Scurrying around inside, you found roaches to be living inside your microwave. It’s alarming, and considering how these disgusting creatures can spread disease and contaminate your food, getting them out as soon as possible is the top priority. How can you get these roaches out of your microwave?
You can use natural solutions such as vinegar, boric acid, or baking soda. You can also use traps or roach bombs. Insecticides may also work, but since these are harmful chemicals, we don’t recommend them as a first choice since these will be used inside a microwave oven.
Studies have shown that cockroaches are so resilient that they can even withstand nuclear blasts. They can live without food for a month and without water for up to two weeks!
Despite the common misconception that roasting them in the microwave oven can kill them, you’ll be surprised to see that they can actually survive even extreme temperatures!
Why Do Cockroaches Stay Inside the Microwave?
What’s more horrifying than finding a roach scuttling around in your kitchen? Finding them inside your microwave! It’s dark and hot there, the perfect place for cockroaches.
It’s that one place in your kitchen where bits of food are bound to fall and go unnoticed. Roaches are also attracted to the heat that comes from microwaves, so they like to stay close to them.
Some people have even shared stories that despite driving them out for good, cockroaches still find a way back to their microwave.
Even if you don’t leave the door open, these pests can find a way toward your appliance through its ventilation holes in the back. Adult and baby roaches can simply squeeze through incredibly small spaces, and there’s no surprise that they can do that to get inside your microwave oven.
Letting them out and baiting the cockroaches to leave your microwave won’t just do the trick. While it’s a temporary solution, there are no guarantees that they won’t come back to find shelter in your warm and dark microwave oven.
Especially during the colder months, cockroaches are bound to look for any place that can give them warmth and food.
With that being said, learning how to get them out and kill them for good is the best thing that you can do to stop cockroaches from getting in your microwave in the first place.
How to Get Roaches Out of Microwave – For Good!
While it’s admittedly disconcerting to find a roach crawling around in your microwave, getting them out requires a few steps you can follow.
Use Vinegar
Vinegar contains acetic acid, which is a natural roach repellent. You can use this to your advantage by creating a trap that will lure the cockroaches in and kill them.
To do this, mix water and vinegar in equal parts and pour the mixture into a bowl. Place the bowl inside the microwave and leave it there overnight.
The roaches will be attracted to the vinegar and will crawl into the bowl. They won’t be able to get out and will eventually die.
Alternatively, if you suspect that your roaches are hiding in vents and cracks, you can use a vinegar and water mixture to spray them. The strong smell of vinegar will lure them out of their hiding. Although this method doesn’t instantly kill cockroaches, it’s a great way to get them out of your microwave so you can deal with them later.
Boric Acid
Boric acid is a white, powdery substance commonly used as an insecticide. It is relatively safer than commercial insecticides, but it is deadly to roaches. If you have roaches in your microwave, boric acid can help you get rid of them quickly and effectively.
To use boric acid, mix it with sugar or flour to bait the roaches. Place the mixture in a shallow dish and leave it near where you’ve seen the roaches.
The roaches will be attracted to the sweet smell of the sugar and will crawl into the dish. They can bring the boric acid back to their nest, and all roaches who eat it will die.
Diatomaceous Earth
Diatomaceous earth is a white powder that is made from the fossilized remains of algae. It’s commonly used as an insecticide because it effectively kills roaches and other pests.
The good thing about diatomaceous earth is that it’s safe to use around humans and animals. It’s food-grade, making it the perfect solution for your microwave infestation. However, be careful when spraying this around as it can irritate your respiratory tract.
To use diatomaceous earth to get rid of roaches in your microwave, simply sprinkle it around the appliance.
You can also try putting a dish of diatomaceous earth in your cupboard or under your skink to keep roaches out of these areas. Once these roaches come in contact with the powder, they’ll eventually die.
Use Insecticides
All the above procedures are all-natural methods – and while they’re effective, these natural methods won’t instantly kill the cockroaches.
It may take a few days or weeks to cause a significant decrease in their population. If you want to get rid of roaches fast, your best bet is to use an insecticide. Roaches die instantly when exposed to insecticides.
However, it should be used as a last resort when dealing with cockroaches inside your microwave. This is because most insecticides are made with harmful chemicals, and when sprayed inside the microwave, these chemicals can be released into the air. They could potentially cause toxicity when it comes in contact with food – or when inhaled.
Final Thoughts
It’s never fun to get rid of roaches in a microwave, especially if you don’t know how they got there in the first place. But there are natural solutions such as boric acid, vinegar spray solutions, and diatomaceous earth that will help you get rid of these and gradually kill your roaches.
Insecticides kill the roaches instantly, so if you’re looking for a quick fix, this is what you’d like to use. Otherwise, if you’re concerned about the chemicals found in these cans of insecticides, you can always opt for natural methods, where roaches will die slowly, but surely.
