Why aerosol sprays don't fix roach problems
Walk into any supermarket in Jamaica and you'll find a dozen different roach sprays. Everyone has used them. And everyone still has roaches. There's a reason.
Spray kills the roaches you can see. For every roach you see during the day, there are 20–50 you don't see hiding in walls, behind appliances, inside the fridge motor compartment, and in cracks you'll never spray into. The spray never reaches them. Worse, roaches sense the spray residue and avoid treated areas — pushing the colony deeper into the house.
What actually works: gel bait + growth regulator
Professional roach treatment uses two things homeowners rarely do:
1. Gel bait placed in cracks and crevices
A tiny drop of attractant-laced gel bait, placed where roaches live (not where they walk — where they live), gets eaten by workers, carried back to the harbourage, and spread through the colony as roaches eat each other's droppings and dead bodies. One drop can eliminate 50+ roaches.
2. Insect growth regulator (IGR)
An IGR doesn't kill adults — it stops the next generation from developing. Combined with bait, this breaks the reproduction cycle so you don't have a new wave in a few weeks.
Both of these are odourless, don't require you to leave the house, and are safe around food prep areas when applied correctly.
What you can do yourself to help the treatment work
- Fix any water leaks — roaches need water more than food. A dripping tap or leaky dishwasher pipe is a roach magnet.
- Store food in sealed containers — including pet food. Cereal boxes and bags of flour feed colonies.
- Vacuum crumbs daily for the first week — don't just wipe counters, get under the fridge and behind the stove where crumbs collect.
- Take out trash nightly — not every other day. Nightly.
- Fix cracks and gaps — around pipes under the sink, behind outlets, where cabinets meet walls. Roaches travel between units through tiny openings.
What NOT to do
- Don't spray anything after bait is placed. Spray contaminates the bait and makes roaches avoid it.
- Don't deep-clean with strong chemicals immediately after treatment. Light cleaning is fine.
- Don't move the bait placements if the technician placed them in weird spots (behind the fridge, inside cabinet hinges). Those spots are chosen for a reason.
- Don't give up at 2 weeks. It can take 3–4 weeks for the colony to fully collapse because of the egg cycle.
Signs the infestation is bigger than you think
If any of these apply, you have more roaches than you realise and professional treatment is the right call:
- You see roaches during the day (they come out at night when the population is manageable)
- You smell a sweet, musty odour in the kitchen
- You find roach egg cases (small brown capsules) in corners
- You've sprayed for weeks and they're still there
- You live in an apartment and your neighbours have them too
Why apartments and multi-unit buildings are special cases
In an apartment or multi-unit building, roaches travel freely between units through walls, plumbing voids and electrical conduits. Treating only your unit while your neighbour's unit is untreated is a losing battle. The building needs a coordinated programme — which is what we handle for property managers across Kingston.
Tired of fighting roaches? Our cockroach control programme uses the professional gel bait + IGR approach — odourless, no need to leave the house, and effective. Get a free quote or WhatsApp us a photo.
Published 2026-10-23 · Sim T's Pest Control & Fumigation