How to Get Rid of Pests In-Vehicles?

Common Pests Found In Vehicle

The condition in-vehicle is a warmer environment with plenty of spaces to hide and shelter the pests from their predators. Certain pests will leave the vehicle if food is no longer available. High usage vehicles, especially taxis/cabs, travel coaches, buses, school buses, delivery trucks and vans especially for food industry and even family sedans depending on passengers’ or drivers’ habits are all subjected to pest intrusions so long there are sufficient crumbs for pests’ survivals and growth. Therefore, plenty of pests find its way into a vehicle. Some of the most common pests include:

Cockroaches

Crawls in through tiny gaps or sometimes they may enter your vehicle when they hitch-a-ride on clothing or belongings. Cockroaches survive with scarce food source and can multiply very quickly, even if you clean.

Ants

Ants enter the car through small gaps. Attracted to sugar or protein from spills, food crumbs or food and drinks containers. Sometimes, you maybe unconsciously parking near an ant colony.

Bed Bugs

Bed bugs feed off blood and often hide so well that you may not even notice its intrusion. Bed bugs enter vehicles through carriers and their infestation has no connection with cleanliness.

Carpet Beetles

These beetles feed on pollen but their presence in your car could mean eggs or larvae are nearby. The larvae for these beetles eat natural fibers, such as wool and leather found in cars leaving holes in seats and floorings and can may cause skin irritations.

Spiders

Spiders are generally harmless to people. However, if you are frequently noticing spiders in your car, this can indicate a presence of other bugs that are serving as their food source, or a more significant problem with local pests in general.

How to Get Rid of Pests in a Vehicle?

Pests typically find their way into your car by climbing in through a gap or open window or by clinging to the rider’s clothing or belongings. These pests will often come in to escape the elements, but an infestation can happen at any time if your car has food or water. Traps and baits are your best bet if you want to tackle your cockroach problem quickly and effectively.

1) Sticky or glue traps are a popular option for cars because they do not make a mess and are effective at trapping cockroaches. These can be placed anywhere where you see cockroach activity or under the car seats. The best thing about these traps is that they are safe to use around kids and pets.
Check-out 1STEP Cockroach Trappers

2) Baiting Gel lures cockroaches to eat it, “slowly” killing those that do. Allowing them a short time to return to their nests and dies, spreading to others in the colony as those consume their fallen kin. A quality cockroach bait is so powerful that just a few drops can wipe out nearly every single cockroach in a car, often within a matter of days.
It is recommended to use it with bait stations for easy replacement as well as to slow down the process of gel drying-up in view of air-conditioning of your vehicle. It may take a few days or sometimes weeks to completely eradicate your cockroach problem depending on the size of the infestation. The more cockroaches you have, the longer it will take.
Similarly for ant bait gel which targets the whole ant colony when the ants bring the bait back to feed the Queen. Check-out 1STEP Roach Killer Gel with Roach Bait Stations and 1STEP Ant Killer Gel with Ant Bait Stations.

3) Diatomaceous earth is safe for both kids and pets. This is a universal solution to fight against ants, cockroaches, carpet beetles and even bed bugs. In fact, you can even rub diatomaceous earth on your pet’s fur to kill fleas – a versatile remedy. Simply sprinkle a thin layer onto carpets and under seats. It kills the pests when they walk through it—they don’t even have to eat it!
Check out 1STEP Crawling Insect Powder / 1STEP Natural Bed Bug Powder

4) Insecticides, fogger or bug bomb
Use insecticides, fogger or bug bomb only as a last resort as the chemical can be flammable and very toxic to humans and pets. Be careful when using them. Do not stay inside the car, let the car air out for a few hours. You may also want to run the air conditioning for at least 10 minutes to clean out the vents, too. Although these may be quite effective in contact killing of cockroaches when necessary, it will not resolve the root source of the problem.

5) Professional Pest Control Service For Vehicle?
If you have a serious infestation, you may need to call a professional exterminator. However, it is unlikely that a roach infestation will grow so large in your car that you will need professional help. Since it is a confined space, there are only so many places where they can spread. Using a combination of remedies and preventive measures as mentioned here, you should be able to eliminate pests in a car yourself. However for pests like bed bugs or if you would prefer professional pest control assistance to help you with maintenance or extermination, simply call 6781 8588 or whatsapp us.

Will baits attract even more roaches?

The distance over which an insect can detect volatile chemical agents associated with food is a function of the sensitivity of the insect to that odor and the local concentration of that agent. Concentration declines with distance from the source. You need to place the baits strategically where you notice the droppings for it to work best.

You would rather be concerned with whether the bait will effectively attract the cockroach at all. It is better to find the insect dead than to find it playing hide and seek with you. Cockroaches hide well at hard-to-spot spaces and will just keep reproducing at their hiding spot.

Why do baits take days to work?

The effectiveness of baiting system refers to extermination of the nests and not just killing of the pests that you spotted. You may also find pest dying from the bait on the spot. It works best for hidden infestations like ants or cockroaches. For ants colony, the bait is made to kill slowly enough to allow time for the foraging ants to deliver it back to the rest of the unsuspecting colony.

Is 1STEP's pest control safe for my vehicle?

1STEP Pest Control Services is a NEA certified Pest Control Operator Since 2004. Assuring you peace of mind by using as far as possible food grade, natural products and bait stations for all our pest control treatments that are safe for kids and pets. Our NEA certified technicians are trained to conduct thorough and detailed extermination services. Call 6781 8588 or whatsapp us for more information.

10 Preventive Measures

Taking these preventative steps can make your car less appealing to pests and reduce the risk of an infestation.

Avoid parking near

Drains or garbage bins – Car owners should refrain from parking near areas where cockroaches thrive, such as drainage openings, sewage drains and garbage bins.

Avoid eating in the car

Regardless how carefully you eat in the car, food residue or crumbs are enough to attract roaches to your vehicle.

Close vents & windows

Keep windows rolled up when the car is parked. Even a small gap can be enough space for most bugs to enter through.

Any Hitchhiking Pests?

Before loading your car, check all boxes, bags, backpacks and luggage for any pests that may be riding along. Inspect after trips and take a good look in the trunk after you've dropped everything off.

Clean Regularly

One of the most reliable ways to keep your vehicle free from ants and cockroaches. Don’t overlook areas such as carpets, in-between car seats, and sides of the door which can collect waste and food particles.

Vacuum Regularly

Vacuuming removes stray crumbs that could be a food source for pests. It can also catch pests like ants and bed bugs to keep the population under control.

Food and Drink Containers

After eating in your car, the smell and residue on the containers that held your food can attract pests. Cockroaches feed on garbage, so make sure you throw them out.

Clean Up Spills

Cockroaches are also attracted to water, so make sure that any spills in the car are wiped up right away. Use carpet shampoo for floors and cloth seats to remove any residue.

reduce clutters

Clutters provides places for hide out, especially in the boot of the car facilitated with its dark and humid environment. Store them in tight containers to keep pests out.