PSOCID BIOLOGY
Psocids are small insects which love moisture. In general, they need to live where humidity is high or moisture is present.
The following “short video” (less than 60 seconds) gives you the quick summary of what products you’ll need (featured further down this page) to control Psocids in the home.
Common places for psocids populations to thrive include window sills, under outside siding of homes, tree trunks, shrubs, flowers, around garden hoses, under bricks and rocks, around light fixtures and under boxes. However, some species will readily live in books, book cases, attics and crawl spaces.
This next “short video” gives you the brief summary of what you’ll need to do on the outside of the home to stop psocids from getting inside.
In fact there are many families and subspecies of this insect and the science community has not quite come to a concise conclusion about how to group and name all that are included. Some appear to have specific moisture requirements and others do not. At the same time some seem to be food specific and others do not. To make matters more confusing, it appears that psocids are able to change their dietary needs as food availability changes. One thing is for sure: if you have psocids active in or around your home – expect them to prosper and keep coming back every warm season. And in most cases they’ll end up invading living spaces which is when they’ll readily invade books, file cabinets and basically anywhere they find paper products.
THE LIFE CYCLE OF PSOCID
Psocids hatch from eggs in about 2-4 weeks after eggs are laid. Young will go through 2-4 nymphal stages to reach adulthood which takes another 2-3 months. Once mature, females can generate 50-100 eggs during her life and as an adult she would expect to live 1-4 months. Most populations will produce 2-3 generations per year but there could be a lot more if conditions are right.
Psocids are able to adapt to their environment which will dictate just how fast they reproduce. In general, the more moisture and the more moderate the temperatures (50 -80 degrees) the more they will prosper. Cold weather (below 35 degrees) will kill off adults but eggs will live and be ready to hatch as soon as local temperatures get back to where they are comfortable.
WHAT DO PSOCIDS EAT
Psocids will eat just about anything. Though most people think they eat books or paper, in fact they can thrive on a wide range of food. Typical food in the home include cellulose products (paper or books), book bindings, fabric (from which many book bindings are constructed), glue (the glue that binds most books has many natural components), contact paper, wall paper, any type of grain, mold, mildew, algae, fungus and other plant life.
The fact that psocids will readily live in books is the same reason they will readily live on trees: the presence of both cellulose (paper is made from wood) and fungus or algae. Algae or fungus will readily grow in damp dark places inside homes but it also thrives outside. It is here where local psocids populations will begin to accrue.
PSOCIDS ON THE HOME
Most all psocid problems start from the homes siding. Psocids which forage onto homes and establish themselves on brick, stucco, hardy board, cedar shakes or underneath coverings such as vinyl or aluminum will eventually end up inside.
From outside the home they will commonly find window sills to be great for food as well as outside light fixtures, outlets, door frames, etc. The author has seen them thrive on just about any perimeter location of most any structure which gets wet during rain or irrigation. Such areas have a tendency to harbor moisture and this harboring is what enables fungus and algae to grow. Once this growth starts psocids will follow and once established on the structure, its just a matter of time before they end up inside.
TREATING A PSOCID INFESTATION
The good news about psocids is that they are slow eaters. This means damage from local populations is usually minor unless populations go unchecked for long periods of time. However, psocids are both annoying and persistent so most people don’t want them around. Fortunately, they are easy to kill and with the right products being used its relatively easy to manage or eliminate activity in and on the home.
So before you treat, there may be some maintenance needed in areas where activity is noted.
WHAT TO USE INSIDE THE HOME FOR PSOCIDS
Since psocids will be effectively hiding out of sight once they get inside the home, it can be hard to isolate all areas where they’re nesting. For this reason aerosol products are a good formulation to use where activity is found.
Since windows and doors are key points of entry, its important to get them properly treated as detailed in this video:
If you have large areas to treat like a wall, a book shelf, cabinets or storage boxes, FS MP will offer quick knockdown, ease of use and no mess. It will penetrate any crack or crevice deep where they like to hide so if you’re thorough, you can knock out their nests immediately.
Focus with FS MP up high like around windows, window sills, molding, counter and cabinet cracks, etc.
HOW TO TREAT SENSITIVE ITEMS LIKE BOOKSHELVES AND CLOTHING
For small areas 100 sq/ft or less filled with paper products, installing AEROSOL MACHINES with CLEAR ZONE metered insecticide will make treatments automated so you don’t have to worry about constantly treating. These machines are well suited for small paper closets, rooms with boxes or bookcases filled with books. The aerosol refill will be releasing small 1/2 second “blasts” of a pyrethrin based aerosol strong enough to kill psocids.
The following “short video” (less than 60 seconds long) shows how easy it is to set up these machines and why they’re so “smart” for controlling certain pests like Psocids.
The key to the success of this treatment is that the aerosol released will be in ULV form. That means the aerosol will be comprised of very tiny microns of active ingredient. These tiny microns will penetrate cracks and gaps where psocids like to hide so they won’t be able to avoid the spray.
Each machine is set to go off every 15 minutes and is powered by 2 “D” cell batteries. Set one machine above the area you want to keep psocids free so either mount it on the top shelf of a wall unit or on the wall above the books or boxes.
