When to Call an Exterminator for Roaches
Cockroach infestations often carry a stigma, yet it is more common than you might think to find these pests running around your house. In 2021 alone, approximately 14 million people out of 124 million occupied housing spaces reported seeing cockroaches in their homes over the past year.
Although roaches are commonly found in homes, you don’t have to live with them for long. Calling an exterminator is the best way to eliminate an infestation and restore hygiene and safety in your home.
Signs of Roaches
Like other pests, roaches run throughout a home without worrying too much about leaving the havoc they wreak behind. Keeping an eye out for these signs of roaches gives you an edge in catching a problem early when it is easier for an exterminator to treat them.
Seeing More Than One Live or Dead Roach
Noticing a single roach indicates that there could be more within your home’s walls and cabinets. Since roaches are nocturnal, seeing one in the daytime indicates that the infestation could already be fairly extensive.
Live roaches are more of a concern compared to dead ones since they can multiply. However, seeing more than one or two dead roaches means that there could be others still lurking in your home that are actively reproducing.
Discovering Egg Capsules
One of the reasons why cockroach infestations spread so fast is that they release egg capsules that can contain many eggs at once. As the baby roaches hatch, they’ll leave behind the cast-off shell.
Egg capsules can vary in color, but they tend to be a light to dark brown hue. They are usually found in areas where you might expect roaches to breed, such as in damp, dark places throughout a house.
Finding Shed Skins
Those growing baby roaches shed their skin in a process called molting as they grow. You’ll find shed skin just about anywhere in your house, but they usually molt in spaces where they feel the safest, such as in the back corner of a rarely used cabinet.
Smelling a Musty Odor
Most people can’t immediately tell you what a cockroach smells like since they’re small enough that one doesn’t make much of a stench. But, a large population of roaches releases enough pheromones in their droppings that your house could take on a foul, musty odor.
If your regular housekeeping practices aren’t eliminating a strange smell, then there could be roaches living in the walls or attic that are causing the odor. You’ll also notice this smell in unused places, such as a home that has sat vacant for any period.
Spotting Roach Droppings
Roaches can leave small, dried pellets that are similar to what other pests leave. Usually, their droppings look more like brown or black smudges. Cockroach smears develop from their greasy, bacteria-laden diets, which means that they can also pose a health risk to you and your family.
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Dangers of Roach Infestations
Cockroaches don’t typically bite humans, but that doesn’t make them harmless. Instead, roaches can cause several types of systemic reactions in humans that make them a serious health concern when they invade your property.
Having an Allergic Reaction
Roaches leave saliva, fecal matter, shed skin, and egg casings behind, triggering potential allergic reactions in people who have sensitivities to the pests.
Since cockroach infestations can reach tens of thousands, you can safely assume that this means large allergens can start circulating through your home’s indoor air.
Cockroach allergy symptoms involve the respiratory system, with nasal congestion, coughing, and shortness of breath among the worst sensations people feel.
Allergy testing can reveal if roaches are the source of your allergies, and eliminating an infestation can help you stop relying on daily medication to find relief.
Catching a Disease
Most people would never think of letting salmonella and other pathogens rest on their countertops or in their food pantry.
If you’re the type to rapidly clean up food spills from poultry and other known sources of food-borne illness, then you already know how dangerous certain types of bacteria and viruses are to the people in your family.
Unfortunately, knowing where a roach recently ran across a surface is often impossible. They are known for frequently crawling over food and other items that your family uses.
On top of contributing to allergies, roaches can also cause your family to fall ill. Contacting an exterminator helps you begin ridding your home of dangerous germs that are nearly impossible to clean up when roaches run through your home.
Dealing With Psychological Distress
It is also important to address the ick factor. Finding a roach in your favorite snack or worrying about a guest seeing one crawling across the kitchen counter is distressing.
People who dislike insects tend to be disturbed by discovering a random bug’s body parts in their home, and certain palmetto roaches are big enough to feel like you’ve seen a mouse.
Feeling comfortable and calm in your home is necessary to maintain your mental well-being. Exterminators know how upsetting roaches are to people, and a professional will do their best to allay your fears while ending the infestation.
The Best Time to Call a Roach Exterminator
Once you find a roach, the right time to call was yesterday. Their rapid reproduction rate means new babies could already be hatching in your home, making them harder to eliminate.
Roach exterminators often take calls at night and on the weekend because they know that certain pest infestations can’t wait for normal business hours.
When you contact an exterminator about a roach problem, be prepared to tell them about the signs you have seen. If anyone in your house has serious health issues, such as severe allergies or respiratory problems, then let them know this as well.
Professional pest technicians will use the information that you provide to put together a safe and effective treatment plan that may include a combination of elimination strategies.
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How Long Does It Take an Exterminator to Get Rid of Roaches?
Once roaches come across a pesticide, it usually takes them around one to three days to die. This means that you could begin seeing results soon after an exterminator comes out to spray them.
After pest control treatments, you’ll still need to allow for some extra time for them to end an infestation fully. On top of roaches needing to come in contact with poison, babies will still hatch over the next several weeks.
The sprays used by pest technicians have residual effects that allow them to keep working long enough to kill the hatching roaches and other insects.
Most roach control plans will include continuing to spray for the pests regularly throughout the year. In some cases, this might require monthly spraying. In others, you might only need to spray around the changing of each season. You should also keep in mind that if you are seeing roaches after baiting that this is perfectly normal.
While you work on creating a pest-free home, remember that constant vigilance is your best defense against a recurrence. If you spot a live roach, then give your pest technician a call so that they can inspect and recommend the right solution.
