Cockroaches are typically associated with states south of Maine, as their year-round weather encourages roach infestations. However, cockroaches can still infest homes and businesses in Maine. Moreover, they can be a significant nuisance and even make you sick. That’s why knowing how to identify a cockroach problem is extremely helpful. In this article, our local pest control company will share warning signs of cockroaches; after all, the sooner you realize you have a problem, the sooner you can exterminate these pests!
How to tell if you have cockroaches
You detect an unpleasant smell.
Keep your nose alert for musty or oily smells lingering around your home, especially in the kitchen or bathrooms. Cockroaches can emit a distinct odor often described as sour or musty.
You find droppings.
Cockroach droppings resemble tiny, dark specks, similar in appearance to ground coffee or black pepper. Check for cockroach droppings where these pests hide, such as behind appliances or under sinks.
You notice egg casings.
Watch out for oval-shaped, brown, or tan egg casings, known as oothecae, in dark and hidden spots around your home. These casings indicate that roaches are breeding nearby.
You see a live roach.
Cockroaches are most active at night, so you’re more likely to see one when you turn on the kitchen light to find a late-night snack. You could also find them in dark, damp areas like the bathroom and basement.
What if you only see a single cockroach?
If you discover one cockroach in your home or building, chances are there will be more lurking nearby. Cockroaches aren’t the loner type; they're social insects that stick together. So, while seeing just a single roach might seem like a minor issue, it's often an indication of a larger problem brewing.
What do cockroaches in Maine look like?
Unfortunately, here in Maine, there are a couple of cockroaches: American cockroaches and German roaches. Property owners should be aware of these.
German cockroaches
Size: ½ to 5/8 inches.
Color: Light brown or tan with two dark parallel stripes running from their heads down their backs.
Learn More About German Cockroaches
How cockroaches can make you sick
As mentioned above, cockroaches are more than a nuisance pest problem; these vile creatures can make people sick. That’s because cockroaches crawl through sewers, drains, and other unpleasant places and eat just about anything they can find, including fecal matter. Unfortunately, they carry germs and bacteria on their bodies and in their digestive systems. They can transmit illness-producing pathogens simply by walking over a kitchen counter and other surfaces and vomiting or defecating the food we eat.
What’s more, dead cockroaches, saliva, feces, and shedding body parts of cockroaches can trigger or exacerbate both asthma and allergies.
What to do if you’ve found signs of cockroaches
Immediate action is highly recommended if you’ve confirmed cockroach activity in your home or business. Without intervention, cockroaches will not go away and will only get worse.
Contact Pine State Pest Solutions for professional cockroach control at the first sign of a problem. Our Maine pest control company exterminates cockroaches in homes and businesses. When you contact us for pest control services in Auburn, Augusta, Portland, or elsewhere in our multi-county service area, you can count on our highly trained and fully licensed pest control specialists. Here’s how:
- We’ll inspect your home to identify the type of cockroach, locate conducive conditions, and find out how they got inside.
- After evaluating your structure, we’ll develop and implement a customized cockroach control solution.
- For homeowners who sign up for one of our home pest control plans, we’ll return every quarter to ensure American cockroaches and other house-infesting pests don’t return.
Although German cockroaches are not covered under our home protection plans, we’ll investigate and solve the problem if they've infested your home.
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