You and your full finished basements

[rh71]

How do you keep all the bugs and other nasties away so you can actually enjoy the space? We currently have painted drywall with tile down there (in case of flooding) but I see many people with throw rugs or it's fully carpeted and of course the big tv. I can only dream of keeping it a welcoming area - how do these people keep the space as clean and bug-free as the main floors? Or is it next to impossible? We get plenty of spiders and camel crickets and despite glue traps, there's always new ones. Is it because it's seldomly occupied always without light vs. others who use the space frequently?

 

[Pick2]

You have an opening where the bugs are getting in from outside. plug it in some way , shape or form and you'll be fine
The spiders might be coming thru a chimney flue , screen it off. The camel crickets are probably coming in near ground level. Do you have a partial crawl space , etc. ?

 

[rh71]

You have an opening where the bugs are getting in from outside. plug it in some way , shape or form and you'll be fine
The spiders might be coming thru a chimney flue , screen it off. The camel crickets are probably coming in near ground level. Do you have a partial crawl space , etc. ?

Even when it was unfurnished and under-utilized down there with just walls it was tough to see any openings. I suppose I should've hired a professional at that point. The basement is multi-room with a kitchen (used to be a rental) and drop ceilings. Too much to investigate personally. The only real crawlspace is under the stairs, nothing that goes outside.

Are you saying you are completely bug free? I would hire an exterminator but I feel like they will get rid of the current problem but not any further.

 

[Red Squirrel]

How well insulated is it, and how good of a job was done with the vapour barrier/taping? That should keep most bugs out on it's own then actual walls will also help. How are the rim joists? Those can be harder to seal. I find I still get spider webs despite me having spray foamed all the rim joists, though not all my walls are insulated/vapour barriered yet and I also did not do any seal/trim around the window areas as I think I might change them out.

I find since I insulated even the one half of the basement I do see less bugs down there in general though.

I am hoping that once I do the rest i won't even have to worry about running into spider webs anymore.

 

[TechBoyJK]

We recently had a springtail infestation in our partially finished basement that was quite nasty. Small, flea like little critters that crawl over everything. They're not harmful like fleas, just a nuisance, but they got out of hand.

Ultimately it was a combination of things that helped keep it at bay. I started running the dehumidifier at the strongest setting to make sure the basement was as dry as possible. I tightened up my washer and dryer and made sure there was no water there. I cleaned the place constantly and mopped constantly. I put out Victor Flea traps that worked out really well and caught thousands of them.

I also addressed my home's perimeter which resulted in raking up and bagging all of the landscaping mulch up and getting rid of it. We're going to reinforce the slope with more dirt then put down rock instead. I spotted a bunch of springtails near one of the basement windows, which had a struggling and rotting bush nearby. Cut out the bush.

Lastly, I sprayed a ton of malathion around the perimeter, trees, and anything that could be a place where bugs could be nesting.

https://www.amazon.com/Spectracide-Malathion-Insect-Concentrate-HG-60900/dp/B003JTZJPU