How to get rid of silverfish in the bathroom and toilet

Strange white creatures in the apartment, reasons for their appearance

It seems surprising that insects appear in an apartment, because human housing does not belong to their habitat. However, people often notice strange small moving creatures in the toilet or bathroom that quickly run away when a person appears.

The main reason for the presence of insects is dampness; they live where there is moisture and food.

Under what conditions do uninvited guests appear in the bathroom:

• Poor condition of plumbing equipment, leaking pipes and condensation provide a sufficient level of humidity, creating optimal conditions for their habitat and reproduction.
• Ineffective ventilation, the presence of water containers, wet washcloths and constant drying of laundry.
• Lack of sanitary conditions: accumulation of dirty laundry, garbage, wet rags left behind.

Decaying organic matter is the main food source for many insects, so the dirt and disorder that reigns in the apartment provides food for whole hordes of domestic parasites.

Attention! When the home is located on the ground floor, insects enter through the basement. From bottom to top, single specimens move through ventilation holes; when baited, migration becomes widespread.

Silverfish and their description

White worms very often settle in the bathroom - what are they and why do they appear?
This insect is called a silverfish - an oblong, teardrop-shaped body with three movable antennae at the back and a pair of similar organs at the front. The maximum length of the body is 1-1.3 cm. By their nature, white insects in the bathroom or toilet are not dangerous to humans. They may have a whitish (juvenile), brownish-golden or silvery tint. Why did they appear? Their comfortable habitat is dampness and moisture. In conditions of high humidity, organic products appear on the surfaces of walls and floors, plumbing fixtures and their drains, which white worms feed on in the bathroom or toilet:

• rotting textile accessories for cleaning the premises;
• fungi and mold between tiles;
• damp toilet paper;
• soggy garbage, etc.

If these insects appear in the bathroom, it means that general cleaning has not been carried out for a long time or the frequency of use of the room has increased without proper subsequent ventilation of the room. Silverfish are not carriers of microbes and do not harm humans. Its mouthparts are not suitable for biting. There is no need to be afraid of white bugs in the apartment, but still the proximity should be stopped, since the presence of even harmless insects in the room for hygiene procedures is unacceptable.

Silverfish do not actively reproduce. They produce a small number of offspring that move slower than adults. Therefore, when you turn on the light in the bathroom, it is the young individuals that you notice. This means that white insects have been living in your bathroom for a long time - how to get rid of them?

• Wash all surfaces in the bathroom;
• Check the quality of room ventilation. Is the fan broken, is the exhaust ventilation clogged, etc.;
• Treat with insecticide.

Types of white insects in the bathroom and toilet + photo

Most often the following types of inhabitants are found in the bathroom:

• Silverfish . The body length of the wingless insect is 0.7-2 cm; there are 2 long antennae on the head. The body is flat, tapering towards the end, covered with small scales. The tail is represented by three thin threads extending in different directions. There are yellowish, greenish, transparent and silvery specimens. They move quickly with short stops and become active at night. Silverfish eat foods that contain starch and polysaccharides: wallpaper glue, paper, natural fabrics.
• Woodlice . They belong to the suborder of crustaceans, have an oval jointed body with 7 pairs of legs, 2 pairs of small antennae, one of which is underdeveloped, and externally resemble light beetles. They feed on decaying organic matter of plant origin. They live in damp places, hide during the day, and come out at night to look for food.
• Butterflies . Mosquitoes up to 4 mm long, similar to small moths. The larvae lay in dirty, damp areas and feed on organic debris.

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Mosquitoes, ants, midges, spiders and even cockroaches can live in the bathroom. But these creatures are known to everyone, it is difficult to confuse them, everyone knows by what means they can be easily destroyed.

Overview of species

Insects in the bathroom can be different. The main species found in this room are:

1. Silverfish. This insect in the bathroom should not be scary, as it is not capable of harming humans. The silverfish only hides and lives in the bathroom. She gets food outside this room. Food for the insect is starch, sugar, wallpaper glue, photo paper, flour, starched fabrics, and book binding. At the initial stage of development, individuals are light brown or gray, characterized by an elongated body shape. On one side you can see 3 medium-length antennae. Insects are also white. Such changes occur with silverfish after the end of the molting process.
2. Butterfly. It is characterized by its small body size, with a wingspan of 2 mm. Color brown-gray. The body, head, wings and paws are covered with many fibers. If small insects appear in the bathroom and they can fly, we can assume that they are butterflies. Pests love humidity and dampness and are not afraid of water. Midges in the bathroom are usually located on the ceiling and walls. They are found on the lower floors of apartment buildings, near the basement, in unheated corridors. Considering that insects lay eggs in rotting waste, they received a second name - sewer midges.
3. Mosquitoes. They can be found in any room, but insects live near moisture. It is in the bathroom that mosquitoes can be seen on the walls and ceiling. Their external characteristics are known to everyone: long legs, a proboscis, a narrow elongated body and wings. These are perhaps the only blood-sucking insects that spend most of their time in the bathroom.
4. Cockroaches. A household pest that regularly appears near plumbing fixtures looks unusual, since more often this insect infects the kitchen. The fact is that both black and red cockroaches cannot exist for long without water. For this reason, they constantly run around in the toilet and bathroom. A cockroach lives without food for several weeks, and without liquid it dies in 7 days. In addition, it is through the ventilation ducts located in the bathroom that insects enter the apartment. To do this, they also use the joints between sewer pipes and the concrete floor.

