Need help with beetles

[Mariealana]

I have your average black beetle in my house...actually I have around 5 of them. In my bathroom. Where I live they are common even if you keep the place spotless. I don't wanna kill them but I do wanna get rid of them. I can't touch them as I hate beetles. Is there any natural deterrent I can use to stop them coming in my house? It was highly amusing the first few times I saw them as two were 'dancing' round the bathroom floor but now they are a pest and I really don't like them or the fact they always climb up me when I'm in the bathroom. Quite a few times I've removed them out the bath with a piece of cardboard and threw them out the window just to have them back a few hours later. They have wings I don't know why they won't just fly off and leave me alone.

[Dogghound]

Can you get a photo of one so we can determine the species that should make it easier to decide on a way of stopping them.

[Mariealana]

I'll get a photo next time I'm in the bathroom if I can. They are fast little things

[STYRBJORN]

You could buy a tarantula and let it loose . . .

Ric

[Mariealana]

Haha

[Brocakat]

Do they come up through the bath or basin plug - ( as all my HUGE spiders in the bath ) do?

If you're sure that you don't have a drip from a bath / basin tap - and that your overflow does, indeed - actually function ( Note to unscrupulous builders !) - then just put the plug in. For a few weeks at a time.

In relation to my beastie spiders -these are coming in the house again now that Autumn is not far over the horizon, and I think that is a seasonal thing. (?)

Does anyone else have a similar - or indeed, wildly different - theory/theories ?

[John_M]

Originally Posted by Brocakat

Do they come up through the bath or basin plug - ( as all my HUGE spiders in the bath ) do?

If you're sure that you don't have a drip from a bath / basin tap - and that your overflow does, indeed - actually function ( Note to unscrupulous builders !) - then just put the plug in. For a few weeks at a time.

In relation to my beastie spiders -these are coming in the house again now that Autumn is not far over the horizon, and I think that is a seasonal thing. (?)

Does anyone else have a similar - or indeed, wildly different - theory/theories ?

I don't see how they can come up the plughole, since they would have to negotiate the U bend or bottle trap. Spiders that are in the bath usually fall in and are then unable to climb up the smooth sides of the bath, and I would imagine the same for other insects. Hang a towel over the side to give them something to grip, and they should make their way out.

[Mariealana]

I really have no idea how they get in. They are now in my living room and the little blighter below was on my eldest daughters scarf (sorry for blurry image, I have a disability that makes me shake non-stop). My place isn't dirty or anything, just a bit damp (old house, gets damp, won't dry out) and I have a problem with mould from the damp in the bathroom. My question, what type of beetle is it and does it bite? I found a beetle crawling on my newborn's face earlier and it grossed me out.

Anyway, here's the pic. I put the cam as close as possible to the beetle so it might appear larger than what it is.

[John_M]

I'm not a beetle expert, but that looks like it could be one of quite a few species. I don't think any of the ones that look like this are likely to bite (I've never been bitten by any type of beetle, and I poke them quite a lot...). There are ultrasonic devices which claim to deter crawling insects, but I can't vouch for their effectiveness. I suspect it's a harmless animal that is attracted by the damp.

[Paul mabbott]

It looks like a ground beetle (e.g. Pterostichus sp) or perhaps Tenebrio molitor: the latter is the imaginal form of the mealworm which is often used as food for birds; they often come into houses at this time of year through open windows.
No beetles will bite with any serious, aggressive intent; most will not want to be inside - they could just be out foraging and come in through ventilation grills or whatever.
Either way, I think you'll just have to gird yourself up to bag them and throw them outside. If you can encourage them to enter a cardboard box or plastic bag you wouldn't need to touch them; or, of course, you can vacuum them up and throw them on the compost heap.