Have you seen a small, silvery insect wandering around in the bathroom, toilet, kitchen or basement? Say hello to the silverfish, or its official name silvery bristletail (Lepisma saccharina), an insect from the bristletail family that got its name from the color of its scaly body. While it cannot harm you directly, it does damage to fabrics (including leather), paper and book covers, and it also feeds on hair that falls to the floor or sugar that you didn't clean up after working in the kitchen. It loves moisture, so it's not uncommon for it to hide under the refrigerator or in cracks near humid rooms and you'll usually encounter it when you turn on the light in the room where it's hiding, since it prefers to move around in the dark. If you're tired of finding silverfish insects in your home, we'll now teach you 9 methods that will help you get rid of them with things you probably already have at home.
How to make a silverfish trap
Traps don't require much effort from you except for making them, which will take you just a few minutes. You can choose any of these traps according to the materials you have at home – they all work. Simply place one of them in areas where you suspect silverfish are hiding – mainly near door frames and wall cracks and along grooves in room corners.
1. Jar trap
Take a smooth glass jar and wrap it completely with masking tape from the outside, so the silverfish can climb on it and it won't be slippery for them. Put a piece of bread or some flour in the jar, and leave the trap near the place where you suspect silverfish are hiding. Check after several days and you'll find all the silverfish that crawled into the jar and got stuck there.
2. Newspaper trap
Take a whole newspaper, roll it up, secure it with rubber bands at both ends and spray it with water from a spray bottle until it's damp. Place the newspaper in areas where you suspect silverfish are hiding and wait until the next morning. In the morning take the newspaper without releasing the rubber band, and throw it immediately in the trash. Do this every night until you stop seeing silverfish appearing in the house.
3. Sticky trap
Take a piece of cardboard 10X15 cm in size, wrap it in strong adhesive paper so the adhesive faces outward, and place it in areas where you suspect silverfish are hiding. Place bait in the center of the trap like a piece of bread or flour, and the insect will be attracted to it and get stuck in the adhesive.
How to repel silverfish with natural methods?
You can use the following materials to repel silverfish from certain areas in your home. You can also use them alongside traps, but not in areas where you chose to trap silverfish. While traps will attract silverfish to them, the following materials will keep them away from any other area you want in the house.
4. Citrus oil or cedar oil
Drop a few drops of citrus oil or cedar oil into a spray bottle with water, shake well and spray in all possible hiding places – cracks in walls, around door frames, under large electrical appliances in the kitchen and so on. The scents of citrus and cedar repel silverfish and they will avoid coming to any area where you spray.
5. Spice mixture
Take a small cloth bag and fill it with cinnamon, cloves, rosemary or lavender – you can also use a combination of all of them together. This spice mixture can be placed inside closets or on bookshelves with books to keep silverfish away from them with its strong scent.
6. Diatomaceous earth
You can find this material in pet supply stores, since it eliminates fleas and is safe for pets, but it's actually effective against almost any type of insect. Wear a mask so you don't breathe the powder, sprinkle diatomaceous earth in areas where silverfish move around, leave the material there overnight and vacuum it up in the morning. The diatomaceous earth will dry out the silverfish's exoskeleton and thus eliminate it.
How to ensure silverfish don't return?
After you've gotten rid of these pests, you'll certainly want to make sure the problem doesn't repeat itself, and the following tips will help you with that.
7. Vacuum regularly throughout the house
Sweeping is not enough, and neither is mopping. You need to vacuum the house and pay special attention to wall corners and the panels themselves. Usually silverfish leave their eggs in these dark and narrow areas, and if you attach the vacuum nozzle and get rid of the dust on the panels and dirt in the cracks, you can significantly reduce the possibility of this insect appearing again.
8. Make sure there's no high humidity in the house
In humid rooms like the kitchen or bathroom, make sure to open a window or turn on ventilation so moisture doesn't accumulate in the room. This is especially important in the shower room and after you take a hot shower. If you have a humidity problem in the house that you can't solve this way, you can purchase a dehumidifier that will help with this. Besides all this, make sure to fix leaks in plumbing that cause moisture in walls. Check if you have a hidden leak you're not aware of – you can see this with a thermal camera.
9. Store your items properly
Silverfish can eat even cardboard packaging and paper, so they may appear in areas where these materials are present. If you store things at home in cardboard boxes, especially books or documents, find another way to store them. Use folders or binders for documents, and put books on a bookshelf. If you want to protect your clothes, store them hanging in plastic bags (you can use garbage bags for example). It's also recommended to store flour and food products made from it in plastic packaging.
