Imagine you wake up in the middle of the night to pee, and a huge crowd of cockroaches welcomes you. Nothing less than a nightmare, right?
Cockroaches are creepy crawlers that can infest any damp, dark, and warm place. Unfortunately, your bathroom tops the list for such environments.
But the question is, how did these annoying creatures get in there? Well, these pesky bugs are expert climbers. So, making their way up your drains and showers is no big deal for them.
You need to act proactively after spotting a single roach crawling here and there as several others might be hidden throughout the bathroom. Although you can remove roach colonies from your loo by using chemicals such as bleach, that won’t solve the entire equation.
Instead, you need to follow some ways to keep them from coming back. So, read this post to learn some clever and effective roach-elimination tricks.
Why are Roaches Creeping in Your Bathroom?
Cockroaches can infest your bathroom because they love this space more than anything. They find it a cozy hideout where they can chill, eat, breed, and stay safe from predators. Here are some factors that make your bathroom a good vacation spot for these tiny creatures:
Water
Cockroaches need water to survive, so they won’t be shy to drink it from anywhere. It can be your sink, shower, or the toilet; roaches would satisfy their thirst as they like.
Good Hiding Spaces
Bathrooms have a lot of hiding places to offer. Since roaches fear their tiny size, they may tuck themselves into the tiniest places. Here are some examples of great hiding spots in your restroom:
- Cabinets
- Behind the loo
- Trash cans
- Shower spaces
- Under your bathtub
- Product shelves
In addition, roaches may hide in several other small spaces since they can easily squeeze through tiny holes measuring around 1/6th of their size.
Heat
Roaches are nocturnal pests that need warmth to survive. Since steamy showers and baths warm up your bathroom environment regularly, these bugs would find it a perfect home to live and breed.
Food
Bathrooms are filled with roach food. Although these pests can’t find regular foods such as meat and sweets in the bathroom, they may suffice their hunger with the following items:
- Toothpaste
- Toilet paper
- Soap
- Skin products with cream, mud, or chocolate
- Used hygiene products such as cotton swabs and feminine sanitary products
Darkness
Bathrooms remain in darkness for most of the day. With doors and windows shut, and all lights off, roaches can easily throw themselves a party. The best part for them is that they won’t be disturbed by continuous human activity and enjoy the whole place alone.
How Do Cockroaches Get in Bathrooms?
Roaches can get into your bathroom from several entry points. This might have left you thinking about the time when you keep the windows shut at all times and still find a roach or two crawling near the basin.
Wel, that’s because roaches can sneak into your bathroom in several other ways than tiptoeing from the windows and doors. Here are a few apparent entry points for you to consider:
Pipes
Your plumbing lines or pipes are the most obvious route roaches opt to access the bathroom. Even the most minor crack in the sewage lines can be an open invitation to roach infestations.
Once a roach enters a damaged, or broken pipe, it won’t take long to speed through this way and reach your entire house. Since most pipes may lead to your bathroom, you’re probably going to see one or two roaches crawling around every time you enter the place.
For this very reason, roach problems are pervasive in apartment buildings with damaged plumbing lines. Besides, roaches can also easily travel from your neighbor’s house to your place via pipes.
Holes and Cracks
Older homes develop holes and cracks over time. For instance, the corners, paneling, trimming, or foundation skirt may suffer from small fissures, resulting in structural damage and leaking. These cracks in a house’s interior serve as a gateway for roaches for invasion.
Now, you might be confused about how a giant cockroach can enter your bathroom through such tiny crevices. Well, scientifically, roaches can squeeze through one-tenth-inch crevices, which most people are unaware of.
Baseboards and Tiles
Bathrooms are generally equipped with baseboards and tiles, often creating small gaps within their foundation. Such spaces provide a chance for roaches to infest bathrooms. In addition, the gaps between tiles and broken edges are their favorite hiding place.
Door Gaps
Cockroaches may travel from one area of your house to another through gaps under the doors. So, when you deep clean your kitchen and rob the roaches of their ample food supply, they may migrate to the bathroom, searching for a new home.
Can Roaches Come from the Toilet?
Roaches can not enter the bathroom from your toilet. This is because modern toilets feature a water trap. It’s a pipe that’s present at your toilet’s base. The reason behind installing this pipe is to prevent sewer line gasses from collecting inside bathrooms.
So, whenever a roach may scuttle around your toilet drainage pipe, it will always turn away. That’s because water traps are filled with a significant amount of water, enough to drown roaches. Of course, no one is brave enough to swim through such a heavy water flow.
But what if you found a cockroach swimming inside your toilet? Although it’s a rare find, here are two possible explanations for such a sighting:
- Your toilet doesn’t have a water trap fitting
- Your toilet is clogged
Why Does Your Toilet Have Dead Roaches?
