While we’re all bound to encounter bugs of one sort of another in the home at certain points in the year, there are certain creepy crawlies the majority of us can live without.

If you happen to live in a rural area, most like you’ll be well accustomed to flies, ants, spiders and the like taking up residence – or at least attempting to – in your home during the summer months and beyond.

Some people aren’t fazed by the yearly bug invasion; others are less, shall we say, tolerant of the idea. Spiders building their webs in my corners I can live with, and the odd fly buzzing around the kitchen is hardly going to ruin my day.

I take exception, however, to earwigs…

You’ll most certainly have seen an earwig in your home at some point, even if you didn’t recognize it for what it was. The truth is, these little insects are about as far from cute as you could possibly come, yet though they might look like they pack a nasty sting or bite, they’re completely harmless.

That said, most people take aversion to having a horde of earwigs crawling around their abode. I certainly do, which is why I found one particular hack for dealing with them incredibly useful.

Facebook user Alicia Alexander outlined the tried and tested method she employed to rid herself of an earwig problem, and I reckon it could be of interest to others out there.

According to Alicia, filling a shallow bowl with half a cup of olive oil, then placing said bowl in your backyard or on your deck, is the perfect way to trap earwigs.

The below picture reportedly shows how many earwigs Alicia had managed to accumulate after less than 24 hours:

And here’s that same bowl after 36 hours…

Earwigs are apparently attracted to the sweetness of the olive oil, but once they climb into the bowl, they’re unable to clamber out again. If you’re living with an earwig infestation, this could prove the ideal solution!

What they mean

Far be it from us to put you in a state of panic, but the presence of unusual amounts of earwigs in your home could indicate problems with rotting wood. Earwigs are among the plethora of insects that are attracted to wood rot, so be sure to check any wooden structures you have at home.

That said, earwigs seeking warmer conditions inside your house isn’t anything to be alarmed about. It’s completely normal, and their presence is highly unlikely to affect you in any way.

Did you know about this simple hack to get rid of earwigs? Let us know in the comments.