Silverfish are a surreal pest when you encounter them on the bathroom floor at night or slithering around in the tub as you step in to take a shower. Though not at all related to fish, these insects are silver and have a scale-like appearance and tapered abdomen. They also move in a fish-like motion.
Silverfish might appear in your bathroom, closets, garage, basement, or attic. They won’t bite you, but that doesn’t stop their frightening appearance. Why are these long silver bugs crawling through your home and how can you get rid of them?
What Is A Silverfish?
Silverfish can grow to be between ½ an inch and an inch long. They have long antennae and are white, gray, or silver. A female can lay up to sixty eggs at once, so they can multiply quickly. Silverfish are considered a nuisance pest. They aren’t particularly dangerous, but they can damage your property.
Silverfish don’t bite humans and aren’t associated with any dangerous diseases. However, they eat sugar and starch, which they can find in paper and cloth. This means that a silverfish infestation could damage your books, furniture, clothing, wallpaper, and more.
In addition, silverfish can cause allergies for some people, and they may also attract other pests, such as earwigs, spiders, and centipedes. Plus, these nocturnal creatures can be frightening when you run into them at night!
What Brings Silverfish Into Homes?
Why do silverfish get inside in the first place? They seek out moist areas with access to food. That means that those old newspapers in the basement or boxes in the garage could be major attractors.
Silverfish will often get inside through cracks in the exterior of your home or tears in screens of your doors and windows. They may also be accidentally brought in along with cardboard boxes, furniture, or storage items.
They’ll seek out areas of the house that are dark and humid, such as the bathrooms, basement, closets, under sinks, or in attics. They’ll hide in these areas during the day and emerge at night in search of food.
Silverfish Prevention And Elimination
You can take some steps to try and prevent a silverfish infestation.
- Avoid letting them inside. Keep them from getting in by fixing gaps and cracks around your home and replacing screens that have been broken. When you bring in boxes or storage items, check them closely for bugs before bringing them into your home.
- Reduce the moisture levels. If any of the rooms in your house have high moisture levels, a dehumidifier can dry them out and keep them from attracting silverfish. It’s also important to repair leaks and check that you don’t have standing water anywhere in your home.
- Finally, you can limit the easily available food. These means tidying up storage areas so that silverfish can’t hide as easily and can’t find fabric and paper to eat among the mess. Never leave wet paper out overnight and don’t store old papers and cloth in damp areas.
If you’re worried that this isn’t enough, or if you’ve already seen silverfish in your Hartfod home, contact American Pest Solutions. Our personalized treatments are your best bet for silverfish prevention and elimination. We’ll tailor our solution to your unique situation so that you're sure to get lasting results. Give us a call today to find out how we can help you stop silverfish from getting into your home.