Centipedes can be a nuisance indoors, but how do they get inside an apartment? Apartments are usually more secure than standalone homes, but centipedes will find their way into anything! Once they invade the place, they will not leave. When you spot one there are others are hiding somewhere.Â
So, where do centipedes come from in apartments?
- Centipedes migrate from different places in search of food and shelter
- Centipedes can be brought in unintentionally by tenants who carry them on articles that are often stored outside
- These pests can quickly multiply and spread to other units within the same apartment
In this article, I’ll go over the details of the movement of centipedes in apartments, and how to get rid of them.Â
Where Do Centipedes Come From in Apartments?
Centipedes are not solitary creatures, however, they don’t reproduce at the insane levels of, say, roaches. Fortunately, they often exist in a few numbers.
They are normally found in outdoor environments like other organisms but are capable of moving to places with better living conditions– like indoors, particularly your apartment!Â
1. Shelter
Centipedes are commonly found in the yard and often move into apartments to escape cold weather and other elements outside. Pests, bugs, and other creatures usually come into your yard and seek refuge close to the walls where it is warm.
Centipedes can adapt to different conditions, which is why they can survive indoors.  Â
Shelter comes in different forms, and several residential areas have ideal spots for wild creatures. When in the yard, centipedes live under heaps of leaves, large rocks, trash bins, debris from unfinished construction materials, uncollected waste, and piles of wood.
All items that lie idle in your yard and don’t see the sun often provide shelter for pests. Temporary things like dead grass and leaves also attract different creatures.
When the space around apartments is cleared, centipedes will be left with no shelter and will move inside buildings.
When the space around apartments is cleared, centipedes will be left with no shelter and will move inside buildings.
2. Availability of Entry Points
The common entry points for house centipedes include cracks or gaps in the walls, holes, openings between window frames and walls, as well as gaps around doors. It’s the same for most other bugs and pests.
Seal up any cracks and holes you can find. You should not leave your doors open at night since they can attract centipedes.Â
Even if you clean the inside of your apartment, this will be a futile exercise when the yard is not clean. As long as the areas surrounding the perimeter of the property have organic materials such as mulch, firewood, compost bins, and tarps, centipedes will not go away.
Centipedes usually thrive in dark and warm moist places. Therefore, it is vital to remove all the waste materials close to your apartment building. Be sure the lawn is mowed regularly, and that piles of grass and lawn debris are cleared after mowing.Â
3. Availability of Moisture
Centipedes cannot survive in dry conditions because their bodies do not store water. They are also impacted by extremely cold weather. Therefore, to protect themselves from dehydration and cool temperatures, centipedes prefer cool and damp environments often found in apartments.
Moist conditions indoors are ideal for the survival of centipedes. As a result, they will crawl up into apartments through sump pumps and drains in search of attractive locations.
House centipedes thrive in damp, wet, and humid areas. These conditions are usually found in the basements, bathrooms, and kitchens of different apartments.
To protect themselves from dehydration and cool temperatures, centipedes prefer cool and damp environments often found in apartments
Since centipedes cannot store water in their bodies, they will migrate to apartments with wet conditions. Additionally, the warmth inside buildings also attracts these creatures. Regular cleaning and keeping your apartment dry can go a long way in helping to prevent the problem of centipede infestation.
4. Search for Food
Centipedes feed on other insects like flies, spiders, bugs, and other house pests. They use the sense of smell and touch to locate their food. Therefore, they may end up in your apartment if these sources of food are readily available.
Because they are natural pest hunters, centipedes move to different places where they can survive.
Centipedes feed on other insects like flies, spiders, bugs, and other house pests.
Whenever you observe the population of centipedes increasing in your apartment, it means they are getting sufficient food. To get rid of these creepy pests, remove their food source. It is crucial to figure out their source of food to deal with them effectively.Â
For instance, if you get rid of bed bugs, ants, spiders, and silverfish, you can get rid of centipedes. Without food, these creatures will relocate to other apartments or ultimately die of hunger.Â
They often wander inside buildings searching for food sources, especially during warm periods looking for a more appropriate habitat. If they do not find a hospitable spot in your home, they will not stay.
Therefore, if your apartment (or the adjacent apartments) do not have conditions that attract centipedes, they will stay away.Â
5. Moving Items From Outside
Whenever you move different items that have been lying idle outside for days, you are likely to bring centipedes into your home or apartment. And once they’re inside, it can be hard to get rid of them!Â
Items like toys, footwear, Amazon box packaging, and doormats are the major carriers of centipedes in your home. Check these things thoroughly before you bring them inside. If these articles are stored in moist and dark places, they provide good shelter for centipedes. Inspect all articles stored outdoors and then brought inside, so that you do not introduce unwanted visitors into your living space.Â
When someone relocates to a unit within your apartment block, they may unknowingly bring centipedes, and then the buggers can end up spreading to other sections within the building complex.
You can also carry centipedes to other apartments when you relocate.Â
Final Thoughts
Most centipede species stay outside and are found in gardens around apartments. Centipedes do not store water in their bodies, so they migrate to damp and moist places at certain times of the year, and those places are often homes and apartments.Â
They can also crawl into cracks or through drains to gain entry into your home in search of food. Centipedes usually come from different sources and look for ideal hiding spots inside the apartment, like basements, bathtubs, sewage pipes, and sinks.
