Out of all the various bugs and insects that could possible invade one’s home, roaches are definitely one of the most bothersome and unsettling. Something about the presence of roaches that can give even the most steady-minded person the creeps. As president of Ultra Safe Pest Management Inc., a Boston area company that offers a wide variety of pest-related remedies, Vic Palermo is far too familiar with the things that tend to make roaches tick. And as much as he appreciates the business, Palermo feels that in many cases, roaches are actually avoidable.
When it comes to roaches, the science involved is fairly simple. Roaches are primarily attracted to dirt and food sources. The most common form of roaches is the German cockroach, which tends to be drawn to items such as grease, food, and dust. However, other types of roaches, such as the American roach, prefer dark, humid places. So while those food-seeking, dirt-loving roaches are more likely to be found in one’s kitchen, bathrooms, or trash areas, the moisture-hungry roaches tend to hang out in areas such as boiler rooms that offer a dark, humid environment. Regardless of their primary preferences, roaches do have a tendency to become curious little fellows, and therefore don’t necessarily like to limit themselves to habitats that satisfy their chief goals. In other words, a grease-loving roach can easily crawl his way from the kitchen to the living room, and a roach with a penchant for darkness can simply make his way up the pipes and into other areas of the house.
Although most people tend to agree that roaches, on a whole, are pretty disgusting, some simply accept them as a natural part of life. However, the fact of the matter is that roaches do have the ability to transport germs, and they can also be carriers for infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and hepatitis. Additionally, roaches can carry allergens and contribute to the misery of asthma sufferers by constantly rubbing their skin debris into the air and onto household surfaces. So while roaches aren’t known to attack or bite, they can still transmit their germs and diseases by depositing token droppings in key locations throughout a person’s home environment. Roach droppings can be more difficult to spot than larger, more widespread mouse droppings, a fact that, in a way, makes them all the more dangerous. When roach droppings are left behind on a countertop unbeknownst to the innocent resident in question, the diseases contained in the droppings can seep their way into a person’s food and cause a host of serious health problems. After all, plenty of people prepare food directly on countertop surfaces; and if a person doesn’t know to look for roach droppings, then he could be endangering himself and his family members.
The ironic thing about roaches is that in some cases, they can truly be prevented. By keeping a household clean and removing garbage and food debris from the premises, a person can do his part to minimize the chances of a roach infestation on his property. And while a roach might still manage to creep its way in from time to time, most people would be quick to agree that one roach in the house is far better than 20.
As for those people who happen to reside in apartment buildings, when it comes to roaches, they can often be out of luck. Since roaches can make their way through cracks in walls and doorways, a messy neighbor or nearby trash chute can often be the cause of an undeserving roach invasion, even for the tidiest of folks. In such situations, there is really not much to do other than keep one’s place as clean as possible and call for help if the problem seems to be getting worse.
If you have a roach problem that only seems to be growing, don’t just ignore the issue and hope that the little guys will get bored and go away. Instead, contact a trusted pest management company to nip the problem in the bud. After all, as unfazed by roaches as you might be, there’s little sense in exposing yourself to harm for the sake of saving a few dollars on a potentially quick and easy extermination.
