Eliminating silverfish may require a comprehensive strategy, including depriving them of food, blocking access to water sources and eliminating other attractive conditions that enable their presence.
Reduce food wastage by placing pantry items in airtight containers and clearing away clutter in your home. Also consider sealing leaky pipes and basement areas using dehumidifiers for better moisture control.
Baits
Silverfish may evade liquid and dust insecticides, so professional pest control services advise using baits in addition to fumigation services for silverfish control. Granular baits designed specifically for silverfish control can easily be sprinkled onto hard-to-reach spots behind cabinets or underneath bathtubs for treatment by professionals.
Many all-natural, nontoxic options exist for repelling silverfish. According to experts, rolling up newspaper can help deter these insects; crushing bay leaves or cinnamon is also believed to work effectively. Diatomaceous earth, made from fossilized remains of algae, can also help treat them; its cutting edges penetrate their waxy outer coating causing them to lose water and die off quickly.
Other silverfish deterrents include covering entry points and reducing humidity in areas where these insects thrive, such as basements and crawl spaces. Furthermore, frequent vacuuming and cleaning will remove their food sources, while dehumidifiers can eliminate moisture sources that encourage silverfish infestation.
Insecticides
Silverfish are not harmful to people directly, but they may cause property damage and cause allergies in certain people. Silverfish infestations may also be difficult to remove from homes, particularly when they settle in dark and damp parts of a building. Before calling in a professional to manage an infestation, people can try several natural and chemical solutions at home first.
Sticky traps available at most hardware and home and garden stores are effective at catching silverfish. In addition, certain essential oils have proven successful at repelling silverfish as well as clothes moths and carpet beetles; Cedar oil in particular has proven highly successful at killing these pests and should be applied directly onto clothing, paper or any other object that might attract silverfish for quick elimination.
Silverfish infestations typically indicate an ongoing, moisture-related issue within a building; until that issue is addressed, silverfish will likely return and spread further.
Boric Acid
Boric acid is a strong chemical compound available in liquid form, as well as in granules, tablets, wettable powders, rods and more. This versatile chemical can be found used as an insecticide and lubricant in commercial and industrial settings as well as household cleaners, laundry detergents, e-cleaners and similar products.
Silverfish love dark, damp spaces such as attics and basements because of the dark corners that often house old books, photos, papers and papers containing glues used for bindings or paper products that contain starches or sugars that they feast upon for sustenance. In such environments, silverfish flourish like no other.
Penn State recommends sealing dry goods such as cereal, pasta, rice, flour, pet food and sugar in airtight plastic storage bins to seal off potential food sources for silverfish infestation. You could also scatter dried bay leaves around to release their powerful scent that repels them with their strong-smelling pheromones; additionally using a dehumidifier is another great way of eliminating excess moisture that’s feeding their infestation.
Traps
Silverfish aren’t as dangerous or persistent as bedbugs, making them easier to control with home remedies rather than insecticides. But remember: to truly remove silverfish from your property will require more than simply killing them; rather, the most successful strategy should involve depriving them of food and moisture resources.
An effective way to trap silverfish in a jar is to wrap its exterior in masking tape and add bread. Silverfish have poor climbing ability and will become stuck while trying to scale its smooth glass surfaces, leading them to their deaths in no time!
Traps should also be strategically placed near baseboards, along back edges of shelving units and other spots where silverfish like to congregate. Finally, dehumidifiers will reduce humidity in the air and make living conditions uninhabitable for silverfish. Treatment options depend on your specific situation – for instance whether you live in an apartment complex or house – and professional solutions can work within lease agreements for effective results.