# How can I get rid of these thousand-legged nightmares?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-rid-of-these-thousand-legged-nightmares/301858>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [April 30, 2005, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-rid-of-these-thousand-legged-nightmares/301858 "2005-04-30T14:23:35Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Joe\_Mahma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@Joe\_Mahma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joe_Mahma)\
**Post date:** [April 30, 2005, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-rid-of-these-thousand-legged-nightmares/301858/1 "2005-04-30T14:23:35Z")

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These bugs appear in the house every spring and disappear for the winter. Sorry, no picture, just imagine your typical one- or two-inch long thousand legger. They are really disgusting and I’d like to be permanently rid of them.

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**Author:** ![Cabbage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@Cabbage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabbage)\
**Post date:** [April 30, 2005, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-rid-of-these-thousand-legged-nightmares/301858/2 "2005-04-30T14:28:18Z")

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Are they [house centipedes](http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/iiin/housece.html)?

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**Author:** ![Joe\_Mahma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@Joe\_Mahma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joe_Mahma)\
**Post date:** [April 30, 2005, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-rid-of-these-thousand-legged-nightmares/301858/3 "2005-04-30T15:08:38Z")

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> [@Cabbage](#):
>
> Are they [house centipedes](http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/iiin/housece.html)?

That looks like them all right.

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**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\
**Post date:** [April 30, 2005, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-rid-of-these-thousand-legged-nightmares/301858/4 "2005-04-30T16:12:37Z")

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If they’re inside, that means you have a population outside. Step one is to remove compost heaps and other habitat from near your house. Inside, they thrive in dark, damp areas. Give everything a good cleaning and kill all the individual centipedes you see. Consider a dehumidifier to make the infested areas less hospitable.  
Other than being ugly and frightening, they aren’t dangerous nor do they cause property damage.