Nobody wants to share their apartment with little bugs. Bread beetles, carpet beetles and the like contaminate food or destroy your belongings. The right control strategy depends on the type of beetle you are dealing with. This guide explains how to identify beetles in your home and get rid of them with home remedies.
How do I get rid of bugs in the apartment?
To combat beetles in the home, first identify the species, e.g. B. Bread beetles or fur beetles. Home remedies such as heat, cold, plant pot traps or thorough cleaning can be effective. Try biological agents like diatomaceous earth and nematodes. Prevent new infestations by storing food and textiles closed.
- Small brown beetles in the apartment are usually bread beetles, grain beetles or parquet beetles.
- Common black mini beetles at home are fur beetles, carpet beetles or black weevils.
- Effective home remedies are heat of 60° Celsius, cold of -18° Celsius, flower pot trap, thorough cleaning with hot vinegar water, vacuum cleaner and disposal. Biological remedies against beetles include diatomaceous earth and nematodes.
Identifying beetles in the apartment – species at a glance
As its name suggests, the bread beetle loves to eat bread
When small beetles appear in the apartment, it's scary. Peaceful coexistence is not an option, as numerous mini beetles make themselves unpopular as pantry pests. Other beetle species target textiles, carpets, fur, furniture or house plants. There is a great desire for the uninvited guests to be removed as quickly as possible. The correct approach is closely linked to the question of which type of beetle is making your life difficult. The following table summarizes important characteristics that will help you accurately identify beetles in your home:
| bread beetle | grain beetle | Parquet beetles | fur beetle | carpet beetle | Bigmouth Weevil | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| color | brown to reddish brown | yellow-brown to dark brown | red brown to dark brown | dark to black | black, white-red spots | black |
| Size/Length | 2-3mm | 3-5mm | 3-5mm | 2, 5-5, 5mm | 4-5mm | 8-10mm |
| Body shape | round-oval | elongated with trunk | pen-shaped, narrow | oblong-oval | oval to round | oval with trunk |
| special feature | thickly hairy, furry | not flyable | striped cover wings | hairy | white pronotum covers | round elytra |
| Pest type | storage pest | storage pest | Wood pest | Material pest | Material pest | Plant pest |
| botanical name | Stegobium paniceum | Sitophilus granarius | Lyctus linearis | Attagenus smirnovi | Anthrenus scrophulariae | Otiorhynchus |
| Common name | Bookworm | Rice weevil, corn beetle | Boring beetles | Speck Beetle | Brownroot flower beetle | White Weevil |
For all of the beetles mentioned, the all-clear can be given with regard to a possible he alth risk for people and pets. Accidental consumption of stored product pests or direct contact with material pests usually goes unnoticed by those affected (with the exception of allergy sufferers). Bread beetles and beetle colleagues are not poisonous.
Little brown beetles in the apartment – short portrait
The table above names common small brown beetles that make their home in the apartment. Have the qualities mentioned put you on the right track? Then please consult the following short portraits and pictures with in-depth information:
Bread beetle (Stegobium paniceum)
Bread beetles are tiny and difficult to identify with the naked eye. A closer look with a magnifying glass is advantageous. The entire body has double hair. Rough, erect hairs rise above a dense layer of hair, making the mini beetle appear furry. As generalists among house beetles, adult bread beetles and their larvae contaminate all kinds of foods, such as flour, coffee, cocoa, muesli, rusks, cookies, legumes, herbs and chocolate. The menu also includes leather, paper and books, which is where the second name bookworm comes from.
Grain beetle (Sitophilus granarius)
The grain beetle eats grains
As the most feared grain pest in Europe, the grain beetle has no qualms about invading homes. The trademark is an elongated trunk as an extension of the head. At the end of the trunk there is a powerful mouthpart with which the beetle eats grains. A pattern of longitudinal rows on the abdomen is characteristic. Its larvae are 2 mm small, white and soft and eat grains from the inside out.
Parquet beetle (Lyctus linearis)
The parquet beetle prefers to feast on wood
The parquet beetle is revealed by its strikingly slim, rod-shaped shape. As with all sapwood beetles, its head is clearly visible and not hidden under a pronotum. What is striking are the last two segments of its antennae, which are greatly enlarged as typical antennal clubs. Parquet beetle larvae are creamy white, curved and grow up to 6 mm long.
Excursus
Beetles similar to ladybugs – who is that?
In autumn, legions of ladybird-like beetles gather on house facades, window frames and balcony railings. These are Asian lady beetles (Harmonia axyridis), also known as harlequin beetles, which look very similar to native lady beetles. On sunny October days in the Indian summer, gigantic mass gatherings can be observed more and more often, putting worried apartment owners on alert. There is no reason to be concerned because Asian lady beetles are not poisonous or harmful to he alth, but are simply looking for winter quarters in cracks in walls or rafters. With fly screens you can prevent harlequin beetles from accidentally crawling into the apartment through the open window.
