Cockroach Control & Removal

A cockroach running across the kitchen floor at night is hard to forget. The good news: in the Pacific Northwest, the roach people see most is often an outdoor wood cockroach that wandered in by accident, and it cannot set up house indoors. The ones that do live and breed inside, mainly German cockroaches, stay hidden behind appliances and inside cabinets, and they do not go away on their own.

Interstate Pest Management has treated cockroaches in Oregon and Washington homes since 1963. We find out which roach you have and where it lives, treat the hiding spots with baits and targeted crack-and-crevice products, show you what is drawing them in, and come back to make sure they are gone.

Cockroaches are covered on the All Seasons Pest Service: $39/mo plus a $260 one-time setup fee. A heavy German cockroach infestation can need a more intensive, targeted treatment first, and your technician will tell you at the inspection if that applies.

Five cockroaches turn up in Pacific Northwest homes, and each one points to a different fix. That is why identification comes first.

• German cockroach: small and tan with two dark stripes behind the head. It multiplies fast in warm, humid kitchens and bathrooms and is the hardest roach to get rid of.
• American cockroach: the big one, up to two inches and reddish-brown. It lives in sewers, drains and damp basements and occasionally wanders up into the house.
• Oriental cockroach: dark, almost black and shiny. It favors cool, damp spots like basements, drains and crawl spaces, and moves slowly.
• Brown-banded cockroach: small and light brown with two pale bands. It prefers warm, dry, high spots such as upper cabinets, closets and the backs of electronics.
• Wood cockroach: an outdoor roach from wood piles and leaf litter that wanders in, especially in spring. It cannot infest your home.

Not sure which one you found? Our cockroach identification guide has photos and size charts, or send us a picture when you call and we will tell you what it is.

Indoor cockroaches are more than a nuisance. University of California IPM says indoor cockroach infestations are an important source of allergens and a risk factor for asthma in children, especially in apartments and other multi-unit housing.

German cockroaches also grow in number quickly. UC IPM says each German cockroach egg case holds about 30 young, and the female carries the case with her until shortly before the eggs hatch. A few roaches seen at night can mean many more out of sight.

Cockroaches are a year-round call for us. In Interstate Pest Management records for new customers in Oregon and Washington over the last five years, cockroaches came up on about 3% of first visits, and every month of the year brought at least 6% of the year’s new cockroach calls, with October the busiest at 12%. Indoor roaches do not keep a season, so neither does our treatment.

Cockroach control works when the treatment matches the roach and the places it hides. Here is what a visit looks like:

1. Inspect and identify: Your technician checks the kitchen, bathrooms, laundry, basement or crawl space and any other spots you have seen activity, confirms the species and maps where the roaches are living.
2. Treat the hiding spots: We place baits and targeted crack-and-crevice treatments where roaches feed and shelter, behind appliances, under sinks and inside cabinet voids. UC IPM says baits give better control than sprays, which work only short term and can scatter roaches to other rooms.
3. Fix what draws them in: UC IPM says good sanitation and exclusion matter and that pesticides alone will not solve a cockroach problem. Your technician points out the leaks, gaps and food sources to deal with and can quote sealing for common entry points around pipes and drains.
4. Follow up until they are gone: In Interstate Pest Management records for new cockroach customers in Oregon and Washington over the last five years, nearly two in three had a return visit within 60 days of the first treatment. We check the baits, treat any activity that remains and keep coming back until the problem is resolved. Re-services are included as needed on the All Seasons plan.

Interstate provides cockroach control to the following locations in southwest Washington and western Oregon and their surrounding areas:

• Portland, OR Cockroach Control
• Vancouver, WA Cockroach Control
• Salem, OR Cockroach Control
• Olympia, WA Cockroach Control
• Kelso/Longview, WA Cockroach Control