I have dealt with silverfish in my home for years and I am at my wit's end! Please share any ideas or thoughts of ridding my home of these gross little creatures! I have read up on them and learned that they are not harmful to health and are attracted to paper, adhesives, shampoo and shaving creme, damp places, etc. and so have rid my home of excess paper and am constantly wiping down bathroom and kitchen counters. Is there anything else that I can do?
Try moth balls or cedar chips....both repell and should be effective...I personally put cedar chips in all my closets and they smell good and no problems with silverfish or moths...
If you live in a pier and beam house, you might consider having someone check underneath and ensure that you don't have any damp spots that could be attracting these little buggers. Also triple check that you don't have any plumbing leaks anywhere.
Diatomaceous earth is a great chemical free way to control silverfish. Also, they are repelled by the scent of citrus. You might try come citrus oil based cleaners or dried citrus peel in areas where wou are finding them.
Rosemary and Bay Leaves are also great repellents for a number of insect problem.
Are they also responsible for eating holes in clothing? Would they be attracted to a roach motel, crawl in and die? Are they coming in from outside or are they multiplying in the home? I am hoping to learn some answers too.
Call Ace Hardware near you and ask for silverfish packets. They are slim packets with some kind of repellant. Up place the packets behind furniture, back of drawers, etc. Used them for years and years.
Our pest control guy puts little packets around the house (in cabinets, closets)that seem to have taken care of our silverfish problem. Not all of the pest control companies do this so you might want to ask, they seem to be that only thing that keeps them away.
Be sure to get rid of any cardboard, even shoe boxes those are paper products too. Put everything in plastic containers or plastic zipper storage bags, etc & clean under the cabinets too, not just the countertops. My mom has a silverfish problem, at least the last time I was there but they can be everywhere! You may hafta fumegate your home. I'd cover the furniture, etc...things you cannot easily clear out & fumegate while you're out shopping, etc. If unsure what to use, just goto walmart, hardware store, or even online to see what to use or call a pest control & see what they suggest. Good luck!
They especially like to eat keepsakes like baby books!! We finally had to pack keepsakes in Rubbermaid totes (not the cheaper brands) and put moth balls outside of the totes. We even had them crawling in our pictures on the wall!!
In the attic, you don't have to smell moth balls and the odor is not on the contents of the box!
In your home, you might try the other ladies suggestion for cedar but I don't think it will control them as well.
You may have to have an exterminator come to give you an estimate.
we have them bad in our attic!!! they eat the paper off any boxes up there and the paper off the insilation (sp). there are natural things to use to get rid of them...i just cant ever remember what it is. vinegar? laundary soap? i was hoping another momma would have the answer. hope you get lots more responces...if all else fails call an exterminator.
THere are silverfish traps that you can get from the exterminator. I have not tried these myself only because when I very occasionally call the exterminator for scorpions, I forget to mention the silverfish.
