Get rid of dirty cockroaches from your home

Cockroach Control Experts – Gold Coast and Tweed

Cockroach control is important to protect the health of your family and customers (if you run a food handling business).

Cockroaches are a major health hazard:

They carry a range of diseases, including those which cause gut problems such as Salmonella, which they transfer when then walk across food and food preparation surfaces
Cockroaches are a major cause of asthma (their droppings and spent skins)

Richards Pest Control provide a 12 month warranty on large cockroach treatments and guarantee elimination of German cockroach infestations.

For professional cockroach treatments

Call the experts at Richards Pest Control

REQUEST A QUOTECall 07 5533 9512

Australian cockroach

German cockroach

Cockroach egg cases (ootheca)

Professional cockroach treatments from Richards Pest Control

We inspect before we treat

Before we start a cockroach treatment, we carry out a thorough inspection to make sure we can identify the level of cockroach infestation, all the potential cockroach hiding places and any conditions that may have led to the problem.

We also carry out a risk assessment to make sure we are aware of any issues that make impact the type of treatment and choice of products – safety is our No.1 priority.

Designing a cockroach control treatment

We use the information from our inspection to design a suitable cockroach control treatment. We can normally deal with large cockroaches problems (American cockroaches and Australian Cockroaches) with our general pest control treatment. However, for German cockroaches (the small, annoying ones!) it is necessary to carry out a specialised cockroach treatment.

Our cockroach treatments

Large cockroaches

Large cockroaches (American and Australian cockroaches) can generally be taken care of with our general pest control treatment (which also covers a range of other pests). The treatment involves spraying the perimeter of the building and any entry points, and blowing insecticide dust into the roof void. If necessary we will use baits in any cockroach hotspots (such as kitchen cupboard and kickboards). The general pest treatment comes with a 12 month warranty.

Small Cockroaches

German cockroaches require a specialised treatment as they are a lot more difficult to control. This is due to their small size, large numbers and numerous hiding places. Our treatment involves the use of cockroach baits and specialist cockroach sprays in the kitchen and other hotspots. It can take a week or two to get on top of the problem and our treatments include 2 FREE follow up visits to make sure the treatment is working and provide top up treatments if required. We guarantee elimination of the German cockroach problem, but we don’t provide a long term warranty, as German cockroaches can be re-introduced any time (commonly inside cardboard boxes).

How cockroach baits work

Cockroach baits combine an attractive food source with slow acting insecticide. Cockroaches find the bait and begin to feed on the it. Generally they will return to their hiding place before they start to feel ill. Their vomit and faeces contain small amounts of the insecticide.

The young cockroaches (cockroach nymphs) which generally don’t leave the cockroach ‘nest’, feed on these faeces and vomit (yuk!) ingesting the insecticide and also becoming ill. This transfer effect ensures the bait is passed amongst the cockroaches to deliver complete population control.

Tips to prevent a cockroach problem…

Large cockroaches generally live outside buildings (in the garden, drains and garbage), coming inside to look for food and moisture. However, they will set up home in sub-floors, roof voids, bathrooms and kitchens.

German cockroaches only live indoors and are introduced accidentally (e. inside cardboard boxes) or move in from the neighbours (in apartment blocks).

Eliminate sources of food and moisture:

Keep the kitchen and food areas clean – clean up any spilled food

Rubbish should be put in sealed bags before placing in the bin

Keep garbage bins away from the building, and ensure the lids fit well

Don’t leave pet food bowls out (especially with food in!)

Fix any leaking taps or pipework

Prevent cockroaches entering the building:

Ensure insect screens on windows and doors are in good order and well-fitted

Seal any gaps around cracks and crevices on the exterior that may allow cockroaches to enter (excluding weepholes)

Check incoming cardboard boxes for cockroaches and cockroach egg cases

What are the signs of a cockroach problem?

Cockroaches are nocturnal. Sometimes you will see a large cockroach entering the house during the evening, but German cockroaches can be really hard to spot. If you do see a cockroach during the day, it often means all the hiding places are full and you have a major infestation!

However, here are the more subtle signs that you may have a cockroach problem:

Cockroach droppings – Large cockroach species leave small, dark oval droppings a millimetre or two on the ground or on shelves. German cockroaches leave dark brown spots in the corners of cupboards and around door hinges.

Cockroach damage – Cockroaches will often nibble soft food (fruit) and cardboard boxes. But also documents and clothes.

Cockroach egg cases – Cockroach ootheca (egg cases) contain between 20-50 eggs depending on the species. If you spot one of these, you know you have a problem!

Odours – Cockroaches have a very distinctive smell, especially when in large numbers. You may notice a strange smell in infested cupboards.