If your bathroom is infested with these bugs, you may often find a cockroach floating in your loo with no movement. A common reason for this is that the roach may have tried to take a sip from the toilet bowl but drowned. Or perhaps the poor soul wanted to hide and accidentally slipped into the water.
While roaches are expert climbers, they may find it challenging to escape toilets because of their slippery texture. But, roaches can survive for a long time without oxygen.
In addition, if the roach drinks water from a toilet bowl containing toxic chemicals, it may become poisoned and die.
Can Cockroaches Enter Bathrooms from Sewers?
Yes, roaches can enter bathrooms from sewers. These pests thrive in sewers due to the ideal environment, and your bathroom is directly linked to sewer systems. So, if you have a cockroach-infested bathroom, you might need to inspect your sewage tank or system for damage.
Here are some ways roaches may benefit from a cracked sewage line:
- Target your home for food and shelter
- Discover your home through minor pipe breakages
- Access the bathroom through the open drain under your home
Why Do You Find Cockroaches in the Shower?
Roaches can enter the shower from drains and gaps in the plumbing, and any other crack or crevice, to enjoy the warm water.
It is also possible that the roach was heading to search for food and slipped into the stall and couldn’t escape. Additionally, shower drains gather hair falling from your head or your pets, and roaches enjoy feeding on these protein-rich organic hair stands.
What to Pour Down Bathroom Drains to Get Rid of Roaches?
You can pour a range of chemicals down your drain to get rid of cockroaches, including diluted bleach, insecticides, and baking soda.
For most people, it’s an absolute cringe to see cockroaches coming out of the shower drain and climbing shower curtains and bathtubs. Such situations are mainly a result of unclean pipes and drains.
Cleaning gutters and pipes is no easy task. So relax; you don’t have to do any such thing. Instead, you can consider trying these roach-killing techniques:
Diluted Bleach
We’ve mentioned bleach since the internet may tell you to kill roaches with this chemical. But, we want to save you from believing in this myth.
Although the ingredient has the potential to kill roaches, concentrated form of bleach is corrosive and may damage your pipes. The chemical doesn’t take long to eat away the plastic, metal, or other material used in the construction of your pipes.
As a result, you’d be left with even more fissures and cracks in your drains, inviting more cockroaches for dinner. Well, that’s only if your pipes survive long before bursting completely.
Therefore, it’s never a good idea to pour bleach down your bathroom drains. However, if you find no luck with other chemicals, you can consider diluting it with water. But remember, this should only be your last resort.
Insecticide
Insecticides are effective at killing roaches. However, several insecticides are meant to be sprayed inside homes or on pests, not in your drains. So, pouring these chemicals down your drains may only be a luckless endeavor.
In addition, insecticides are toxic chemicals that may damage organic materials and leach fields in the sewer system.
Baking Soda and Vinegar
Baking soda and vinegar are one of the most handy home remedies. They can not only unclog drains and remove stains, but they also can eradicate cockroaches.
It’s amazing how a slight foaming reaction from mixing vinegar and baking soda can kill roaches. Although this concoction may not be as effective for a big roach infestation, it might seal the deal for smaller, baby ones.
Boiling Water
Roaches scooting around bathroom drains can be laid to rest with hot boiling water. Unlike insecticides or bleach, this remedy may not destroy or harm your pipes. Moreover, it won’t leach into the ground or sewers. Therefore, you can pour sizzling water down your shower drains to eliminate the pesky roaches.
Why Do Bathrooms Have So Many Roaches at Night?
Roaches thrive in the dark. So here’s a brief explanation of why you often encounter roaches at night:
Darkness
Your bathroom is generally the darkest place in your home. Most bathrooms only have a window or two with fogged glass that filters out bright light. As a result, a dark environment allows roaches to thrive in bathrooms.
Humidity
Again, steamy showers leave your bathroom warm and humid for long. So, a nighttime shower with all the steam and moisture inside the shower stall attracts moisture-loving cockroaches.
Silence
Roaches know that they have more danger in the daytime compared to night. That’s why they prefer hiding away from humans and other predators. Since humans sleep at night, it’s the perfect time for roaches to spread out in the quiet bathroom and enjoy their freedom.
How Can You Keep Roaches from Coming Back?
Cleaning your bathroom can help you keep roaches from coming back. You might have tried raiding several roach hideouts to get rid of roaches, but what’s the point of all that effort when they keep coming back?
Typically, roaches invade your bathroom shortly after a few days of draining toxic chemicals. Therefore, your job is never done without trying these clever tricks to prevent roaches from coming back:
Clean the Bathroom
Filth, junk, and garbage are home to many roaches. So, if your bathroom has moist corners, skin cells, mildew, etc., be sure to follow multiple fumigation processes to have a roach-infested bathroom again.
