Silverfish Elimination is probably at the top of your list if you have silverfish bugs in your home. When I realized I had a silverfish infestation in my home I was so disgusted with those creatures that all I could think about was where to find effective silverfish elimination information.
You already know how annoying and embarrassing it is to have them in your house. They crawl all over everything with no regard for your bed, your kitchen, dining room, or anywhere else in your home and if you don’t know about silverfish elimination they will stay and become a constant pest.
Silverfish Elimination Is Not Always Easy
During my personal experience with a serious silverfish infestation I discovered they were not so easy to get rid of if you don’t have the right information. I called exterminators but had no long term success in getting them out. Just when I thought they were gone I would see one crawling around and then another and another until I realized I still had an infestation. I am not blaming the exterminators because I later found out that there were additional silverfish elimination steps that I should have taken but was unaware of them.
Reasons Why Silverfish Elimination Can Be Difficult:
- Silverfish can enter your home in numerous ways that you may not be are of, such as in cardboard boxes, furniture, books, Insulation or drywall for a new home.
- They will eat so many different things it difficult to starve them out unless you know what all of their food sources are in your home.
- Their flat elongated bodies make it easy for them to hide under carpets, wallboards and other cracks and crevices in your home
- They like warm humid damp places that usually occur in places in your home that you are not aware of like sweating pipes, leaky roof, damp basements, in attics, and laundry rooms.
Steps To Get Rid Of Silverfish
I finally got sick of them and decided I would not let them take over my home so I started to do extensive research on how to get rid of a silverfish infestation. After much research, trial and error, I was finally able to get them out of my home with an effective silverfish elimination effort. Although getting rid of silverfish is not easy it can happen rather quickly when you know what silverfish elimination steps to take.
There is no one single silverfish elimination method. Below are some steps that can help with getting rid of silverfish:
- Keep your house clean – vacuum often being sure to vacuum in the cracks, crevices and wall boards in your home. Vacuuming will suck up some of the silverfish and silverfish eggs from their hiding places as well as remove dust which contains dust mists the silverfish like to eat.
- Silverfish like to eat the glue found on wallpaper and the glue in book binding of your books – you may want to leave essential oils such as lavender and rosemary in places where you have books. You might even look into airtight containers for books, especially valuable ones to keep silverfish from eating them.
- Throw away old cardboard boxes, newspapers and books that you have lying around the house, in the basement or attic, silverfish love to eat them, as well as use them as hiding places.
- Inspect your house for leaky damp areas such as dripping faucets, sweating pipes, damp basement or other areas that may be a source of dampness. If you have high humidity in your home you could try a dehumidifier since silverfish like homes with high relative humidity.
- Silverfish insecticides are available commercially
- Essential Oils/Plant oils such as eucalyptus, lavender, rosemary, and peppermint are commonly used to repel and kill insects.
Many people are surprised to learn that silverfish are more than just a nuisance; they can damage many items in your home as well as get into your food and lay their eggs. They can be seen any time of day but are more active at night as I discovered one night when I turned on the light to find one of those disgusting creatures on my pillow..
Their food sources include many items inside your home. The silverfish diet is varied but their main food source consists of starches and dextrin contained in adhesives such as glue. Other silverfish food sources include: clothing, paints, paper, photos, carpet, furniture, dandruff plants, cereal, and some types of flour.
The Silverfish Bug Attracts Other insects to Your Home
One of the things that I noticed with my silverfish infestation is that they attract other unwanted insects into your home. Centipedes, earwigs, and spiders are predators of silverfish and the silverfish are an attractive food source for them. When my silverfish infestation was at its peak, I noticed a lot of spiders and centipedes in my home, however as the silverfish infestation started to lessen and eventually my silverfish elimination efforts worked the spiders and centipedes seemed to disappear.
Getting the silverfish out of my home was a great relief for me. My wife and I were able to enjoy our home once again without worrying about those critters damaging our belongings or embarrassing when we have guests.