Cockroach Pest Control & Treatment

Pest Control - Cockroaches

So you've woken up through the night craving a midnight snack, so you've dragged yourself out from under the covers and made your way down to the kitchen to satisfy the craving. You flick the light on and there looking you dead in the eye from above the microwave is a big, dirty Cockie!!!

You jump so high from fright, you nearly jump right out of your PJs, and you think "How did that get in here?"

People's reactions to cockroaches range from subtle frustrations, to absolute terror but the desire to keep them out of our homes is universal. It is usually the stereotypical thought that if you have Cockroaches in your home , that your house is a mess, but rest assured this isn't always the case. Cockroaches are common pests, and particularly in South-East Queensland where they love the warm, humid conditions, and there can be a cockroach infestation even in the cleanest of houses.

There are a handful of different ways cockroaches can gain access to your house. If they weren't already in your house before you moved in, they most likely come from the great outdoors by wriggling through cracks, crevices, pipes and drains. They can also hitch a ride in furniture, boxes, and even shopping bags. Some species also fly.

Though your house or apartment might be spotless, you're not immune from getting a share of your neighbour's cockroach problems either. If a single fertile female cockroach from next door gets into your home you'll soon know about it when cockroaches start popping up left, right and centre.

These creatures are not direct transmitters of disease, but they spread diseases through contamination. They cause food poisoning and even trigger allergies and asthma attacks in sensitive individuals. Cockroaches' skin sheds, and they leave faeces and exoskeleton fragments all over your house, and can spread nearly 33 different types of bacteria, some of which can be incredibly dangerous to young children.

The following guide is aimed to help you prime your house to prevent future roach outbreaks, get rid of your current roach problem, while also learning some cool facts about these not-so-cool pests.

Where Do Cockroaches Come From?

While cockroaches are more likely to get comfortable in a dirty house, even the cleanest of houses can get the occasional roach. In order to get rid of cockroaches for good, it's best to have a firm understanding of where they are coming from in order to prevent future infestations.

how cockroaches get in the house

The common cockroach is a surprisingly resilient creature. Cockroaches have been around since the dinosaurs, and have survived virtually everything the world has thrown at them for thousands of years. Part of their survival is due to their ability to live up to a month without food and two weeks without water. You're going to have to do much more than just clean up your kitchen to keep these cockroaches away.

Cockroaches are also incredibly effective at reproducing. Some female cockroaches only need to mate once and will remain fertile for the rest of their life. That means all you need to do is attract one mama roach that scurries off into some impossible-to-find corner to have a long-term roach problem. While impressive, these statistics don't make roaches any less annoying and potentially dangerous to our health.

Common Pest Cockroach Species

Check out the video where Tom Aldridge, the owner of Suburban Pest Management explains about the different species of cockroaches as part of the DIY Pest Control series of videos. If you would like to check out the cockroach section of the series, visit our blog article here.

There are many species of cockroaches, but there are three which are particularly common household pest cockroaches here in South-East Queensland. These include The American Cockroach, Australian Cockroach, and German Cockroach.  

German Cockroach (Blattella Germanica)

A German Cockroach (Blattella Germanica)
German Cockroach | Image courtesy of Queensland Museum

The most common type of indoor cockroach in South-East Queensland is the German cockroach (Blatella Germanica). German Roaches are small at around 10mm and pale in colour. Their distinguishing feature is two longitudinal stripes running along the thorax. They prefer warm, dark, and humid places near a food source, so they tend to cluster around the kitchen and bathroom areas.

American Cockroach (Periplaneta americana)

American Cockroach (Periplaneta americana)
American Cockroach | Image courtesy of Queensland Museum

The American Cockroach is large, can by slightly over 40mm long, and can range from reddish-brown to dark brown in colour. It has an indistinct brown pattern on the thorax. It can be found in houses (usually found in stores and near food) but is generally more commonly found in compost heaps, sewers and industrial areas.

Australian Cockroach (Periplaneta australasiae)

Australian Cockroach (Periplaneta australasiae)
Australian Cockroach | Image courtesy of Queensland Museum

The Australian Cockroach is slightly smaller in size than the American Cockroach but are still close to up to 40mm long. They also range from reddish-brown to dark brown in colour, with yellow stripes along the front edge of their wings. Their distinguishing feature is the yellow area on their thorax. They feed on plant material and decaying material. They like book bindings and glue in boxes and even clothing. They thrive in South-East Queensland because they populate well in temperatures above 27 degrees Celsius.

Other less common types of cockroaches found in the South-East Queensland area include Oriental Cockroaches (mostly outside and under sinks, refrigerators, and washing machines), and Brown-Banded Cockroaches (they prefer warmer and drier places, pantries, closet shells).

