For the past few days there has been these tiny bugs coming from my sink. At first I thought they were going to the sink – now I think they’re coming up from the pipes!! Is this possible? I’ve tried pouring bleach down the drain but that doesn’t seem to help. These are small insects that kind of look like fleas but there are thousands in my two sinks pretty much every day.
You most likely have springtails. This insect becomes very active in the spring but once the get established, they can remain active all year. They’re small and some stages definitely look like a flea. The good news is that they don’t bite like a flea. The bad news is that once they start emerging, it means there is a good chance they’ll get established in the drain line and keep coming until you treat. More information on them can be found in our SPRINGTAIL CONTROL ARTICLE, which details all you need to know about controlling the problem. As you’ll learn, they typically come from the soil around the home and from there, can get established in drain lines, baseboards, etc. So for now, you need to kill off the active population coming up out of the sink. This can be done with PT-221. Labeled for use down drains, it will quickly kill all active stages and should be used any time you see them emerging. This might be 1-2 a day to start. After that, once a week to keep them under control so they don’t get established again. It will only take 5-6 seconds of spraying to treat any drain and this should be done in the evening if possible to let it sit overnight.
Next, apply SURVIVORS once a week to help remove any food or nest sites that might exist. Survivors will “eat” slime and organic buildup which will effectively take away their nest sites. This in turn will prevent them from getting established in the drain. Use Survivors once a week and again, treat in the evening prior to retiring so the treatment can sit all night long and work for a few hours at least.
Ultimately, springtail control can be best achieved by killing them where they coming from and in most cases, this will be the outside areas around the home. For this, a combination of BIFEN GRANULES and CYONARA RTS will be best suited. Apply the Bifen G once a month and get as much of the turf treated. At least a 10 foot wide band but the more the better.
Cyonara should then be applied over the granules and on the homes foundation and siding too. This will help by killing any active on the top soil or structure. Use this once a month too but if you see activity, spray again. So for the first month or two, you may need to spray 2-3 times a month.
Give us a call if you need more help. Our toll free is 1-800-877-7290 and we’re open 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM Mon-Thur; 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM Friday and 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM Saturday, Eastern Standard Time.
Jonathan
Customer Care
http://bugspray.com
1-800-877-7290
PS: Please show your support for our business by purchasing the items we recommend from the links provided. Remember, this is the only way we can stay around and be here to answer your questions and keep our web site up and running. Thanks for your business!
Melanie says
I get these little black bugs every year around spring. I have them now. I just keep spraying insect spray at night and eventually they go away.
Tech Support says
Are you looking for a more permanent solution? If so, we should be able to assist. But first we’ll need to get a positive id on what they might be.
So for starters, do they fly or just crawl around? And are they only seen by your sink?
If they just crawl and seem to be around the size of a flea, I suspect you could have springtails. They get active every spring and summer. You can read up on them here:
Springtails: http://www.bugspray.com/article/springtail.html
In the above article we have a picture of some as they look around a sink. Check that picture out and see if it resembles what you’re seeing. Its in this section of the article:
Springtails around Sink: http://bugspray.com/article/springtail.html#how-to-get-rid-of-springtails-in-your-sink
Lastly, even if you’re unsure what they might be, do you believe they’re coming from the sink? If so, the best products to use is a combination of Survivors and PT-221.
Both these products are featured in the Springtail article. Basically the Survivors is used by pouring it down the drain once a week. It “eats” organic matter and by cleaning out your drain lines, you can effectively take away insect food which might be harboring an insect pest.
Survivors: http://www.bugspraycart.com/sanitizer/liquid/survivors
Secondly, PT-221 should be applied down the drain any day after you find some hanging around the counter or in the sink. So you might treat and not see any for 3-4 days but when you next see them, treat by spraying down the drain that evening and letting it sit over night. In other words, do not run any water down the drain after spraying so the treatment can sit overnight.
PT-221: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/aerosol/pt-221-l-17-5-oz
This approach, using the Survivors and PT-221 together, will keep the drain lines clean of any insect so whether its springtails or not, this will certainly help.
But if it turns out to be springtails, you’ll want to start doing some of the outside treatments we have listed in our Springtail article. This is needed because ultimately it’s important to reduce their numbers outside so that fewer are available to migrate inside. And this must be accomplished by applying Bifen Granules outside on all your grass, flower beds and mulch islands followed by spraying over the top with Cyonara RTS.
Bifen Granules: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/granule/bifenthrin-g-25-lb
Cyonara RTS: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/liquid/cyonara-32-oz-rts
Give us a call if you need more help. Our toll free is 1-800-877-7290 and we’re open 8:00 AM to 7:00 PM Mon-Thur; 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM Friday and 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM Saturday, Eastern Standard Time.
