Roaches are one of those nightmares you just don’t want around your kitchen because they resemble everything that can go wrong with food. There’s more to having an insect infestation than food. If your roof leaks (for a situation like this, you would need a professional similar to a Roof restoration Sunshine Coast expert), you could have a possible pest infestation at hand! Even after you fix the roof and dry out the moist area, cockroaches will still find their way into your home. This is because they are attracted to warm, moist environments. Roaches can cause havoc all over your home, moving into cupboards, bathrooms, and kitchen once they find their way into your moist attic. So, it becomes imperative for you to look at all aspects of the home and get it repaired – if you want to avoid a situation with roaches around your living space.They carry disease and their excrement and exoskeleton can cause allergies. The sad part is that once they invade your kitchen, they are so hard to get rid of because you have to kill both the living and unhatched and disinfect the drainage system, walls, plumbing, and everything else that could harbour a cockroach. You also need to become a clean freak for years because those crawlers will stick around until they have nowhere to hide and nothing to eat. Here are some tips on how you can keep them out.
Disinfect Your Kitchen Before Moving In
Roaches don’t die easily. Even when there is no food, they can last for months, and the eggs can also stay unhatched for a long time. If you move into a kitchen that may have roaches before, you may find yourself as their next victim unless you kill them before you move your appliances and food into the kitchen. You could mix the toughest insect killers you can lay your hands on or use the help of a pest control agency to get rid of roaches and then deep clean your walls and sinks before moving it. You can also employ UV solutions to disinfect and clean your kitchen surfaces. Using UV products and services can be beneficial since these companies can deliver facilities for domestic purposes (such as disinfection of room air and surface, keyboards, Phones, Tablets, etc.) and commercial purposes (such as in hospitals, airports, and many more). You can find such companies online that may provide service in your location. Hiring professional exterminators might be an alternative in this case, as they are likely to check every nook and cranny of your kitchen, perhaps with the help of a platform ladder or similar equipment, hence ensuring thoroughness.
Use Vinegar to clean your kitchen
Vinegar won’t kill roaches but it will keep them from coming back for some time and if you do it frequently enough, you may not have to deal with them for a while. Just add vinegar into a solution of hot water and detergent then pour it into your drainage and then scrub the floor and counters especially after using the kitchen. It deters roaches from climbing into your kitchen and crawling to appliances.
Cucumbers
For some reason, the smell of cucumbers repel roaches and they won’t approach your counter or pantry if you have slices of cucumber in there. You can just spray a little cucumber juice around your kitchen if you don’t have an alternative for getting rid of them. You can also throw around slices of cucumber on the counter and the pantry.
Use Citrus Flavored Cleaners
Citrusy fruits including lime, lemons and oranges also disgust roaches for some reason and they can help you repel them from your kitchen. You can add citrus juice or citrus-flavoured cleaners to your regular cleaning solution and use it to rub counters, floors and other places that roaches frequent.
Make Use Of Boric Acid
If you decide to go scorched earth on the crawlers, then boric acid will work for you. Boric acid always gets the job done as long as you get them to eat it. You can therefore bait it with bread or make your own trap by mixing into a dough and placing it in hidden areas such as behind cabinets and under the refrigerator.
Diatomaceous Earth
This is another easy method of getting rid of roaches from your kitchen without having to do the hard part. All you need to do is spread it in the high traffic areas and the dust will wear out the crawlers by absorbing oil from their exoskeleton and dehydrating them. Diatomaceous Earth does kill other insects as well so you can rely on it to kill crawlers.
Baking Soda
Baking soda is another readily available cockroach killer that can help you get rid of crawlers. Baking soda is toxic to cockroaches and they won’t dare crawl up the drainage if you wash a baking soda solution down there. You can mix it with lemon or lime alongside hot water and then use it to wash high traffic areas and you will not see roaches for a while.
Vacuum Your Floor Regularly
Food crumbs on the floor whether it be from your food or pet food will still attract roaches. When you clean your counter and sink and leave the floor, you may still find roaches at midnight. You should therefore remove all the crumbs on the floor by vacuuming regularly.
Keep Your Sink And Surfaces Dry
Moisture is also another attraction for roaches. Leaks from drinks and even water on the cooker and counter attract roaches too. If you keep walls, appliances, the counter and your sink dry, roaches won’t have much to come out for. You should also clean dirty dishes in the sink before calling a day so that roaches have nothing to eat in your sink. Besides that, make sure that you get any leaks, no matter how small, fixed as soon as you notice them. If you have bigger leaks, or water damage in the kitchen or on the walls that you have been ignoring for a while, then it is best to get those remedied as well. Reach out to Water Damage Restoration Experts who can carry out water extraction and repair services to ensure a clean, dry kitchen.
Make Use Of Caulk And Silicone And Remove Clutter
Roaches are sneaky and will hide anywhere they can find including the cracks and crevices in the wall, doors and tiles. You should therefore seal them off with silicone and ensure that any eggs that hatch in there never make it to the surface. Old papers and cardboards in your kitchen also make a warm bed for roaches to live and breed in. You should give them nowhere to hide by getting rid of the clutter and deep cleaning your kitchen frequently.