Like all life on earth, cockroaches need water. In fact, roaches prefer locations with a lot of water: liquid water where they can reach it, as well as air heavy with humidity. Denying roaches access to water is essential to controlling their population. Just as you would do on the field of battle, where a skillful general would force the enemy to make camp in a position without access to water, you must cut off all access to the water that roaches can’t live without.
In my case, the worst water-problem area in my house was under the kitchen sink. The drainpipe under the sink had a slow leak. Bad enought, but beyond that there was another watery problem that was much more difficult to diagnose.
The previous owner had simply placed a plastic bucket under the sink, directly under the U-bend in the drainpipe. Every time the kitchen sink was used, a few tablespoons of water leaked into the bucket. Gradually the bucket filled, and periodically it had to be removed and dumped. I knew this when I bought the house, but I didn’t realize the roach ramifications. Fixing the leak was on my to-do list, but I kept putting it off. Often, when I emptied the bucket, I would find dead roaches in the water. At first I thought “Good: they’re climbing down to get water, falling in, and drowning.” Dumb. Stupidly, I thought the bucket full of water was functioning as a sort of roach trap.
Then it dawned on me: Some of them were drowning … but others were obtaining the water they needed, then climbing out of the bucket, thirst quenched, and going on with their lives. As long as there was water in the bucket, I was making their lives easier, giving them a readily accessible source of water and thus allowing them more time to forage for food and produce more roaches.
As soon as I began thinking correctly, I fixed the leak. I put the bucket back under the sink so I could check it and make sure it stayed dry to confirm that the pipe was fixed properly.
Unfortunately, much to my surprise and chagrin, the bucket was still gradually filling up with water. Every evening, after I did the dishes, there was a little more water in the bucket.
I laid down on the floor and stuck my head under the sink — and I immediately noticed how humid it was under there, just the way roaches like — and watched carefully as the water ran full-force into the sink. I watched and watched but the drain pipe wasn’t leaking. I splashed water around in the sink, thinking that water coming into the drain at different angles might somehow be more likely to leak (unlikely, I know, but I was mystified and willing to try anything) … and finally some water dripped down the pipe and into the bucket. But that water wasn’t coming from a leak in the pipe under the sink.
By looking carefully I could tell that I had splashed water up around the kitchen faucet. The water was leaking under the sink by coming in around where the metal faucet met the enamel sink. The faucet seal was no good. I removed the faucet and replaced the seal. For good measure I put some Goop
The bucket under the sink stayed dry! I had taken a huge water source away from my enemies. To continue the water metaphor: the tide of battle was begining to turn.
I learned there were lots of ways that I could make my house drier and less hospitable for cockroaches. See the next post.
Rid of roaches 