Pest Control


  #1  
Old 04-08-04, 09:18 PM
sassy tools
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Question Pest Control

Temporary First time Apartment tenant, keep finding silverfish, on the walls,under cabinets etc. Have not found any in clothes. Any suggestions on how to get rid of these pesty looking silverfish, would be greatly appreciated.. I think they are in the carpet, is it possable they will stay there,or will they invade my clothes? Looking for an inexpensive solution, the Apt. complex only sprays for roaches. Thank-you for your time.
 
  #2  
Old 04-09-04, 04:10 AM
T
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Silverfish & firebrats

Silverfish and firebrats like to dine on glue, wallpaper paste, paper, bookbindings, starch in clothing, cotton and rayon, cereal and cereal byproducts, leather, and dead insects. Silverfish prefer damp, cool environments like basements and laundry rooms. You might find them in bathtubs and sinks. Firebrats prefer hot, humid places, and they are often found in attics and on ceilings in summer and near heat sources like furnaces, fireplaces and heat pipes in winter.

The silverfish adult is about 1/2 inch long with a uniform silvery or pearl-gray color. The four-lined silverfish is about 5/8 inch long and has four dark lines the length of the body on the back. The gray silverfish is about 3/4 inch long and uniform light to dark gray. The firebrat is about 1/2 inch long, grayish and mottled with spots and bands of dark scales. These pests tend to be nocturnal.

Sanitation is the best control. Removing clutter of old magazines, cardboard boxes, newspapers and other food sources and eliminating moisture problems tend to control but not completely eliminate silverfish and firebrats. Many reside inside wall cavities and other protected areas.

If your apartment manager sprays for roaches, report the problem with silverfish & firebrats. Exterminator should spray cracks, crevices, along baseboards, around pipes, behind all furniture, in closets, and attics. You can also spray with residual insecticide for silverfish. Traps are also available. Boric acid can be spread in areas where silverfish are active. Dusts and powdered insecticides can be puffed into cracks and crevices and spread in attics and other storage areas where people and pets will not regularly come into contact with the pesticide.

Reducing humidity and moisture problems and cleanup and removal of items that harbor silverfish will tend to offer some control, but it will take chemical control to eliminate the pests. It is often difficult to eliminate pests when living in an apartment building. Unless every apartment addresses the problem with patience and persistent, complete control will be next to impossible.
 
 

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