You’ll also need some CLEAR ZONE refills. These cans will last 30-40 days, release an odorless pyrethrin safe for use in any area of the home and can be set up discreetly yet still be effective. Just be sure to replace the refill when empty.
BEST PSOCID LIQUID SPRAY INSIDE THE HOME
If you have psocids active throughout the entire house, especially on baseboards down low, thoroughly spray these areas with BITHOR. Its odorless and combines two actives for a unique 1-2 punch. The one active kills quickly but wears down after a few days. Left behind is a slow acting non repellent active that will kill invading psocids for weeks so they can’t get re-established.
The following “short video” (less than 60 seconds long) gives a brief summary of why Bithor is ideal for use in the home focusing on how safe it is for use around children and pets.
Bithor is odorless and well suited for carpets, furniture, baseboards and you can even use a paint brush or spray it it onto window sills for residual that will far outlast the FS MP.
Add 1 oz per gallon and plan on using 1 mixed gallon for every 1,000 sq/ft of area.
Apply it with any good PUMP SPRAYER and plan on treating once every 2 weeks until their gone; once every 2-3 months to make sure they don’t come back.
For “light” applications over carpeting, hardwood floors and other areas where the pump sprayer is a bit “overkill”, consider our MINI MISTER.
It produces a fine mist and works great for fast, clean, light treatments. This video details how it works.
The Mini Mister is super handy and will cut down on how much mixture is applied and at the same time, allow you to get the job done so much faster.
BEST OUTSIDE SPRAY FOR PSOCIDS
Now if you keep getting new problems inside, its a sure sign they’re coming from outside so you need to attack the exterior siding of the home as well as teh ground, trees, shrubs, etc. if you want to stop the invasion. The best product for this is MAXXTHOR EC. This concentrate mixes with water and is applied with a PUMP SPRAYER over surfaces on which you have seen activity.
The following “short video” (less than 60 seconds) shows how to prepare the hose end sprayer for making your treatments.
Maxxthor will provide a quick knockdown and a long lasting residual and repellent action which will prevent hatching psocid eggs from thriving. Maxxthor can be applied over the homes exterior siding, around windows, on trees and plants and just about anywhere psocids activity has been found.
Add 1 oz per gallon of water and apply the mixture over no more than 1,000 sq/ft of surface area. Retreat every 30 days when used outside to keep them off the home.
To get the most of your treatment, add SPREAD-X BOOST to your tank mix along with the Maxxthor. Boost is an adjuvant, also known as a wetter spreader or spreader sticker. It basically makes water and the mixture more “slippery” so you get better coverage. Treatments will spread 2-3 times wider and penetrate deeper.
The following short video summarizes why Boost can help deliver your treatment to where it matters the most. And this is extra helpful when treating homes with siding like vinyl, aluminum and stucco where booklice are likely hiding.
Add no more than the rate you’re applying the Maxxthor so in this case, if you’re adding 2.5 oz of Maxxthor to the hose end sprayer, add 2.5 oz of Boost too before adding water. If you’re adding Maxxthor to a pump sprayer at the rate of 1 oz per gallon, use 1 oz of Boost.
And don’t spray in the middle of the day; treat late in the day close to sunset so the treatment can dry without direct sunlight. UV light on the Boost can stress plants if the temperature is 85 degrees or higher so treat 2 hours or less before sunset to reduce sunlight stress.
Use a good pump sprayer like the one listed above but if you want to thoroughly treat your homes siding and landscaping, get our HOSE END SPRAYER. This will allow you to cover vast areas faster and more efficiently. Using our sprayer, you’ll want to add 2.5 oz of Maxxthor to the sprayer and then fill it to the 5 gallon line. Hook it to your garden hose and then spray the entire amount over 5,000 sq/ft of area every month.
HOW TO TREAT ATTIC AND CRAWL SPACES and EXTERIOR SIDING
Psocids will readily nest in your homes exterior siding and from there, move into attics and crawl spaces.
BEST PSOCID TREATMENT FOR ATTICS
Getting to the root of the problem is always the best solution when treating for Psocids. In this case, attics or crawl spaces can be a big reason why have a problem.
Dust these with DELTAMETHRIN DUST to effectively end the invasion.
In crawl spaces, moisture will often times fuel the population. The dark, well protected space typically grows small minute algae and fungus psocids love. Apply Deltamethrin Dust at the rate of 1 lb per 500 sq/ft. Treatments will last at least one year and often times even longer.
In the attic, the heat and insulation will help incubate developing psocids so like the crawl space environment, populations will explode and from there, migrate into living spaces.
The following “short video” (less than 60 seconds long) shows how to dust your attic using our DUSTIN MIZER.
Now if the insulation in your attic is about to be replaced, it would be wise to dust prior to the new material being installed. But if the insulation is already in place, it may block the dust from reaching deep down to the actual point of entry.
So if you’re seeing psocids coming out of light fixtures or other ceiling ports, you’ll want to locate those spots in the attic, remove the insulation around them and dust all exposed areas. After treating you can replace the insulation as there is no need to leave it to the side.
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