are able to carry a number of diseases injuries to man and of importance in public health, notably salmonellosis.

4. Relief from fear.

The presence of cockroaches causes unnecessary distress and psychological harm to many people.

5. Prevention of damage

Cockroaches are omnivorous and can damage many goods other than foods, e.g. books, tapestries, leather goods, pictures.

6. Better employee/employer relationship.

Few people will tolerate cockroaches at their place of work. Some even assert that cockroaches have attacked them. It is known that on board heavily infested ships, cockroaches have stripped the hard skin from the feet of sleeping passengers.

Cockroach Life Cycles

Their life cycle varies. It depends on the species.

They all begin in egg capsules called the ootheca.

Cockroaches go through instars, which is a name for stages of development during the maturity process.

A single female may produce up to 40 eggs in these egg cases, taking only around 2 months to incubate.

Female may live to around two years. They are one of the world’s most successful insects with more than 4,500 species. 

Only very few of these species are of importance to humans.

German cockroaches have by far the highest reproductive capabilities.

A single female German cockroach will breed 4-5 oothecae or egg capsules in her lifetime. That’s around 200 offspring which will soon be breeding as well.  Males and females can live and breed for over 200 days.

How To Get Rid of Cockroaches in Your Home

An important facet of cockroach management is inspection. We always consult the client and inquire whether they’ve noticed trouble areas, we then inspect all the known areas which harbor cockroaches as follows:

• Crevices around kitchen, bathroom and laundry and meal preparation sites if on a commercial building
• behind hot water services
• ovens, freezer motors, microwaves, stereos and many other electrical appliances.
• cupboard hinges
• behind wallpaper or ply boards
• roof voids
• drains

We then treat cracks and crevices in all of these areas and any other harbourages with insecticidal dusts to flush out the cockroaches and/or in conjunction with residual sprays such as Synthetic Pyrethroids or Bifenthrin Aqua. Heavy infestations may require a misting or a gassing for a faster kill.

The nooks and crannies of these areas are then treated as well as all the cracks and crevices, through use of insecticidal dusts which flush the cockroaches out. This might be used in conjunction with residual sprays such as Bifenthrin Aqua and Synthetic Pyrethroids. Some of the more extensive infestations might require misting or gassing for faster results.

WARNING: DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE TREAT ANY FOOD PREPARATION AREAS, FOOD UTENSILS, CLOTHES, BEDDING, OR ANY OTHER AREAS NOT DESCRIBED ON THE PESTICIDE LABEL.

IDENTIFICATION:.

Measuring between 10 and 15 mm, the mature German’s colour is a tan/medium brown with two darker stripes that run parallel to each other on their head (Pronotum). When they first emerge the nymphs are quite small, dark of colour and resembling a beetle, over the course of a few weeks they proceed to grow more slender and of lighter pigment. At this stage of development you will find a light stripe down the center. Finding cast skins, dark regurgitation and faecal droppings within the corners and door hinges of cupboards are a definite sign of infestation. These droppings are minute and look alike to fly-specks. This species is commonly confused with the Brown-Banded Cockroach even though the Brown-Banded is lighter in colour, though it does live outdoors as well as indoors and is capable of flying.

PREVENTATIVE MEASURES TO ENSURE PERMANENT CONTROL

After employing a expert pest control company such as A1 Pest Control there are still measure you can do to facilitate a faster and more permanent outcome. We make use of professional equiptment and pesticide products to get right into the hard to reach places, as well as places you might not even think of, to complete the treatment. Once these steps have been completed there are three complimentary measures you can take to achieve a long term, effective result. These are:

1. DILIGENTLY KEEPING CLEAN EVERY AREA WHICH COCKROACHES CAN BE FOUND.

This encompasses making sure that the floors are kept clean and free of food scraps or grease. Not leaving any dishes out overnight and only eating food in meal area, not around the house. It is also helpful to keep in mind that cardboard and paper are ideal places for German Cockroaches to hide, so keep in mind not to store them for extended periods of time!

2. FIX ANY CRACKS AND REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF CREVICES WHICH ARE CONDUCIVE HIDING AREAS FOR COCKROACHES.
Using a filling agent, like “No More Gaps” makes this a straightforward process. Also take care to replace washers in taps that are leaking as it provides them with water to drink.

3. ONE MONTH TO SIX WEEKS AFTER TREATMENT USE SURFACE SPRAY INSIDE THE CUPBOARDS OR COCKROACH BOMBS.

This process breaks their life cycle and allows for them to die out. Closing off areas that have been infested while using bombs is important to make sure the smoke is contained and effective. An alternative is to use sheets which are pinned to doorway frames when doors aren’t present. Take time to consult the instructions on any label when using chemicals. When the infestation is extensive (i.e. cockroaches are often spotted during the day) this treatment should be repeated in a further month.

Remember that managing a cockroach infestation depends upon effort from both the pest controller and the customer if you want it to be as effective as possible.

This is a process that takes time and persistence, they don’t die overnight, but by following these tips and steps you will yield excellent results within just a month of our treatment and it will guarantee yourself and your family or business and employees the peace of mind of not sharing any space with cockroaches!

See our page on how to get rid of cockroaches for more quick tips.

Is YOUR home protected? How to get rid of cockroaches? Remember A1 Pest Control for your home’s complete termite and pest protection systems. Call 0417 251 911 or email today for more information, advice and FREE QUOTES!

Call Bruce on 0417 251 911 or email him at bruce@a1pestcontrol.com.au if you have a problem with cockroaches.