Pest Info » Cockroaches

Periplaneta americana
(American cockroach)

American cockroaches are bigger in size (35 to 40 mm in length). They breed in dirty, warm and moist places especially in drains and sewers. The female American cockroach can produce up to 90 egg cases throughout her life span and up to 28 cockroaches can emerge from each egg case.

Blatella germanica
(German cockroach)

German cockroaches measure between 10 to 25 mm in length, are predominantly found in restaurants, hotels and urban apartments. They like dark, secluded areas especially inside cracks and crevices, under cupboards, inside carton boxes, behind refrigerators, underside of kitchen shelves and work tops etc.

Cockroaches Control

Cockroaches control are vital to your food-related business. Cockroaches proliferate and get out of hand very quickly. They are well-known disease vectors. Their presence is often detected by the customers in a food establishment unknown to the operators. Customers keep quiet and do not make return visits. However, before long, the local health authorities will know about it.

Your business and reputation will be greatly affected. Therefore, even if the problem is not apparent to you, do call in our pest control experts who will be able to expose all their hiding places to you. Allow them to not only exterminate these pests but also teach you how to take preventive measures and maintain your premises in compliance with the regulations of the local health authorities and other standard food handling practices.

Getting to Know Cockroaches

  • Cockroaches threaten human health because they transmit or aggravate many serious diseases, including food poisoning, asthma, Hepatitis E and diarrhea.
  • They eat food of all kinds and may hitchhike into the house on egg cartons, soft drink cartons, sacks of potatoes or onions, used furniture or appliances, beer cases etc.
  • Cockroaches are nocturnal pest and they come out at night to forage for food and water.
  • Cockroaches undergo an incomplete metamorphosis i.e. the eggs develop into wingless nymphs which changes through several rounds of molting before becoming an adult
  • A cockroach can live almost a month without food.
  • A cockroach can live about two weeks without water.

Control Methods

  1. Chemical control
    • Spraying of residual insecticides to create a chemical barrier for the cockroach to pick up when they crawl over the treated surface areas. This treatment should also be targeted at cracks and crevices to control the adults and nymphs.
    • Baits are formulated with insecticides incorporated into cockroach food. They are very effective when applied in the correct places. Bait application is extremely useful in sensitive area such as food preparation outlets, kitchen cabinets, closets etc. These baits are odourless and are environmental friendly.
  2. Sanitation
    • Unused paper cartons or boxes should be discarded as these provide an excellent harbourages for the cockroach
    • Any food debris must be clean immediately and all garbage, trash must be disposed at the end of each day.