Home Health & Life The Ultimate Guide to Natural, Effective, and Safe Cockroach Control.

Health & Life

The Ultimate Guide to Natural, Effective, and Safe Cockroach Control.

24 September, 2024

How to get rid of cockroaches, pests that cause a lot of annoyance, is a concern for many people. Let’s explore some natural ways to “kick out” these unwanted pests from your home in the article below.

How do cockroaches affect your health?
Effective ways to get rid of cockroaches at home
Simple ways to kill cockroaches
How to prevent cockroaches from appearing in your home

How do cockroaches affect your health?

Cockroaches typically leave characteristic traces such as feces, saliva, or body parts wherever they go. Similar to other insects and ticks, cockroach body parts can cause skin allergies or asthma symptoms.

Although cockroaches are not disease carriers, they are intermediaries in the spread of certain illnesses such as dysentery, cholera, typhoid fever, leprosy, and diarrhea. In addition, they carry intestinal worm eggs, causing allergies, dermatitis, itching, and other respiratory disorders.

As you can see, cockroaches are very annoying and have many negative effects on health. Therefore, we need to get rid of these pests immediately.

Usually, we try to kill cockroaches by swatting them with slippers or other objects. However, the moment a cockroach is crushed, the bacteria on its body, including parasites and microorganisms, will be released directly into the air. This can cause allergies, infectious diseases, or even more serious conditions such as intestinal cancer or typhoid pneumonia.

Here are some simple and effective methods to get rid of cockroaches for your reference:

Effective ways to get rid of cockroaches at home

Using alum to repel cockroaches

Using alum is an effective way to get rid of cockroaches that many people often apply. This method is quite simple; you just need to follow the steps below to make the cockroaches scram:

Step 1: Pour a small amount of boiling water into the alum and stir until the alum is completely dissolved.
Step 2: Use a cloth to absorb the alum solution and wipe the floor. Once the floor is dry, the alum will seep into the cracks in the floor tiles, leaving behind a distinctive smell that cockroaches find extremely unpleasant. Very soon, the cockroaches will disappear from your home.

Using leaves to get rid of cockroaches

Some leaves such as basil, mint, and bay leaves are very effective in repelling cockroaches. You just need to prepare a handful of these leaves and place them in areas where cockroaches frequently visit. As soon as they smell the leaves, the cockroaches will quickly scurry away.

Alternatively, you can put a handful of the above-mentioned leaves along with a cup of sugar into a blender, blend them together, and then place the mixture in a cockroach-infested area. Within 1-2 weeks, the number of cockroaches in your home will decrease significantly.

Using essential oils to repel cockroaches

Essential oils not only bring a fresh and pleasant atmosphere to your home but also serve as a wonderful ingredient to “drive away” these stinky pests.

You can mix peppermint oil (or other essential oils such as clove, orange, or lemongrass) with saltwater or vinegar, then pour the mixture into a spray bottle and spray it in the cockroaches’ hiding places.

Tip to use onions to repel cockroaches

Onions have a distinctive pungent and spicy smell. Cockroaches hate the smell of onions, so you just need to slice an onion and place it in an area where food is often stored. The cockroaches will be repelled by the onion’s scent.

Using cucumbers to effectively repel cockroaches

Did you know that cockroaches hate the smell of cucumbers? For this method, you just need to follow these simple steps:

Cut off both ends of the cucumber, then cut it into 3 or 4 lengthwise pieces.
Place the cucumber slices in cockroach-infested areas, and the cockroaches will stay away.

Repelling cockroaches with orange and tangerine peels

Orange, tangerine, and lemon peels are excellent ingredients to drive away unwanted cockroaches from your home. You just need to dry a handful of these peels, then place them in the bedroom, kitchen, under the bed, and other areas where cockroaches often appear. This method will not only help get rid of cockroaches but also bring a pleasant fragrance to your room.

Getting rid of cockroaches with garlic

The pungent flavor of garlic scares away many insects, including cockroaches. You can chop or crush garlic cloves, put them in a bowl with a little water, and place it in areas where cockroaches are frequently seen to repel them.

