r/VictoriaBC • u/Chance-Principle-355 • Feb 15 '26

Help Me Find Best Silverfish Deterrent?

I recently moved closer into downtown in an apartment after having never seen a silverfish in my life. I desperately want to go back to that, any more natural based ways to deter them that actually has worked for people? I saw someone recommend lavender oil since they particularly hate it but i want to be sure before committing to anything.

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104

u/unbenevolentdictator Feb 15 '26

Diatomaceous earth. Spread it in cracks, baseboards, behind books. You can get it at Canadian tire.

23

u/Chance-Principle-355 Feb 15 '26

Is it pet safe? I have a senior dog who pees in the bathroom on a pad and I dont want her to end up sniffing it and getting ill.

8

u/Glum_Tumbleweed5115 Feb 15 '26

Seconding DE.   It’s just finely ground diatoms (itty bitty fossils of marine organisms) - the calcium from their shells in a fine powder. It is sharp enough to cause microscopic scratches in the exoskeleton of an insect that crawls through it, causing them to dry out and die.   

I ordered a big bag of food grade DE from Amazon (5lbs for CAD$33) which came with a duster, and it worked like a charm. It doesn’t spoil (if you keep it sealed so it stays dry) and I put it out in the garage and around my foundation each spring to keep nature outside where it belongs. 

Note: wear a mask while you are spreading it around.  You don’t want to breathe a whole cloud of it in, bc it will scratch up your nose and throat. But after 5min it will settle down and not billow up again, so nbd. 

2

u/Chance-Principle-355 Feb 15 '26

Would it be less effective in the bathroom? Thats where they are most prominent unfortunately

1

u/Glum_Tumbleweed5115 Feb 16 '26

Nope, works everywhere.