My Neighbor Has Roaches. How Do I Stop Them?
Living next to a hoarder or messy neighbor? Don't let their roaches move in. Learn how to seal plumbing gaps and dust wall voids to create a barrier.
Living in an apartment building means you are only as clean as your dirtiest neighbor.
If the guy in 4B has a German Roach infestation, eventually, they will travel through the wall voids to visit you. It's inevitable.
So, how do you build a fortress?
Seal the plumbing
Look under your kitchen sink. See where the drain pipe goes into the wall? There is usually a gap around that pipe.
That is the Roach Highway.
Get a can of spray foam (yes, it works for roaches, unlike mice) or a metal escutcheon plate and seal that gap tight. Do the same for the bathroom sink and the toilet intake line.
Dust the Voids
You can't spray the neighbor's apartment. But you can poison the "No Man's Land" between you.
Take off your electrical outlet covers (carefully!). Puff a tiny bit of Boric Acid or Diatomaceous Earth into the wall void. Put the cover back on. Now, any roach trying to cross the border has to walk through a minefield of death dust.
The "Door Sweep" Defense
Roaches walk right under the front door from the hallway. Install a heavy-duty rubber door sweep. If you can see light coming under your door, a roach can fit.