The kitchen is one of the favorite places for a cockroach to live. They can easily find food, water, and shelter in that part of the house. Especially if you don’t have the habit of keeping your kitchen clean, it can attract cockroach intrusion.
A dishwasher is one of those appliances that always has a dark and moist environment. Unfortunately, it makes for an ideal living and breeding condition for cockroaches. Therefore, you might find these pests infesting a dishwasher.
The only way to get rid of cockroaches is to stop their source of food and water. It will compel them to move out of your kitchen and leave your house.
So, if you are dealing with a cockroach infestation in your dishwasher, we have a solution for you. Keep reading to learn about the reason and treatment of such infestation.
Why Do Cockroaches Get into the Dishwasher?
A dishwasher is one of the favorite areas of cockroaches. It collects many food particles and grease, which is nothing less than a feast for these pests. When roach populations get out of control, they scatter in every possible corner of the house, including the dishwasher.
Furthermore, the unclean areas behind and underneath the dishwasher also invite cockroaches.
So, if you are seeing these nasty pests crawling in and out of your dishwasher, several factors could be the culprit behind this disaster. Some of them include:
Leaving Dirty Dishes for Long
Cockroaches are known for exacting food remains and food-based trash to grow and reproduce.
Leaving dirty dishes with leftover foods in the dishwasher overnight is an open invitation for these roaches. It is also possible for some food particles to fall off the dishes when you’re transferring them to the dishwasher.
When roaches spot these food remains around the dishwasher, they start to gather around the machine. Thus, you’re more likely to see cockroaches and several pests around or inside your appliance the next day.
Even if the dishwasher door remains closed, cockroaches can smell the food from far away. That’s because these pests have strong olfactory receptors on their antennae.
Grease Build Up
After several uses, the dishwashers’ walls and pipes become vulnerable to grease buildup. Unfortunately, the grease and oil from your food can accumulate in the appliance’s pipes and start to clog them over time, serving as an excellent food source for cockroaches.
Dishwasher pipes are often overlooked and can become an ideal living and breeding ground for these pests.
Furthermore, the screen trap on the bottom of the dishwasher can also accumulate food grease, which roaches love.
Dark and Damp Environment
A dishwasher uses water to clean the dishes, making the appliance’s environment dark and humid.
Cockroaches love to live in a place where they stay undisturbed and have water, food scraps, and the least amount of light. These closed places also protect them from their prey, making their living conditions even better.
If you keep your dishwasher closed, the moisture can be trapped inside and attract more cockroaches.
Note: Deep cleaning and airing the dishwasher can help reduce this pest infestation.
Where Do Cockroaches Hide in the Dishwasher?
A dishwasher is a complex machine with corners, gaps, and parts that can be hard to reach for humans but not for the roaches. These pesky creatures enter these places and build their nests.
The most common places cockroaches hide in a dishwasher include:
Gaps and Corners
A dishwasher is a complex machine with hard-to-reach corners and tricky parts, making it difficult to clean them.
Of course, the hot water inside the dishwasher allows the appliance to self-clean. However, it is also vital to deeply clean the machine every once in a while to prevent pest infestations.
Check these common gaps and corners in your dishwasher for possible signs of roaches:
- Door’s seals
- Under the rack
- Screen trap
- Detergent compartment
- Above the spray arms
- Water inlet valve
- Filtration system
Since these nasty creatures come in various sizes, look for them in small holes and vents of the dishwasher.
Behind the Dishwasher
If you look behind your dishwasher, you might see a small gap between the machine and the cabinet. Unfortunately, it is one of the ideal places for cockroaches to live.
Since these places barely get any sunlight and regular cleaning, these pests live peaceful lives there and multiply rapidly. Furthermore, the small and flat bodies of these pests allow them to enter different nooks and corners of the machine.
Not only that, but the area under the dishwasher can also be a hotspot for cockroaches.
All the food crumbs that accidentally slide under the dishwasher can invite the cockroaches to live beneath the appliance.
Dishwasher Drain
A dishwasher drain is also a common place for cockroaches to live. In fact, any drain in your house is vulnerable to cockroach infestation if you don’t clean it every few months.
Therefore, a dishwasher drain needs deep cleaning every month.
Since this appliance cleans dishes, food particles can clog up the drains and attract cockroaches. Soon, these food particles start to rot, which becomes an even bigger attraction for the pests.
A clean drain will also help your dishwasher run smoothly and more effectively.
How to Get Rid of Cockroaches in the Dishwasher?
Eliminating a pest infestation is not a one-day task. Getting rid of the entire cockroach population from your house requires patience and consistency.