Cockroach Control - Prevention Tips

When it comes to your cockroach problem, prevention is the name of the game. Here's a quick checklist to get you on the track to freedom from cockroaches:

  • Give your shopping bags a good look for any cockroaches. If you shop at organic supermarkets or farmer's markets that don't use pesticides, you're more likely to unwittingly bring in some roaches.
  • Get rid of any stand alone boxes. Cockroaches love to breed in cardboard boxes. There are horror stories of people finding entire roach colonies in old moving boxes in the garage. If you've got some boxes hanging around the house, do yourself a favour and toss them.
  • Seal holes around plumbing pipes. Plumbing is like the superhighway for cockroaches looking for water sources.
  • Seal openings around windows and doors. This keeps your house safe from cockroaches and other pesky insects.
  • Never leave food out, and sweep up crumbs. Ensure that food scraps are disposed of correctly and regularly and make sure that any food from the day is correctly stored in air-tight containers. Keep your rubbish in a bin with a tight lid. Thoroughly clean benchtops and stovetops. Since cockroaches can go a long time without any food, even the smallest meal can hold them over for weeks.
  • Keep your pantry cockroach-safe. Part of not leaving food out means making sure your food is locked away appropriately in your pantry. Cockroaches find their way into cereal boxes with a surprising amount of ease, and access to food is one of the biggest attractants.
  • If you are a commercial food establishment, it is important to regularly clean out your grease trap. Your grease trap is an ideal breeding ground for cockroaches, and built-up grease will encourage cockroaches and can be a health hazard. As a commercial establishment, it is also important to store food appropriately in cold rooms and in airtight containers to prevent food contamination. Food contamination can lead to salmonella and as a commercial business, you don't want to risk any harm to your customers or your business. For more information about pest control in food businesses, please go to the page on our website here.
  • Schedule regular pest control maintenance . Having a pest treatment done by a professional pest exterminator will make sure that your home is receiving maximum protection from cockroaches, rodents, and a variety of other pests, is a phenomenal strategy to not have to deal with these troubles first-hand again.

By following the above strategies, you will be able to keep your home safe from future cockroach infestations. Be sure to always be attentive of roach sightings, because if there's one, there are likely many lurking where you can't see them. They could be in your bathroom, garage, or worse, crawling around your pantry looking for a bite to eat.

Cockroach Treatment

There is a wide range of cockroach control solutions available that vary widely in cost and effectiveness.

DIY Cockroach Pest Solutions

All of us have purchased a can of bug spray at the supermarket or hardware store and these can be very effective at getting rid of the off cockroach or two. Surprisingly, we are not against some DIY solutions for some pests like cockroaches. However, if the infestation is severe, you should speak to a professional pest control company.

Surface and aerosol sprays work fine to kill one or two cockroaches, and packaged baits, gel baits, and cockroach traps might all be appropriate depending on the type of cockroach and level of infestation.

At SPM, we have done a video series on DIY Pest Control which covers both DIY solutions and how the professionals do it for several common pests. Check out the complete DIY series of videos on YouTube here.

Professional Cockroach Pest Control Services

Calling a pest management expert is the only guaranteed way to take care of your cockroach problem. Pest technicians not only help with a cockroach solution to get rid of the current infestation, but they also help prevent future roach outbreaks by eradicating tough to reach nest areas.

At SPM, we are experts in cockroach eradication. We have been treating cockroaches in the South-East Queensland area for almost 30 years. Our service areas include:

• Brisbane Northside

• Brisbane Southside

• Moreton Bay

• Logan

• Gold Coast

• Sunshine Coast

• Scenic Rim

• Ipswich

• Kilcoy

We can take care of your cockroach problem. You can get us out to your place to treat just your cockroach problem by booking a Targeted Pest Solution, you you can upgrade to our most popular pest treatment, our Comprehensive Pest Solution which treats cockroaches, spiders, ants and silverfish. Why not take advantage of our online special price by booking via our live online booking system? Just click the Book a Time button in the red offer box on this page. If you wish to find out more about our Pest Control treatments, visit our Pest Control page here.

Frequently Asked Questions

How can cockroaches spread diseases?

Although they're not known to transmit disease directly, cockroaches can spread diseases indirectly through contamination. They cause food poisoning and even trigger allergies and asthma attacks in sensitive individuals. Cockroaches' skin sheds, and they leave faeces and exoskeleton fragments all over your house, and can spread nearly 33 different types of bacteria, some of which can be incredibly dangerous to young children.

What are the best cockroach control solutions in Brisbane?

Suburban Pest Management are one of the top cockroach control Brisbane specialists. We are a family owned local South-East Queensland business. We know cockroaches and how they behave in the South-East Queensland area as we have treated thousands of homes over our almost 30 years in the industry. We have the best solutions to get rid of cockroaches and keep your home or business pest free.

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