6 Methods to Stop Cockroaches From Terrorising Your Home
Maintenance & Repair4 minutes read
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29765 views
Sorry, we just had to enlarge it
If you’re a hater of all things creepy-crawly, this video of the recent cockroach infestation at Eunos will definitely make your hair stand. Cockroaches have been living on planet Earth for hundreds of millions of years, and (much to our dismay) still aren’t showing any signs of extinction.
Sadly, Singapore’s tropical climate is the perfect breeding ground for these little terrors. While you can’t prevent them from populating in public drains and rubbish chutes, you certainly can do so for your own home. Here are 6 methods to keep these annoying insects out of your life.
1. Cleanliness
Keep your place as clean as possible, because a spotless house is the most foolproof repellent! Get rid of food remains, and take out the trash every night before you go to bed.
We hope your sink doesn’t look like this
Cockroaches love water as much as they love dirty places. Wash your dishes after every meal, and remember to dry the kitchen sink. Don’t leave filthy crockery overnight, or you’ll risk facing the consequences in the morning (yikes)!
2. Pandan Leaves
A glorious gift from nature, these leaves that are normally used for cooking can also be used to drive off pests. The fragrant plant is ironically, foul-smelling to cockroaches, and they avoid any pandan-filled area like the plague (ha-ha). Bundle a few leaves, and store them in your cabinets for a roach-free space.
If you find it a chore to replace the leaves constantly, get a bottle of pandan extract from the grocery store instead!
3. Magnetic Chute Door
Having a rubbish chute in the kitchen is convenient, but it also opens up a window to insects. They’ll climb up from the centralised bin; squeeze through the gaps of the chute and into your home, just to grab the last few crumbs off your table.
Convenience or cockroach? Pick one
Some people resort to using duct tape to cover up those gaps, but this method results in two (very impractical) things – The chute will either be closed off forever, or you’ll always have to remove and replace the tape whenever you open it.
Fortunately, Renotalker Puff let us in on a win-win way to keep the convenience, and rid the roaches. His secret: Magnetic chute door!
“I’ve searched the market for a long time, and the one I’m currently using guarantees that no insect is able to crawl through,” he said.
4. Stop The Breeding
Gotcha!
Place cockroach traps and baits around to prevent them from breeding. And whenever you see one, get rid of it immediately! You may think it’s just one. But that one fellow is capable of multiplying into a colony if not dealt with properly.
Therefore, you need to stop them from laying eggs in the household by discouraging their growth.
5. Wall Putty
No you cannot be a tenant, Mr. Roach
Since roaches love to repopulate in dark crannies, seal up the tiny gaps and holes in your wall with putty. The more potential breeding zones you close off, the less you’ll see of the insect.
6. Fix The Pipes
Dehydrate them
As we’ve mentioned earlier, cockroaches are attracted to water, and any area with moisture is a desirable home to them. Make these places less attractive by fixing the leaks and securing your pipes.
Roaches can survive without food but not water, so the key here is to keep everything dry!
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