With dozens of legs and a knack for rapid scurrying, house centipedes can leave quite the impression. These multi-legged visitors, known scientifically as Scutigera coleoptrata, don’t bite or sting, but they’re unsettling to encounter. Spotting one indoors often leads to the same questions: “Why are they here?” and “Is this a sign of a bigger issue?”
In reality, house centipedes are just following their instincts. They’re in search of three simple things: food, moisture, and shelter. If your home checks all those boxes, you’ve unknowingly created a comfortable place for them to stay.
Their Entry Routes Are Closer Than You Think
House centipedes don’t need much to get inside. They move under the radar, slipping in through small cracks, loose siding, gaps around vents, or unsealed windows. Once they find a way in, they quickly head to comfortable, dark, damp spots where insects are easy to catch.
Since they’re active at night, you may not notice them right away. But once they settle in, their favorite hangouts include basements, crawl spaces, and bathrooms, or anywhere else that stays cool and humid.
What’s The Real Reason They’re Showing Up?
Long before they make their way into your home, house centipedes typically live in your yard. They hide under stones, mulch, and other damp places, patiently waiting for insects to wander by. When the local buffet dries up, or when their prey drifts closer to your foundation, they follow the trail inside.
That’s why spotting house centipedes indoors is often a red flag. They’re not just random visitors, they’re predators chasing after something else. In most cases, they’re feeding on an underlying pest issue you haven’t noticed yet.
Their diet includes:
- Ants
- Bed bugs
- Cockroaches
- Crickets
- Earwigs
- Moths
- Silverfish
- Spiders
- Termites
- And many more
Damp Spaces Keep Them Interested
House centipedes thrive in moist environments, both indoors and out. In the yard, they gravitate toward decaying logs, soggy mulch, or shaded leaf piles. Inside, they prefer rooms with high humidity, like laundry areas, bathrooms, and basements.
Even minor moisture problems can encourage them to stick around. To make your home less inviting, reduce excess humidity by taking the following steps:
- Fix leaky outdoor faucets that keep the surrounding soil saturated.
- Clear clogged gutters to prevent water from pooling near your foundation.
- Trim dense landscaping that prevents proper drying after rainfall.
- Run dehumidifiers in damp indoor spaces like basements.
- Ventilate bathrooms and laundry rooms to control steam buildup.
Clutter and Darkness Give Them Shelter
House centipedes avoid light and prefer quiet, undisturbed places to rest. Like many nocturnal creatures, house centipedes also prefer to avoid high-traffic areas. The more clutter you have, indoors or outside, the more hiding places you provide. Keeping your home and yard tidy can go a long way toward discouraging them from settling in.
Here are a few easy ways to cut down on their hiding spots:
- Stack firewood off the ground to keep bugs and centipedes from nesting.
- Declutter your yard by removing unused tools, furniture, or scrap material.
- Bring in kids’ toys that can trap moisture and attract insects.
- Rake up fallen leaves before they start to rot and host pests.
- Keep grass trimmed and weeds under control to reduce insect activity.
- Seal any cracks or gaps along walls, window frames, and foundations.
- Repair screens and weatherstripping so centipedes can’t sneak through unnoticed.
House Centipedes Aren’t Born Indoors
House centipedes may earn their name from showing up indoors, but their story usually begins outside. These creatures gravitate toward damp, shaded environments that offer protection from predators and plenty of bugs to eat. You’ll often find them nestled in leaf litter, garden mulch, rotting wood, or tucked beneath stones and bricks.
One of their favorite spots? The soil right next to your home’s foundation. It stays moist, cool, and full of insects, an ideal habitat for centipedes. Once they’ve set up camp near the perimeter, it’s only a short journey indoors, especially during dry months or heat waves.
To reduce the chances of them sneaking inside, take a closer look at these common outdoor hiding places:
- Flower beds and decorative plants: These attract soft-bodied insects that house centipedes love to hunt.
- Pavers, rocks, and retaining walls: Many bugs take shelter underneath, giving centipedes a reliable food source.
- Unsecured trash bins: Decomposing waste draws in flies and spiders, which in turn lure in hungry centipedes.
If your yard is holding moisture and clutter, it’s more than just an eyesore, it’s a beacon for both pests and their predators.
Should You Worry About Spotting a House Centipede?
They might look like they belong in a horror movie, but house centipedes typically want nothing to do with humans. These arthropods are shy by nature and usually scurry away at the first sign of movement. They don’t seek confrontation and aren’t aggressive.
That said, it’s best not to try handling one. Although their venom is geared toward insect prey, a threatened centipede may lash out with a defensive pinch using its front legs. The sensation is brief and usually no worse than a bee sting.
Most adults won’t have much of a reaction, but for individuals with insect venom allergies, symptoms could include swelling, dizziness, or difficulty breathing. In those cases, immediate medical care is recommended.
While house centipedes aren’t dangerous in most cases, it’s wise to keep kids and pets from interacting with them, just to be cautious.
How to Tell If It’s a House Centipede
Out of the many centipede species out there, house centipedes are among the most distinctive. If you spot one, here are a few features that help set them apart:
- Legs: Long and wispy, their legs give them a spider-like silhouette.
- Leg count: They have 15 pairs, fewer than many larger centipede species.
- Speed: House centipedes can bolt across floors at over a foot per second.
- Coloring: Their bodies are a yellowish-gray, with three bold stripes down the back.
- Antennae: Exceptionally long and thin, perfect for navigating tight, dark areas.
- Disposition: Timid and non-aggressive, they avoid conflict whenever possible.
- Venom strength: Mild and rarely impactful to humans, unlike their tropical relatives.
One Centipede Could Mean Many More Bugs
If you’ve noticed a house centipede dashing across your floor, it likely didn’t show up alone. These predators don’t stick around unless they have something to hunt. Their presence is often a sign of a hidden pest issue, something that’s keeping them well-fed.
Eliminating a centipede or two won’t solve the underlying problem. To truly address it, you need to find out what’s attracting them in the first place. That’s where a professional pest control inspection can help. Our experts will investigate the property, spot signs of insect activity, and design a targeted plan that gets to the root of the issue.
Schedule your inspection today via our contact page, and take back control before house centipedes become regular visitors.
