Does Hydrogen Peroxide Kill Cockroaches? Here’s the Full Guide!

Cockroaches can be a total nightmare, they are filthy and disgusting. They can ruin your belongings and your household. And in fact, you are running against time, when it comes to getting rid of them.

One of the fastest ways to kill cockroaches is by using hydrogen peroxide. The stronger the solution, the better.

When you use hydrogen peroxide to kill a cockroach, it will dissolve the hard plates of the roach exoskeleton. The cockroach will become dead and limbless and it will no longer be a problem.

How to Make Hydrogen Peroxide Solution to Kill Cockroaches

You can buy hydrogen peroxide at any drugstore in your area. You can start using 3% hydrogen peroxide, mixed with the same amount of water. Pour it into a sprayer and you’ll have an insecticidal spray. When doing the mixing please wear safety gloves, goggles, and a mask.

When testing it out, if you notice that it’s not strong enough for your bugs, you can always increase the dose.

After the cleanse is done, broom the roaches off and vacuum them. If the floor becomes stained, use a scrub brush to clean it out with some water, and dry it with a rag.

Did you know: Roaches can stand still for days, but that doesn’t mean they are dead, they do that for one specific reason.

What Will You Need to Make a Hydrogen Peroxide Solution to Kill Cockroaches

• Spray bottle

• 3% Hydrogen peroxide solution

• Dishwashing liquid

• Measuring cup

• Vacuum cleaner (optional)

• Rubber gloves

• Broom

• Scrub brush (optional)

• Rag

• Safety goggles (optional)

• Mask (optional)

You just need to mix equal parts of hydrogen peroxide and water into a spray bottle (you can use a measuring cup) and spray later on to the desired places to kill some cockroaches. Be careful when spraying ceilings and outdoor locations with wind, the mixture can come back into your eyes. This is why safety goggles and or masks are recommended while doing it.

Are Cockroaches Attracted to Hydrogen Peroxide?

These insects are naturally attracted to dark spots, and damp, warm areas. So, rest assured, they are not amused with hydrogen peroxide. If some of it is left over after using it against some roaches, it will not attract more of them.

What Causes Cockroaches in a Clean House?

The presence of a cockroach is marked by the presence of moisture because they need it to survive. So it’s natural that the search for water will drive them even to the cleanest of homes. Things like dripping faucets and leaking pipes are one of the most attractants for these insects.

This is one of the main reasons why you see them in laundry rooms, bathrooms, and kitchens. But by using a quick and effective solution like hydrogen peroxide you can kill cockroaches in no time.

Pro tip: When you have nothing at hand, you can use deodorant to kill cockroaches, see how.

12 Simple Steps to Prevent Cockroaches Without Using Hydrogen Peroxide

1. Clean Your House

Good sanitation is the first step to preventing cockroach infestation, so keep your house nice and tidy. Houses with a lot of dust and dirty floors are prone to attract these creatures.

2. Get Rid of All the Clutter

A house full of clutter will provide a nice playground for those bugs to thrive. The best advice is to get rid of it and organize yourself. Donate the things you don’t use anymore and keep the rest that you need to the bare minimum.

3. Dispose of Any Cardboard Boxes

Card boxes provide warm shelter and a comfortable environment for cockroaches to lay eggs. If your home has piles of boxes and you really need them then you should wrap them with plastic bags.

This will prevent roaches from going in and nest to lay eggs. If they are already infested, do it in order to suffocate them.

4. Don’t Leave Food Lying Around

This is one of the main reasons why cockroaches roam kitchen floors, crumbs, and dirty kitchen plates provide a nice meal for these bugs. Clean your kitchen every night before going to sleep.

Although roaches can survive 3 months without food, they won’t say no to a free meal especially if it’s within their reach on a kitchen floor.

5. Seal All the Food in Tight Containers

Even fresh food can be a victim to cockroaches, open food bags will attract roaches as well, and they will go inside to feed themselves too. If your food comes in bags, seal them if you are going to eat it later. If you have leftovers for another day, use a seal-tight container.

Try to upkeep the cleaning of your kitchen daily and make it a routine. If it becomes a habit the chances for cockroaches’ trouble are put to a minimum.

6. Vacuum Your Floors

Before starting to spray everything with pesticides, keep the good habit of vacuuming floors. A good vacuum will clean everything a broom can’t, it will also keep everything looking nice. If your house is spotless, chances are, you won’t need to use pesticides so often.

7. Fix All the Leakages

Leaky pipes and dripping faucets are free drinks for any thirsty roach out there, if you keep them running, more and more roaches will come. A live roach is a clear signal that some conditions are good for it.

8. Keep Your Home Environment Bright

When you have a bright environment, chances are that, you’ll get less mold and moister areas on your house. Those are the perfect environments for roaches, if you eliminate that main factor, you are setting up yourself to win.

9. Keep Your Home Environment Cooler

Once again, roaches love warm places, if the house is clean and fresh air can roam free, it will keep room temperature slightly cold and will scare away roaches. Even if one-stop buy, it will not nest for sure.

10. Cover All Drainers During Summertime

In the summertime, roaches are known for coming out of the sink drainer and the shower drain as well. If you have the means, seal them off when not in use, this will reduce the chance for cockroaches coming out through there, looking for food.

11. Empty the trash

Trash bags are the best at attracting German cockroaches, the rotten smell and the warm plastic will make a nice home for roaches to live and thrive too. Make a routine of emptying your bags when they are full, and at least once a week from your house. This action is key if you don’t want any roaches flying around, near you and your children.

12. Call a Professional Exterminator

If things get out of hand, call a professional exterminator, they will know best how they can help you, or at least what can help you best in your situation. Don’t let things turn bad, the faster you act, the sooner you’ll get rid of those pesky roaches.

Conclusion

• Cockroaches love dark places, a good natural way to get rid of them is by keeping everything clean and tidy.

• Before starting to use a roach-killer insecticide spray, use a cleaning agent like a bleach solution to keep roach activity to a halt.

• Roach traps sometimes are not effective against larger roaches, when that is the case traditional insecticide chemicals show better results.

• You can use some DIY approach to become a ruthless cockroach killer, but the best results will be faster with a professional exterminator.

• A strong smell and compact places will be lingering roaches from your place, keep your food in air-tight containers and your house clean to make them disappear faster.

• If everything is done right soon you see dead roaches around your kitchen cabinets and crawl spaces, just don’t forget to clean them afterward.

• Dead cockroaches also telltale signs of a nest, if you see egg cases lying around dead roaches that means you have a big cockroach problem.

• The smell of fresh citrus, essential oils (lavender oil, eucalyptus oil) and mint plants can help mitigate certain food smells from your house, thus showing an effective way to keep roaches away.

• The best roach trap is the one you don’t have to use, the real problem lies solely on what’s done to prevent roaches, nothing else.