Luckily, you can keep cockroaches from returning if you have a clean bathroom. But washing your bathroom alone won’t do the trick unless you remove the following roach lures from their sight:
Soap Bars
Soap bars are a delicious reach treat since they have high levels of oil. If you’re a fan of using organic or natural soaps, they likely contain animal fat. That’s why you may notice roaches creeping around your soap bars often.
But, you can avoid sharing your favorite soap bar with roaches by placing it in a dry and sealed container. In addition, liquid soaps are an excellent alternative to prevent these roaches from coming back.
Toilet Paper
Roaches love to munch on paper. Therefore, you should keep your toilet paper roll in a designated container. This way, you can protect your roll from harmful germs and bacteria that roaches may spread. Additionally, it’s better to store extra toilet papers in their packaging until needed.
Hair
Hair fall not only affects your looks, but it can also clog your drains and become a potential food source for roaches. So, to keep cockroaches from feeding on hair, you should remove the hair strands from gutters after every shower.
Trash
Open trash cans are easy meals for hungry roaches. While the stinky smell disgusts most humans, roaches like to rush to garbage bins searching for food.
You can prevent roaches from thriving in bathroom trash cans by using trash bins with lids. In addition, you should remove the can from the darkest corner of the loo and place it under bright lights.
Install Water Traps
Water traps are effective at keeping roaches away. However, if your toilet doesn’t have a water trap installed, you should get one as soon as possible. As a bonus, you’d no longer have to deal with clogged drains with water traps installed.
Fix Pipes
Cracked and damaged pipes are a go-to entry point for roaches. However, you don’t need to change your bathroom pipes to end your roach problem. Instead, you can fix them with good-quality sealants.
Ensure you fix pipes permanently, especially during colder seasons. This is because partially repaired pipes may crack when it’s chilly outside. As a result, your bathroom may host giant roach colonies.
Check Caulk and Seal Cracks and Holes
Your bathroom floors and walls can develop cracks as they age. So, even the slighted crack in your baseboards, tiles, and wooden walls can allow roaches to populate your bathroom. That’s why you need to caulk and patch these cracks in time.
If you really want your toilet to stay roach-free, consider running a roach check in these areas every once in a while:
- Floors
- Tiles
- Walls
- Ceilings
Additionally, you can keep an eye on corners roaches like to visit frequently.
Limit Humidity
Roaches are moisture lovers, so anything that retains moisture may indeed attract them. Therefore, you can keep humidity and moisture at bay by:
- Using a dehumidifier
- Adding a fan to your bathroom
This way, you can kill two birds with one stone, as dehumidifying your bathroom can also prevent molds along with roach infestations. Besides, bathroom mats are a constant source of moisture. So, dry them up after every use to keep moisture from collecting in them.
Plug the Shower Drains
Showers can attract roaches to come out and enjoy the warm water. You can avoid this from happening by simply plugging the drain after showering.
Use Gel Bait
Gel baits effectively kill roaches and prevent them from housing your bathroom. These baits trick roaches with a delicious treat and encourage them to bite. So, when a cockroach eats the gel bait, the poison will slowly spread and kill the bug.
You can apply the gel bait to several areas in the bathroom, such as:
- Along the baseboards
- Around drains
- On crevices and cracks
- Around vents
- Edges of the toilet and bathtub
- Outside the bathroom
- In spaces between tiles
However, if you have children, make sure you apply the bait in small quantities. Additionally, keep it out of sight so they won’t pick on it.
FAQs
Why Do I Keep Finding Roaches In My Bathroom After Trying All the Methods?
You are likely to find roaches in your bathroom when you have missed sealing some areas. So, the cockroaches may continue to return even after all the pest control methods. Moreover, it is possible that a few roaches have survived your treatment and may come out of their hideout in search of food.
How Do I Get Rid Of Baby Roaches In My Bathroom?
You can get rid of baby roaches by using gel baits. This roach-killer technique can be effective at killing tiny pests as these baits poison roaches more effectively than other methods. In addition, sticky traps can also come in handy for killing the bugs as baby roaches find it hard to escape.
Do Roaches Come Out of Shower Drains?
Yes, roaches do come out of shower drains. These pipelines are connected to sewers where roaches are found in abundance. Therefore, the pests can crawl their way into your shower stall through the pipes.
Final Thoughts
Roaches can create havoc in bathrooms if you ignore one or two roaches lurking around in the place. The worst part is that these bugs never give up without a fight. This makes getting rid of these annoying pests a challenge.
However, if you stay determined and focused, ending your roach problem is indeed possible. You can either drain hot boiling water down your pipelines or use gel bait to kill the roaches for good. In addition, you should keep your bathroom clean and avoid storing too many products since they can serve as a great hiding spot.
When nothing works out for you, contact a professional pest-control service before things get out of your control.