What is a Silverfish?

Silverfish

What is the Silverfish Bug?

Well, for now, I’ll go ahead and tell you that they’re not fish. The silverfish is a bug. Some insects could seemingly care less whether or not people see them. Others, like silverfish bug, make every effort to avoid the limelight. In fact, you might never know silverfish are secretly living inside your home.

When is the Silverfish Bug Active?

As nocturnal insects, silverfish are active while most people are sound asleep. They prefer dark, humid areas such as garages, attics, sheds, kitchens, and bathrooms, but won’t hesitate to scurry across a bedroom floor. The brown-gray to a bluish-silver appearance of their tapered bodies coupled with their wiggly walk earned them the silverfish name. They often lurk in cabinets or inside cardboard boxes and may also deem a pile of damp clothing a good nesting place.

Appetites

Silverfish have powerful appetites that translate to a lot of damage within our homes. Paper and photos make for ideal dining as do sugary or starchy substances like carpet glue, book bindings, wallpaper, plaster, and some paints. And those are just a few of the items on the silverfish menu. Most often, you’ll notice silverfish damage long before seeing an actual silverfish.

Humidity

To discourage silverfish from entering your home in the first place, the most important thing you can do is control humidity inside the house. They prefer to live in areas with 75-95 percent relative humidity. That might sound high, but it’s not uncommon in Florida. For that reason, air conditioners and dehumidifiers are vital for making your home environment less attractive to silverfish. You can also take steps including fixing leaky pipes, caulking baseboards and eliminating standing water.

Favorite Hangout

Cardboard boxes tend to be one of the silverfish’s most favorite places to hang out. Whenever possible, store items in plastic bins with lids, rather than cardboard boxes. Not only do silverfish like cardboard, but roaches also do too! The corrugation of the cardboard creates a nice place for them to call home.

When people do encounter silverfish inside the home, it often happens in bathrooms. You may see them in the sink or bathtub or crawling along the floor, near a wall. They move fairly quickly and rush to find cover, often squeezing under baseboards as soon as the lights come on.

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What is a Silverfish Bug?