If you suspect your house is being infested by earwigs, you may want to learn how to get rid of earwigs efficiently. After all, many homeowners are threatened by the insect’s physical appearance without knowing the true fact. Despite their harmless trait, these creepy crawlers aren’t exactly the favorite insect of most people. And if you don’t want them to infest your house, you need to learn how to remove them.
Earwigs: Basic Facts
The appearance of the earwigs quite scary because of the pincers. However, they use the pincers only to attack other animals – in a defensive manner. They won’t hurt people, even when they are sleeping.
Earwigs are nocturnal creatures, which means that they are active and they feed at night. They are basically scavengers – their main diet consists of decomposing (plant) materials and dead insects. During the day, they will go hiding from the light – and they like organic matters. They love damp and dark areas. If you want to find them during the day, you should search under stones, under the sidewalks, under debris, leaf litter, pine straw, and mulch. However, they also eat live plants, causing damages to the field crops. They like to build their population around foundations. They are mostly attracted to moisture.
How to get rid of earwigs naturally
How to Get Rid of Earwigs
Oil and Soy Sauce Trap
If you want to learn how to get rid of earwigs naturally, you need to know some of the possible methods. Do you know that earwigs are huge fans of soy sauce’s scent? Yes, the regular one that you have at home or you find at your favorite (Chinese) restaurants. You can use a container with a lid, such as a Mason jar with metal lid (the screw-on type). Create some holes on the top so the earwigs can enter the jar. Mix soy sauce and veggie oil. You can also use olive oil if you don’t have the veggie oil. Mix it in equal parts. Then bury the jar in the ground – make sure that the holes are within the same ground level. The earwigs will be attracted to the soy sauce, while the oil prevents them from escaping and crawling out. Once they are trapped, they may die inside it. You can change it as many as you want.
Water and Alcohol Mix
You can mix alcohol 70% and water and put it in the spray bottle. Mix them in equal parts. Once you put the mixture in the spray bottle, shake it well so it mixes well. If you see the earwigs, just spray on them. The mixture will kill them. The alcohol is a surfactant that will stick to the shell and then kill them. This spray can also be used as barriers. Spray it around the flowerbeds, plants, and your house’s foundation. But be aware as it may be harmful for some plants. You can test it out by spraying a plant’s leaf and wait for a couple of days. If it doesn’t show any reaction, then the alcohol mixture is safe.
Birds Feeders
Birds can be a solution to prevent earwigs in your garden. Because birds like to eat all kinds of insects and one of them is the earwig. Place bird feeders in areas with heavy populations of earwigs. First, place enough birdseed in the feeders. Once the birds start coming there (on a regular basis), you can reduce the seed. In this way, the birds will start hunting the earwigs. Another perk of this method is that you can attract colorful and beautiful birds into your yard.
Diatomaceous Earth
The food-grade DE is edible –and it is often consumed to treat digestive problems. DE is made from diatoms, the fossilized microscopic sea creatures’ exoskeletons. It is basically a desiccant, responsible for making living things lose moisture. The smaller the plant is, the better the effect would be.
Buy a bag of DE and spread it around the house’s foundation and plants. When earwigs pass the powder by, it will cause the insects to lose moisture. DE works by piercing the exterior shell of the insects (the powder has sharp edges) and then sucking out the moisture. The powder isn’t only good to get rid of the earwigs, but also other insects that possibly live within your property.
Neem Oil
How to get rid of earwigs? This oil is extracted from Neem trees, originated from India. It has been used to repel and kill all kinds of insects for centuries, thanks to its Azadirachtin content, a natural chemical. The function is to disrupt insects’ hormonal balance so they won’t be interested in eating and they will die. It is rich in repellent content along with fungicidal benefits. Mix warm water (around a quart) with one teaspoon of the oil. Pour the mix in the spray bottle. You can spray it on the earwigs (whenever you see them) or at places where you suspect they like to be. Spray the damp and dark areas around the property and the house. It doesn’t hurt to spray the mounds and piles of the decaying (plant) material.
