Where do cockroaches come from in an apartment and what are they afraid of?

Few people will like the appearance of cockroaches in the house. These insects cause great discomfort - they cause unpleasant emotions, carry pathogenic microbes and at the same time multiply at a tremendous speed. Therefore, the fight against them must be started as quickly as possible. And in order to choose an effective way to remove these little pests, you need to know what they are afraid of.

The appearance of cockroaches in apartments is not only unpleasant, but also dangerous. Like other parasites that feed on food waste, members of the cockroach family are often carriers of pathogenic microorganisms. According to statistics from the World Health Organization, these insects are in second place after flies in terms of the risk of being affected by such severe pathologies as:

• tuberculosis;
• helminthiasis;
• diphtheria;
• salmonellosis;
• hepatitis.

These pests spoil food. And in itself, their presence in the home is already the cause of severe psychological discomfort. Pests can be different, on the territory of our country there are mainly red and black varieties.

The ginger species are known as the Prusaks. They usually live in city apartments. The size of a mature individual is 10-17mm, the color varies from pale red to dark brown. These insects live for six months, during which time they pass through 6 molts. Each female lays 250-350 eggs in her life, and for this she only needs to mate once.

Black cockroaches are more adapted for living in their natural environment. Most often they live in private houses - they can be found in the hollows of the walls and in the underground. Within the city limits, they are usually concentrated in the sewage system, as well as in storm drains, underground floors and semi-basements, and with the arrival of autumn frosts they move to apartments.

Males of these individuals grow up to 25 mm, females - up to 32 mm. They have a red color, shades can be from dark brown to almost black. In living spaces, they move exclusively on horizontal surfaces.

Cockroaches are thermophilic creatures. They are predominantly nocturnal and cannot live without water. If, at the first signs of the appearance of these insects in the house, you do not etch them, then soon a real colony of Prussians can settle in your home. Whiskers will penetrate through ventilation holes and pipes, begin to spread to neighbors and rapidly seize new territories - in this case, it will be quite difficult to get rid of them forever.

It is noteworthy that an adult Prusak can live even without a head, in this case the cockroaches drink and breathe through the abdomen, therefore, the mechanical method of dealing with the Prussians cannot guarantee a complete elimination of the problem.

To remove the barbel forever, you should find out where these unpleasant insects came from in the house. Only by eliminating the source of their migration, you can prevent their reappearance in your apartment by creating a protective barrier and taking preventive measures.

Usually, people themselves in their home create a comfortable environment and all conditions for the habitation of these parasites. Cockroaches start where there is heat, water and food supply.

• Access to moisture. Longhorns are able to do without moisture for a long time, but the complete absence of water can kill them in a matter of days. In order to get drunk, they only need a small drop near the sink in the bathroom or condensation on the walls and windows. And even if you cut off all water sources and wipe dry vertical and horizontal surfaces, the Prussians will find them in the water in flower pots.

• Nutrition. Apartment cockroaches feed on absolutely everything. They eat not only fresh food, rotten waste, bread crumbs, food left in the trash can and on the kitchen counter top go into the feed. Dirty dishes attract cockroaches - they become a giant reservoir for their food. Moreover, each cockroach releases pheromones, which allow its relatives to determine the source of food.

• Environment. In the human home, the temperature is suitable for the development of parasites. In addition, in any apartment there are always secluded places where insects can hide, lay eggs and reproduce their offspring.

There are several main directions.

• From neighboring apartments. Some individuals enter apartments through ventilation ducts, cracks in the walls and garbage chutes. If you notice a massive migration - most likely, the neighbors are carrying out chemical harassment. In such a situation, insects actively leave the infected places and look for a new home for themselves.
• From the store. It's no secret that cockroaches live in many stores. In food warehouses for them, a real expanse - an abundance of food and the absence of any kind of struggle with them. The pest can be in any package with purchases, even in household appliances. More often than not, cockroaches end up in food bags. To avoid unpleasant consequences, all bags should be disassembled immediately upon arrival home, inspecting all their contents as carefully as possible.
• From trips. When traveling, people have to stay in hotels or in rented apartments, as well as travel by train. There is no guarantee that a cockroach will not get into the passenger's suitcase on the way. That is why, immediately after returning home, things should be reviewed and thoroughly washed. At the same time, it is necessary to look not only for the barbel themselves, but also for bags of masonry, from which a new colony of pests may soon appear.
• By mail. Sometimes the Prussians end up in houses from parcels, especially often this happens if she travels from afar and visits a large number of warehouses on the way. By the way, it was the development of transport and postal links that in many respects strengthened the global population of cockroaches.

