How To Get Rid of Bugs Around Your Home with Essential Oils

Marian Grande
Aug 28, 2017 · 4 min read

Nobody likes bugs …. at least nobody I know. So why are they in your home? Basically, for the same reasons you like a nice home — bugs want food, water, and free rent.

The most common type of “home” bugs found are earwigs, cockroaches, silverfish, house centipedes, spiders, and ants. That is a lot of bugs!

But how do you get rid of them? That’s the million-dollar question!

We are certified in Aromatherapy and can tell you that essential oils can help you get rid of these unwanted house guests without using toxic chemicals that can cause harm to your children and pets.

Here are our top picks for just this reason:

Earwigs:

Have you ever seen an earwig? Some people say they are harmless to people. I don’t agree …. they are downright nasty looking with pincers. Ouch!

Try using cinnamon essential oil. Use the same method above. Cinnamon is very potent, so you may want to use 5–10 drops to start with, and gradually increase to 10–15 drops.

Cockroaches:

Nobody likes a cockroach. They are creepy crawlers that make everyone run the other way.

Peppermint oil is our top pick to get rid of cockroaches.

Fill up a spray bottle with 8 oz. rubbing alcohol, and 20 drops of peppermint oil.

The rubbing alcohol will clean the area and the peppermint oil will get rid of the cockroaches. End of story. Do this often to deter them, if you find you often get roaches in your home.

Silverfish:

Although bugs are awful, silverfish are probably the least frightening of the bugs. They like to eat things like paper, so you may find them in old books or boxes. They also like dark and damp places. And even though, they are less scary, I surely don’t want them hanging around.

Again, cinnamon essential oil is my “go-to” oil for silverfish. With cinnamon being a potent scent, silverfish can’t handle it, and neither can most insects.

Spraying the oil around your home is almost a guarantee they won’t want to share space with you. You can use it undiluted as well. Just sprinkle some in the areas where you see silverfish, or directly on them to kill them instantly.

Centipedes:

The sight of a centipede is enough to throw us in a fit. They are scary creatures with way too many legs.

Did you know that centipedes have a venomous bite that can inflict severe pain on humans? Well, they can. Even more reason to get rid of them!

Centipedes have extremely sensitive antennae which allows them to have an exceptional sense of smell. This is part of the reason why essential oils work so well at keeping these creepies away.

Centipedes loves to be around cool and damp environments, such as basement and bathrooms.

Try vanilla or tea tree oil. The scent is absolutely overwhelming to centipedes as well as other insects.

Pour a few drops around windows, doors, basements and bathrooms. insects. Doing this will keep these critters away for months at a time. You can also make a spray with 8 oz. of water or rubbing alcohol and 10–15 drops of vanilla or tea tree oil.

Spiders:

They are creepy and crawly, and although they eat other bugs, I still don’t want them around and I’m sure you don’t either.

Orange or peppermint essential oil will destroy spiders, and most other insects.

Put 10–15 drops of orange or peppermint essential oil and 8 oz. of water or rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle and spray around doors, windows, corners and baseboards. You can also spray directly on the insect to immediately kill it.

Ants:

When ants enter the home, they enter in armies. Who wants 50 ants living with them? I can bet that most people don’t.

Cinnamon essential oil is the single best deterrent of ants. Peppermint oil also works well.

Because cinnamon essential oil is so potent and overpowering, it interferes with the neuroreceptors of ants. This prevents them from sending signals back to their nest.

When ants can’t take the lack of communication, they simply leave the area and move into your neighbour’s home.

Add about 6 drops of cinnamon or peppermint essential oil to cotton balls and leave them in areas where the ants are entering your home such as the door or window.

If you prefer, you can make a spray as shown above by adding 10–15 drops of essential oil to 8 oz. of water or rubbing alcohol. You would then spray it in areas where the ants enter or all over the place, if you’re not entirely sure.

Remember that cinnamon is very strong, so you may want to work your way up to 15 drops slowly, so you’re not overpowered by the scent either.

The great thing about using essential oils to deter these and other insects from taking residence with you is that they’re safe to use around children and pets.

I find that once most people start using essential oils as a pesticide or insecticide, they don’t ever go back to harmful chemicals.

Always use caution when using essential oils. If you are unsure, speak to a certified Aromatherapist or Aromatologist, or medical doctor. Never apply essential oils topically to your skin, unless you first dilute them with a carrier oil. It is also recommended that you never ingest any essential oil. Use caution around children.

Marian Grande Simone is a Certified Clinical Aromatologist with the Canadian Federation of Aromatherapists.

For more information, please click here.

© 2017, Mistico Mimi Wellness Centre & Essential Oils by Mistico Mimi

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Marian Grande

Written by

Serenity Aroma — Aromatherapy, Essential Oils & Holistic Health & Wellness by Certified Aromatherapy Health Professional (CAHP) & Crystal Healer, Marian Grande

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