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Silverfish infestations are easier to prevent than to fix. They’re attracted to starchy foods, humid spaces, and abundant hiding spots – all things you can control. These five measures remove what’s bringing them in and give them nowhere comfortable to settle.
Lock Down Food Storage
Silverfish eat starch – flour, cereal, crackers, pasta, oats, paper labels, even wallpaper paste. Standard cardboard boxes and flimsy plastic bags won’t stop them. Once one finds a food source, more follow and they reproduce quickly.
Move all pantry staples into hard plastic, glass, or metal containers with properly sealing lids. Mason jars for smaller items, gasketed bins for bulk. The cardboard boxes that flour and cereal come in are essentially both food and housing for silverfish. Replace them. Store ripe fruit in the refrigerator – fruit left on counters is both food and moisture source.
Reduce Indoor Clutter
Cluttered spaces are silverfish real estate. Stacks of cardboard boxes in basements and attics, piles of old magazines, bags of rarely-used fabric items – all of these provide both cover and food (silverfish eat paper, cloth, and sizing in fabric).
Replace cardboard storage with sealed plastic bins. Cardboard absorbs moisture and provides the kind of tight, dark crevices silverfish prefer. Clear out items you don’t actually use. Vacuum storage areas seasonally. The less clutter there is, the fewer places they have to nest and reproduce undetected.
Store Papers in Sealed Bins
If you have documents, books, or papers you need to keep, get them off the floor and into airtight containers. Silverfish eat paper – book bindings, old documents, stored files. A sealed hard plastic bin makes those items inaccessible.
Don’t stack loose papers unsorted in a box. They’ll work their way between pages and damage them from the inside before you notice. Use folders and binders inside the bin so papers are less penetrable, and add a silica gel packet if you’re storing in any damp area to absorb residual moisture inside the container.
Freeze Infested Items
If silverfish have already gotten into clothing, blankets, fabric items, or dry goods – bag everything in sealed plastic and put it in the freezer for at least 72 hours. A full week is better. Silverfish (and their eggs) can’t survive freezing temperatures.
After freezing, shake items out outside so you’re not depositing dead insects and eggs back inside. Wash or dry-clean fabrics before returning them to storage. For pantry goods like flour and oats, this works as well – just make sure the container is airtight so you don’t get moisture damage from condensation when the item thaws.
Cedar Shavings in Closets and Drawers
Cedar contains natural oils that silverfish (and many other insects) actively avoid. A handful of cedar shavings in dresser drawers, closet corners, and storage boxes creates an unpleasant environment they’ll work around if possible.
Cedar blocks, rings, or hanging planks work the same way. Replace or sand them every few months as the scent fades – the protective effect comes from the volatile oils, not the wood itself. This won’t eliminate an active infestation, but it’s a solid ongoing deterrent in areas you’ve already cleared.