Parasites can appear in any room, so you need to try to examine all potential places of their deployment. Most often, insects hide behind eaves and baseboards, in wallpaper seams, floor crevices, in trash cans and near toilets. But they especially like to settle in the kitchen, where all the necessary living conditions have been created for them.

You can determine that uninvited neighbors have started in your house by the black dots on the walls and furniture, found insect eggs and a specific smell. However, most often, apartment owners do not pay attention to these signs until they notice the parasite with their own eyes. And it is completely in vain - it is possible that by that time one cockroach that accidentally comes to you will already have time to become the head of a large family.

Any hardware store sells special barbel traps. They are small boxes of poison treated with attractants. Having fallen into such a trap, the Prusak eats up the poison and carries away its particles on its paws, infecting its relatives.

Of all the installation options for such a device, the arrangement in the form of a labyrinth is considered the most effective. In this case, intricate moves do not give the parasite a single chance to get out of the trap - the insect dies right in it. Having found out where the Prusaks are concentrated in the house, you can put the baits right in the places of their localization.

You can make traps yourself at home. To do this, a small rectangle is cut out of cardboard, double-sided tape is attached at the edges, and a bait (fruit puree, dough or minced meat) is placed in the very center. It is advisable to add a little boric acid there, which causes paralysis in the insect.

To date, the most effective solution to the problem of controlling cockroaches in the home are chemical insecticides. These include aerosols, pencils, crayons and gels based on highly toxic substances of a toxic or nerve-paralytic effect. They have an instant effect and are able to quickly remove all the Prussians in the house.

A good effect is given by the use of gels:

• Raptor;
• "Brownie";
• "Storm";
• "Fas".

They include an insecticidal component, as well as a fatty base that prevents the preparation from drying out. In addition, the gel contains food attractants and other substances that attract the attention of the insect.

The toxic components of the gels have an intestinal contact effect on the barbel. Poisoning occurs at the moment an insect enters the body through the chitinous cover or the digestive tract.

Most users treat rooms with sprays:

• "Combat";
• Raptor;
• "Executioner".

Aerosol insecticides work very quickly and are easy to use. The drug acts on Prusakov already during spraying and for some time after the completion of treatment.

but The volatile components of the aerosol, together with the toxins they contain, can be harmful to human health. In addition, through the ventilation passages, they can get into the neighboring apartments of a residential multi-storey building.

Powders and dusts are the cheapest option for killing cockroaches. However, in the conditions of large colonies in the house, they give an extremely insignificant effect. In addition, if there are cats, dogs and other animals in the house, then there is always the risk of sending them. The compositions are in the greatest demand:

• Raptor;
• "Pyrethrum";
• "Clean house".

Users who do not want to use chemicals or, due to individual intolerance, cannot use insecticides, prefer folk methods of dealing with barbel.

Most often, pungent odors are used in the fight against cockroaches. Proven fact: Prusaks have a well-developed sense of smell, it is this feature of them that can be used to protect the home from the invasion of unpleasant insects.

Here are just a few of the odors that are used to combat intruders.

People often use this herb for medicinal purposes as an expectorant, antipyretic and pain reliever. A cockroaches do not tolerate its smell - as soon as the barbelles feel an unpleasant aroma for themselves, they will try to leave such a room as soon as possible.

Usually this plant is used for brewing tea, people really like its delicate sweetish aroma. But among the Prussians, it causes panic and a feeling of fear. If after removing the barbel you notice that they are coming back again, try growing mint right on the windowsills. Its smell will spread throughout the kitchen and the Prussians will no longer want to come to such a house again.

Cedar nut oil exudes a delicate, velvety scent that pleases everyone, but not cockroaches. Cedar nut oil helps in the fight against insects. You can also fill the vase with pine cones and place it on the windowsill.

A plant with small yellow flowers and a sharp, specific aroma. It has a high deterrent effect, so mosquitoes, flies and even mice leave the house after cockroaches.

