Crickets often go unnoticed because they are so small, and they are great at hiding.
Unfortunately, when you notice you have crickets around or inside your home, the infestation is likely quite large.
Most people think that crickets are harmless, and their biggest concern is the annoying chirping sound they make.
But, crickets can cause serious damage to gardens and your furniture, close, and other belongings if they make it inside.
Don’t wait until your cricket infestation enters your home or grows out of hand.
In this post, I will go over ten ways you can get rid of house crickets once and for all.
Let’s dive in.
Types of Crickets
There are several types of crickets in the U.S that you are likely to encounter
- House cricket
- Field cricket
- Mole cricket
- Jerusalem Cricket
- Camel Cricket
House Cricket
The house cricket is the most common species of cricket in the U.S.
You can find house cricket across the entire U.S, but they are most common in the Eastern and Western U.S.
They are commonly found near structures and often found in cities and heavily populated areas, and rural areas.
The house cricket is
- The smallest species of cricket measuring between 16 and 20 mm.
- Light brown to dark brown in color
- Long wings that extend past the abdomen
- They have long thin antenna that is often about the length of their body
- Nymphs look the same as adults except they are wingless
- Known for their signature chirping sounds that they make when they rub their front legs together.
Signs You Have House Crickets?
Cricket infestations can be hard to identify until they are quite large.
There are some key signs that you can look to identify a cricket infestation early on.
- Live crickets
- Chirping crickets at night
- Chew marks on leaves or fabric
- Dead crickets laying around or trapped in spider webs
Since crickets are small there are not many signs to help identify an infestation.
The main sign of a house cricket infestation are the signature chirping sounds at night. The more chirping you hear the larger the infestation.
What Do House Crickets Eat?
House crickets are quite versatile insects when it comes to food. They have strong jaws that allow them to chew and eat on whatever is readily available.
The can survive on a variety of different food sources depending on their environment.
The diet of a cricket will depend on if they are living outdoors or indoors.
Outdoors crickets will feed on:
- live or dead insects
- plants
- leaves
- flowers
- grass
- fruits
- vegetables
Indoors crickets will feed on:
- dead insects
- fabric
- clothing
- carpet
- synthetic fibers
- natural fibers such as wool or cotton
- plastic, carboard, or other cellulose based items
- rotting food in trash
- food crumbs
- grains such as rice and wheat
Where Do House Crickets Hide?
House crickets prefer to hide in dark moist locations.
They are not always found indoors but they are commonly found around structures.
Outdoors they are commonly found hiding:
- Hiding under stored firewood
- Under files of leaves or debris
- In crawlspaces
- Inside sheds
- Around foundations
- Under pots and other furniture
- Inside gardens
- Near mulch or compost piles
These crickets get their names because they have a tendency to make their way indoors.
When indoors they will seek out the moist locations of your home.
Indoors you can find them hiding:
- basements
- attics
- boiler rooms
- garages
- restrooms
- kitchens
- hiding in clutter
- book shelves or boxes
- underneath shelves or cabinets
Why do I have crickets in my house?
There are two reasons that you have crickets inside your home are because they find a habitat that they can strive in.
If there are warm and moist locations inside your home, they will try to get inside.
Another reason you likely have crickets inside your home is that they have found easy entry points.
Crickets are small and they can enter in through some of the smallest holes and cracks.
How To Get Rid of Crickets
1. Glue Boards
Using glue boards is a common method used to eliminate various types of small insects around your home.
If there are a few crickets inside your home, glue boards are a great way to get rid of them.
One of the downsides of glue boards is that you will catch other types of insects currently living inside or outside your home.
For the best results, place the glue boards near the chirping sounds or near entry points.
These are the most likely areas where crickets are traveling.
Place glue boards with limited movement to prevent dirt, dust, and debris from getting on the glue boards and make them less effective.
When these boards are directly and full of debris, cricket can walk over them and jump off.
2. Diatomaceous Earth
Diatomaceous earth is an all-natural alternative that will help you get rid of crickets.
For DE to be effective, two things must happen.
- It must remain dry. If the DE gets wet, it’s not effective.
- Crickets must come in contact in direct contact with the DE.
You can apply DE to corners and edges outside and inside your home.
These are common areas where crickets tend to travel. This makes it more likely that the crickets will travel through the DE.
Placing it in the corners and edges also helps make sure that the DE does not get suspended in the air.
When DE is suspended in the air, it can cause respiratory issues for humans and pets.
When applying outdoors or to gardens, creating a slurry is the most effective way to eliminate crickets.
Combine in a water solution and apply using a spray bottle or pressurized sprayer.
Spray this solution in corners and edges, and over any surfaces, you expect crickets such as grass, gardens, and your house foundation.
