Cockroach feces are easy to identify. Droppings from small cockroaches resemble ground coffee or black pepper. Larger roaches leave behind dark, cylindrical droppings with blunt ends and ridges down the side.
Identifying Cockroach Droppings
The excrement may also appear as small dark smears or stains. Larger roaches, like the American or oriental roach, leave feces that is slightly bigger and cylindrical in shape. These droppings are typically dark brown or black with blunt ends and ridges running from tip to tip.
Cockroaches don't pee (a not-so fun fact), but instead secrete solid and semi-solid waste.
Appearance. Both mouse poop and roach poop are medium to dark brown in color. Mouse poop is about the size and shape of dried grains of rice, and poop from bigger roaches can be almost as big as mouse poop. But a key difference between them is that mouse poop is pointed and pinched off at the ends.
American cockroaches typically leave solid black cylindrical droppings with blunt ends and have a distinct ridge along the edges. Regarding its size, the large cockroach droppings average size is approximately 1/8 inch long or equivalent to the same size of a rice grain.
Cockroach Droppings
Cockroach feces will be visible during an infestation. Small roaches produce feces that resemble coffee grounds or black pepper, while larger roaches expel cylindrical droppings. The quantity of visible feces is oftentimes a good indicator of the level or duration of infestation.
Soap and water are a good start, but you can also use baking soda to help get rid of the roach smell. Another option is to use a disinfectant cleaner to wipe down surfaces. Make sure you clean floors, appliances, counter tops, cabinets, and anywhere else you have seen signs of roaches.
Vacuum all surfaces to remove the accumulated dry roach droppings. Use a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter so as not to stir up allergens. If you do not have one, soak the droppings in disinfectant and use a towel to wipe it up.
Roach Repellents
Peppermint oil, cedarwood oil, and cypress oil are essential oils that effectively keep cockroaches at bay. Additionally, these insects hate the smell of crushed bay leaves and steer clear of coffee grounds. If you want to try a natural way to kill them, combine powdered sugar and boric acid.
Is It a Cockroach? Cockroaches are such feared household pests that homeowners sometimes mistake other insects for them. Some bugs that look like roaches but aren't include crickets, water bugs, and certain beetles.
Cockroaches carry and spread various diseases, pathogens, bacteria, and germs. When they travel throughout your home, they leave a path of urine, feces, and regurgitated saliva and digestive fluids that contain harmful agents that can be transmitted to humans.
The easiest way to differentiate between mouse droppings and roach droppings is that the mouse droppings have pointed ends, whereas cockroach poop has blunt ends.
For the most part, cockroach poop looks like small coffee grounds, tiny specks of dark pepper, or even blackish brown grains of rice.
Crumbs, spills, and food that has been left out are a great way to end up with a roach infestation quickly. The key to keeping roaches out is to keep your home, but most importantly your kitchen, as spotless as possible. After cooking or preparing a snack, wipe up crumbs and spills immediately.
Sprinkle boric acid in areas the roaches frequent; when they walk through it, it sticks to them. They later ingest the boric acid, which then kills them. When using boric acid, be sure to limit your exposure; don't place it anywhere that children or pets might find it, as it's toxic when ingested.
Cockroaches literally defecate everywhere they go. They don't have a specific bathroom area like humans do, though there are places where defecation is more likely to happen. They frequently defecate near their food sources and nesting or congregation areas.
As long as the cockroach is dead, there is no risk if you decide you want to flush it down the toilet to dispose of it. Since they are organic creatures, they will break down in the sewer system. There should be no risk of experiencing a clog or backup if you regularly flush dead cockroaches.
While bleach is ineffective when it comes to killing cockroaches, it does repel them.
All About Vinegar
Unfortunately, it doesn't actually kill these problem insects. It's more of a cleaning tool than anything else, and it won't actually help eliminate your roach problem. It can, however, help deter roaches and get rid of germs in the kitchen when used as a cleaning agent.
Distilled vinegar does not kill or repel roaches, making it completely ineffective. Distilled vinegar will help keep your kitchen clean, giving cockroaches less to snack on. However, roaches can live for months at a time without any food at all, and they will eat almost anything to survive.
During the daytime, cockroaches typically stay hidden in dark, moist areas around your home. If spotted crawling around, you likely have dozens and dozens hidden elsewhere. The most common areas where roaches rest in your home during the day are as follows: Underneath or behind appliances like stoves and refrigerators.