Jonathan
Customer Care
http://bugspray.com
1-800-877-7290
PS: Please show your support for our business by purchasing the items we recommend from the links provided. Remember, this is the only way we can stay around and be here to answer your questions and keep our web site up and running. Thanks for your business!
terrytt says
I have brown recluses in my bath room sink, tub and kitchen sink. I live in an apt. I heard if I get it sprayed they will be back..I stay away sometimes. These spiders are gross I don’t want use my bathroom any more…
Tech Support says
Terry,
Not sure where you heard that spraying will make brown recluse (or any other insect) “come back”. In fact treating with a professional grade pesticide is pretty much what’s considered the “cure”. I say this because its generally tough to eradicate any pest problem by mechanical alterations alone.
And it was for this main reason that pesticides came to market in the first place. Additionally – and by no means just coincidence – it turns out pesticides are very closely related to medicines. You see, pretty much all the major pharmaceutical companies worldwide are also the biggest producers of pesticides. This is true because of how close both drugs and pesticides are in chemical structure, the similarities they share in production, etc.
And what do drugs do? Cure disease. Which is why the best sprays for insect control are also referred to as the cure.
So for your particular problem, there are a couple of things you can do to “cure” the infestation.
First, spray down your sink drains, around all your kitchen cabinets, behind appliances, around windows, around doorways and along baseboards with an aerosol we carry called PT-221. This aerosol will provide a long lasting residual which will remain active for 3-4 weeks all the while killing any spiders that walk over treated surfaces.
PT-221: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/aerosol/pt-221-l-17-5-oz
Next, set out 6-12 spider traps along your baseboards, on countertops, etc. They will do a good job of collecting foraging spiders and preventing any from moving around your apartment and setting up nests where you failed to treat.
Spider Traps: http://www.bugspraycart.com/traps/glue/spider-traps-6-pk
Follow this regime and you should be able to keep your apartment spider free and have full use of your sinks with no insects present.
Give us a call if you need more help. Our toll free is 1-800-877-7290 and we’re open 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM Mon-Thur; 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM Friday and 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM Saturday, Eastern Standard Time.
Jonathan
Customer Care
http://bugspray.com
1-800-877-7290
PS: Please show your support for our business by purchasing the items we recommend from the links provided. Remember, this is the only way we can stay around and be here to answer your questions and keep our web site up and running. Thanks for your business!
Jessica says
I have tiny crawling bugs in my bathroom. They are soo small you can hardly see them.They are in the sink mostly but I see them in my shower and on my bathroom walls. I have even seen what looks to be the same kind of bug on my wooden railing on my back porch. They are a light brown color move pretty slowly and I usually only see a few here and there. They are smaller than a flea. They will crawl onto my phone or onto me if they get a chance but do not seem to bite. I have never seen any springtails or silverfish in my home. Please help!
Tech Support says
Jessica,
Sure sounds a lot like springtails! They’re quite active right now and even though its winter in most regions of the country. Thing about springtails is that they will thrive all year long down the drain. So based on where you’re seeing the activity, its highly likely you have some living in that area which need to be treated.
So if you review our springtail control article, you’ll learn there are two things you need to do.
The first is to apply Survivors down the drain once a week. Typically it will take 2-4 treatments per sink with activity using 2-4 oz per treatment. These should be done once a week, just prior to retiring, so the treatment can sit all night without the water being run. Survivors will take away the “food” springtails (and any other insect) can eat. By eliminating their food, they won’t be able to successfully reproduce.
On any other night you should spray down the drain for 5-10 seconds with Cykick aerosol. This odorless material will quickly kill active springtails (and any other insect) so you don’t see activity. Expect to treat once a week on any night that you don’t apply the Survivors. Cykick should be applied just before you retire for the evening so the treatment can sit overnight to have the best impact. Tret as many sinks as you can and if you see bugs come back before the week is up, treat again.
Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:
Survivors: http://www.bugspraycart.com/sanitizer/liquid/survivors
PT-Cykick: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/aerosol/pt-cykick-17-5-oz
Springtails in the sink: http://bugspray.com/article/springtail.html#how-to-get-rid-of-springtails-in-your-sink
Give us a call if you need more help. Our toll free is 1-800-877-7290 and we’re open 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM Mon-Thur; 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM Friday and 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM Saturday, Eastern Standard Time.
Cheers,
Jonathan
Customer Care
http://www.bugspray.com
1-800-877-7290
PS: Please show your support for our business by purchasing the items we recommend from the links provided. Remember, this is the only way we can stay around and be here to answer your questions and keep our web site up and running. And be sure to sign up for our monthly “Pest Report” sent out twice a month. These reports contain valuable information and timely pest updates from around the country and always a good read. Sign up here: http://campaigns.serverhost.net/index.php?action=form&type=html&id=1168