Does Bleach Kill Roaches?

Tired of roaches taking place over your house? Today I’ll give you safe, cheap and easily available solution.

You can actually use bleach to get rid of roaches from your house.

What Is Bleach?

Generally speaking, bleach is a chemical combination designed to remove or lighten colors. There is more than one type of bleach as follows:

  • Chlorine bleach that includes sodium hypochlorite
  • Oxygen bleach that has hydrogen peroxide
  • Bleaching Powder

Mainly, household bleach has a mixture of chemicals as sodium hydroxide, hydrogen peroxide, and calcium hypochlorite.

It’s used to remove color or to disinfect clothes and surfaces. It’s almost vital in modern kitchens and bathrooms. Moreover, it’s often added to wastewater to reduce the odor.

Bleach is also used to detoxify cyanide baths and to prevent algae growth in cooling towers. Additionally, it purifies water supplies and pools.

Does Bleach Kill Cockroaches?

And another important question; do roaches like bleach? Some people might suggest soaking breadcrumbs in bleach but that won’t be a wise solution. It’ll be dangerous if you have kids or pets around and it won’t attract cockroaches as well.

Your second best option will be drowning the cockroach. This will be a better option since bleach is a strong chemical and will kill the cockroach in a few of seconds.

bleach for roaches

However, the only drawback is that you need to catch these insects one by one. You can try filling a spray bottle with the bleach and spraying it over cockroaches to speed the process. But you will miss some and could make a mess of you home as well.

You might find some people suggesting mixing Pine-sol with bleach to make it a strong solution. However, these two chemicals should never be mixed together because they may emit poisonous chlorine gas.

So to put an end to this annoying matter, you need to reach to their nest and just get rid of them for good.

What Makes Chlorine Bleach Kill Cockroaches?

Bleach has the ability to kill cockroaches either through ingestion or drowning.

Ingestion requires that the cockroach has to drink the solution and that will be a hard task.  Bleach gives off a strong smell that cockroaches hate and always avoid.

Therefore roaches will just keep away from the solution instead of drinking it. In that case, bleach will be just a repellent and will keep them away but won’t eliminate their existence.

Use Bleach to Destroy Nests

Cockroaches are attracted to water and sometimes nest in pipes. So if you notice roaches coming out of the sink or shower drain, you can pour a cup of bleach then add some cups of water. This will kill the roaches in these pipes.

Don’t overdo it. Bleach causes corrosion to pipes, so don’t repeat this process many times and let it be your last option.

What should you do if they are inside your house? I suggest that fumigation will be your best and most effective option.

Fumigation, in simple words, is the process of purifying a certain area with fumes of certain chemicals. It’s not a process that you can simply do alone at home and you need to seek professional aid.

If you decided to fumigate your place, I suggest wiping your areas and appliances with a diluted bleach solution to ensure that you didn’t leave behind any food leftovers to avoid attracting roaches.

How to Prevent Cockroach Infestation with Bleach?

Infestation refers to the existence of a large number of animals or insects in a certain place where they can cause serious damage or disease. You don’t want this to happen.

You can simply use bleach to avoid that issue because chlorine is highly toxic to roaches. Use bleach to sanitize the rooms and every corner around the house because roaches won’t tolerate existing near that product. Follow these simple instructions to get your house pest free.

does bleach work for roaches

First, prepare your chlorine bleach or any detergent available that has chlorine. Then add a small amount in the corners of your house, over the drains and in the bathroom.

Concerning the bathroom, you need to make sure that you don’t have any holes in the sanitary ware. Moreover, you need to use enough amount of bleach to clean these spaces.

Safety Precautions When Using Bleach

It’s widely known that bleach is not toxic or harmful to humans and it’s used in many daily activities. However, we’re still talking about chemicals and it’s always better safe than sorry. Therefore, there are simple actions that you can do to avoid any health issues.

Concerning Physical Contact

Since bleach is a corrosive chemical, you need to use a protective piece as gloves. Concentrated bleach can cause burns on your skin if used extensively and if you don’t wash it off your hands.

In case of Being Ingested

Since bleach is an oxidizing agent, it’s important to provide the person or your pet who drank it with lots of water and milk.

These substances will dilute the chemicals. According to the strength of the solution, bleach can burn the mouth or the stomach and might cause vomiting, coma or even death in certain cases.

Therefore, if anyone drank or sipped some bleach, you need to seek professional medical care.

I recommend keeping bleach away and in high places away from kids or animals. Also, don’t use unlabeled containers for bleach because adults might mistake it for water or anything.

In Case of Inhalation

Bleach leaves a strong smell and if a person is exposed to that smell for a long period, it might lead to stinging in the eyes. For longer periods, it might lead to throat burning and difficulty in breathing. Therefore, it’ll be wise to wear a mask while working with bleach.

Things to Remember When Using Bleach to Kill Cockroaches

Here are a few safety practices when using bleach.

  • Wear gloves before using the bleach
  • It’s best to wear a protective mask
  • Wear work clothes while applying bleach. Bleach could spoil your clothes
  • Spray the infestation spots only
  • Avoid spraying grass or flower beds
  • Take care when you spray around the kitchen
  • You don’t want bleach on your produce or food
  • Keep the bleach away from the reach of children
  • Don’t spray near your pets’ food and water bowl

Final Words

I’m aware that roaches are annoying and disgusting. However, you always need to be careful when you use chemicals or bleach to get rid of them.

Your health and your family’s matter a lot. So avoid using any harsh chemicals that have severe side effects and use bleach as a safer option.