Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Recently bought a house in Cary. I thought everything was good to go but I've seen one roach in the garage and one on the back deck in the last week. Since I saw the first one I've been watching like a hawk for them and poking around outside at night. I've never had roaches before moving to NC this year and I've lived in a number of dumpy apartments. The apartment I started out in here ended up having a modest number of them but it didn't greatly concern me (in fact I'm worried I brought a couple with me to the new home...ugh). Now that it's in my house where my family will soon be living, I'm much more concerned.
I've seen a number of different opinions about roaches ranging from "if you see one roach outside that means there are 100 living in your house, call an exterminator!" to "*shrug*, I've had roaches everywhere I've lived in NC. No big deal." Where do people fall on this particular situation (detached suburban home, roaches currently only seen outside)?
I'd like to at least be proactive and set some traps, etc for them. However, do I set these only outside? Are there types that aren't hazardous to pets? Or is it better to just call an exterminator and be done with it?
I have an exterminator come quarterly to treat the perimeter of my home for the "roaches" and for ants... on the outside. Since I've been doing this, I rarely have seen them inside. If I happen to see anything inside - and it's usually ants - I call them and they come back in that time period free of charge. Usually, if you can keep them out, then you should be fine. Now my house at the coast.... well, that's a different story. That needs monthly service inside and outside for ants and roaches (palmettos). They are really bad closer to the water. If your house is close to any water, you may want to consider that.
I moved from FL 13 years ago to Cary, and what I enjoyed most was NOT seeing roaches. The FL roaches are about the size of a baby chihuahua.
Maybe you should try some boric acid powder around the areas where you saw the roaches outside, and put some inside under the sink, under the stove, etc. That was always effective for me in FL.
I started using an exterminator last year due to ants -- let me know if you need their name. They've done a great work eliminating my ant issue.
We see the roach topic more than 'wheres the best Pizza' and What parts of Durham are dangerous' topic!!
I live 20' from a pond and hardly ever see a roach, inside or out. I spray the doorways and window areas once a month with an over the counter bug spray and may see 1-2 a year inside. I used to live in an older house in Old West Durham, no pond within 1/2 mile and we would see them a few times a week.
we use Economy Exterminators and still have roaches
We use Economy Exterminators and even though they treat inside and out (monthly), and in between times when we call, we still sometimes get a roach - killed one tonight. They say its the wet weather, its the hot weather, its this or that. I think bottom line is you'll never kill them all. Who knows? Good luck.
I wouldn't be the least bit worried about a couple of roaches outside the house. Heck I've had two or three of the giant palmetto bugs (American cockroach) in my house over the past year, and I'm still not calling in an exterminator. But then again, I don't like chemicals sprayed in or around my house. (shrug)
If by roaches you mean those giant things that move faster than you can stomp on them then you're OK. They're not really the type of roach that is the cause for concern.
If you back up to a pond there probably isn't much you can do. I tend to step on them (when I can hit them) and leave them in their place as a warning to the others...
By a powder roach ant control with boric acid, and sprinkle it all around the foundation, and even under the house if you have crawl space. If this sounds like too much work, hire an exterminator.
I agree that roaches (aka palmetto bugs) outside or in the garage would not be a concern for me. If they start breaching your defenses and show up inside regularly you might want to rethink. I wouldn't do a thing about roaches outside, though. German roaches are typically the ones that infest inside and they are a different critter than the outside roaches.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
we use Economy Exterminators and still have roaches
