July 16th, 2014
Who among us isn’t freaked out at the sight of a creepy, crawly cockroach? Although we often associate the roach with cramped city apartments, the truth is they can be found across the Valley of the Sun. Today, we will teach you a little bit about the types of cockroaches you’ll find in Phoenix and the dangers they can present.
We’re blessed — or cursed, as the case may be — with three types of cockroaches here in Phoenix: the German roach, the Turkestan roach, and the American roach. Consistent with stereotypes, the American variety is the biggest, measuring up to 2” long. Turkestan roaches are about 1” in length, and these two can be easily confused. The big difference is that Turkestan cockroaches are more likely to hang out outside, whereas American roaches are very happy in the house, typically near the sink or tub. This proclivity for water has earned both of these varieties the common moniker sewer roach.
German roaches are a bit tinier in size, but they may be the ones you are most likely to find in your home, as they enjoy the insides of toasters (which leave behind tasty treats) and other small appliances, and they may take up residence in your pantry. German cockroaches can fly, but you’ll typically find them scurrying around on their tiny feet.
Believe it or not, there are some ways to “cockroach proof” your home. First off, keep it clean. Those pesky bugs like your leftover crumbs, so make a habit to wipe down countertops and sinks daily. Store all food in the pantry in resealable plastic or metal containers so they can’t smell the goodness they think is waiting for them. Keep doors closed and screens in the windows, making your home look much less welcoming. Just a few simple tricks may help to quell the problem at hand.
If you’ve cleaned up and are still finding cockroaches, all is not lost! They are nocturnal, so you’re more likely to run into them in the middle of the night, as you’re wobbling to the kitchen for a midnight snack. Although you might think you’ve made your home not very welcoming to cockroaches, remember that they are resilient buggers (the tale about them surviving the apocalypse is, sadly, quite true). Once they’ve decided to call your place home, they’ll stay — and they reproduce at alarming rates, producing 30–50 eggs at a time.
So while you may take extreme pleasure in smacking a nasty cockroach into submission, if you have one, you may have more. And you can’t just hunt cockroaches all day long; you have things to do, after all. Start counting your roach encounters; if you see more than two, it is probably time to call in the big guns.
If you, your spouse, your kids, and your friends have been checking your slippers before putting them on, gingerly lifting items out of the pantry, and feared for what you might find behind door #2 in the kitchen, it’s time to consider calling for help.
Lucky for you, Budget Brothers Pest Termite & Pest Elimination has been fighting cockroaches in the Valley for a while now, and we know exactly how to get rid of them. Give us a call today and you can be living pest free sooner than you thought possible.
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