Silverfish are shy creatures that like to romp around in warm apartments.
Six effective tips help to keep the pests away.
Silverfish
feel comfortable in a warm environment with high
humidity
.
Most
silverfish
live in apartments and preferably in the
bathroom
or
basement
.
There are effective and easy ways
to prevent
silverfish
in your home.
Offenbach - They are small, disgusting and shy of light:
silver fish
.
They particularly like to be in a warm environment with a high level of
humidity
, especially
bathrooms
, laundry rooms and cellars are among the animals' favorite hiding places.
The silvery shimmering small animals are around one centimeter tall and don't like light.
That's why they like to crawl behind baseboards, loose wallpaper and in cracks from which they emerge as soon as the night begins.
The nocturnal encounter is a shock for humans and silverfish
+
Crime scene bathroom: This is where silver fish especially like to romp (symbol picture)
© Christian Charisius / dpa
What neither humans nor
silverfish
expect, but what many humans have already experienced, is a nocturnal encounter.
Especially in the
bathroom
, when going to the toilet in the evening is a shocking moment.
For both.
The little fish, which are of course not fish but insects, shy away from the light and are startled by sudden lighting.
And people are rarely pleased at the unexpected sight of new roommates.
First things first:
silverfish
are not really dangerous for your health.
In small quantities, they do not transmit diseases, nor do they sting or bite.
However, if the population becomes too large,
silverfish
can
damage wallpaper and, in the worst case, contaminate food.
#Insect facts: The #larvae of the #silverfish (Lepisma saccharina) already look like the adult #animals.
More #facts about #insects: 👉 https://t.co/K07MntkL0D pic.twitter.com/dlcbbwQxWQ
- Insect Respect (@InsectRespect) May 18, 2020
With a few home remedies, silverfish can be effectively controlled
That is why you should
contain
an infestation with
silverfish as
quickly as possible, especially since the animals are always ready to mate and lay around 20 eggs in a few days.
It doesn't help that the little pests eat house dust mites, dead insects and molds.
To
effectively prevent
silverfish
in the home, there are a few simple home remedies that anyone can use.
And once the fish have
arrived
in the
bathroom
or basement, they can be eliminated in no time.
Tip 1: Silver fish love humidity, good ventilation keeps the animals away
Silverfish
love a
humidity
of at least 75 percent.
Moist air tends to accumulate in rooms without windows.
But even
rooms
with
windows
can quickly become too
humid
if they are not ventilated regularly and properly.
The German Pesticide Action Network (PAN) advises
against
permanent ventilation
when the
windows are
tilted
.
Because this is not only a popular power
hog
in
winter
, but also does not ensure the correct exchange of air.
The pest experts at PAN therefore recommend burst ventilation or, even better, cross ventilation.
With
intermittent ventilation
, one window is completely opened for five to ten minutes, with
cross-ventilation
the windows of two opposite rooms for two to five minutes.
As a result, the
room
air
can be exchanged
for fresh
air
in the shortest possible time
, and cross ventilation in particular ensures an effective exchange of moist and dry air.
Cross-ventilation also saves electricity in winter, as the
heaters
do not have to constantly generate new heat.
Tip 2: Laundry should never be dried in a windowless room so that silverfish do not feel too comfortable
The laundry rack is often in a windowless room such as the lumber room.
This is not a good idea as the moisture that escapes from the laundry is dispersed in the air and builds up in windowless rooms.
This is the
only thing that
attracts
silverfish,
so it is advisable to dry your laundry outdoors or in a well-ventilated room or in the hallway.
This also has the positive side effect that the
scent of
drying
laundry
gives off an excellent room air freshener.
#ShowHerYourPets Isn't it cute, my silverfish?
pic.twitter.com/RHU98rf5ui
- The kid (@Lausebengel_) December 19, 2019
Tip 3: The bathroom should always be dried well so as not to attract silverfish
Just after
showering
with wet feet on the
bath mat
, then dry off quickly and get out of the
bathroom
: not a good idea.
Moisture collects
in
floor mats
in particular,
and a damp bath mat is the
silverfish's
best friend
.
It should always be ensured that the
bath mat
remains dry and is replaced if necessary.
This also applies to the
bathrobe
and shower towel.
Both should be dried outdoors or in a well-ventilated room and not just left hanging in the bathroom.
When showering, condensing
water
and water droplets
are also distributed
on the
tiles
, in the
wet room
and on the shower cubicle.
This water should be removed with a squeegee after every shower, otherwise it will continue to evaporate and
humidify
the air in the
bathroom
.
It is not advisable to use shower curtains in windowless
bathrooms
, as water collects in them.
This not only ensures higher
humidity
and a higher probability of
encountering
silverfish
, but in the worst case also for mold infestation.
Bathrooms without windows should be open to the hallway as often as possible so that moist air can escape and fresh, dry air can find its way into the bathroom.
Tip 4: When traveling, leave all doors open in the apartment, otherwise the silver fish greet you when you return home
If you are traveling, you should make sure that all doors in the apartment are open so that the air can circulate as best as possible.
If, on the other hand, the air builds up in closed rooms, it is quite possible that a welcoming committee of
silverfish will be
waiting
when you return home
.
Since the animals multiply rapidly, the negative surprise can be particularly big.
By the way, that's Klaus.
The silverfish that lives in my bathroom.
Klaus is always out of my way.
I saved him from the shower before.
I like my Klaus.
pic.twitter.com/0aQY3VZai7
- Death by Glitter (@Death_byglitter) April 11, 2020
Tip 5: Check wallpapers, joints, cracks and baseboards so that silverfish have no hiding place
Silverfish
are light-shy creatures.
They prefer it dark and hide in daylight behind loose wallpaper, in deep joints, cracks in the wall and behind
baseboards
.
A regular check of these potential hiding places ensures that the little pests cannot settle in too easily.
If such weak points are also regularly vacuumed, the
silverfish will
think twice about
whether they want to remain subtenants.
Tip 6: fight silverfish effectively
Even if
silverfish are
harmless and shy, they quickly become a nuisance due to their rapid and continuous reproduction.
Popular household remedies such as vinegar, lemon and lavender put the odor-sensitive fish on the run.
However, they are not effectively fought that way, as these home remedies only scare them away.
For example,
sticky traps
, which are available in hardware stores and drug stores and which attract animals with attractants such as pheromones,
are more effective
.
Cardboard strips with honey also usually do their job reliably.
Pesticides, on the other hand, should be avoided, as well as the unacceptable and excruciating method for animal lovers of mixing sugar with baking powder and laying it out.
That is because this inflates the
silverfish
from the inside, causing them to perish in miserable agony.
Because even if
silverfish
are disgusting and annoying for many people, they still remain living beings.
(By Mirko Schmid)
List of rubric lists: © Christian Charisius / dpa