So, now that you know why these cockroaches spread through your dishwasher and where they are hiding, it is time to get rid of them.
You can follow these easy tips to get rid of cockroaches living in your dishwasher:
Deep Clean Regularly
The musty smell from a dirty dishwasher can also attract cockroaches. So, the most important step to keep the cockroaches away is deep cleaning your dishwasher every few days.
The ideal gap between the deep cleaning sessions is two to three days. This way, you can ensure no food scraps and grease are stuck inside the dishwasher.
Pay Attention to the Pipes
Pipes are often neglected since they are hidden under or behind the dishwasher. However, you can not forget them just because of their discrete placement. You need to invest your time in deep cleaning any water inlet and outlet of the dishwasher.
As mentioned above, these pipes easily get clogged because of grease and food particles. So, ensure proper weekly cleaning of dishwasher pipes to avoid attracting cockroaches.
It’s better to follow this routine right after a few uses. That’s because once roaches start living in the drain, eliminating their population can be pretty tricky.
Use Baits and Traps
You can also use different baits and traps inside your dishwasher to catch every roaming cockroach. For example, a glue trap with a smear of peanut butter can effectively capture these pests inside the dishwasher.
However, since the environment inside the dishwasher is moist, it can reduce the sticking of such traps over time.
Therefore, you might need to change it often. You can also use a suitable mechanical trap that you can reuse easily.
Vacuum Under and Behind the Dishwasher
As discussed above, the area under and behind the dishwasher can be the most neglected in the kitchen. Many people don’t include them in their regular cleaning sessions.
As a result, this area accumulates dust, food particles, and clutter, making it perfect for cockroach survival.
Therefore, these undisturbed spots require regular cleansing. For example, try sliding the mop under the dishwasher to clean it when cleaning your kitchen floor.
Cleaning behind the dishwasher should also be a part of your monthly cleaning checklist to prevent cockroach infestation.
Check the Seals
The dishwasher door has a strong silicone or rubber seal to prevent water and steam from leaking. However, this seal can develop fungus over time due to accumulated food particles and a humid environment.
Since these bugs also feed on fungi, a small breed of cockroaches starts living in the folds of the seal. They can also lay eggs in the seal as the soft layer protects them from any impact damage.
So, clean the seals of your dishwasher daily to avoid such situations. In addition, you can also spray a vinegar and water solution on the seals and corners of the machine to repel cockroaches.
Keep Your Kitchen Clean
Lastly, you must keep your kitchen clean and free from cockroaches. Cleaning the dishwasher is not the only task on your list if you want your house to become pest-free.
Cockroaches always hunt for ideal living conditions with enough food and water to survive. So, if you have cleaned your dishwasher and your kitchen is still infested with cockroaches, they will find their way back into the machine.
Keep in mind to clean your kitchen with high-quality cleaning products that repel pests without causing any toxicity to human beings.
With the habit of cleaning your house daily, you can prevent the growth of cockroaches and eliminate their entire population from the premises. However, it is a slow process that requires time, patience, and consistency.
FAQs
Can I Put Borax in My Dishwasher?
Yes, you can put borax to kill cockroaches in your dishwasher to deeply clean the appliance and eliminate cockroaches. You can also add borax to your dishwasher while you run it to clean dishes. When cockroaches ingest boric powder, it instantly starts damaging their nervous and digestive system, causing them to die eventually.
Can I Put a Roach Bomb in My Dishwasher?
No, you cannot put a roach bomb in your dishwasher. A roach bomb contains pesticides that are unsafe to use in a dish cleaning appliance. In addition, the remnants of pesticides can be harmful to human health as they can cause severe poisoning.
Can You Get Roaches Out of a Dishwasher?
Yes, you can get roaches out of a dishwasher by maintaining a daily cleaning schedule. This includes small steps, such as scraping the leftover food, not leaving dishes inside when the dishwasher is not running, and deep cleaning around the machine.
Final Thoughts
Cockroaches love greasy, humid, and dark environments. These conditions provide them with food, water, and shelter, allowing them to live and reproduce rapidly. Your dishwasher checks all the boxes for having favorable conditions for roaches.
Many factors can invite roaches to dishwashers. They include leaving dirty dishes in your dishwasher and grease build-up.
Therefore, deep cleaning your dishwasher every week is necessary to keep it roach-free. Moreover, cleaning behind and under the appliance at least twice a month adds a bonus point in avoiding roach infestations.
In addition, several traps and baits also work wonders in capturing these pests. However, never use chemical baits or pesticides in your dishwasher, as these products can contaminate your dishes.
You can make your kitchen and dishwasher pest-free with a consistent effort and following a healthier, more hygienic lifestyle.