Cockroaches are nocturnal, so seeing them at night is normal for them. Seeing them at all is what matters — and seeing them in daylight means considerably more.
It means there is an established population, not a one-off. Cockroaches are nocturnal and hide by day; the ones you see when the light goes on are a fraction of the total.
Seeing them in daylight is worse — it usually means the harbourage is overcrowded.
Rule of thumb: if you can see them, there are a great many you cannot.
Worth treating as a separate and more urgent signal.
See our full cockroach control service, published prices and what treatment involves.
View Cockroach Control Kenton →| Where you saw it run to | What is probably behind it |
|---|---|
| Under the fridge | Harbourage under and behind it — the commonest of all |
| Behind the cooker | Warmth and grease |
| Into the unit plinth | The void running along the base of the kitchen |
| Behind the washing machine | Warmth and moisture |
| Towards the sink | Water, and often a leaking trap |
| Into a boxed-in pipe run | A route to another room, or another flat |
| Behind the boiler or airing cupboard | Constant warmth |
Where it ran is genuinely useful information. Note it rather than chasing it.
| What you saw | Possibly |
|---|---|
| Flat, oval, fast, long antennae, ran from light | Cockroach |
| Small, dark, rounded, slow, near a window | A beetle — often harmless |
| Shiny black, in a garden or garage at night | Ground beetle — harmless |
| Long, flat, many legs, very fast | Centipede — harmless |
| Small, silver, wriggling, in a bathroom | Silverfish — a damp indicator, not a cockroach |
Send us a photograph. Beetles and silverfish get mistaken for cockroaches constantly, and we would rather tell you it is a ground beetle than sell you a treatment.
There is no honest exact answer, but the shape of it is worth knowing.
Very rarely, and it is not the reason to deal with them. The hygiene and allergen aspects are.
They live in the warm motor housing at the back rather than in the cold interior.
No. A heated house is their ideal environment year-round.
Something buzzing rather than scuttling? Wasp nests are £90 fixed in Kenton, guaranteed.
That there is an established population. They are nocturnal, and the ones you see are a fraction of the total.
Yes. It usually means the harbourage is overcrowded and individuals are being pushed out.
No. A supermarket aerosol scatters the population and makes proper treatment harder.
Droppings like coarse ground pepper, purse-shaped brown egg cases glued into crevices, shed skins, and a musty oily smell.
Cockroaches are flat, oval and fast with long antennae and run from light. Send a photograph — beetles and silverfish are mistaken for them constantly.
There is no exact answer, but one seen at night means an established population and egg cases mean it is breeding on site.
Very rarely. The hygiene and allergen aspects are the reason to deal with them.
No. A heated house is ideal for them all year round.
Photograph one and note where it ran. We will tell you what it is before you book anything.
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