For the inside, spray the mix on crevices, cracks, and holes around the doors and windows and also baseboards. Make sure to re-spray the areas two to three times per week – you should be able to see the results in no time.
Insecticidal Soap
Such soap is usually made from potassium salts that act as desiccating and smothering agent. The soapy water would seal the insects’ breathing tubes off while the salt would such out moisture from the bodies. In the end, the insects will die from dehydration and suffocation. You only need to mix water (a gallon of it) and 4 to 6 tablespoons of the soap. Put it in the sprayer and spray your property in the early morning.
This is an effective way of how to get rid of earwigs in the garden. Do it around the house’s foundation, on doors and windows, on crevices, cracks, and holes along the baseboards, and also the leaves underside. You also need to spray the leaf litter, under the garbage cans, mulch, rock mounds, and woodpiles. If you suspect that your house is already infested with this insect, re-spray it once every week. Make sure that the infestation is gone. Once it is gone, you can re-spray around once a month – it would prevent them from returning or coming to your property.
Special Insecticides
how to get rid of earwigs from your house
There are several insecticides that can be used how to get rid of earwigs from your house. Some of them are quite dangerous, while some are safe. Here are some candidates that you can use for battling the insects.
Suspend SC
This was originally used by professional pest controls because it is a professional-strength product. But the insecticide is now made available for the public. It contains Deltamethrin, an active synthetic ingredient version of pyrethrins that comes from Chrysanthemum. The container comes with its own measuring cup. Mix a gallon of water with 0.75 oz of the concentrate. Put it in a professional sprayer and shake for 2 to 3 minutes. Spray it on the inside parts of windows and doors, as well as inside the holes, cracks, and also crevices. It takes 90 days before you need to re-spray again. You can use it both on the inside and outside.
Delta Dust
This one comes in a dry and fine powder – similar to baby powder. Just like Suspend SC, it contains Deltamethrin. But if you want to use it, you will need a bulb duster which you need to fill around halfway. You need to then cap it and then shake before applying it. The bulb needs to be squeezed to let out a short dust cloud – from the application rod’s tip.
How to apply it? Puff the Delta Dust puff to every holes, crevice, and crack that you can find. Since it isn’t water-soluble, you won’t have to worry that it may wash away. This is one of the longest-lasting products that can hold up to 9 months. Be aware that you may want to cover your nose and mouth while mixing (and using) it up. The product isn’t dangerous but it has a nasty taste – you don’t want it blown to your face accidentally. You can also use it on the inside and outside.
Granular Insecticide
This professional-grade product contains Bifenthrin, a type of synthetic pyrethrin. It is water-activated, that it needs water to get it to work. To use this, you will need a hand spreader so you can spread a fine layer throughout your property. It is usually available in 25-pound bag, but 3 pounds would be enough to spread them at 10 feet distance.
When the granular is wet, it will met and spread out chemical compounds, creating an invisible barrier around the property. You may want to spread the granules very early in the morning – it is a perfect time as the dew is still on. Another cool thing about this product is that it is safe for kids and pets. It will last for 90 days before you need to re-apply it again.
Preventive Measurement
In learning how to get rid of earwigs, you need to learn their habits. Since they love damp and humid areas (meaning that they love moisture so much), you need to make sure to eliminate the moisture in your property. As long as you keep your property dry, earwigs won’t be interested in coming. When you are learning how to get rid of earwigs in house, find out how to deal with the moist conditions, especially along the foundations, faucets, and crawl spaces. It would be a good idea to check whether the spouts and rain gutters truly direct away the water from the foundation.
There are extra ways that you can do:
- Make sure to always trim the bushes and trees so there won’t be any damp or shady areas.
- Earwigs attracted to lights, think about using sodium lights – not the regular ones
- Remove unnecessary mulch
- Rake the leaves up – around the house and within your yard
- You can also use the dehumidifier – the humidity level should be less than 60%
- Check for leaky pipes – fix them
Now that you already know many methods to remove the insects from your property, you can choose one of them. As long as you know how to get rid of earwigs safely and efficiently, you should have no problem or whatsoever.
