Silverfish, though harmless, are annoying to deal with. They’re gross, cause allergies, and even damage household items. Silverfish are easy to identify by their silver color and quick movements.
Although they are a nuisance, there are several solutions to a silverfish problem, from do it yourself tips. Read more regarding how to get rid of silverfish as well as how to inhibit them.
What is a Silverfish?
Silverfish are tiny fish like silver bugs that slither around. They need high moisture levels to grow well, so the humidity in Pinecrest makes your home the ideal habitat.
They are some of the most ancient insects out there. Scientists have found a 385-year-old fossilized silverfish-like creature. The fossil is about 60 million years older than the timeline when insects began to populate the world abundantly.
Silverfish fossils originated in the Devonian period when Earth’s lower oxygen levels limited insects–but the absence of fossils could also be explained by earthly sediments that could not survive this period.
Silverfish go after polysaccharides, a sugary substance found in many household items such as carpet fibers, book glue, household glue, paint, fabric, and furniture.
But they’re not very social creatures. If you have ever seen one before, they tend to linger in the dark, whether going between tight spaces or coming out of concealment at night. They may pass along proof, such as droppings and egg sacs.
You may never see one in the daytime or even at night unless you’re looking for one or know what to watch for.
Why are Silverfish in my Home?
Silverfish, like many other insects, are looking for dark, moist spaces. In Florida, they can find just that. If you have silverfish in and round your home, they may be telling you something.
Your house has too much moisture. Water problems such as leaks can attract to silverfish to your home, so you should look around for possible leaks or have your plumbing inspected by a licenced plumber.
Silverfish get enter your home through small entry points. This can include cracks in your foundation, crawlspaces, open doors, open windows, gaps beneath doors, and more.
What Do Silverfish Eat?
Silverfish can eat most anythings in your home, this is the greatest problem with them. If you have a silverfish infestation, you can begin to see damage in your house.
It’s common to see wallpaper chipped, books damaged, or evidence of silverfish in food items like sugar, coffee, or oats.
This is because of the polysaccharides and sugary carbohydrates.
Signs of a Silverfish Infestation
- Silverfish sightings: Sure, it seems obvious, but if you see one silverfish, there likely are many. Seeing one means the condition in your home are perfect for silverfish, so they’ll gradually start to migrate.
- You see Silverfish feces: Gross, I know, but it’s an important sign to look for. Silverfish will leave their feces pretty much everywhere. they are miniature pellets that look like peppercorns.
- Yellow stains: Wher silverfish hang out, they’ll leave behind yellow staining, which may not necessarily mean urine. These stains can be anywhere, such as in clothing, newspapers, or books.
- Skin moltings: If you see a thin, silver substance, it might be from shedding silverfish.
Can Silverfish Hurt You?
Silverfish are a nuisance pests. While they do have mouthparts, their jaws are too weak to bite humans. They also don’t carry diseases, which is excellent, but you probably don’t want the yucky bacteria they spread around your home.
The most harm silverfish can cause allergies from their droppings or skin molts. Allergic reactions can vary depending on the individual.
Besides that, all you need to be concerned about is if you have a silverfish infestation is you could have a possible leak or your belongings might be damaged.
At NaturePest, we understand why you might be worried about finding silverfish in your home. The best way to get rid of silverfish entirely is to call a pest control professional, but if you’d like to handle the problem yourself, we’ve put together some ways to get rid of them.
How to Get Rid of Silverfish?
While silverfish are fast, they’re not invincible. They’re sneaky, so you have to think creatively.
Remember that silverfish eat just about anything because they love adhesives and glue. They’ll nibble on just about any protein and carbohydrate and love to be protected by go into hiding under or behind furniture.
The Best Ways to Get Rid of Silverfish in Pinecrest
- Create silverfish traps: Using a food source, a Do it yourself tip to eliminate silverfish. Take starchy food like dog food, cereal or and put it in a glass container with the outside wrapped in tape. They will detect the food and crawl into the jar, but they won’t be able to crawl out because of the glass.
- Purchase glue traps: These can be found at your hardware store. Place them around where you see them, and you will catch them.
