Whether large or small, cockroaches are never a good sight. These nasty pests enter any place, hide anywhere, and reproduce within a few minutes. Unfortunately, no matter how hard you try, there is nothing you can do to stop them completely.
If you’re observing small, white, and oval-shaped tiny bugs roaming around in your home, these are not just any ordinary insects. Instead, they are baby cockroaches, which are even a bigger problem than one or two adult roaches.
The presence of baby roaches means that your home also hosts several cockroach families. You’ll be surprised to know that a female cockroach can lay around 6 to 30 eggs at a time, and there would be not only one female present in your home. So yes, it’s a disaster!
But not all hopes are lost. With determination and an effective action plan, you can get rid of cockroaches and baby roaches easily and quickly. Let’s explore everything about baby roaches.
Why Do You See Baby Roaches in Your Home?
You see baby roaches in your home because larger roaches have made their way into your home. Roaches can reproduce in different environments and food sources. No matter how cold or hot you keep your home, roaches can survive anyway and lay multiple eggs at an instance.
These tiny pests hide in crevices and appliances during the day to stay safe from humans and predators. When their eggs hatch, it gives rise to an entire new generation of roaches.
So, you see baby roaches in your home because larger roaches have entered your home searching for:
- Food
- Water
- A place to hide and reproduce
What Do Baby Cockroaches Look Like?
Baby cockroaches are never adorable. They look just like their nasty parents but shrunk into half the size of ladybugs. Whether German or American, baby cockroaches are usually flat and six-legged creatures with oval-shaped bodies.
These not-so-cute tiny pests are dark brown or black. However, molting nymphs and newly-hatched ones are white and soft due to weak exoskeletons.
Over time, these nymphs start looking more like adults. Their exoskeletons harden, and their wings grow, indicating the final stages of their adulthood.
The common features of a baby roach include:
- Antennae longer than the body
- A pair of sensory appendages or cerci
Baby German roaches have a couple of parallel black bands running from their heads to the rest of their bodies. Unfortunately, these bands are unnoticeable, so you might need a magnifying glass to spot them.
What Is the Size of a Baby Roach?
The size of a baby roach is not bigger than a beetle. Typically, American cockroaches are enormous, so their babies are larger than other species.
On the other hand, German cockroaches are super tiny, measuring only a few millimeters (like a grain of rice). Adult German roaches have a size of less than half an inch.
How Fast Do Baby Cockroaches Spread?
Cockroaches are egg-laying bugs that multiply within a few seconds. The females lay eggs in the ootheca, an egg sac that contains several roaches eggs at one. According to an estimation, the sac can carry around 14 to 48 at once.
Some of these eggs don’t hatch, while most turn into many baby cockroaches called nymphs.
Over the entire lifecycle, a female baby cockroach lays around 6 to 30 egg cases, lasting less than a year. Note that it’s only for one female.
You can imagine the total number of eggs that 10 to 15 female roaches can produce simultaneously. You’ll be surprised that some roach species don’t even require a male for reproduction. Instead, females can do it solely.
When a nymph reaches adulthood, it begins searching for a partner without wasting time. That’s how a roach infestation spreads so fast.
Baby Cockroaches in Your Home: What It Means
Seeing baby cockroaches in your home is worse than finding the adults. It strongly signals that many adult roaches are nearby, ready to reproduce again. However, if you spot a giant brown cockroach, it could mean that it’s just a loner, and you can get rid of it quickly.
So when you identify a baby roach roaming around, you need to act fast. You won’t know, and these babies will develop into adults within two minutes — well-prepared to lay their eggs.
So what does it mean when you see baby roaches in your house? It means:
Your Home Has Disease-Causing Bacteria
You may wonder: “Why are roaches a problem anyway? They neither bite nor sting, so why do you have to eliminate them? That’s because these tiny pests carry harmful bacteria from unhygienic places they live in, including dumpsters, gutters, pipes, walls, and more.
Big or small, cockroaches are equally disgusting. All of them crawl around dirty places and eat rotten things, picking up harmful disease-causing elements, such as:
- Bacteria
- Viruses
- Mold
- Allergens
- Fungi
- Worms
Once they enter your home, they spread these bacteria everywhere. From basement and cooking surfaces to bathrooms and attics, no place will remain safe for your health. Not only these places, but baby roaches also break into your pantry in search of food.
