How to Get Rid of Roaches In the Wall

Shahraz Ali

Shahraz Ali

Roaches can appear out of nowhere, contaminate food, spread germs and allergens around the house, and even survive attempts to eliminate them. Roaches live in dark and damp places, and walls make the perfect habitat. They can sneak out from walls, feed on food crumbs, and return to their hideouts. Because of their sneaky nature, it is pretty challenging to eliminate them, but it is not impossible. Let’s look at some DIY solutions to help control roach infestation inside your walls.

Signs That Roaches Reside in Walls

It is essential to identify the habitat of roaches before resorting to elimination solutions. You would see the following signs if roaches live in your house walls.

1. Spotting a Roach on Wall

Spotting a roach on the wall is the most obvious: it has made habitat inside a crack in the wall or ceiling. You would typically find these hideouts near damp areas such as kitchen sinks and bathrooms.

2. Smear Marks on The Wall

Roaches leave their smears around the areas where they have made the hideouts. The smear is the poop of cockroaches and is often found in damp areas such as a basement, laundry room, and bathroom. You can use the smear to identify their hideouts precisely because cockroaches defecate inside or near their nests. It is used to communicate with other roaches and is sometimes consumed by baby insects. 

3. Sound From The Wall

Roaches do not make much noise, but if they reside inside a wall, you often hear a chirping sound that is audible to human ears. If you are lucky enough to hear such a sound, you have spotted an entire colony of roaches. It is a sign of a heavy infestation behind the walls. It would help if you took immediate measures to eliminate it.

How To Get Rid of Roaches in The Wall

To eliminate the roaches from the walls, you must eliminate their food sources and choke their entry points. Here is how you can do that:

1. Clean Up the House Thoroughly

Cockroaches survive on food crumbs, garbage, and leftovers. Roaches feed on them and scuttle back to their nest in tiny spaces. You must clean the house thoroughly to ensure the roaches’ food supply ends. Be mindful that most roach species can survive weeks without food and water. Hence, you would have to be stringent with the cleanup to ensure the complete elimination of the infestation.

Follow these tips for a thorough cleanup:

  • Vacuum the floors, wipe them with a detergent, and ensure that not even a single leftover crumb is left on the floor.
  • Wash the dishes immediately after use.
  • Move the appliances, such as the refrigerator and microwave, to do a thorough cleaning underneath them.
  • Remove everything stored in the kitchen and washroom cabinet and do a thorough cleanup.
  • Do not leave the trash in the trash can for long. Throw it out as soon as possible or move it outside the house.
  • Purchase a cover and use it to protect pet food dishes.
  • Roaches can sneak into cardboard boxes. It is better to store food such as cereal, flour, and sugar in airtight containers.
How to Get Rid of Roaches In the Wall

2. Eliminate Cockroach Nets

Roaches can thrive without food, but they cannot survive without shelter. If you eliminate all cockroach nests, you can eliminate the infestation.

For that, you need to fix the wall cracks, tiles, and cabinets with caulk and ensure that window or door frames have no gap to the outside.

Cockroaches can also survive in cardboard boxes and paper trash. Throw away all the clutter and unnecessary paper to ensure roaches do not make hideouts in them.

3. Fix Plumbing Leaks

Cockroaches love damp places, making the perfect hideout anywhere near a pipe leak. Fixing the plumbing leak would bring you closer to eliminating the infestation. You must clear the sinkholes to ensure water does not stay in the sink for a long time. Check for water in the dish tray underneath the refrigerator and clean it with a dry cloth if it has moisture.

4. Use Roach Bait

After eliminating the food supply and hideouts of the roaches, use baits to ensure not even a single of this creature is left inside your walls. You can purchase roach sticky pads from the market or make one home. To make a DIY bait, follow these steps:

  • Take 1/4th cup of boric acid in a bowl.
  • Mix 1/3rd cup of peanut butter with the boric acid
  • Throw one tablespoon of syrup, molasses, or honey into the mix. The sweet scent of either of these substances will attract the roaches. 
  • Use the stirrer to make a homogenous composition. It would help if you achieved a dough-like consistency. Add more honey, molasses, or syrup if the mixture is too thin.
  • Roll the dough into small balls.

The small balls are the roach bait. You can throw it near the areas where roach nests are suspected. Place the balls near wall gaps, damp areas, and toilets. Leave the balls for a while and go outside. If the bait has not attracted any roach, the infestation is eliminated. In case it does, neutralize all the roaches and check which of the above steps has not been followed appropriately.

How To Get Rid of Black Cockroaches

Black Cockroaches, also known as Oriental Roaches, can sneak into the house via sewer pipes and drain. It would be best to fix all the plumbing leaks, especially near the washrooms, to get rid of these cockroaches. The roach traps also work just as well for oriental cockroaches.

Bottom Line

Dealing with roaches can be challenging, but it is not impossible. You have to eliminate their food sources and shelters to get rid of them. Regular cleaning of the house and fixing the plumbing leaks would eliminate the existing roaches and prevent future infestation. We hope this guide was helpful.

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