Why Cockroaches Are Dangerous In Bay Area Homes

Most people are properly grossed out by cockroaches, knowing that they are filthy creatures; however, some still think they are safe from them if their homes are clean. While unsanitary living conditions provide more of what cockroaches love, these hardy pests can survive on next to nothing and are a threat to any home or business. As survivors of over 100 million years of drought and famine, variable weather conditions, and all measures of unfavorable conditions cockroaches are not easily dealt with.

3 Common Cockroach Species

It may seem like once you’ve seen a cockroach, you’ve seen them all, but cockroaches have notable differences between them that affect how difficult they are to deal with and how well they survive in your Bay area home.

German Cockroach

The German cockroach can grow to be about ⅝ of an inch long and has two dark brown bands behind its head to distinguish it. The rest of its body is a light brown. It is oval-shaped, and while it can fly, it prefers to run. This species of cockroach tends to live in warm, humid environments like bathrooms and kitchens, but anywhere food can be found, the German cockroach can live. They often find their way indoors by hitchhiking inside appliances like refrigerators. While they can eat pretty much anything, they’ve been known to survive on toothpaste, soap, and glue.

Brown-Banded Cockroach 

Another small species of cockroach, the brown-banded cockroach only grows to about ½ an inch. The dark bands on its wings are X-shaped whereas the rest of its body is a lighter brown. This species spends its time in cabinets or around ceiling light fixtures, but they can also be found in furniture. They prefer warm, dry locations. Most often, they are active at night, feeding on their diet of trash, food items, drapes, and boxes, though it has also been known to eat wallpaper glue and book bindings. These pests are hitchhikers through grocery bags and are stubborn house guests after that.

Oriental Cockroach

The final species, the Oriental cockroach, is the biggest of the group. Up to about an inch long, this species is shiny black and prefers damp areas like pipes, sewers, and drains. When they come indoors, Oriental cockroaches are to be especially feared as they spend their time under rotting debris. They often come indoors during the summer, sometimes through the pipes and floor drains, and live in basements and crawlspaces living on a diet of decaying food and garbage. This pest can survive up to a month without food but is heavily dependent on water.

Why Are Cockroaches So Dangerous?

No matter the species, cockroaches are dangerous disease carriers. As a whole, they are known to carry at least 33 kinds of bacteria, six parasitic worms, and seven other pathogens transmittable to humans. They can spread these diseases to high-touch areas like your kitchen counters and other surfaces. Their corpses and shed exoskeletons have also been known to worsen allergies and asthma. Some of the diseases cockroaches carry or can transmit include salmonellosis, typhoid fever, cholera, gastroenteritis, dysentery, listeriosis, giardia, and E. coli.

Another threat posed by cockroaches is that they can serve as food for some more dangerous species of spiders. Brown recluses are just one species of spider that prefer cockroaches, and while we can be slightly thankful for that, these insects also do not belong in your home. The greater the number of pest prey in your home, the greater the number of spiders that will come along with them.

DIY Methods Vs. Bay Pest Solution

Taking care of pest control yourself may seem like the cheaper solution, but it will cost you in other areas. Pest control solutions like smoke bombs, pesticides, and poison are much more likely to harm you and other members of your household than they are to harm cockroaches who have built a natural defense against many poisons.

Other DIY methods like sticky traps are an enticement to house mice whose favorite snacks are insects stolen from traps. Not only are these methods ineffective and dangerous, but they are also extremely unlikely to make a dent in a roach infestation. Roaches reproduce quickly and lay a lot of eggs at one time. Their networks are large, and their hiding places are plentiful.

Instead of wasting money on dangerous, ineffective methods, place your trust in Bay Pest Solution's cockroach control service. As a trusted pest control company in this area for more than forty years, we are confident that we can get you your home and your peace of mind back.

Our pest control service options are customizable, easily cancelable, and allow unlimited follow-ups for up to 30 days. For a free estimate, call Bay Pest Solution today.