- Make use of essential oils: Some essential oils, such as mint oil, can repel silverfish.
- Declutter: Silverfish like to indulge on household items like magazines and books and those are likely to take up space in your house on bookshelves, tables, or in boxes.
- Clean: If you have dirty dishes, food sitting out, lots of dust, or any other cleaning you’ve been meaning to do , that may be contributing to your silverfish issue. Silverfish love starchy foods like pasta, cereal, and rice, so ensure those items are sealed up.
Borates are another substance that can kill silverfish and other pests. However, you should be extremely careful when using them. We do not recommend using borates loosely if you have children or pets, as it is a risk. A low-risk option is to mop floors with Twenty Mule Team Borax or Orange oil cleaners.
You can also try applying diatomaceous Earth in wall voids, a safer alternative that can kill silverfish and many other common household pests.
After you have tried these tips, go after the moisture problem. Locate the areas in your house that have the highest moisture levels. This could be your bathrooms, kitchen, and attic,. Look in all the cracks and crevices to ensure you don’t have any leaks where silverfish are bound to gather.
If you find water leaks, fixing them as soon as possible makes a huge difference in the amount of silverfish in your home.
Other Ways to Get Rid of Silverfish
Silverfish in your Bathroom
Bathrooms have the majority of moisture in your home. Fortunately, it isn’t too challenging to get silverfish out.
Using a dehumidifier in your bathroom is a great tool to get silverfish out of bathrooms. It’s much safer than using boric acids or store-bought glue board.
You can also use essential oil-scented sprays to repel silverfish, such as air fresheners or cleaners.
Silverfish in your Kitchen
Your kitchen is a possible hotspot for silverfish, mainly because they love starchy foods. An excellent first step is ensuring that chip bags, cereal boxes, rice, or pasta packages are sealed.
Next, you can try swapping your regular cleaners for orange oil or essential oil-scented cleaners. Deep clean your kitchen including your cabinets and the silverfish will see fewer food source options and be repelled by the scented oil cleaners at the same time.
Silverfish in the Closet
Silverfish like to go after your clothes, specially starched garments. Avoid hanging up clothes after wearing them. A simple way to repel them is to wash your clothes and with a few drops of essential oils in the washer to your laundry detergent. Your clothes will smell like oils and overwhelm the silverfish.
Silverfish in the Drawers
Use Boric acid packs like Dekko Silverfish Paks in your nightstand, garment drawers ok kitchen and bath drawers, anywhere they are out of reach of children and pets.
Silverfish in the Attic
Your attic provides the perfect place for silverfish. It’s dark, moist, remote, dusty, and protected. If you find silverfish there, this may be an excellent place to sprinkle or spray boric baits, suppose your children or pets don’t go up there.
Silverfish Control Near Me in Pinecrest
While Do Ir Yourself techniques are intelligent, they can grow tedious. Silverfish are difficult pests. They’re small, shy, and quick, and that you may see all the evidence and not be able to find a single one.
However, there is an alternative solution that is proven to work! NaturePest uses the most child and pet-friendly products and procedures to eliminate silverfish as quickly as possible.
Our home pest control services target silverfish and the other most common household pests like ants, cockroaches, spiders, and earwigs.
To get rid of silverfish, we’ll first use a long-lasting granular bait in the attic. Next, we’ll go to the kitchen and bathrooms to use borates in your voids, crack, and crevices.
We’ll then set insect glue monitors, gel baits, and granular baits in the cracks and crevices of your home. Finally, we’ll place a long-lasting granular bait and spray a pet-friendly residual product along the exterior of your home.
We’re focused on long-term prevention. By choosing a home pest control plan, we’ll give you back the peace of mind that the silverfish and other pests stole from you.
You’ll also save time and money with a preventive plan. Using insect traps and baits is one thing, but if you’re continuously going back to the hardware store for another glueboard because you haven’t gotten any results, that’s when professional pest control might be the best option.
And we’re available to you locally–NaturePest services all of South Dade. If you’re outside the area, we service Cutler Bay, Perrine, Palmetto Bay, Homestead and Florida City
You don’t have to live with silverfish anymore. Put your pest problems in our hands, and give us a call today!