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There is also a caterpillar in the bathroom; its other name is a centipede. This is a separate superclass that combines 4 classes of different arthropods. Centipedes are not insects, although they are often called that. The centipede is also part of one of these groups. This is the fastest pest, but in reality it does not pose any danger.

Worms start in the bathroom if the siphons have not been cleaned for a long time. Woodlice are also found in damp places. They represent the suborder Crustaceans and are also not insects. Woodlice in the toilet and bathroom are found in remote and hidden areas. Their body is covered with a durable shell, the color is dark gray.

Danger and harm to humans

Important! Studies have shown that the nocturnal inhabitants of the bathroom, although unsightly, are not dangerous to people.

The bugs do not bite, do not contaminate food, and do not transmit disease. But if they spread strongly, they can harm people.

Silverfish feed on plant foods rich in protein, sugar and starch, and digest cellulose. They multiply quickly, the female reproduces 70 eggs per clutch, the young individuals, having spread throughout the apartment, settle in the trays of pots of domestic flowers and eat the leaves.

At risk are books, wallpaper, photographs, documents, and excrement can also be seen in food.

Woodlice eat living and decaying plants, and with frequent watering and constant moist soil, they move into flower pots. Here, crustaceans are capable of destroying an indoor flower in 2 weeks, eating the leaves, burrowing into the soil and damaging the root system.

Ways to combat woodlice and silverfish

To remove unwanted neighbors from your apartment, you can use several methods:

• apply physical force,
• use traps and bait,
• resort to pesticides.

Everyone chooses the most convenient option based on living conditions, safety and effectiveness of the product.

Attention! Before starting work, it is necessary to carry out a general cleaning of the room, otherwise the work will not bring a positive result. In dirt and unsanitary conditions, it will not be possible to destroy all the individuals; they will multiply and again become an annoyance with their presence.

Physical

The method of physical impact is not an effective option, but if there are few insects and there is no desire to use insecticides, you can try to get rid of silverfish and woodlice using:

• Vacuum cleaner . Remove the brush from the device and go through all the corners and nooks, trying to suck in the parasites and destroy the nests.
• Boiling water . Water is boiled in a kettle and poured from the spout, trying to get to the accumulation of pests.
• Cold . By lowering the temperature in the home as much as possible, the inhabitants of the damp corners are frozen out by the cold.

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The disadvantage of this method is that insects can hide in cracks, sensing an invasion from the outside, or temporarily escape to another place.

Insecticidal

To exterminate insects that appear in the apartment, the store offers a large selection of toxic substances in the form of aerosols or suspensions:

• "Dichlorvos" . A universal drug, suitable for all types of crawling and flying arthropods, crustaceans and arachnids. Available in the form of sprays or solution, which is applied dropwise to hard-to-reach places.
• "Clean house" . Aerosol with a wide range of effects. The advantage of the product is its narrowly directed jet, which allows you to treat cracks and crevices.
• "Taran" . Aqueous concentrate of prolonged action, distributed by spraying, odorless. A single spraying on the surface is enough for one and a half months.
• "Lambda Zone". New generation concentrated suspension, safe for pets. The drug is diluted with water, which allows it to be used over large areas. After spraying, it remains toxic for up to 2 months.

When using poisonous substances against insects in an apartment, do not forget about the safety of yourself and your loved ones.

All manipulations are carried out without the presence of children and animals, spraying must be carried out with gloves, after treatment it is not recommended to enter the room for 3 hours.

Lures and traps

Insects can be eliminated using traps. There are different ways to lure and destroy prey.

The bathroom contains:

• paper, greased with special glue, placed along the path of parasites or along the perimeter of the bathroom:
• structures with poisoned baits.

The methods are easy to use, but the struggle can drag on for a long time.

Important! Silverfish are lured with sugar, it is placed in a glass jar, and the container is left overnight, laid on its side. Those with a sweet tooth will definitely get into it. In the morning the insects are destroyed.

