A professional exterminator has taken to TikTok to explain how you can make a real difference when it comes to German roach pest control. You might not like the solution, though. It's housecleaning.
Pest control expert Marcus Perry (@thebugreaper) posted a video to his TikTok account on Aug. 27 to explain the best way to fight German roaches, one of the most pervasive household pests worldwide.
The video currently has 59,400 views and counting. In it, Perry stresses that your best line of defense against the roaches is keeping it clean.
"Here's a thing about us pest control technicians," Perry tells his viewers. "We can only do so much."
"Some situations are not controllable. This is why you call us, the professionals. But what can really help is you being sanitary, because those German roaches? They love a dirty home."
Perry explains that the egg sac of a female German roach can contain up to 40 eggs with 50% potentially more females. He describes their spread throughout a household as like "wildfire."
"You need to stay clean," he claims. Exterminators control the spread but "we don't exterminate them for good. Please, don't think that we can kill off bugs for good. They've been walking the Earth longer than we have."
"You gotta stay clean or they will come back. That's it," he adds.
"You can keep them out of your home for a long amount of time if you just stay clean," he states. "Help us out."
According to Pestworld.org, the German cockroach is the most common cockroach species. They are commonly found in "restaurants, food processing facilities, hotels, nursing homes" and institutional and household food prep areas.
"A German cockroach infestation can occur in any area where people eat and drink. In homes, this includes dining rooms, living rooms, dens, and bedrooms ... German cockroaches can fit through an opening as small as 3/8 inch in width."
The site agrees that the best way to fight against potential infestation is to keep your household, especially areas near food and water, as clean as possible.
Regularly vacuuming and mopping floors, wiping down surfaces, and keeping food in sealed containers all serve to protect you from the roaches from infesting your home.
"People should maintain a clean kitchen by cleaning up crumbs, wiping spills, and vacuuming often. Avoid [letting] dishes pile up in the sink. It is also important to seal all entrances to the structure, especially around utility pipes, and ventilate crawl spaces to prevent moisture buildup. "
The site also notes that German roaches pose a potential health problem.
"German cockroaches have been implicated in outbreaks of illness and allergic reactions in many people. Cockroaches have been reported to spread at least 33 kinds of bacteria, six kinds of parasitic worms, and at least seven other kinds of human pathogens."
"As someone who grew up in a household full of roaches, I vacuum every single night, wipe countertops, flip your toaster!! They like crumbs," wrote one user.
Perry responded, "Yess. They loveee any kind of tiny food they can get to."
Another viewer commented, "I keep screaming this. That Raid fogger isn’t gonna do anything if you don’t keep your home CLEAN!!!"
One apartment owner stated it was impossible to maintain pest control due to dirty neighbors. "We had German roaches in an apartment complex we lived in and our neighbors were so dirty it didn’t even matter how much we cleaned," they wrote.
Perry agreed, writing, "Yeah, keeping your home dirty af should be against the law."
@thebugreaper German Roaches = Unsanitary #bugs #viral #information ♬ Relaxed (Slowed) - MC Mablo Dos Paredões
The Daily Dot has reached out to Perry via TikTok messenger and comment for further statement.
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The post ‘We can only do so much. … Help us out’: Pest control technician has a plea for customers about their homes appeared first on The Daily Dot.
