Cockroach odour is often described as musty, oily, or even foul—sometimes compared to mould or mildew. This distinct smell becomes stronger as the infestation grows in size.
Therefore, if you notice a strong, musty, sweet, or oily odor, there's a chance you have a roach infestation on your hands, and it may grow worse with time. Note that roaches are attracted to damp areas. Those often feature mildew and mold, which are in and of themselves stinky.
Final answer: Cockroaches can often be identified by a sharp, musty smell. This smell comes from their droppings, vomit, and the decay of dead cockroaches. If this smell is detected, it is a sign of a serious infestation.
Insects and Arachnids
Strangely enough, one of the most prevalent kind of predator that cockroaches face are fellow insects! The emerald cockroach wasp, Ampulex compressa, for example, has an unusual way of preying upon cockroaches. The wasp stings the cockroach's brain, which paralyzes the cockroach.
Some strong scents, such as lavender and mint, have been known to repel cockroaches.
Cockroaches won't go away on their own.
Squashing cockroaches can spread these pathogens onto surfaces, increasing the risk of disease transmission to humans. For example, if you squash a cockroach, now the sole of your shoe is contaminated. Wherever you walk next may also become contaminated.
The best roach killer, based on our research, is the advion 383920 Cockroach Gel Bait; a commercial-grade roach killer set that is easy to use and lasts months after application. It can kill all sorts of cockroaches, including the American and German variety, and it's even safe to use if you have pets or kids.
Attractor #1: Food
What attracts cockroaches more than anything is food. Roaches need food to survive. Eliminating access to food can help eliminate a roach problem. Throw away any food that has been left out on the counter.
Generally, the presence of discarded skins and feces are indicative of a nest, with other telltale features including a large number of dead roaches, egg cases, dark spots, and smears. Egg cases are usually brown and less than a quarter of an inch long. Each case can house 40 or more baby roaches.
What Does a Cockroach Infestation Smell Like? A cockroach infestation is often described as a musty or sour odor. They discharge the odor from secretions from their mouths and glands.
The following are some of the smells that can attract cockroaches to your home: Food odors, especially sweet and starchy food. The scent of cooking oils, sauces, and spices can also attract these pests. Garbage odors, like smell of rotting food and other organic matter, which is often found in garbage cans.
Even after you have managed to eliminate a roach infestation, a cockroach odor might linger. This is because those same chemicals can be found in roach feces and shed roach skins. This cockroach behavior is the reason why cockroaches often collect in one place at the same time.
Citrus is one of the scents cockroaches are most known to hate, notably lemon and orange. Keeping a dish of lemon juice on your kitchen counter can deter these pests, as well as placing lemon peels around the home to discourage cockroaches from coming out of hiding.
American cockroach
Their egg capsules are roughly ⅓” long and are dark reddish or blackish brown in color. Each ootheca holds about 16 eggs.
Roaches hate the smell of certain essential oils like peppermint, eucalyptus, lavender, and citronella. You can use these oils to deter them by spraying diluted solutions around your home.
Many insect foggers contain pyrethrin as an active ingredient. While pyrethrins are somewhat effective against exposed flying insects such as house flies, they are seldom lethal to roaches, ants, bed bugs, spiders, silverfish, and other crawling pests.
Citronella Oil
Its strong scent is known to deter roaches and other insects like mosquitoes and gnats. Homeowners can either directly apply the oil to areas frequented by roaches for the most effective application or dilute it with water to create a DIY repellent spray.
Being nocturnal creatures, cockroaches are more likely to bite you at night - especially while you are sleeping. However, they do appear in the daytime, when this happens, it could mean your premise is undergoing a heavy cockroach infestation where they are in need of food supplies.
If you touch a cockroach, you risk becoming infected with some serious diseases, including bacteria that cause dysentery. According to the World Health Organization, cockroaches commonly transmit these diseases to humans: Salmonellosis. Typhoid Fever.
If the infestation is very large, it may be best to discard small electric and electronic appliances such as coffee pots, alarm clocks, etc. These provide excellent hiding places for roaches, and it is virtually impossible to treat the appliance with any treatment product.
The scent emitted by the peppermint oil will act as a barrier, making these areas unattractive to roaches and encouraging them to seek shelter elsewhere.
Your Best Bet for Deterring Cockroaches is a Clean Home
Take that away from them and their days are numbered, as long as you maintain it. Cockroaches can live up to three months without food, so they hide in dark corners of a property while they wait to go hunting at night.