Strong Smells Cockroaches have a keen sense of smell and are attracted to objects that have a strong and distinct odor. Two of the biggest culprits for attracting cockroaches are garbage and compost.
Sugar is the most powerful lure for a roach. They will gladly make themselves at home in bag of sugar or enjoy the drops of coke that remain in a soda can on the counter overnight. They can smell dried sugary drinks on the floor, and a sweet apple core in the kitchen garbage is delightful.
Cockroaches are most attracted to the smell of garbage and rotting food–one of the biggest reasons they enter homes is in search of food sources. Because of this, it is important to regularly clean your kitchen and remove your trash before it gets too full.
What smells are cockroaches afraid of? Cockroaches are repelled by the smells of peppermint, eucalyptus, lavender, citronella, and cedarwood oils. These scents can be used as natural deterrents to keep them away from your home.
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.
Cockroaches are blessed with an amazing sense of smell. This is what they use when seeking food and mate but at the same time, this is also their weakness. A cockroach's sense of smell can be used to get rid of them.
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.
Leaving the light on doesn't deter cockroaches effectively because they can navigate in low-light conditions. While they're mostly active at night, they may still come out in search of food or water. During the day, cockroaches hide in dark areas not directly exposed to light.
Mint. It has been said that cockroaches dislike the strong smell of mint, so using this scent in your home can be effective in keeping these pests away.
Eucalyptus oil is known for its pungent aroma and is often used as a natural repellent that is effective against several insects including cockroaches. Eucalyptus oil possesses properties that help fight off insects, fungi, and bacteria.
Baking Soda and Sugar
You just need to Mix equal parts of baking soda and sugar and sprinkle the mixture in areas where cockroaches are likely to be found. The sugar will attract the cockroaches, and the baking soda will kill them when ingested.
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.
Cayenne, Garlic, and Onion Powder. Try heading over to your spice rack to concoct the perfect mixture to ward off the roaches! Walk around your home and sprinkle all cockroach-prone areas with this spice mixture. Cockroaches can't stand the smell of these spices and will avoid all areas sprinkled with them.
Soda and Fruit Juices
The sugary, sticky environment created by these spills is irresistible to them. Even a small amount of spilled soda can attract a large number of cockroaches, as they can detect the sugar from a considerable distance.
Pet odors, like the smell of pet food, as well as the scent of urine and feces. Dirty dishes that are left in the sink can attract cockroaches due to the smell left by food. Musty odors caused by moist and humid environments. Basements, crawl spaces, and bathrooms are common areas where these smells can occur.
Out of the different varieties of vinegar, it is the white vinegar that is found extremely effective in repelling bugs like cockroaches. Vinegar on its own is not powerful enough to kill cockroaches, but if used in an undiluted form, its smell and taste may disinfect the place and keep insects away.
The results of the investigation on what color will repel the greatest number of cockroaches, indicate that red light repels a greater number of roaches than the other five colored lights and the control group of no light. Green light deterred the second most roaches followed by white, yellow, and blue.
What causes roaches in houses and apartments? What attracts roaches to a clean house primarily consists of their basic needs: food, water, and shelter, although they are usually brought into houses and apartments on other items, such as luggage or clothing.
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.
American cockroach
Their egg capsules are roughly ⅓” long and are dark reddish or blackish brown in color. Each ootheca holds about 16 eggs.
Close up any openings to a home and maintain a vegetation-free zone to keep roaches out. Avoid foggers and instead kill roaches with diatomaceous earth, boric acid, or gel-based baits.
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.