Little black beetles in the apartment – short portrait
The properties in the table above provide initial information. The following short portraits clear up any last doubts about the true identity of black mini beetles in the apartment.
Fur beetle (Attagenus smirnovi)
The dark to black fur beetle not only destroys fur and woolly materials, but is itself covered with furry hair. The actual pests are not the adult beetles, but their larvae. A female fur beetle lays up to 50 eggs near potential food sources for the brood. Within a short time, the eggs transform into 15 mm long, golden-yellow, hairy larvae that eat fur, feathers, carpets and woolen textiles.
Carpet beetle (Anthrenus scrophulariae)
Black is just the basic color of the carpet beetle. The material pest creatively spices up its look with different colored scales. A red band can often be seen along the wing cover seam. The cover wings are decorated with three light transverse bands. Some carpet beetles have chosen yellow markings that contrast beautifully with the black background.
Otiorhynchus
From the weevil family, the black weevil is the one who dares to boldly invade human homes. The black beetle ignores food, textiles, wood and carpets. However, the beetle invasion does not end well for your lovingly cared for houseplants. Unless you catch the nocturnal black weevil in the act, you will recognize its presence by the bay-like feeding damage along the edges of the leaves.
Tip
Flying ability is not a reliable identifier if you want to identify brown or black beetles. In fact, flying bugs in the apartment can also be cockroaches. Black and brown cockroach bodies look very similar to a real beetle.
Beetles in the apartment – what to do?
Which means you use to combat beetle infestations in your home depends on whether they are stored product pests, material pests or plant pests. In no case is it necessary to resort to chemical weapons. The following table summarizes proven home remedies against the beetle rabble:
| Pest Pests | Means/measure | Material pests | Means/measure | Plant pests | Means/measure |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| destroy infected foods | in the trash can | Washing textiles | in the washing machine at 60° | Flower Pot Trap | Place pot with wood shavings upside down |
| Heat (60° Celsius) | 30 minutes in the oven | Heat | 60 minutes in the sauna | Nematodes | Furrow trap with nematodes |
| Cold | In the freezer for 24 hours | Cold | 2 days in the freezer | collect | Shake plants, pick up bugs |
| Cleaning | soak it up | Diatomite | spread biological agent | ||
| disinfect | Wipe cupboards with hot water | Oxygen deprivation | pack airtight |
Please don't just combat the symptoms in the form of contaminated food and damaged materials. Beetles in the apartment are extremely prolific and will spread again in no time. Therefore, please start looking for the source of the problem. In the case of storage pests, this can be freely accessible food. Material pests often enter the home via used, second-hand goods. Most beetles can fly and use tilted windows without insect screens as entrance gates.
The video below demonstrates the simple and non-toxic methods you can use to get rid of bread beetles in your home:
Frequently asked questions
We have small brown beetles in the apartment – what to do?
If there are lots of small brown beetles in your home, you are most likely dealing with a bread beetle infestation. The tiny pests target most foods and do not disdain paper or leather. Carefully examine all supplies and the bookcase. You can disinfect infected food in the oven at 60° Celsius or in the freezer. We recommend disposing of it in the trash can. Then clean the entire apartment, look for the cause and eliminate it.
What are those little brown beetles with long antennae in the apartment?
If there are small brown beetles with antennae in the apartment, they are probably the house beetle
Without direct visual inspection, it is difficult to identify the beetles precisely. Common beetle species with a brown color and long antennae are the dreaded longhorn beetles, especially the house longhorn beetle (Hylotrupes bajulus). With a length of up to 28 millimeters, this beetle cannot of course be described as tiny. The second candidate does not come from the beetle family, but looks very similar to a beetle. It is the German cockroach (Blattella germanica), also known as the cockroach, whose antennae are longer than the entire insect body.
How can you prevent beetle infestation in your home?
The best prevention against stored food pests, such as bread beetles and grain beetles, is to store food in sealed containers. Immediately transfer loose foods into Tupperware containers, such as flour, sugar, cereal or coffee. You can keep material pests away by washing textiles before mothballing and then storing them in airtight garment bags.
Tip
Small brown insects in bed are a completely different caliber than small brown beetles in the apartment. Bed bugs are 5-7 mm small, flat-oval and extremely biting. Red, itchy hives in the morning are the first indication of the dreaded vermin in the apartment. In this special case, you are fighting a losing battle with home remedies. A certified exterminator will solve the problem.
