There's A Skittering In The Air Duct - Is A Cockroach Family Watching You?

Cockroaches are low on the totem pole of popular insects thanks to their ability to carry disease and scurry off into the recess of your kitchen when you click on the light late at night. However, now you have heard them scurrying around in your air conditioning vent, there's a new level of repulsion at the idea of them moving around above your head while you are sleeping. So, where are they coming from, and what can you do about it? This is what you need to know about cockroaches in your air conditioner.

Cockroaches don't like the cold

The good news is it is unlikely you have a family of cockroaches permanently sitting above the bed watching you sleep at night (cue creepy music here). Cockroaches don't like cold air, so when you run your air conditioning at a temperature in the low 20s during the summer, this is below the happy tolerance level of the cockroach. Therefore, the scurrying you hear of the cockroach moving through the air vent is merely them transporting themselves around your house.

How are cockroaches getting in the air vent?

There is nothing too complicated about how the cockroach is entering your air conditioning system. When you are not looking, cockroaches are moving about in the space between your walls and they then pop out on the wall in your bedroom. Cockroaches can squeeze out of very small cracks in your ceiling or baseboards. Once they are out in the open, they scurry up through the vent cover to a whole highway of ducting now available for them to move around.

What to do about cockroaches in the air conditioning vent?

The first thing to do when you're worried about cockroaches falling on you from above is to cover the vent so the air can get out but the cockroaches can't get in. To do this, you need a fine piece of fabric or cotton mesh cut to size slightly bigger than the air vent cover. Tape each side to the ceiling using duct tape, and this then gives you some peace of mind that cockroaches can't get out.

Next, call a pest controller to come and spray your home. Pest controllers have the equipment to get into the walls, the air conditioning vent and all other places cockroaches like to hide out. They can also help to pinpoint the areas of your home where cockroaches are getting in, so you can get on with the task of blocking up the holes to keep them out for good.


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