Cockroaches

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"Winnipeg is facing more and more cockroach infestations" says Lincoln Poulin, President of Poulin Pest Control, and is quickly becoming the city’s number 1 pest problem in Winnipeg, replacing bed bugs. Last year in 2022, his pest control company visited over 2800 sites (homes) to identify and inspect for cockroaches. That number increased in 2023 to over 3700 sites. 

Cockroach infestations are more likely to be found in warm, humid areas such as:

• Basements
• Kitchens
• Bathrooms
• Cupboards
• Under appliances like the oven 
• One of their favourite hiding spots is near the refrigerator's motor area.

Cockroaches are nocturnal insects, (mostly active at night) and are shy and prefer confined spaces. Cockroaches as big as 3 inches can fit into a hole in the wall or cupboard with an opening of 1/16th of an inch. They also eat just about anything including wood, leather, glue, cigarette butts, human food, crumbs, and even toothpaste and soap. Cockroaches can live for about a year. Female cockroaches can lay up to 16 to 55 eggs in rectangular cases, before placing them in a sheltered location.

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It usually takes about 2 or 3 months for the eggs to hatch, then another 4 months - up to a year - to be fully grown. Female German Cockroaches only live for 100 to 200 days but can lay up to 120 to 300 eggs in that time in between.

There are thousands of species of cockroaches all over the world but here in North America, the most common three we see are the American cockroach, the German cockroach, and the Oriental cockroach. Most cockroaches have a flattened oval-shaped body, and most range in the size of ¾ inches to 3 inches long. Most cockroaches are a brownish or reddish color, they also have wings but do not fly, but they are known to move very quickly. Cockroaches also may carry diseases like coliform or salmonella and can trigger asthma attacks. 

The 3 most common cockroaches we have here in Canada:

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American cockroach:

• Reddish brown with yellow bands on the body
• Measures up to 53mm long (just over 2 inches)
• Able to fly for short distances
• Lives up to 2 years

German cockroach:

• Pale brown with 2 dark brown stripes behind the head
• Measures up to 13 to 16mm long (just over half an inch)
• Lives up to 12 months
• Produces the most eggs (30 to 40 eggs that she keeps on her body until they are ready to hatch)

Oriental cockroach:

• Dark brown or black
• Measures between 25 and 33 mm long (an inch or just over an inch)
• Lives up to 6 months
• Mostly feeds on decaying organic matter

How do I know if I have cockroaches?

Inspecting for any kind of infestation is always a good idea for the upkeep of your home. Cockroaches are attracted to food sources that have starch, sugar, and protein, but will eat mostly anything. Some other indicators of a cockroach infestation can be:

• Small droppings (dark pellets) on the floor, cupboards, or counter tops.
• Exoskeleton shedding
• Dark brown smudges, or streaks, on baseboards or kitchen cabinets
• Foul or musty odours in the basement, crawlspace, or food storage areas.
• Purse-shaped egg casings

Cleaning

Cockroaches are designed to survive and are harder to kill than most pests due to their exoskeleton and being speed, but a cockroach infestation can be controlled and eliminated. Poulin’s Pest Control says the best way to prevent an infestation is to make the environment inhospitable for cockroaches by:

• Keeping a clean home. Good sanitation is always a great place to start.
• Eliminating any standing water or excess moisture (leaky pipes).
• Cleaning food crumbs off cabinets, counters, cupboards, or the floor (including underneath the stove and refrigerator).
• Garbage should always be thrown out regularly.
• Regularly clean dark areas.
• Keep your pet food or even some of your food sealed in containers so it does not get contaminated.
• Sealing any openings in plumbing areas or cracks or crevices in the house’s foundation.
• Placing traps in areas where cockroaches may hide.
• Using cleaning methods and pesticides together should help control and eliminate cockroach infestation.

Control and Prevention

Eliminating any entry points or preventing any food sources will help protect your home from any kind of infestation. If you do have a high population of cockroaches already, Pest Control products were made to help get those hard-to-reach areas where cockroaches like to hide. Carefully read the warning labels in the aerosol sprays or other pest-eliminating products as they come for different pests and choose carefully which pest you are trying to eliminate.

Aerosol sprays – usually are neurotoxic, preventing the neurons from working so the cockroaches become paralyzed and eventually die. (These sprays are pyrethroid-based. Pyrethroid is a chemical that kills insects and pesticides.)

Steam cleaning, Vacuuming and Freezing – you can steam clean any furniture, or toys you think you may need to and vacuum in or around any area cockroaches like to hide. Make sure to clean the vacuum bag, or container, with warm soapy water. Freezing infested items can help but the temperature must be at least -8 degrees Celsius for at least 24 hours for up to a week.

Traps – leaving traps, including sticky traps, in areas where cockroaches like to hide can help you find and eliminate them or help you monitor where the highest traffic-infested areas are. You can buy traps or aerosol sprays online or at any hardware store or you can even make do-it-yourself traps using mason jars.

Diatomaceous Earth – also known as silicon dioxide as the cockroach or insect crawls through the ‘fine powdered’ (DE), the outer skin of the cockroach is scratched, and this causes dehydration and death. The DE remains active as long as it is dry.  The powder is nontoxic to humans and pets but try not to breathe in the powder as you apply it where needed. 

Boric Acid – when used correctly, boric acid can be one of the most effective ways to kill cockroaches. It’s odorless and it’s low toxic to pets. Adding sugar to the boric acid can lure cockroaches to crawl in it, ingesting it, and later dying.

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Some natural repellents that have been effective as ‘roach repellents’ include cineole (found in Bay leaves), nepetalactone (found in catnip), and Osage orange oil. You could also use specially formulated liquid concentrates, simply dilute them with water, and place some into common hiding spots that cockroaches use. If none of these tips work or there are so many cockroaches, you can always call a professional pest control centre.

By: Tricia Cook, Content Navigator