What’s Bringing House Centipedes Into Your Home?

Centipedes are lightning-fast, covered in countless legs, and once you see one dart across the floor, it’s hard to forget. House centipedes (Scutigera coleoptrata) may not sting or bite like some pests, but their startling appearance alone is enough to send a chill down your spine. If you’ve just spotted one, you’re probably asking yourself, “Why are they in my home?” and “Is this something I should worry about?”

Although they look menacing, house centipedes are simply looking for a comfy place to settle. Like many other pests, they’re driven by the need for three basic things: food, water, and shelter. If your home offers all three, it can quickly become a centipede’s ideal spot.

Let’s break down what brings house centipedes indoors, and how you can stop them.

How Do They Find Their Way Inside?

House centipedes don’t set out to spook you. They’re guided by instinct. These nocturnal hunters spend their nights searching for food and their days tucked away in dark, damp spaces. They usually enter homes through tiny cracks in the foundation, gaps in walls, or open windows and vents. Once inside, they seek out areas that give them what they need: a source of prey, some humidity, and hiding places.

Prey Leads Them Through the Door

Before becoming uninvited guests, house centipedes typically live outside in places like mulch beds, gardens, or shady corners of the yard. But when food sources outdoors become scarce, or when prey gets too close to your home, they’re quick to follow the trail inside.

While they do help by eating other insects, their presence often signals a larger issue: your home might already have another pest infestation. When you think of it this way, you could consider house centipedes as a symptom rather than the root problem.

So, what’s luring them in? House centipedes feed on a wide range of pests, including:

• Ants
• Bed bugs
• Cockroaches
• Crickets
• Earwigs
• Moths
• Silverfish
• Spiders
• Termites
• And many more

Damp Conditions Draw Them In

These critters thrive in damp environments. Outdoors, they’re commonly found beneath wet mulch, rocks, or rotting logs. Indoors, they gravitate toward basements, bathrooms, crawl spaces, and other humid areas. Even just a few moist spots in your home can unintentionally provide perfect living conditions.

Here are some steps you can take to reduce indoor moisture:

• Fix outdoor leaks: Check spigots and hoses for drips that could be soaking the soil and attracting pests that love moisture.
• Maintain your gutters: Ensure they’re clear of debris and draining properly. Overflow or damage can result in water pooling near your foundation.
• Control yard drainage: Shady landscaping can trap moisture after rainstorms. Trim back vegetation to let the sun dry things out.
• Monitor indoor humidity: Use dehumidifiers in musty areas like basements, and ventilate bathrooms and laundry rooms to prevent dampness.

Cluttered Spaces Keep Them Around

House centipedes are often reclusive, and prefer to avoid sunlight. They shy away from outdoor activity so they can rest in cluttered, dark areas. If your home or yard offers enough places to hide, they’ll stick around. Although it’s tough to keep them out entirely, your two best defenses are sealing off entry points and eliminating clutter where they can shelter.

Follow these practical tips to make your home less attractive to centipedes:

• Tidy up woodpiles: Keep firewood stacked neatly and off the ground. Rotting or scattered logs create perfect hiding places.
• Clear out yard clutter: Items like tools, building supplies, and old furniture can offer shelter to many pests, including centipedes.
• Bring in outdoor toys: Toys left outside can trap moisture beneath them and provide a cozy home for bugs.
• Rake up leaves: Wet piles of leaves are ideal for the pests that centipedes love to eat.
• Mow regularly and remove weeds: Tall grass and dense plant growth are perfect environments for both insects and their predators.
• Seal entry points: Close up foundation cracks, fill gaps around pipes, and patch torn window screens. Even tiny holes can serve as doorways for centipedes.
• Repair screens or door gaps: It doesn’t take much of an opening for a house centipede to squeeze through and find its way inside.

House Centipedes Can Be Found Outside Too

House centipedes may get their name from relaxing indoors, but they typically begin life outside. Their preferred habitats include moist, shaded areas such as mulch beds, rotting logs, leaf piles, and beneath rocks or bricks. These creatures are highly sensitive to light and thrive in cool, dark places that offer protection from the elements and potential predators.

The soil around your home’s foundation is especially attractive, it stays damp, remains shaded, and often harbors the insects centipedes like to eat. Once they’ve settled near your walls, it doesn’t take much for them to venture indoors, especially when temperatures increase or the outdoor environment dries up.

To keep house centipedes from entering your home, start by identifying where they might be lurking in your yard. Here are some common outdoor hiding places:

• Garden beds and shrubs: These attract insects like aphids and mites, which are top menu items for centipedes.
• Rocks and landscape bricks: Turn one over, and you’ll likely find a congregation of bugs underneath, a prime feeding ground.
• Unsealed trash bins: Decomposing waste lures flies and spiders, which in turn attract hungry centipedes.

Think of your yard as a gateway. The more damp and cluttered it is, the more inviting it becomes to pests, and the predators that follow them.

Should You Be Worried About House Centipedes?

House centipedes might look alarming, but they’re not out to hurt you. These bugs are not aggressive and will typically flee when disturbed. They won’t charge or bite without provocation.

That said, it’s best not to handle one directly. Like all centipedes, the house variety is venomous, though its venom is intended for catching small insects. If you try to pick one up, it may deliver a painful pinch using its modified front legs. The sting is often compared to a bee sting, brief, sharp, and usually nothing more than a temporary nuisance.

However, some individuals may be allergic to the venom. If you experience symptoms such as swelling, dizziness, or trouble breathing after contact, seek immediate medical care.

Adult humans usually only suffer mild effects, however, young children and pets can react strongly. It’s a good idea to keep them away from any centipedes they might stumble across.

What Sets House Centipedes Apart from Other Centipedes?

Although there are many types of centipedes, the house centipede stands out in a few noticeable ways. Once you know what to look for, they’re easy to identify:

• Leg length: House centipedes have long, spindly legs that give them a delicate, spider-like silhouette.
• Number of legs: They have 15 pairs, fewer than many other centipede species, which often sport 21 to 23.
• Speed: These insects are incredibly fast, capable of running up to 1.3 feet per second, among the quickest arthropods.
• Coloration: They’re usually yellowish-gray with three dark stripes along the back, unlike the brighter colors seen in some tropical centipedes.
• Antennae: Extra-long and fine, their antennae help them navigate tight, dark spaces.
• Behavior: House centipedes are skittish and tend to avoid confrontation, unlike some of their more aggressive counterparts.
• Venom strength: Their venom is relatively mild and rarely causes serious reactions in humans.

Don’t Let Centipedes Bother Your Family

If you’ve seen a house centipede dash across your floor, there’s a good chance other pests are hiding nearby. These centipedes often move indoors when prey is plentiful, so their presence may point to an underlying infestation.

To fully resolve the problem, you need to address what’s drawing them in. That’s where professional pest control comes in. Our team knows how to identify what’s attracting centipedes to your property and how to eliminate the source.

Let us inspect your home, uncover hidden pest activity, and build a tailored plan to keep both centipedes and their prey away.

Reach out today to schedule your inspection, and send those many-legged visitors on their way.