Earwigs Can Enter Your Home Through Cracks & Crawlspaces

During the day, earwigs hide under piles of organic matter like leaves or logs and prefer damp, dark locations like underneath sidewalks, crawlspaces, and stones. These kinds of moist and out-of-the-way locations are also favored by centipedes and millipedes, as well as sow-bugs. Although they’re mostly known as scavengers, earwigs have also been known to damage crops and can eat living plants and frightening amounts when their populations grow large enough.

Earwig populations frequently congregate around the foundations of buildings. This can be a problem because earwigs can very easily enter your home through low windows and cracks in the foundations of structures. These pests are attracted to electric lights, which will draw even greater numbers to your home, increasing the chances that they may find a way inside. It’s worth noting, however, that earwigs usually enter homes only by accident, and won’t reproduce or cause much damage if they find their way inside human structures.

Still, it’s possible that, if left unchecked, earwig populations can grow large enough to cause some ecological and agricultural problems. That said, there are a number of preventative measures and removal methods you can employ to keep your property clear of unwanted earwig infestations.

Perhaps the easiest method is to remove debris and other detritus from your yard to cut down on the number of places that earwigs could theoretically hide. If you begin to get rid of tall grass and remove logs or rocks that may be present in your yard, you’ll systematically begin to make your property less appealing for many types of pests.

Because earwigs need moisture to survive, consider eliminating areas where moisture may pool around your property. This measure has the dual purpose of eliminating breeding ground for these pests as well as for mosquitoes, which need stagnant water in order to lay their eggs.

Many of these damp areas may be underneath outdoor faucets, which have a tendency to drip, or in crawlspaces, where it’s naturally cool and dark as a matter of course. Doors, windows, outward-leading pipes, and any other ground-level entry points are locations to keep in mind. It may also help to seal or caulk any cracks in the foundation of your home your might spot. This will limit the number of cracks and crevices through which earwigs can enter your home.

Cantu Pest & Termite is proud to be the first company in Texas to offer a Cantu Green Service to our customers in search of a more prevention-based solution to their pest removal while minimizing the use of pesticides.

If earwigs or other pests have made unwanted appearances around your Dallas, Fort Worth, or Houston area home or business, call Cantu Pest & Termite and schedule an appointment today with one of our friendly, experienced earwig removal experts.