SyntheticBlinkerFluid
SyntheticBlinkerFluid PowerDork
5/3/14 12:08 a.m.

So apparently what I'm dealing with is called a "House Centipede". I can deal with most insects including spiders, but I'm ready to burn my house to the ground if I see any more of these damn things:

What do I need to do to get rid of these things? They started in the basement and now they've made it upstairs. The way they move and how fast they move are the things nightmares are made of.

Man that picture is creeping my E36 M3 out.

nicksta43
nicksta43 UltraDork
5/3/14 12:16 a.m.

Those things give me the heeby jeebys. If fire doesn't do it I suggest nukes.

SnowMongoose
SnowMongoose HalfDork
5/3/14 1:00 a.m.

Cut your losses.

novaderrik
novaderrik PowerDork
5/3/14 1:04 a.m.

They are harmless.. learn to coexist peacefully with them..

Trans_Maro
Trans_Maro UltraDork
5/3/14 1:08 a.m.

It looks like it'll grow up to be this guy: http://www.ripleys.com/weird/inside-ripleys-world/bat-eating-centipedes/

ddavidv
ddavidv PowerDork
5/3/14 5:55 a.m.

They are actually beneficial. They eat all kinds of little bugs you can't see. But, they creep my wife out too. She squashes them, I let them live.

Duke
Duke UltimaDork
5/3/14 5:57 a.m.

Yeah, they eat a ton of other bugs. But they sure are creepy looking.

They like it humid, so if you can dry your house out a little, they may leave on their own.

SVreX
SVreX MegaDork
5/3/14 6:07 a.m.

Kind of an interesting critter. Especially "Behavior and Ecology":

Wiki link

His sex life doesn't sound like much.

They like moisture. A dehumidifier might help, but a pest control company can probably help more.

He's an insectivore. He's eating something. If you have a lot of them, you've also got a lot of something else.

They're weird, but harmless. They don't creep me out anywhere near as much as this guy (I once found one like him nearly 7 inches long in the shower with me):

nepa03focus
nepa03focus Reader
5/3/14 6:17 a.m.

Like duke said they are a moisture pest, so try to get rid of any source of dampness, and like others already said they do feed on smaller insects. I know some species of them can live up to like 7 years I believe. If I were you I would get a good residual spray, and spray a heavy perimeter band around the exterior and also your basement. Good luck

Nathan JansenvanDoorn
Nathan JansenvanDoorn Dork
5/3/14 6:34 a.m.

We saw a lot fewer of them once we left plugs in the drains when we weren't using them. Apparently they like to spend time there....

mad_machine
mad_machine GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
5/3/14 7:05 a.m.
SVreX wrote: He's an insectivore. He's eating something. If you have a lot of them, you've also got a lot of something else.

find and get rid of the food source and they will leave. you have a bigger insect problem at home than you realize

Lesley
Lesley PowerDork
5/3/14 9:40 a.m.

They are kind of frightening, but yeah, as others mentioned, they'll keep your house free of bugs that aren't so nice. They move so fast it's easy to pretend you didn't see them.

bigdaddylee82
bigdaddylee82 Dork
5/3/14 10:11 a.m.

novaderrik
novaderrik PowerDork
5/3/14 10:33 a.m.

the first time i saw one, it crawled up out of the drain in the bath tub...

Appleseed
Appleseed MegaDork
3/9/23 4:49 a.m.

In spite of the canoe, damn there a few people in the thread I really miss.

GameboyRMH
GameboyRMH GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
3/9/23 9:58 a.m.
Trans_Maro said:

It looks like it'll grow up to be this guy: http://www.ripleys.com/weird/inside-ripleys-world/bat-eating-centipedes/

Luckily not. The house centipede is to the tropical/desert centipede as the housecat is to the sabertooth cat. The house centipede isn't aggressive, has a fairly mild sting and eats a lot of nuisance bugs, while a tropical or desert centipede is extremely aggressive and packs the most painful sting of any land animal, and thus there's no good it can do to justify being around you...

Where the analogy breaks down is that while a house cat is extremely cute, a house centipede is still extremely creepy!

Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter)
Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) SuperDork
3/9/23 10:41 a.m.
Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter)
Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) SuperDork
3/9/23 10:45 a.m.

They make horror movies about these creatures...

codrus (Forum Supporter)
codrus (Forum Supporter) GRM+ Memberand PowerDork
3/25/23 11:26 a.m.

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