Using mouthwash to repel cockroaches

Mouthwash contains peppermint oil, thymol, and eucalyptol, which can kill cockroaches instantly. Therefore, you can repel and kill cockroaches by spraying mouthwash directly on them and their gathering spots.

Simple ways to kill cockroaches

Using baking soda to get rid of cockroaches

Baking soda has numerous household uses, one of which is its effectiveness in killing cockroaches. To use baking soda for this purpose, simply mix a sufficient amount of baking soda with baking powder and fried onions to lure the cockroaches. Once they consume a small amount of the bait, their stomachs will immediately bloat, leading to death.

Trapping cockroaches with sugar

Put a little water and about 1-2 teaspoons of sugar into a jar. Shake the jar to dissolve the sugar, then place it in an area where cockroaches are often seen. The sugar water will attract the cockroaches, and they will crawl into the jar and get trapped.

Using sticky tape and shallots to trap cockroaches

Cockroaches are extremely fond of the smell of shallots, so you can take advantage of this to make a simple cockroach trap at home. Simply cut a few shallot slices and place them on a large piece of sticky tape or fly/mouse glue traps, then wait for the results.

Tip to kill cockroaches with leftover beer

You can use leftover beer to trap cockroaches effectively. Just leave a little beer in the bottle and place it where cockroaches are rampant. Attracted by the smell of beer, the cockroaches will crawl into the bottle and stay there forever. After 1-2 nights, you will be surprised to find a bunch of dead cockroaches in the bottle.

Using rice flour to kill cockroaches

Take some rice flour, Ovaltine powder (or sugar), and white cement, and mix them in a bowl. Place the bowl of the mixture and a bowl of water in a dark corner. Cockroaches will die after consuming the flour mixture and drinking the water because they cannot digest the hardened cement in their stomachs.

Using fabric softener or detergent to kill cockroaches

Place a dish of detergent near where cockroaches appear; the smell of the detergent will make them scram. You can also dissolve detergent in water, pour the mixture into a spray bottle, and spray it directly on the cockroaches or their paths. The detergent will cause them to suffocate and die.

Additionally, you can use detergent to kill cockroaches in the following ways:

Mix a small amount of detergent with water, pour the mixture into a spray bottle, and spray it in cockroach-infested areas such as the kitchen, under the bed, damp walls, or inside cabinets.
Sprinkle detergent around areas where cockroaches tend to gather and leave it for a few hours or days. When the cockroaches consume the detergent, the cleaning agents will cause them to die quickly.
Finally, you can mix a teaspoon of detergent with a teaspoon of sugar, pour the mixture into a dish, and place it where cockroaches are frequently seen. Attracted by the sweetness of the sugar, the cockroaches will soon consume the mixture and “end their lives.”

Using coffee to get rid of cockroaches

The distinctive aroma of coffee will quickly attract cockroaches. In addition, some experts believe that caffeine in coffee can kill cockroaches.

To use this method, simply grind some coffee beans, mix the ground coffee with a small cup of water, and pour the mixture into small jars. The cockroaches will soon “invite” each other into the jars and may even die inside.

Trapping and killing cockroaches with banana peels

Cut banana peels into small pieces, add water, 2 teaspoons of sugar, and a cleaning agent. Divide the mixture into small bowls and place them in areas where cockroaches frequently enter and exit. The toxicity of the cleaning agent in the mixture is safe for humans but can quickly kill cockroaches.

Using borax and honey to kill cockroaches

Mix borax, honey, and flour in a 2:1:1 ratio, then add water and stir to form a thick paste. Place the mixture in small bowls and put them around the house, especially in areas where cockroaches often appear. When cockroaches consume this mixture, they will die.

How to prevent cockroaches from appearing in your home

If you want cockroaches to disappear forever and never appear in your home again, in addition to applying the above cockroach control methods, you should also clean and tidy up your house daily.

Additionally, you can consider using air purifiers to maintain a fresh and clean living space and minimize the appearance of insects.

Here are some air purifier models for your reference:

The above are ten simple, effective, and inexpensive ways to get rid of cockroaches. We hope that you will soon be able to “kick out” these stinky pests from your home.