Small brown insects with pincers in the wash area, bathroom or under the sink? What earwigs are after, and the damp and entry-point fixes that keep them outside.
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Earwigs in the house are almost always a moisture problem with a way in. These small brown insects with pincers at the tail live outdoors in damp mulch, leaf litter and soil, and they come indoors when the weather turns hot and dry, heading for the wettest spots they can find: the wash area, bathroom, under the kitchen sink and the floor near a dripping aircon drain. They are not harmful to people and they die indoors, so spraying inside does little. The lasting fix is to dry out the ground next to the walls, fix the leaks and damp corners, and close the gaps at floor level.
Earwigs, called cocopet in Malay, are long, flattened insects, light red-brown to black, with chewing mouthparts, long thin antennae and a pair of forceps-like appendages at the end of the abdomen. The pincers are used for defence. Young earwigs look like small, pale adults without wings. Most adults do have wings, folded under short, hard covers, but they rarely fly; they walk, and they also travel into homes inside cardboard boxes, luggage, cut flowers and laundry baskets.
The name comes from an old European superstition that earwigs crawl into the ears of sleeping people. It is a myth. Earwigs live in soil, rotting wood and other moist organic matter, and they are active at night, hiding by day in dark, cool, damp places.
Earwigs turn up in the same damp corners as several other small household pests, so it helps to be sure which one you have before deciding what to fix.
| Pest | How to recognise it | What it usually tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Earwig (cocopet) | Slim brown body, pincers at the tail end, moves quickly when disturbed | Damp ground or a leak near the house, and a gap at floor level |
| Millipede (ulat gonggok) | Many legs, slow, curls into a coil | Waterlogged soil and leaf litter after heavy rain |
| Centipede (lipan) | Flat body, one pair of legs per segment, very fast | Damp hiding places and other insects to eat |
| Silverfish (gegat) | Silvery, wingless, tapered tail with bristles | Humid, poorly ventilated rooms and stored paper |
| Cockroach (lipas) | Broad, shiny, long antennae, no pincers | Food waste, drains and kitchen hygiene |
If what you are seeing is a many-legged crawler after a storm, the millipede and centipede guide covers that case; silverfish and booklice in drawers and cupboards are covered in the silverfish and booklice guide.
No. Despite the fierce-looking pincers, earwigs are not harmful to people. They generally do not attack humans, although one can give a small pinch if it is trapped in clothing or sat on. Large numbers indoors are annoying but are not a health hazard. They also do not settle and breed inside a normal home: they eventually die indoors because there is little for them to eat.
Outdoors they are partly useful and partly a garden pest. Earwigs feed on mosses, algae, fungi, insects and mites, and they eat aphids, but they also chew seedlings, soft flowers and soft fruit. That is why a home with a vegetable patch or flower bed right against the wall often sees more of them.
Earwigs need moisture. Outdoors they hide under boards, flowerpots, bricks and stones, in mulch, compost, leaf litter, dense ground cover and wood piles. When conditions outside become too hot and dry, they move towards moisture, and a house wall with a gap at the bottom is often the nearest source. That makes earwigs the opposite of millipedes: millipedes walk in after heavy rain floods their shelter, while earwigs tend to come in during a dry, hot spell.
They are also drawn to lights at night. A bright white porch or yard light beside the back door gathers insects, and earwigs end up on the doorstep, then under the door. Extension advice is to cut lighting near doors and windows where you can, or switch outdoor lights to yellow bulbs, which attract fewer insects.
Inside a Malaysian home, earwigs go where water is. The usual places to look are:
Extension services agree that indoor control starts outdoors. The aim is a clean, dry strip right around the base of the house, so earwigs have nowhere damp to shelter beside the wall:
Planting choices around the compound affect pests more widely; the garden pest control guide covers that side.
Both extension guides name the same building items: gutters and downpipes should carry roof water away from the walls, and damp conditions around outdoor taps, aircon units and along the base of the walls should be removed. In practice that means:
| Damp source | What you see | The fix |
|---|---|---|
| Blocked or leaking gutter | Water spilling over the edge onto the soil by the wall | Clear and repair the gutter and its joints |
| Downpipe discharging onto soil | A wet, muddy patch at the foot of the downpipe | Lead the downpipe into a drain |
| Aircon condensate pipe | A permanently wet spot on the ground or wall | Re-route the pipe to a drain or floor trap |
| Dripping outdoor tap | Moss and a damp patch below the tap | Replace the washer or the tap |
| Blocked perimeter drain | Standing water in the drain after rain | Clear silt and leaves; repair broken sections |
| Leaking pipe under a sink | Damp cabinet base, swollen board | Fix the trap or connector |
Blocked drains are covered in the clogged drain guide, and broken gutters and downpipes in the gutter and downpipe repair guide.
Earwigs walk in, so the openings that matter are at or near the ground. Extension advice is to use caulking, putty and weather stripping around doors, windows, pipes and other entry points, especially at ground level:
The pest-proofing during renovation guide explains why some openings, such as weep holes and vents, need mesh rather than sealant.
Indoor spraying is not the answer on its own. UC IPM notes that indoor use of pesticides will not stop earwigs entering, and NC State Extension notes that indoor treatment gives only short-term control because more earwigs keep coming in from outdoors. Outdoors, simple traps work: a rolled-up newspaper or a short bamboo tube laid on the soil in the evening collects earwigs that can be shaken into soapy water in the morning.
If a garden keeps producing very large numbers after the damp strip and the gaps have been dealt with, a pest control company can treat the outdoor perimeter and the hiding places at the base of the walls. That treatment is a job for a pest control company, not a contractor. The pest control services guide explains what a proper treatment includes.
ClickBina is an experienced KL & Selangor contractor for renovation, whole-house refurbishment and trade coordination. Pest treatment itself is carried out by a pest control company. For the damp and entry-point side of an earwig problem, such as door bottom seals, cracks along the floor line, gaps around pipes, gutters, downpipes and drains, WhatsApp us your job details for a quote. We reply within the hour, the price we agree is a flat price with no hidden charges, and a renovation site visit is free, and a repair inspection is RM180, deducted from the bill if you go ahead.
How we wrote this guide: the earwig biology comes from the two university extension sources above, written for temperate climates, so seasonal advice from them has been left out. This guide publishes no prices, because the building fixes depend on the house and pest treatment is priced by the pest control company that carries it out.
WhatsApp us your job details for a quote — we reply within the hour. A renovation site visit is free, and a repair inspection is RM180, deducted from the bill if you go ahead. We serve KL, Selangor & Putrajaya.
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