Folk remedies

Moistened birch brooms or rolls of toilet paper are used as traps; moisture will attract woodlice, and soft cellulose will attract silverfish. In the evening they are laid out in corners, thrown away or burned in the morning.

Another method is based on the poisonous properties of boric acid for insects. The powder is scattered under the bathtub or mixed with puree, made into small balls, and placed in secluded corners of the room.

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Are white cockroaches dangerous for humans?

Firstly, white cockroaches do not pose any danger to people. They are more harmless than dark individuals that could recently move through garbage chutes, collecting various bacteria on themselves, and then walk on the kitchen table, leaving them there. White parasites are usually “clean”. They recently changed their entire coat, including their paws, but they haven’t had time to get the new one dirty yet.

Secondly, a white cockroach is much easier to crush. His body is soft and easily injured. Don't forget about this if he crawls out from somewhere in the bathroom or toilet and catches your eye.

Thirdly, the appearance of white cockroaches in an apartment or private house indicates that they live here permanently. Sometimes adult individuals sneak into an apartment from neighbors, but they are noticed, destroyed, and that’s it, the problem is solved. However, if you regularly see white nymphs, it means that a population of these parasites lives in your home. For molting, they choose reliable shelters and do not go far from them; accordingly, these cannot be individuals who have run in by chance. In addition, the constant appearance of white nymphs may mean that there are much more cockroaches in the house than it seems at first glance. This means that you need to start fighting them as soon as possible.

Our specialists have more than once carried out pest control in apartments and various enterprises and found real hordes of cockroaches there, although the owners said that there were only a few of them. As a rule, people see single parasites, although hundreds of them are hidden under baseboards, behind wallpaper, in various crevices and other secluded places. The appearance of white parasites suggests that this is most likely the situation in the house.

The greatest danger lies in the following. During their life, cockroaches shed their chitinous shells 7 times, and after their death, their bodies also remain in the apartment. They contain substances that are strong allergens for humans. Chitin gradually decomposes, and its small particles combine with dust particles and rise into the air that residents breathe. Thus, the more parasites in the house, the more they shed and, accordingly, the more people constantly inhale small remains of their bodies.

According to statistics, in approximately 7-8% of cases, an allergy to chitin and its constant entry into the body are the main causes of chronic rhinitis, nasal congestion, dermatitis and asthma. In addition, there are many people for whom the exact cause of these diseases has not been established, and it is quite possible that they also suffer from an allergy to chitin.

This is what these shed chitinous coverings of cockroaches look like:

They are sometimes considered dead insects.

Thus, if someone in the family constantly has a runny nose, a stuffy nose, or asthma attacks, it is likely that the cause is those same white cockroaches. If they are in the house, but no one has symptoms of an allergy, you need to take into account that with constant exposure to the allergen on the body, it can develop. Such sensitization does not develop immediately. At first, the body reacts normally to the contact of chitinous remains on the mucous membranes, but over time this provokes an increasing immune reaction, as a result of which allergy symptoms begin to appear. Such processes can occur in both children and adults. Young children and infants are most sensitive to chitin.

You can check whether a person is allergic to cockroaches using special allergy tests, which are carried out in medical clinics. However, it is much wiser not to wait for allergies to manifest itself, but to poison cockroaches in a timely manner, before any of the residents develop health problems because of them.

In general, if white cockroaches appear in the house, then he and their relatives need to get rid of them as soon as possible. First, you should treat the apartment using special aerosols or powders, which are sold at different prices. We tested the effects of some of them, and it turned out that certain remedies are really effective. You can also call professional exterminators who will destroy all parasites much faster using cold and hot fog. After disinfestation, you need to try to find all the holes through which cockroaches could enter the house and seal them. The appearance of white cockroaches in an apartment indicates that there are a lot of them, so you need to start fighting them as soon as possible.

Centipedes: nods and flycatchers. Insect repellents

Sometimes long, multi-legged, repulsive-looking creatures appear on the floor or walls in an apartment. Usually these are flycatchers or flycatchers - the closest relatives of insects belonging to the class of animals. There is no need to be afraid of them, the creatures are harmless, only in case of danger, the flycatchers emit a pungent odor, and the flycatcher can bite if you pick it up.

Animals live on moist soil, centipedes enter the room by accident or climb into the winter, stay in it for a long time and reproduce if there is moisture, and most importantly, food - cockroaches, flies, butterflies, mosquitoes and silverfish.

To combat invertebrates, physical methods of influence are used; this is enough if the individual appeared in the home by accident. When the population increases, the food source is eliminated: insects living in the apartment. Boric acid or any insecticides are also used.

Attention! Centipedes are afraid of red peppers. It is scattered in powder form indoors.

