12
votes
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What is/was tunneling into this 2x4?
From the similarity of the lines, I'd say you pulled something out of the old 2x4 (nails) and dragged them across the board, perhaps as you twisted and pulled to separate/remote the board from ...
- 41.9k
7
votes
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What is this animal in my loft?
I dont think birds would be so sneaky. It is going to be a mammal.
You can catch it.
source
I like live catching over poison because poisoned animals die and rot and stink.
Once you catch one you ...
- 5,498
6
votes
Accepted
What is this bug poop or dirt that keeps reappearing every few months by a wood beam?
Looks like dry wood termite droppings (frass) or pellets to me.
Google termite droppings and you’ll see many pictures.
- 22.5k
5
votes
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Caulking Baseboards - Suddenly Spiders Appear
Blocking their hiding spaces and places with air flow probably displaced them. With the area sealed up they won’t have food traveling that area so they are probably getting away from the smell and ...
- 95.8k
4
votes
How To Get Rid Of Acrobat Ants
Ants are constantly seeking food and water to maintain the colony. When an ant locates either in your house it lays down a scent trail with pheromes that the rest of the worker ants use as a freeway ...
- 10.8k
4
votes
How to get rid of these bugs?
That's a silverfish. They're harmless to people and they won't do any structural damage to your home, but they do like to eat starch, cellulose, carbs; they'll do damage to wallpaper, book bindings, ...
- 1,006
4
votes
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What is this insect that seems to hatch from OSB?
Looks like a type of Lacewing. Their larvae are predatory, mostly eating smaller insects like aphids and other insect larvae. If you are seeing the adults, it's likely that the larvae were pupating ...
- 627
4
votes
Accepted
What are these insects in my flat and how should I get rid of them?
Those are Silverfish, aka Fishmoths or Bristletails. They're insects not worms (note the legs).
They're usually nocturnal unless you find & disturb them in their hiding places.
Their favorite ...
- 5,076
3
votes
How To Get Rid Of Acrobat Ants
I have always had good luck with boric acid powder, it's hard to beat. It's very inexpensive, sold under various names, sometimes as a roach killer, but it kills most bugs. It's another thing that ...
- 24.3k
3
votes
Do I still have a mouse problem?
You've taken some good precautionary steps to eradicate the vermin from your house. But I'd like to suggest and comment on some of the tasks. The first job you should accomplish is to stop the rodent'...
- 10.8k
3
votes
How to get rid of cockroaches?
Do Not use foggers or sprays, you will spread them to every room in the house. These products will provide limited control, not pest elimination. Today's pest control industry has developed terrific ...
- 145
3
votes
When to stop putting out mouse traps?
According to the CDC's website, keep putting out the mouse traps and after five straight days of no mice, you should be in the clear. I did that in our attic and it seemed to do the trick --- and yes,...
- 31
3
votes
insect eating holes in concrete
Insects are incapable of "eating" concrete, but they do tend to exploit weak or damaged concrete to access something more appealing, such as a food source or nesting site.
It only takes a ...
- 105k
3
votes
Accepted
Bird sleeping and eating soffit. How to make sure it is not coming back?
The slightly scruffy plumage and a flash of red on the tail but not on the head makes me think it is a juvenile red-shafted flicker - do you happen to be in the west of North America? - so it may not ...
- 506
3
votes
does anyone know this bug?
Found it. It's a brown-banded cockroach
The life stages of the brown-banded cockroach, Supella longipalpa
Fabricius, showing an ootheca (first row), five instars of nymphs
(second row and first ...
- 1,020
3
votes
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Insects on Hem-Fir/SPF lumber?
They are springtails.
There's a picture of one looking happy at It Takes Two to Tango… or Does It? The Curious Courtship of Collembola (Springtails).
Insect Identification Key Order Collembola: the ...
- 506
3
votes
Accepted
Is this a termite? What bug has been eating my wood?
That most definitely appears to be termite damage. The pictured bug is NOT a termite however. It looks like what we call an "earwig" here in the south.
- 1,214
3
votes
Accepted
Is PEX very susceptible to damage from rats/rodents?
Rats are not specifically attracted to PEX, but they do have to "seek out opportunities to" chew on things all the time. Their incisor teeth never stop growing, so if left unchecked they would grow so ...
- 14.4k
3
votes
Accepted
What are these small flies in my apartment?
Fly-like insects that are persistent, smaller, with slower reactions sound like drain flies.
Have you tried disassembling and cleaning out your kitchen sink trap? The congealed food waste there is ...
- 941
3
votes
Accepted
Eliminating moth flies (and larvea) of unknown origin found mostly in kitchen
Really if it is like that you can do two things:
As Dandavis suggested - water+murphy's oil takes care of it fast. It works, I have used it multiple times.
You need to do a thorough cleaning. ...
- 46.2k
3
votes
Eliminating moth flies (and larvea) of unknown origin found mostly in kitchen
Could be pantry moths. They often show up in dry goods (e.g. rice, oatmeal) purchased from outside.
My solution was
Place all food in hard sided sealed containers.
Clean all shelving.
Clean all ...
- 4,223
3
votes
Electric or Propane Heater for bed bug extermination?
This is a difficult question to answer because a lot depends on heating a living space well beyond the temperature that one normally heats a room to.
Take this not as an answer but as a commentary ...
- 10.2k
2
votes
What is eating my drywall?
Googled this and your post was the first one I saw, I have the same gouges on my wall. After we sprayed it with bug spray stuff started flying out. They were the in ground termites. Perhaps your ...
- 21
2
votes
What is eating my drywall?
The fly is a crane fly and has nothing to do with eating your drywall.
http://www.cirrusimage.com/flies_crane.htm
- 21
2
votes
I have flies after painters came
I'm a cabinetmaker. One year I sprayed outside some awesome cabinets I'd made for a customer. I had fruit trees on my property. Within seconds I had thousands of fruit flies descending on the wet ...
- 21
2
votes
Accepted
Will an old oak tree close to my house cause problems?
Maybe I can post some pictures later but I have 3 very large oaks next to my house - one is absolutely huge and 10 feet away. There are tons of limbs directly over my roof. Do I care? Not really. ...
- 46.2k
2
votes
How to get rid of cockroaches?
Eliminate any sources of water. You might have a leak or a place where water doesn't drain away completely and the roaches are attracted to that. Also, use weatherstripping and caulk to make sure ...
- 21
2
votes
How to get rid of cockroaches?
@Mazura is right... you will NEVER get rid of the cockroaches in an apartment. The best you can hope for is to control them and minimize their presence.
Some years ago, a friend was in your ...
- 1,381
2
votes
Accepted
What I do about mouse droppings in basement ceiling where I can't reach?
According to http://www.cdc.gov/rodents/cleaning/ and http://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/technical/hps/faq.html hantavirus stays infectious for only a few days.
Let the droppings sit for a while (and ...
- 1,781
2
votes
When to stop putting out mouse traps?
I have had similar issues in my house. First you set out traps until no mice come. Whether that is 1, 2, or 100. Peanut butter is a bit smelly but mice have good noses and habits. So if it is ...
- 46.2k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible