Pest Control

If You Have Beetles In Your Home, Look Here First

Beetles

No matter what the season is, beetles seem to be the household pest that is always there. You may not know how they go into your house, what has attracted them, or how long they have been in your home, but beetles will always appear. Why are beetles in your house? Let us go through a few possibilities.

A beetle invasion in your home is not common, but it does happen from time to time. Beetles can hide in various locations in your home that they find suitable. Removing the beetles can be a combination of physical removal, insecticides, or natural remedies safer for the environment.

Beetles are becoming more and more of a problem for households. There are many places they could be hiding in your house that you may not even realize. Why are they there, and how do you get rid of them? We will find out in this article.

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Where Do Beetles Live In Your House?

There are many locations in your house where beetles can hide from you. These are the places where you need to look as the infestation can begin in them without you knowing:

  • The ceiling. May beetles are attracted to the lights on your ceiling, and they can be hiding inside your light fixtures to stay by the light.
  • In furniture. Some beetles eat synthetic fibers and animal fibers like wool and leather, so the beetle may hide in carpets, upholstered furniture, and boxes of clothing where they can eat as much as they want.
  • In piles of paper or cardboard boxes. Stacks of books or even older books on a bookshelf or cardboard boxes you store stuff in are a cozy hiding spots for beetles. Some beetles may even eat these items.
  • In the garage. This is a dark place with little foot traffic. It provides shelter and food with many places to hide under when you walk past.
  • Baseboards and moldings. These allow beetles not to be underfoot, and they are easy for beetles to crawl into when you walk past and scare them. 
  • In plants. Beetles like to live on and around plants as they provide both shelter and a food source for them.
  • In your closet. As some beetles eat synthetic fibers, they will hide in your wardrobe as they have food, shelter, darkness, and safety for the beetles.
  • Behind your household appliances. This provides a dark, warm place for the beetles to cuddle up where you will not see them. 
  • In the attic. Your attic shelters beetle from the weather and provide food, as most people store cardboard boxes.
  • In kitchen cupboards. Some beetles search for packaged foods of grains that you may keep in your cabinets.

So, if you want to purge the beetles invading your home, these are all excellent places to look at. Now that you know where to examine and what attracts them to your house in the first place?

What Attracts Beetles To Your Home?

Many items would attract beetles into your home. The main things that attract beetles into your home include shelter from the weather, food, warmth, safety, lights, moisture, darkness, and plants.

  • Weather. Some beetles may enter your home seeking shelter from the weather; you may find an influx of beetles when it is raining heavily, or it has been raining for a few days straight. The beetles will enter your home to get out of the rain.
  • Food. Beetles may come into your home in search of food. This could attract beetles if synthetic materials or cardboard lying around. As well as any open gains or food parcels in your kitchen such as flour or cereals.
  • Warm & damp areas. If you have any dark spots in your home prone to leaks, this can attract beetles to that area, such as behind the AC; if the drainage pipe is not clear or working correctly and leaking behind the machine, beetles may hide there.

    All these places are where beetles will live in your house as they are safe, full of food for the beetles, and will most likely not be disturbed. 
  • Lights within your home. Keeping lights on around or inside your home during the night will attract beetles to your home as lights give off heat and attract other insects that the beetles may eat.
  • Plants are food and provide shelter for some beetles and safety as people do not usually move their plants in their house, which attracts certain beetles to your home.

How To Remove Beetles From Your Home

Removing a beetle infestation from your home can be difficult as beetle infestations can snowball. However, the following are a few things that may be able to help with a beetle infestation.

Something that may help is getting a flea spray from a pet store that contains Methoprene and Permethrin. Spray the flea spray in all the areas where the beetles are living in your house. These chemicals are safe for humans but can kill insects and beetles.  

You can use a vacuum to pick up all the beetles and get them out of your house without killing them. However, this may not get the eggs or larva of the beetles in your home. 

Get a few beetle traps and put them around areas of your home where you know beetle congregate.

This will draw out the beetles from their hiding place and trap or kill them, depending on the type you get.

If you want a natural way, you can use neem oil. This is an oil derived from the neem tree. This is deadly to beetles but harmless to other wildlife and humans.

If the beetle infestation is outside, you can get an insecticide like Reclaim IT and spray it around your yard.

If you have gone through these strategies and still have a beetle problem or do not want to deal with it yourself, then contact a professional pest control service in your area, and they will help you with a treatment plan for your house.

How To Prevent Beetles In Your Home

Preventing a beetle infestation is much easier than dealing with one already in progress. The following are a few tips to avoid an infestation.

Look carefully through any food items, wooden items, or fabrics you bring into your home. Make sure that there are no beetles or larva in these items.

If you leave lights on through the night, ensure that nearby windows or doors are closed and kept throughout the night.

Ensure that any food items in your kitchen cupboard are in sealed plastic containers so the beetles cannot get into them.

If you are storing things in your garage, use sealed plastic containers instead of cardboard boxes.

Control the moisture in your home, especially in dark, warm places. And frequently inspect these places to ensure that the beetles do not get comfortable there.

Keep your closets free from clutter. The fewer clothes there are, the less likely beetles will make it their home. As well as giving you the ability to search for beetles better in your closets.

Use beetle traps and sprays as a deterrent so the beetles will not feel safe and comfortable in your home.

Remember, if you see a beetle, you need to get it out of your house as soon as possible so it cannot find a place to hide and breed in your home.

Conclusion

Beetles can be a huge problem if not treated correctly, but prevention is the best treatment for a beetle infestation. If you can keep beetles out of your house, you have already won the battle.

There are many places in your house that you need to go through frequently to make sure you have no place in your home that can hide beetles and that there is no space for beetles to feel comfortable in your house.

Contact a professional pest control service if you are fighting an infestation or want the best beetle prevention possible.

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Get FREE quotes from licensed pest control technicians in your area today. Whether you need spraying for ants, roaches, spiders, ticks, mosquitos, or bed bugs, We Can Help! All technicians are screened, licensed, and insured.

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Author

Hubert Miles | Licensed Home Inspector, CMI, CPI

Hubert Miles is a licensed home inspector (RBI# 2556) with more than two decades of experience in inspection and construction. Since 2008, he has been serving South Carolina through his company, Patriot Home Inspections LLC. As a Certified Master Inspector, Hubert is dedicated to providing his expertise in home inspections, repairs, maintenance, and DIY projects.