You Will See Roach Defecation Everywhere
The worst part is that roaches defecate everywhere, all the time. Their fecal droppings are tiny black dots, similar to coffee beans but smaller than them. However, their appearance and size vary from roach species to species.
You may find the signs of defecation on:
- Shelves
- Floor
- Walls
- Kitchen counters
- Washroom sinks
- Food items
- Clothes
Sometimes, you may see these droppings with roaches’ shed skin and egg cases (tiny dark brown capsules). All these things can lead to different breathing issues in humans and pets, such as asthma and allergies.
This puts your entire family’s health at risk for diseases, especially food poisoning. You’ll be coming in contact with these fecal dropping without even realizing it, and in the worst case, you may ingest them through food. Frightening!
Therefore, you shouldn’t tolerate even a single baby roach roaming freely. But of course, that’s not going to solve the problem, as one baby roach means hundreds of adults hiding somewhere.
You Will Smell a Musty Odor All the Time
Maybe the baby roaches in your home are experts in hiding, but they can’t conceal their distinctive stale, musty odor. Their fecal droppings have a strong smell that sticks to any surface they touch.
The droppings, egg cases, and molted skin all combine to give off a stale odor that indicates someone else is also living in your home.
You may also see dead roaches lying here and there. While you may think it’s a good sign, it could also mean the roach population has become so large that they couldn’t fit in their nests.
Baby Cockroaches in Your Home: What To Do
You surely don’t want to have crawling hazards in their home. Also, you don’t want your guests to smell that musty odor of cockroaches’ fecal droppings and egg shells.
So what can you do to avoid all these nightmares from turning into a reality? Develop an action plan! Divide it into two parts: one is sanitizing your home, and the other is exterminating the bugs.
Here are 4 steps to help you counter baby cockroaches in your home:
Identify the Roaches
The first step is to confirm whether the bugs you are trying to kill are roaches or any other insect. Many bugs look like cockroaches: they have wings and a pair of antennae and run fast.
As you know, baby cockroaches are white and softer than big, brown adults. They also have a slightly flat and oval-shaped body shape.
So the best way to spot identification signs in baby roaches is to wear a pair of gloves and catch one. Then, closely examine it and identify the pest you’re dealing with.
Sanitize Your Home
Once you’re confident that your home has a roach infestation, making your house less hospitable to these pests is next. This includes sanitizing every corner and crevices of your bathroom, kitchen, and bedroom.
This way, fewer roaches will enter, less will survive and reproduce. Those that do enter your home may simply leave.
Sanitization is the most crucial step. It ensures that your home stays roach-free in the long run. You can clean it in the following ways:
- Don’t leave food on the kitchen counter overnight
- Clean spills and crumbs after every meal
- Put your pet’s food away
- Vacuum up the remaining crumbs from your carpet. It would also take in cockroaches and their eggs.
- Clean standing water every night
- Don’t let water accumulate in your sinks
- Fix plumbing leaks
- Identify sources of condensation that provide a water source to the cockroaches.
Don’t Let Roaches in
Now you need to block all the entry points of the roaches. Start by picking up the clutter from inside and outside your home. If cockroaches have already entered your home, you must prevent them from hiding in the corners.
If roaches are living in small appliances, put the device in a bag and place it in the freezer for a few days. Then, take the machine out and clean it. Roaches usually can’t withstand freezing temperatures, so they’ll probably die.
Let’s say cockroaches have found their way to the cracks and holes. In that case, check your home’s doors, baseboards, and windows and seal all the crevices.
Exterminate the Baby Roaches
It’s time to grab your weapons and start killing these tiny roaches. Since you have already laid the groundwork through sanitation, it will be easier for you to eliminate these little pests with insecticides and DIY methods.
No matter what method you choose, you’ll want to act on it quickly before the infestation gets out of your hands.
Insecticides
If you’re planning to use insecticides, learn about the chemicals used in these products. Many people are allergic to certain chemicals, so reading the insecticide’s label would protect you from irritation or inflammation.
The two most-used insecticides type used for cockroach infestations are:
- Insect Growth Regulator (IGR). These insecticides work wonders for baby roaches or nymphs. They stop the bug from growing. So if you succeed in making a baby cockroach inhale or ingest IGR, it won’t become an adult or reproduce.
- Insecticides for Adult Roaches. If baby roaches have grown older, you should get an insecticide designed especially for adults.
