When you want to get rid of cockroaches quickly, turning to DIY solutions can often seem like an appealing option, particularly when you already have the suggested DIY ingredients on hand. But not every DIY roach solution will provide the right results. For those that do, you still need to know what to expect.

Here are some of the truths and myths around cockroach treatments and the definitive advice on what you should do for your home if a cockroach infestation happens.

DIY Cockroach Treatments

Of all of the cockroach solutions that you might find suggested online, the 2 that are scientifically proven to work are boric acid and diatomaceous earth. Other solutions, such as dusting surfaces with sugar and baking soda or laying out smashed cucumbers will have limited effect. Spraying surfaces with dish detergents is a good DIY remedy, but that is because you are cleaning surfaces, which is your greatest defense against roaches.

Boric acid, which is often sold as Borax, is a white powder laundry detergent. When cockroaches eat it, it disintegrates the lining of their stomach eventually killing them. A good way to encourage cockroaches to eat it is to mix the boric acid with powdered sugar and spread it around rooms where roaches are active.

Diatomaceous earth is a fine powder made from grinding up fossilized organisms. The ground organisms have sharp edges that will cut through the cockroach’s exoskeleton, causing the cockroach to be unable to retain water and eventually to dehydrate. You will want to dust DE around rooms and then wait for the roaches to crawl over it before sweeping the DE up with a broom or vacuum.

While these two solutions are effective against cockroaches, there are still multiple limitations with DIY pest control using either diatomaceous earth or boric acid that often make it worth it to call an exterminator from the beginning instead of trying to get rid of cockroaches on your own:

• Application Process – There is more involved in most of these methods than simply laying down the DEO or boric acid and waiting for cockroaches to die. With both, you need to extensively clean before you begin and make your home less inhabitable to roaches.
• Application Method – Applying too little DE or boric acid can be ineffectual, but applying too much can scare cockroaches and cause them to move their activity to another part of your home.
• Location – Diatomaceous earth and boric acid need to be in areas where roaches will find them. This requires you to know exactly where activity is occurring.
• Time – Even when effective, it still takes a number of weeks for diatomaceous earth and boric acid to work against roaches, meaning you will continue to live among any bacteria they are spreading in the meantime.
• Safety Concerns – DE and boric acid are relatively safe, but they should still not be ingested or breathed in heavily and they can be more challenging to manage if you have pets in your home.

These limitations are a few of the reasons why you should leave cockroach control to professionals. Our team at ExtermPRO has the tools and knowledge to accurately assess cockroach infestations and choose the correct treatment approach from the beginning. Unlike DIY cockroach control, which can have you trying different solutions yet leaving you with an even larger infestation in your home after a few weeks, ExtermPRO successfully gets rid of cockroaches in Northern Virginia from the beginning with treatments that we know are safe and will work.

Get started with the right cockroach control solutions from the start and call ExtermPRO the moment you start to notice signs of roaches.