Silverfish

Where it lives in Maltese properties

Bathrooms, kitchens, cellars, wardrobes, bookshelves, behind wallpaper and skirting, and in damp storage areas. Needs high humidity to survive.

Signs of an infestation

You will usually notice the evidence long before you see the pest itself. Look for:

• Silvery insects moving rapidly across floors and in baths and basins
• Irregular holes and surface grazing on paper, wallpaper and book covers
• Yellow staining and fine scales on stored paper and fabric
• Small black pepper-like droppings in cupboards and drawers

Why it matters

The risks associated with silverfish in Malta:

• Damages books, documents, photographs, artwork and wallpaper
• Feeds on natural fibres in stored clothing
• Indicates a damp problem that may cause other issues

How to prevent it

Prevention is always cheaper than treatment, and for this species it is genuinely effective:

• Reduce humidity with ventilation or a dehumidifier. That is the control that actually works
• Repair leaks and improve bathroom extraction
• Store documents and photographs in sealed plastic boxes, not cardboard
• Keep books off external walls and allow air to circulate

How we treat silverfish

We apply an insecticidal dust and residual treatment to cracks, skirting voids, shelf edges and pipe runs, set monitoring traps to measure the population, and, most importantly, advise on the humidity control that prevents recurrence. Without addressing damp, silverfish will always return.