Few insects make people recoil more than the enterprising cockroach. These bugs can be found throughout North America and are often associated with dirty homes or businesses. However, even if you keep a clean home, you may be unwittingly attracting cockroaches. There are a few actions you can take to prevent this, and our treatment services for residential pest control in Waterloo can help.

Cover and Store Pet Food Securely 

Cockroaches are extremely adaptable and have a varied diet. They will scavenge almost anything they can find, including leftover pet food. If you leave food out for your dog or cat and it sits for too long, the smell may attract roaches who can find their way into your home through drains, cracks and vents. The more often they find pet food, the more likely they are to return.

You can discourage the presence of roaches in and around your pet’s food bowls by cleaning and storing them daily and only allowing them to remain out while your pet is eating. Store pet food in airtight containers with lids that screw down securely to prevent roaches from crawling inside.  Proper storage, along with the placement of our granular cockroach bait, can keep your home free of these pests.

Fix Leaking Faucets 

While cockroaches can survive in the harshest of conditions, they need water to do so. Moisture from dripping faucets or leaking water lines can attract these insects, who might take advantage of space nearby or underneath several different areas, such as:

• Washing machines 
• Kitchen sinks 
• Under refrigerators 

Roaches have no trouble travelling through plumbing pipes, which is why you may often find them in bathrooms or laundry areas.

Fixing leaking faucets and water lines can cut off cockroaches’ moisture supply and encourage them to look elsewhere. If you find an infestation under a large appliance, our services for residential pest control in Waterloo can help by treating these areas, as well as other dark, damp spaces, such as basements and inside floor-level cupboards.

Repair Door and Window Gaps 

Roaches use their antennae to find food and can follow a scent quite far to reach it. They eat a large variety of food but especially enjoy grease, sugar and starches. This means that your trash disposal or unsecured garbage cans can attract them, and they may enter your home through broken window screens or gaps between doors and floors. You should inspect and fix these gaps before the warm weather arrives and cockroaches come out from their hiding places in search of food and water.

Our Truly Nolen technicians can help secure your home by sealing cracks and crevices where cockroaches may find their way into your home. They are stubborn creatures that have no trouble invading your pantry once they discover a path in. Sealing entrance points and treating doors and windows can keep them at bay.

Maintain Your Compost Heap 

If you keep a compost heap to fertilize your garden, the excess food scraps may attract roaches or other insects that provide them with additional prey. Turn your compost at least once a week so roaches do not settle in and keep it moist. While cockroaches require water, they may avoid areas that are constantly wet.

Once our technicians treat your home, we can provide you with a few tips for keeping roaches away from your home, such as keeping your compost bins tightly closed and storing it in an area that is far from any entrances. If you compost inside your garden, avoid using meat scraps, as roaches will feed on it and the grease it contains.

Cockroaches are not easy to deter, so treatment, along with preventative measures, may help you evict them for good. Call us today or check our website to find locations near you.