House centipedes do love getting into houses. These creatures attack your yard before getting inside your homes. They are tiny and have many legs to crawl in at any time. These creepy crawly creatures can make you jump out of bed by simply crawling into it. However, they are not as harmful as their other relatives.
Moreover, their bite is only as painful as that of an ant. You may not want them to invade your private space when they enter your bed; however, fear them less. House centipedes go under the scientific name Scutigera coleoptrata. They like warmth and humidity but can survive in most places. They are pretty quick, owing to their hind legs, which give them the ability to move quickly. These insects neither make nests or webs in your house, nor do they carry any germs. Furthermore, they eat all other insects so that they will clean up these pests in your house. Their antennae help them to sense the prey.
Why are There House Centipedes in Your House?
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A cozy and warm environment in your house can attract house centipedes. If they have enough to feed on in your house, they may never leave. These insects also crawl into your bed for warmth and heat. Their natural habitats comprise dark and damp locations, so when they come in, they want similar conditions, however a bit warmer. Your house will become a prime location for them to settle if they find moisture in your home.
House centipedes lookup for sufficient food sources in any location they settle. These tiny tots are carnivorous and feed on pests. Spiders, roaches, worms, silverfish, bed bugs, flies, moths, and even other centipedes are some insects and pests they like to eat. Infestation of these insects in your house heightens the chances of centipedes entering your house.
These reasons may provide some answers to why there are house centipedes in your house. Below we discuss how we can keep them out of bed.
How to Keep Centipedes Out of Bed?
Reduce Moisture
Once you know the reasons why they are in your place, you can then decide how to keep them out. Firstly, the moisture in your house can attract more centipedes. Therefore, keep the moisture out. Moist walls can attract centipedes quickly. Many other insects too enter your homes for the same reason. You will mostly find centipedes in bathrooms, basements, and damp spaces. You can do away with these centipedes and their food source by eliminating the moisture in your room or house.
How to Prevent the Centipedes from Entering your Bed?
You can never imagine or tolerate centipedes entering your bed or crawling into your ears while you sleep. So you know you don’t want them in your bed.
Here are some other ways to keep centipedes out of bed:
- Use an air dehumidifier.
- Install bathroom fans to stop moisture from building up. Bathrooms are an entry point for these insects.
- Seal off cracks in your bedroom walls to stop these creatures from sneaking inside.
- You can also release them outside in the garden or backyard.
- Poison the centipedes or call pest control services if they are a huge nuisance for you.
- Light keeps centipedes away, so this might work if you could turn on a small light source nearby as you sleep in your bed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will House Centipedes Crawl on you while you Sleep?
These centipedes never sting or bite while entering your bed. They may just be finding a way out. Humans also produce tons of body heat while sleeping, which attracts most house centipedes and insects to come by. You can use peppermint essential oil to drive them away because they detest the smell of peppermint. Moreover, contact with this oil burns them out.
Does Killing a Centipede Attract More?
You may kill the centipedes, but they do eat other pests and insects around. You will still have to deal with these new friends in your house, which may grow more in size when there are no centipedes around to feed on them. Therefore, killing a centipede can attract more trouble for you.
Does Light Keep Centipedes Away?
You can use light as a short-term centipede deterrent. They may retrieve to dark areas, wall cracks, or vents as soon as you switch on the light. You can also learn about their hiding places or entry points by discovering these gaps; however, switching on the light can never solve your problem entirely. You need to seal all such gaps to settle the issue.
Will House Centipedes Crawl in your Ear?
Yes, they do, and there have been many instances where house centipedes have crawled into the ears of humans.
Can House Centipedes Climb up your Bed?
Yes, they can climb up walls and beds to sneak into your private spaces. They usually enter beds while you sleep. Your body generates body heat which attracts these centipedes into your bed.