Once this solution dries, any crickets that come in contact with the areas will eventually die.
This method does result in slower deaths, but it’s highly effective if the area remains dry for extended periods.
DE is very effective if you live in dry climates that don’t experience much rain or activity.
Remember, when applying this to your yard, it will inadvertently kill other small insects with exoskeletons as well.
One huge benefit is that DE is non-toxic. It’s safe to use around humans, children, and in gardens without posing any serious dangers.
3. Use Insecticides
Insecticides are one of the easiest ways to get rid of crickets.
You can apply a chemical solution to the surface of your yard. The best option is to use an insecticide that has a residual effect.
This means that any cricket that comes in contact with sprayed areas with the insecticide will go up to 3 and 6 months after the initial application.
The downside of using insecticides is that they are typically not safe around children or edible plants.
Another disadvantage is that these insecticides have a broads range. This means that they don’t only kill one species of insect. The insecticide will kill any insects that are currently living in your yard.
If there are other animals and insects that you want to keep alive in your yards, such as frogs, squirrels, or aphids, then using a broad range of insecticides is not the best option.
As an alternative to limit the damage to other insects, you can apply the insecticide to the base of your foundation and the surface of all your walls.
This will limit the number of crickets that can try and enter your home while also limiting the impact on other species of insects that you don’t want to harm.
4. Vacuum
Vacuuming is an easy way to get rid of crickets that are inside your home.
If your infestation is small and you can identify where the crickets are hiding, vacuuming are highly effective.
It also makes it much easier to catch crickets since they can jump up to three feet away when they are frightened.
Regular household vacuums are sufficient for getting rid of crickets inside your home. I recommend a vacuum with a hose or pole extension to make it easier to catch the crickets.
If you are using a standard household vacuum, it’s important to empty the bag after you are done. In some cases, the crickets can find their way out of the vacuum if they are not disposed of properly.
If you have a more extensive infestation or plan on using this method outdoors, such as in patios or driveways, I recommend using a wet-dry vacuum.
These vacuums are more durable. They also allow you to add water to the canister. Adding water and dish soap to the canister will make sure that any crickets that you capture will drown and won’t be able to escape the vacuum.
5. Eliminate Moisture / Sources of Water
Crickets are attracted to moisture and dark areas.
To eliminate crickets, you want to reduce the amount of moisture around your home.
Inside your home, you want to ensure no leaking pipes or faucets causing an excess in moisture.
For areas that are often high in humidity, such as basements and attics, using a dehumidifier is a great way to reduce moisture to make these areas less appealing to crickets.
Outdoors you want also to make sure there are no leaks causing an excess in moisture.
You also want to make sure that your house is leveled properly and that your drainage system, including your gutters and downspouts, are working correctly.
Likewise, you want to make sure that there are no flooded areas after it rains, causing a build-up of moisture.
7. Keep your Yard Well Maintained
Keeping your yard well maintained is a great way to limit potential hiding spots for crickets.
Below are some key tasks that will help make your yard less attractive to crickets.
- Remove piles of leaves and debris.
- Clean gutters
- Dispose of branches and fallen logs
- Store firewood properly and away from your home
- Keep grass and bushes trimmed.
- Reduce the use of mulch near your home
- Cover compost piles to prevent crickets from accessing them.
8. Seal All Entry Points
Cricket infestations always start outdoors.
To ensure that they don’t make their way inside your home, you should seal potential entry points into your home.
While crickets are larger than house crickets, they can still fit in relatively small crevices to enter your home.
Inspect the outside of your house if you have a cricket infestation. Key areas you want to ensure that is sealed properly include
- Window sills
- Doors sills
- Foundation
- Cracks
- Holes
9. Weather-strip Your Home
Another common way that crickets enter homes is under doors or through the small gaps on doors and windows.
One way to eliminate this entry point is to weatherstrip your home.
This includes adding door sweeps and using team strips along with door and window frames.
This will make it impossible for crickets to enter your home.
You must inspect any old weatherstrips you have around your home. These strips can wear down or tear and become ineffective.
Replace any areas that are damaged or not holding their form.
10. Use motion Activated Lights
One way you can get rid of crickets is by using motion activated lights.
Although crickets prefer dark, moist hiding spots, at night they are attracted to light.
This means that keeping on porch or patio light will attract crickets directly to your home.
I recommend using motion activated lights around your home.
These will still provide sufficient light but will only turn on when necessary and won’t attract crickets.
As an alternative you can also use light to attract crickets to your traps or bait.
For example, if you install a light on your shed and then apply an insecticide around your shed.
This will help you attract crickets to the areas that you want them to visit.
This allows you to use their desire for light to your benefit.