Owners of private houses often grow tansy around the perimeter of their home, and dry grass along with flowers and distribute it in bunches throughout the kitchen. However, this plant has more than just medicinal properties - if consumed excessively, it can become poisonous. Therefore, it is necessary to ensure that children and disabled adults do not come into contact with this herb.

This culture can be found in the wild and in gardens. A pleasant smell has a very beneficial effect on the human nervous system, therefore it is often used as a sedative for depressive and stressful conditions.

Shrub plant with red fruits. People appreciate elderberry for its decorative appearance, but the smell of this plant scares the Prussians, and at the same time creates a barrier for mice and rats.

Tea tree oil has long been used in alternative medicine. It is very useful, but it repels cockroaches. To combat the barbel, it will be enough to add a few drops of the product to a bucket of water and thoroughly wash all the floors in the house with the resulting solution.

It should be borne in mind that tea tree oil has an adverse effect on pets. Cats and cats are most susceptible to its negative influence.

Of the chemical odors, the following substances have a deterrent effect.

• Ammonia. To drive away cockroaches, it is recommended to wash floors and other surfaces with water diluted with ammonia. Cockroaches do not tolerate it and quickly leave the dwelling. However, this substance has a pungent and peculiar smell, so not all people like its presence in the house.

• Kerosene. It has a similar principle of action. Surface treatment with such a substance scares off the Prussians for a long time. However, it should be borne in mind that the smell in the premises will be strong enough. Therefore, most often kerosene is used in basements, where people are rarely.

• Turpentine. It is used in the same way as kerosene and has similar advantages and disadvantages.

Keep in mind that any odors will repel cockroaches, but will not destroy the eggs. Therefore, even if the barbel leaves your home, but have time to lay eggs, then very soon young offspring will appear in the room. And then the fight against the young will have to start again.

It is unlikely that it will be possible to rid the apartment of the mustachioed invaders with the help of harsh aromas alone. The Prussians tolerate them very badly, but this does not lead to their death.In addition, over time, they develop resistance to a certain smell, and they stop feeling fear of it. Therefore, such a measure can be extremely temporary until the moment when you can find a completely effective remedy for the destruction of cockroaches in the house.

In winter, you can get rid of cockroaches by freezing them. A comfortable temperature for these insects is 23-30 degrees, and the intense cold kills them. To destroy an adult, a temperature of up to -3 degrees is required. Eggs in a cocoon die at a temperature of -10 degrees. Thus, if the temperature in the apartment is provided below -11 degrees and it is maintained for one or two days, then in a couple of treatments it is possible to completely destroy all cockroaches in the house and their masonry.

Another popular folk remedy that our grandparents used to kill mustachioed invaders is boric acid. Once in the body of the parasite, it blocks nerve connections and causes paralysis, this leads to the death of the insect.

To force the Prusak to eat the poison, special baits are made. Boric acid is mixed with egg yolk and flour, rolled into small balls and laid out around the entire perimeter of the dwelling. Particular attention should be paid to those places where you often observe the accumulation of insects. Using boric acid to get rid of barbel has obvious advantages, but also some disadvantages. Among the advantages of such processing are:

• safety for life and health of people;
• lack of any unpleasant odor;
• not just flight, but the death of insects.

The disadvantages include:

• lime cockroaches will not work quickly, since every insect in the house must come into direct contact with a poisonous agent;
• if a cockroach poisoned with boric acid manages to drink water, then it is no longer in danger of death - therefore, when using such a poison, the barbel's access to any sources of moisture should be minimized.

To prevent the appearance of brown pests in the house, you need to adhere to the following recommendations.

• Keep your home clean. It is necessary to regularly do general cleaning and wet surface treatment with the addition of essential oils.
• Avoid the accumulation of food waste and debris in the living area.
• Do not leave food on tables or in kitchen cabinets.
• Install a fine mesh grill on the vents to prevent cockroaches from reaching you from neighbors.
• Avoid high humidity and accumulation of liquids in the kitchen and bathroom.
• If you notice the cockroaches themselves or find signs of their existence in the house, you need to start fighting them immediately. Remember - defeating single individuals who have not yet had time to lay eggs is much easier and faster than destroying a large population of barbel.