Contents
Silverfish are most often found in the bathroom, wondering what they are and how to get rid of them. They resemble a crawling silver fish about 10 mm in size, which is fast and agile. What do silverfish eat? Under what conditions do they thrive? Are silverfish dangerous to humans? How can we get rid of silverfish from home?
Silverfish – what are they?
Silverfish are organisms about 10 mm long, but they do not pose a threat to humans. They do not transmit diseases that we would have to deal with, which makes them only uninvited tenants. They like damp, dark rooms. Silverfish are fast and agile, sometimes difficult to catch. After turning on the light, they quickly disappear into the nooks and crannies.
Having a problem with ventilation in the bathroom, we can be more than sure that silverfish in such a room will feel at home. In addition, in places where moisture collects, mold forms, which is food for silverfish. In addition, silverfish feed on paper, cotton, sugar, flour and even exfoliated skin. It is worth emphasizing that the silverfish will survive without food for up to a year. In fact, they mainly eat products that contain starches, cellulose, which makes them love organic glues, plant and food residues such as rotting leaves, mold hyphae or algae, and in addition, sugar, sweets and paper.
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Usually, when there are a small number of silverfish in our apartment, we do not notice them, but if there are many of them, they can damage the interior design elements of our apartment, such as wallpaper on the walls (if they are attached with organic glue) or move to kitchen where they can find leftovers of food and waste, and in extreme cases eat old documents and nibble on books.
Admittedly, silverfish are not insects that we could call particularly troublesome, but neither are they our friends. Fortunately, they are not dangerous to our health and do not spread any diseases, but if we are dealing with a large group of them, these can cause huge damage to our homes.
Most often, we can find silverfish in the bathroom, but it also happens that they also live in basements, attics and kitchen cabinets. So how can we prevent silverfish from breeding and settling in our homes and apartments?
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Methods for silverfish – ventilation
Silverfish are creatures that like dark and damp rooms. It is therefore necessary to regularly clean and maintain the ventilation system so that the air flow prevents the formation of mold and moisture.
If we have a problem with moisture, for example in a bathroom, we can use special moisture absorbers, as well as install a fan that will additionally help dry the room. We should also remember to check the ventilation ducts by a chimney sweep every year and to clear them if necessary. This small procedure will not only protect us against silverfish, but also against fungi and mold indoors.
It is a good idea to ventilate the rooms every day, especially the bathroom after a shower.
It is worth following a few rules that will help you avoid the appearance of silverfish in the bathroom. First of all, the bathroom should be well ventilated after bathing or washing. In such situations, you can leave the door to a given room and windows open in order to force air circulation.
Secondly, where there is increased humidity, special attention should be paid to drying flat surfaces. Water lying on the floor or on joints makes silverfish nest more willingly and reproduce faster.
Where we deal with silverfish, it is worth trying to leave the bags with silica gel. We find such pouches in shoe packaging. They absorb moisture just like bags with salt or charcoal.
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Ways to fish silverfish – order and cleanliness
Silverfish hide in dark, hard-to-reach places, so it is recommended to take care of the cleanliness of all nooks and crannies. If silverfish have nowhere to hide, we will get rid of the crevices that they could squeeze into, and they will move out faster.
Moreover, it is good to regularly remove empty cosmetic packaging, wipe the cabinets from dust, dirt and moisture so that silverfish do not have a permanent source of food and a place where they could hide.
In addition, it is recommended to ensure that no food remains are left anywhere, and loose products in our kitchens are best stored in special, sealed containers.
See also: How to get rid of allergens at home?
Methods for silverfish – take care of your apartment
Remember that crumbling and falling wallpaper, holes in pipes and leaky drains are only a convenience and an incentive, and at the same time a steady meal and ideal living conditions for silverfish. It is worth starting the fight with silverfish with all the necessary repairs at home.
In the case of old wallpapers, they should be carefully stuck to the wall in the places where they come off, and preferably when they are removed at all and the places left after them are replaced with paint. In turn, in the case of pipes and wallpapers, they should be sealed.
The same applies to various cavities and gaps in the floors or walls, which must be filled with putty. Seal the places around the channels or the drain, as well as the gaps in the fugue with silicone, because this is where silverfish usually lay their eggs.
Silverfish – how to get rid of pests from clothes and towels?
Depriving silverfish of a permanent place to live in the form of corners or gaps in the tiles does not guarantee that we have completely dealt with them. Silverfish, due to the fact that they feed on cotton or linen, can also live in our clothes, towels or bedding. Therefore, it is recommended to wash more often to get rid of silverfish once for good.
Just remember not to keep wet towels in the laundry basket for too long, but rather to wash things on a regular basis. Wet materials only attract silverfish that love moisture and dark places.
By keeping the rooms clean and well ventilated, and by regularly changing bed linen, towels and clothes, we can effectively prevent the appearance of silverfish.
It’s a good idea to put strong scenting agents in the bathroom, such as lavender, which is the most common treatment for moths. Silverfish also do not like this aroma and can quickly disappear from our rooms. Lemon juice also works well, which is also quite intense. We can rub the tiles with it. Lemon can be an alternative for people who are also irritated by the smell of lavender and all moth remedies.
Other sources of intense fragrances that silverfish hate are also: cinnamon, ginkgo, tansy, and rosemary. Nothing stands in the way of making a mixture of the above-mentioned examples, which we leave in the bathroom or other place controlled by these creatures.
It is also worth trying to construct a simple silverfish trap. To make it, you need to smear a piece of cardboard with honey and leave it overnight in the kitchen or bathroom. Silverfish will not be indifferent to such a “gift”, and the honey covered with cardboard will prevent them from moving. When we find our cardboard with insects on it in the morning, pour boiling water over it or burn it.
Another trap, also very simple and easy to make, will be a glass jar, the outer walls of which will be covered with some rough material, e.g. with tape and we will pour some lure, which will be sugar, inside it. Silverfish will climb the rough surface inside the jar to taste the sugar, unfortunately they will not be able to climb up its internal, slippery walls and get out. When we find our jar with silverfish, we can take it out of the house and release the insects away from our home, e.g. onto a meadow.
Silverfish – means for pests
In the fight against silverfish, you can use preparations available in stores designed to fight these insects. We have at our disposal sprays and special small boxes, the action of which is to attract silverfish and keep them inside.
When we decide to use this type of measures, it is worth using preparations based on water solutions. They are odorless and stay on the surface for a long time. They will do their job much better because they do not disappear as quickly as aerosol preparations and there is no chance of poisoning them.
Nothing prevents you from preparing such a preparation yourself. It is enough to buy borax at the pharmacy and mix it with sugar. The ingredients should be mixed in a 1: 1 ratio. Such a mixture is deadly for these insect pests and will quickly get rid of the problem. However, it should be borne in mind that boric acid is poisonous to humans and animals, therefore this method is not recommended for people with cats or dogs.
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