Have you ever found yourself in the middle of your bathroom in the evening needing to go, only to discover tiny creatures scurrying around the floors and walls? This might sound like it came straight out of a horror movie, but the reality is that they’re a lot more common than you think. These little critters happen to be in more places than just the bathroom. We’re talking about silverfish.

What’s a silverfish? Why are they here in the first place? If you have these questions and more in your mind, you’re in the right place! Let’s talk about silverfish and how to get rid of them:

What’s A Silverfish?

Silverfish are a small bug-like type of insect. As you can probably tell from the name of the little creatures, they mostly have silvery-white-coloured bodies, sometimes with a bit of a grey or brown shade thrown in there. You’ll also see tiny little antenna-like structures on the top of their heads, which are used to sense things around them. They’re also around an inch to three inches long.

What Attracts Silverfish?

This little creature prefers to hang out in cool, damp places. You’ll usually find them in large amounts in your bathroom and basement. They’ll also, like any other place, kept cool and moist, such as the laundry room or a basement room. They’re drawn to these places because they need a lower-humidity environment to live in.

Silverfish like to eat many different things in your home, but they’re drawn to glue from book bindings and other types of paper. This is because they are usually scavengers, and they’ll eat whatever they can get their little hands on.

What Damage Can Silverfish Do?

While silverfish is mostly harmless, there are times when these little creatures will want to make a nest in your home. They can eat through a wide variety of materials, and if you don’t take action and stop them from doing so, they can cause a lot of damage both to your home and the things inside it. This means that you need to spend money to fix the damage.

How Do I Get Rid Of Silverfish?

1. Traps

One thing you can do is to set up homemade traps. You can make these traps using items you probably already have lying around the house. The main thing you’ll need to do is get a glass jar and place a moistened piece of paper inside it. The silverfish will naturally be drawn to the paper and will be trapped in the jar. After that, you can then get rid of the silverfish at the sewer drains.

2. Natural Formulations

There are quite a few ways you can get rid of them. You can try using essential oils to calm and soften up their hard exterior. If you want to do this, you could use peppermint or eucalyptus oil.

These natural ingredients repel the silverfish completely, but they’ll also help keep your home smelling fresh and clean.

3. Fumigation

If you have a big problem with silverfish, it’s best to use fumigation methods to get rid of them. The most common way you’ll see this done is through a fogger. The good news I have to report is that it’s likely you can buy a fogger from your local hardware store.

The only bad news is that you’ll have to be careful with fumigation. It’s important to remember that the building must be clear for at least a couple of days.

Conclusion

Silverfish are something that you don’t want in your home. They’ll cause damage to your home, and they’re also pretty gross to look at. If you see that you have a big problem with them, take precautions to get rid of them. You don’t want to let them get out of hand. If you need help getting rid of them, we recommend reaching out to professional pest control services to deal with them. That way, not only are they dealt with effectively, but also safely.

Benchmark Pest Solutions offer innovative pest control services to help you get rid of your insect problems. If you’re looking for Sunshine Coast pest control to address your silverfish problems, get in touch with us today!