Silverfish Pest Control - How to Get Rid of Silver Fish
Are Having A Hard Time Getting Rid Of Silverfish?
Have you ever noticed some small silver insects that crawl around on your bathroom floor or other humid areas in your home? Did you try using DIY treatments to eliminate them but to no avail?
If it is any consolation for you, you are not the only one suffering from this problem. Yes, there are a lot of Dublin homeowners out there who are dealing with the nasty problem called silverfish, especially in apartment blocks.
The sad news is that most DIY treatments to get rid of silverfish aren’t that effective since these pests live mainly in damp and dark places. When you see a silverfish insect in your kitchen, it is possible that hundreds of them are lurking in ceiling and wall voids where they remain invisible.
If you see silverfish in bathroom, there will be more of them in those voids in the walls and under the cabinets. It is not enough to just use topical sprays, sticky traps, and desiccants to kill silverfish pests. Before anything else, it is important to understand the issue first and nip the problem from the bud.
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Silverfish – What are They?
The silverfish is a silvery and slender insect pest that you can find not only in Dublin but also in other parts of the Ireland.
Silverfish are considered as nuisance pests once they find their way inside homes. While it might be difficult for them to control, they don’t pose harm to humans nor do they spread diseases. However, silverfish pests are infamous for their ability to damage material goods like books, photos, wallpapers, clothing, and even dry foods in your kitchen pantry.
Areas under the sink are particularly attractive to the eyes of silverfish, especially those in the kitchen and bathroom with dark and humid environment. These insects may also make their homes in crawl spaces, closets, or walls. They stay hidden during daytime but when nighttime comes, they go out of their hiding spots to look for food.
Check these amazing facts about silverfish
How Do You Identify Silverfish?
Silverfish pests are wingless insects with soft and slender bodies shaped like a carrot with a length of around half an inch.
These insects look like a fish because of their scaly and shiny silver bodies that taper to the back part. There are no obvious segmentations on their bodies and it is easy to identify them by the two slender antennae that stem from the heads and three appendages similar to tails found on their rear ends. Silverfish are thinner and smaller than cockroaches with a color different from earwig, another insect of similar size.
The legs of silverfish pests are rather stubby yet never let these fool you. These insects can move really fast, particularly when startled. The best time when people often see or notice the presence of silverfish is when they are feasting late at night and you interrupt them and they scuttle back to the dark areas of your home. The quick side to side movement of silverfish reminds you of a swimming fish, which explains their name.
Where Can You Find Silverfish?
Silverfish in the outdoors live in secluded and moist places. For example, you might find them under leaf coverage, rocks, or tree bark. There are many ways for these insects to get inside your house. They can also crawl inside through the foundations or other existing openings. It is also possible that you might have been the one who brought silverfish inside your house by mistake. These tiny crawlers can infest paper, books, and other stuff that you might have brought inside your house without you knowing it.
The moment silverfish pests get into your home, they settle and live in the same areas. All stages of silverfish thrive more in moist spots, especially the nymphs. The result is that it is common for these insects to gather in bathroom cabinets and corners. But, bathrooms might not be the best spot for them when it comes to avoiding human contact. Silverfish have reclusive instincts and this is what drives them into wall voids, basements, and attics.
Attics in particular are common hiding spots for these pests because these areas are not used a lot, not to mention that there are also many available food sources for them there. Pictures, old documents, dust, and other items can give small silverfish pests their much-needed nourishment to reproduce and thrive until you end up with hundreds or even thousands of silverfish in your home.
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What Makes It Difficult to Get Rid of Silverfish in Your Home?
Available sources of food play a big role when it comes to attracting silverfish. But, these bugs also travel considerable distances away from their den as they search for possible food sources. Silverfish can scavenge paper, crumbs, dust, and other relatively innocent sources of sustenance around the house.
Due to their flexible diets, food cannot really be considered as the only thing that attracts silverfish and results to infestation. Instead, the primary factor that attracts these insects is none other than the presence of warm and dark moist areas where they can live.
Silverfish tend to thrive only in places with relative humidity of 75% to 95% and they also instinctively search for secluded and enclosed places. The species was able to survive for around 400 million years because they were too fast to be eaten by other insects. Silverfish are also too irrelevant and low-key for the bigger species to take notice of them.
The bathroom is one common place where silverfish pests can reside as this part of your home surely meets their moisture requirements. The only downside for them is that bathrooms are used often and are also usually well-lit. This means that there might be a silverfish pest infestation hiding right under your nose. You might want to look behind and under appliances, in cabinets, and beneath the bathtub.
One more thing to consider is that there are people who often leave trash, newspapers, or magazines in the bathroom. It is not a good thing since it only gives silverfish secluded spots where they can hide during daytime. When you do this, you don’t only provide these insects their own small house in your home. At the same time, you also give them a food source that is easily accessible. Be sure to toss out or at least try to reorganize your collections of disposal magazines and reading materials in your bathroom that you have accumulated through the years.
Bathrooms often meet the moisture requirement of silverfish pests while the items and appliances that lay about will only create conducive conditions for them. Meanwhile, kitchen cupboards, attics, and basements automatically cater to their desire for seclusion. If these spots are excessively, these will likely attract more silverfish insects.
Basements have the tendency to gather moisture because of their location. However, other parts of your house that are not used often can also get extremely damp. Refuse and boxes can also fulfill the needs of silverfish pests for the kind of environment where they can flourish in. Even though your attic or basement might not be damp enough to serve as a host for silverfish infestation, those undisturbed piles of stuff with poor circulation of air definitely can.
In general, you can prevent the occurrence of silverfish pest infestation if you make your house inhospitable and unwelcoming to them. Keeping your house organized and neat and ensuring low humidity level will deprive them of required conditions for their survival.
Why is It Important to Address the Root of Your Silverfish Problem?
Similar to other insects, silverfish pests tend to live for a long time. Although there are many insects that only live during the time of the year they hatch, silverfish live for as long as 8 years. Throughout the 8 years of their life, these insects can reproduce many babies. If you fail to alter the conditions that allow silverfish pests to find their way and survive inside the house, you might have ongoing problems with these insects.
How to Keep Silverfish Out of Your Home
Remember that silverfish pests target your home’s low entry points. They cannot chew their way through wood and this is why they usually use the holes made by other pests that damage wood such as ants, rats, and mice.
These pests chew on wood that water has softened and damaged. It is ideal for silverfish because they prefer damp areas. They also prefer dark places since they are naturally nocturnal. The darker is better for silverfish pests.
Understanding this will help you look the entry points made by wood-damaging pests and seal these up to prevent these pests from getting into your house. Be sure to search for holes in the following:
- Timber soleplates
- Seals around window and door frames or even in frames themselves especially those in shaded and damp areas or near the ground
- Door sweeps and weatherstripping
Silverfish pests will also take advantage of cracks or gaps in your house. Other ways for these insects to get in include:
- Chipped mortar
- Cracks in foundations and cement walls
- Gaps around pipes
- Unprotected weep holes
For more info, check our comprehensive article: All That You Would Like to Know About Silverfish Pest Control
If you are having a hard time getting rid of silverfish in your home, be sure to hire experts such as Owl Pest Control Dublin to say goodbye to these insects once and for all!
