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So I was all set to make plans to buy a house and move to Hawaii and then started reading about centipedes and how they are such an unspoken problem in Hawaii. Reading stories on the net about people finding them in bed with them when they are awoken by something stinging their body. Literature says their bite is not poisonous to an adult but a bite is verry painful for several days. Then I saw this video:
and said, "That's it. Roaches are bad enough but this???? No way."
Question--I know they're part of humid climates and they're a fact of life in Hawaii, but are there any year-round warm climates in the world where these miserable creatures do not exist and if not how can they be eliminated in the Hawaiian home 100%. I wouldn't want to deal with these things.
Worldwide, there are estimated to be 8,000 species of centipede,[4] of which 3,000 have been described. Centipedes have a wide geographical range, reaching beyond the Arctic Circle.[3] Centipedes are found in an array of terrestrial habitats from tropical rainforests to deserts.
LOL, I used to live in the Caribbean where we had centipedes a-plenty. Horrid creatures. I've been on Big Island since August and haven't seen a single one, and haven't heard any of my friends or associates here say that they have seen any.
So I was all set to make plans to buy a house and move to Hawaii and then started reading about centipedes and how they are such an unspoken problem in Hawaii.
Unspoken, I don't know - people seem to speak about them quite a bit, even on this forum.
I have yet to have a centipede or roach in my house - can I keep that 100% streak, maybe/maybe not.
The only way they can get in your house is if there is a way for them to get into the house.
I'm amazed at how many people don't have screens on every door, lanai sliding door, and windows. Easily one of the best investments anyone can make.
And, maintain the lawn. Don't have an overgrown lawn that fosters bugs. Another good investment - a good lawn service.
If you don't have an entryway into the house then the probability of a roach/centipede in the house is very low. One of the reason people see them even in the high end hotels is the maids come in, open the lanai door which doesn't have a screen - clean away - and boom, you've got a potential visitors.
Get screens. If you have screens - and no other entryway - the only way they get in is following you in the door when you come home or leave.
Unspoken, I don't know - people seem to speak about them quite a bit, even on this forum.
I have yet to have a centipede or roach in my house - can I keep that 100% streak, maybe/maybe not.
The only way they can get in your house is if there is a way for them to get into the house.
I'm amazed at how many people don't have screens on every door, lanai sliding door, and windows. Easily one of the best investments anyone can make.
And, maintain the lawn. Don't have an overgrown lawn that fosters bugs. Another good investment - a good lawn service.
If you don't have an entryway into the house then the probability of a roach/centipede in the house is very low. One of the reason people see them even in the high end hotels is the maids come in, open the lanai door which doesn't have a screen - clean away - and boom, you've got a potential visitors.
Get screens. If you have screens - and no other entryway - the only way they get in is following you in the door when you come home or leave.
I'd get a door that rivaled Fort Knox if I thought it would keep them out. What I understand is that they can get in through cracks, crevices, even through the spigot in your tub. In other words, if there is a building flaw in your structure (and what home, even new ones, doesn't have a hundred) they will manage to find it and use it. &^%$ hellish creatures. All I can think of is being in bed and waking up with one firmly attached to my cheek. I'd seriously consider wrapping my bed completely in a good sturdy net with a zipper if I thought it'd keep them out. That's really the only thing that petrifies me--sleeping with one. Awake I think I can handle them but I understand that being an armored insect even a cast iron pan barely dents them.
I'd get a door that rivaled Fort Knox if I thought it would keep them out. What I understand is that they can get in through cracks, crevices, even through the spigot in your tub. In other words, if there is a building flaw in your structure (and what home, even new ones, doesn't have a hundred) they will manage to find it and use it. &^%$ hellish creatures.
The spigot thru you tub - hmmm, that is a new one to me. I've never heard of that but perhaps someone else here can chime in if possible.
Yes, they get in via cracks, crevices - you eliminate those. Get rid of those - it isn't that complicated to take care of that. Single family homes are easier to keep bugs out.
I have a very clean home. I have a very clean yard. I have screens on every door. I have screens on every window. My home is 100% well maintained. Still, I have an occasional centipede hussle across the floor. It is a fact of life in the drier areas of Hawaii.
I can think of dozens of things that could be improved about Hawaii, reasons that might even be a "deal breaker" for someone who is considering moving here. Having an occasional centipede in the house is not one of them... but I'm not afraid of bugs.
I've known folks who have been bitten by a centipede. Although it leaves a nasty welt, none of them have had a life-threatening reaction. On the other hand, I have a cousin who is allergic to bees and has been hospitalized for a bee sting. I have a friend who's son was bitten by a black widow spider on the mainland and spent days in the hospital. I know someone in South Kona who was bitten by a Brown Violin Spider ... that left a sore that was a total mess. My point is that there are indeed poisonous insects here, but there are poisonous insects I'd guess everywhere ... or poisonous snakes ... or rabid animals .... or . ....
Fact: I have seen a large centipede squeeze in through a closed screen door and a closed front door that is throughly weatherstipped!
Last edited by CyberCity; 02-23-2013 at 01:55 AM..
I've not known of a spigot being an entrance, but I do know that drains can be. Ditto for cockroaches.
Spigots? Highly unlikely. Sounds like a misunderstanding.
But drains? It's possible. The water trap in drains is supposed to keep sewer gasses out of the house, and coincidentally anything creepy or crawly. The weak link is the vent pipe, which is open to the outside, so anything that gets into the vent and past the trap can get come up through the drain. That's most likely to happen with a drain that isn't used often and dries out, such as a sink in a guest bathroom or a floor drain in a laundry room. At least we mostly just get bugs. In other parts of the country there are periodic reports of snakes or rats getting in through the toilets.
Also, getting all the cracks sealed in a house can take a lot of effort, because the only ones a builder really cares about are the ones that might let in rain. Anyplace a pipe or wiring runs through a floor or wall the openings are oversized, leaving small cracks that can later give access to wee beasties. Hardware stores carry plastic foam in aerosol cans that can be squirted into small cracks through a thin tube, to expand and harden and fill those cracks. But often there are others behind baseboard molding and around doors and windows that are hard to locate, so it can take time and energy to track them all down. And since bugs can often exploit very tiny openings, it's probably best to expect a few from time to time, and keep a good all-purpose insecticide handy.
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