Preventing insects from appearing in the bathroom

Preventative measures will help reduce the likelihood of various insects infesting the bathroom.

To comply with hygiene requirements and reduce humidity, it is recommended to carry out the following measures:

• keep the bathroom clean using disinfectants,
• remove unnecessary things, regularly take out the trash,
• check the operation of the hood, if it is necessary to clean the ventilation hole,
• ventilate the room after washing and water procedures,
• install a heated towel rail in the bathroom,
• periodically check the pipes for leaks, if problems are detected, immediately call a plumber,
• carry out renovations in the apartment, seal cracks in the walls and baseboards,
• Store sugar and flour products in containers or tight bags, and immediately remove spilled crumbs.

To repel insects, pour a powder consisting of 4 parts chalk and 1 part boric acid under furniture and bathtubs. Pests are afraid of the aromas of fragrant plants: lavender, tansy, rosemary, wormwood.

Important! In the fight against parasites, you cannot cope alone; you need to involve your neighbors: then you have a better chance of getting rid of unpleasant creatures in the house for a long time.

Prevention

No one is safe from the appearance of white bugs in the bathroom. But with the help of preventive measures, you can protect your home from this problem.

• Wipe off condensation and dust on pipes;
• Check that the ventilation in the bathroom and toilet is functioning well. If necessary, clean the shaft;
• Dry damp corners with a fan heater - these are the places where insects like to lay eggs. Even if they managed to appear there, the hot air will kill them;
• Using a solution with a large amount of chlorine, treat areas where mold is visible. Then they need to be dried;

Silverfish love dampness, so you need to prevent mold from appearing and regularly ventilate the bathroom

• Pour table vinegar into the water for washing floors;
• If it’s winter outside, open the windows for several hours - the sub-zero temperature will kill not only adult silverfish, but also their larvae;
• These insects can only live at temperatures from 21 to 27 degrees. Reduce the temperature in the house to 19 - all the bugs will leave it;
• Periodically ventilate and dry your home library, because if insects appear in the bathroom, it will not be difficult for them to penetrate the bookshelf;

• Do not place book shelves themselves close to the walls - this will cause the formation of dampness;
• Remember, the higher off the floor you place the library, the more intact it will be;
• Check your kitchen supplies regularly, especially cereals. Do not leave trash, crumbs or leftover food behind. When washing cabinets, add lavender, lemon or orange ether or ammonia to the water;
• Carry out cosmetic repairs and seal all the cracks between the slabs, in the ceiling, walls and floor;

• Fix leaking taps;
• Don't accumulate random rubbish.

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The appearance of silverfish in an apartment building is a common problem. Take the time to go around your neighbors and clarify the situation. Otherwise, the infection will go in circles and will not escape anyone.

As practice shows, it is easier to prevent any problem than to deal with it for a long time.

There are several preventive methods, following which, a person will never know what white insects are in the bathroom:

1. First of all, you need to determine the humidity in the room using a special device. If this indicator is higher than normal, then it is necessary to install additional ventilation equipment. This small step will always allow you to maintain normal conditions in the room, under which insects will not appear.
2. It is recommended to clean the bathroom as often as possible, ventilate and treat all cracks with a disinfectant solution.
3. You should hang a thermometer in the room for several days and measure the indicator for at least five days. Next, you need to calculate the average temperature. If it turns out to be more than 27 degrees, then you should ventilate as often as possible.
4. The condition of the pipes should be constantly monitored. There should not be excessive dampness on them. If it does form, then it is worth doing forced drying;
5. It is worth treating the room with chlorine at least once a month.
6. It is not recommended to dry wet things in the bath.

Experienced experts also recommend replacing old pipes with double-glazed windows; in their opinion, this trick reduces the risk of various species occurring. In a word, you should carefully study the favorable environment for the existence of bugs and completely disrupt it, so that they feel uncomfortable living in it.

It is worth noting that bugs have a negative attitude towards various odors. It is recommended to place several bunches of herbs throughout the room, for example, you can use rosemary, lavender, eucalyptus. You can also light it and enrich the entire space with smoke. The easiest way is to periodically take a bath with similar essential oils.

It should be said that for a person, this aroma, on the contrary, has a positive effect: it relaxes, invigorates and reduces depression. Compliance with all preventive measures will prevent unexpected “residents” from appearing in the house.

What are small insects? These are absolutely harmless bugs that can cause hostility in humans. Almost every fifth person in the country has encountered this problem at least once in their life.

Fortunately, there are a huge number of methods that will allow you to get rid of white bugs in the shortest possible time, using preventive measures and modern equipment. Thus, the presence of such individuals in the bathroom is not a problem in modern life.