Cockroaches

A common pest, German cockroaches pose an unsanitary and potentially dangerous threat to your facility.  Cockroaches have been shown in laboratory tests to harbor and spread numerous types of bacteria.  Cockroaches are omnivorous and will feed on any food source they can find, including organic debris in cracks and crevices.  They will even live inside something like a bread roll if it is left available to them long enough.

Steritech’s core Zero Tolerance® Pest Prevention program includes service for German cockroaches.  Our meticulous and detailed service combines inspection, monitoring, minor structural repairs, and physical removal of these pests.

STERITECH’S COCKROACH SERVICE

Using our EcoSensitive® System, Steritech Service Specialists will perform a thorough inspection of your facility to identify any current or potential cockroach issues.  Specialists will also place insect monitors in key locations to help identify cockroach activity at subsequent services.

When cockroaches are present, your Service Specialist will remove any insects with a vacuum.  He or she will then utilize baits, proven to withstand cockroach gel bait aversion, and insect growth regulators (IGRs), to eliminate pests and keep them from breeding.  We will also apply a non-repellent product to key areas where cockroaches could gain access to your facility, building a protective barrier to keep these pests out.

During your service, Steritech Service Specialists will dismantle some equipment pieces to gain access to potential German cockroach harborage points.  They’ll also perform minor structural repairs such as filling in cracks and crevices, preventing cockroaches from gaining access and improving the structural soundness of your facility.

WHY IT WORKS

Steritech’s integrated approach to cockroach elimination ensures that all life stages of the German cockroach are eliminated.  In addition, the use of non-repellent products is more effective than traditional fogging because it eliminates pests as they cross the barrier, where fogging often drives pests deep into the recesses of the structure, allowing them to resurface at a later time.

SANITATION, STRUCTURE & STORAGE RECOMMENDATIONS

At the end of the service, your Service Specialist will provide you with a list of sanitation, structural and storage recommendations that will help prevent and prohibit future cockroach activity.

What is gel bait aversion?

Over the past several years, there have been multiple studies done in the pest management industry on “gel bait aversion” – the tendency for a cockroach to avoid taking certain types of gel baits.

For reasons that scientists don’t yet understand, bait aversion seems to be more prominent in certain pockets in North America than in others.  Even more interestingly, depending on the population, German cockroaches seem to act out aversion in different ways.  Some will go towards the bait and before getting anywhere near it, move away; others will palpate, or touch it with their antennae, then move away quickly; still others will palpate the bait and move away slowly; and some groups will actually nibble the bait before moving away from it.

Various gel bait manufacturers have been working to identify the ingredients in gel bait matrices that are causing German cockroaches to avoid baits. Newer formulas are proving more effective.

One thing scientists are certain of is that overuse of gel baits was contributing in dramatic ways to gel bait aversion.  Until aversion began, many pest management professionals used it liberally because it was extremely effective in eliminating German cockroaches for many years.  Additionally, the gel baits were so effective and safe to use that they were marketed to consumers, leading to overuse in household pest populations.

What Steritech does to combat bait aversion

Steritech worked with industry experts early on as aversion began to become an issue, identifying where aversion was most prominent, as well as alternative methods of treatment that were equally as effective.

To combat gel bait aversion, Steritech uses an integrated approach, using dry flowable bait, which does not cause aversion, as our primary bait.  Dry flowable bait has a long residual life, unlike gel, which can dry out and be unappealing to German cockroaches.  Steritech does use gel baits in accounts where German cockroach activity is identified, along with insect growth regulators (IGRs), which disrupt female cockroaches reproductive cycle.  IGRs cause female cockroaches carrying eggs to drop the egg capsule, preventing it from hatching.  At the same time, it stimulates females to eat, driving them toward bait that is in place, which will eliminate them, reducing overall populations dramatically.

Most importantly, Steritech partners with clients to improve floor level sanitation.  Studies on gel bait aversion have shown that it is more likely to develop in facilities with poor floor level sanitation.  In addition, Steritech advises clients on how to prevent German cockroaches from being introduced from residential environments, via employee belongings, as residential populations of German cockroaches have shown significant aversion issues due to overuse of gel baits.