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Have you ever switched your light on in the middle of the night only to see a small body flee the scene? You must have jumped out of bed, running around with a shoe to find the culprit.
Believe us, it may look funny but in actual fact, roaches can become a problem
Maybe you thought what you could use to kill this pest roaming around the home. A fact is that you do not want this petulance staying in your home.
The roach is one of the species that multiply at a fast rate, and imagining them crawling around your living space leaves you with tingles all over the body.
So how do you get rid of them?
You use any of the pesticides available on the market. But are they safe? In most cases, these insecticides are dangerous and toxic.
Furthermore, they cause major health concerns for your children and pets. Even using roach baits is poisonous!
However, there is a solution! You can try to rid the cockroaches without adding toxins into the home. The truth is that the roach thrives on moist, especially in dark areas.
Besides, they need only tidbits to survive. So what is the solution? The answer is easy as you find it available in your home—vinegar!
Repel Roaches with Vinegar
In most cases, you have read that vinegar is an excellent solution for cleaning the home from the floors to countertops. Furthermore, it also helps to repel roaches roaming around for food as well.
But the important thing is to make sure your kitchen and bathroom are thoroughly clean and sanitized as well. The vital thing is to remove water and food that is the primary source of these pests.
You can use undiluted vinegar in a spray bottle to spray it over the floor and countertops. By doing this, you disinfect and kill off bacteria at the same time.
On the other hand, you can warm the vinegar up to 130° to kill off the Salmonella bacteria spread by cockroaches.
Furthermore, studies show that using white vinegar is better for cleaning the home than repelling roaches?
So how do you use the Vinegar as a spray?
If you do not mind the smell of vinegar, you can use it undiluted in a spray bottle. With the solution, you can spray floors and the counter.
You can do this up to twice a week to keep those pests in check. However, to kill roaches, you need to use the vinegar in a higher quantity.
On the other hand, you can use it as an antibacterial in areas where roaches hideout, such as the bathroom or under the kitchen sink.
What’s more, not all cockroaches are put off by the vinegar smell unless you spray them directly. Furthermore, we cannot guarantee that using vinegar spray will kill them.
Alternatively, you can use the vinegar to drown the roach if you can catch it and soak it with the solution then squash it. However, we cannot recommend this for long-term use as it will not prevent the insect from returning.
Therefore, you will need to find a better solution to kill them off.
Other Solutions for Killing Roaches
Typically pest control services use baits and spray that can make the air toxic. So using vinegar as a pest control solution can avoid the issues.
However, there are other forms of roach cocktails for treating pest infestation when they do appear.
Using Ethanol
The roach cocktail works better than vinegar, and it is also safe to use. Ethanol also is known as alcohol you can use as a spray on the roach. The cockroach is sensitive to the properties in it. Once you spray them you will notice the roach curl up and die.
The best is to get Ethanol with a high concentration of more than 95%. Fill a spray bottle and leave it standing on the countertop to do spot spraying if needed.
However, with such a high concentration, you need to take care as it can irritate your nostrils and skin. Once you have killed a roach you need to remove the substance from the counters or cabinets.
More Green Options
Another useful substance for keeping roaches controlled is using Boric Acid or a combination of the powder with sugar.
You can use the boric acid on its own by blowing the powder into cracks and nooks with your hairdryer. Always remember to set it on the lowest setting.
Alternatively, you can sprinkle the powder inside the cracks of the cabinets or appliances standing on the countertop. As roaches love to crawl into toasters, audio devices, and more they will crawl through it. The substance gets stuck to the feet.
Once they start with their grooming, the powders digested, and it kills it slowly. Another alternative is to mix the borax with sugar making a combo killer.
You need to mix the ingredients in equal parts and sprinkle it in the areas where you have seen the roaches moving around.
Brush the combo killer into cracks, and once the roach digests the mixture, it dies. The method is faster than using vinegar as the cockroach loves sugary treats.
Lastly, you can use the borax mixed with sugar, milk, and flour to bait them. The paste is deadly, and you place it in containers on the inside of cracks and behind your appliances.
When the cockroach eats the bait, it becomes poisoned, and even the dropping they leave behind will kill other roaches in the process.
Using Jars to Trap Roaches
The following method is not for the faint-hearted but works effectively. Take your mason jars and fill it up with petroleum jelly.
To attract the roach, you can place a banana peel on the inside as well. The smell of the food will attract the roach to climb inside the bottle and get trapped.
Once the jars filled with roaches, you screw the lid on and throw it away.
Final Thoughts
While many feels using vinegar as pest control is a solution, it is not the best one to use. The vinegar is safe, but you will have to use it in large quantities over a long time to control roaches.
Using borax is just as effective and safe to use, and you will get rid of your nuisance for good. However, if none of the above works for you we recommend you give your local pest control service a call.
Cockroaches are creepy, and the more they become, you are left with a health concern that can cause the death of loved ones.
Reference:
https://www.cabdirect.org/cabdirect/abstract/19681000033
https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/article127410309.html
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