DIY Methods
You’ll be surprised to know that the ingredients used in the most-effective roach-killing DIY methods are already lying in your pantry. But they may not give as quick results as ready-made baits.
Here are a few DIY methods to exterminate baby roaches:
- Boric Acid or Diatomaceous Earth (DE). You can opt for a natural product like diatomaceous earth (DE) or boric acid. Cockroaches don’t like the smell of these ingredients, so they work wonders in repelling and eliminating them. But they do have some risks, so educate yourself before using them.
- Natural Ingredients in Your Pantry. If you don’t have boric acid or DE available, your pantry will have what you’re looking for. Cockroaches hate the odor of lemons, vinegar, baking soda, peppermint, garlic, and much more. Simply take them out and place them in high roach traffic areas.
- Baits. Roach traps can be in multiple forms, such as gels, liquids, and dust. You can apply them to different surfaces, but not on kitchen counters or open floors. Alternatively, you can place bait stations in cabinets, corners, and baseboards.
When searching baits, look for these active ingredients:
- Abamectin
- Cyfluthrin
- Cypermethrin
- Deltamethrin
- Dinotefuran
- Fipronil
- Hydramethylnon
- Imidacloprid
Remember that no “one solution” works against every roach species. So try all the above DIY methods one by one and see what works for you and the baby roaches in your home.
How Long Does It Take To Eliminate Baby Cockroaches?
Eliminating baby roaches is a long, long process. Sometimes it will take only a few days to get rid of their colonies, but the other time it could take several months.
Being well-prepared is a significant factor that can speed up this roach-elimination process. First, research baby roaches and understand their behavior. This will help you determine their entry points and places they will probably hide.
Then, search for roach colonies in the right places instead of wandering around the entire home. Clean those places and place the baits carefully.
Of course, you can also hire a professional roach exterminator to eliminate baby roaches and their relatives in 2 to 3 weeks. Unfortunately, this option can be expensive since these pros use high-end pesticides, but it will do all the dirty work!
How Can You Kill Baby Roaches Fast?
The fastest solution to a baby cockroach problem is using pesticides or insecticides. The DIY methods we discussed before are all effective in killing and repelling roaches, but they are time-consuming and need multiple applications. Who has time for that, right?
Plus, baits and sprays usually eliminate roaches individually. On the other hand, IGR makes these tiny bugs infertile and gets rid of their entire colonies at once.
FAQs
Do Baby Cockroaches Mean Infestation?
Yes, baby roaches usually mean infestation. Cockroaches multiply rapidly, with each female laying around 6 to 30 eggs simultaneously. If your home has about 50 females, this means 1500 baby roaches are produced daily, indicating a roach infestation. In the case of one or two adult roaches, it’s better to kill them as soon as possible before they start reproducing.
How Do You Get Rid of Baby Roaches Fast?
The fastest way to get rid of baby roaches is using pesticides or insecticides. The Insect Growth Regulator (IGR) works wonders in inhibiting the baby roaches from growing and laying eggs like adults. This way, the infestation doesn’t spread more. You can also try DIY methods with natural products and baits, but they don’t give quick results.
Do Roaches Lay Eggs in a Clean House?
Roaches can lay eggs in a clean house. Although clean homes have a lower risk of having roaches as guests, they are not entirely safe from these pests. So keep your home clean to decrease the chances.
Do Baby Roaches Carry Diseases Like Adults?
Whether babies or adults, cockroaches carry disease-causing bacteria and allergens. The adults pick them up when roaming around in dumpsters and tunnels searching for food. When they return to their nests, they transfer them to their babies. Then, the entire family gets out from their nest at night to infect your entire home.
Conclusion
Baby roaches are just as disgusting as adults. They are way faster than the large ones and carry several disease-causing bacteria and allergens. Baby roaches are white and soft but turn brown or black in adulthood.
If you spot baby roaches roaming around in your home sweet home, here is what it means and what you should do:
- Your home has a problematic roach infestation which needs to be taken care of
- Your home contains several bacteria, molds, allergens, and viruses
- You’ll see fecal droppings everywhere
- You’ll smell a musty odor all the time
- The action plan for baby roaches consists of identifying the cockroaches, sanitizing your home, sealing the entry points, and exterminating these tiny pests.
- Pesticides, especially IGR, give you the fastest results against baby roaches.
- Calling a professional roach exterminator is an easy but expensive way to eliminate baby roaches.