Depending on where you live, you may be facing a major problem with lizards invading your home. Many people are afraid of lizards, and worry about being bitten by one. This is because many people falsely believe all lizards are venomous. While most don’t have a deadly bite, there are still a lot of reasons why you don’t want to share your home with these little guys.
Why do lizards keep coming in your house? If your home is full of insects, it will naturally attract lizards. Leaving your doors or windows open will allow lizards to crawl in easier. And some areas may naturally have more lizards than others, depending on where you live.
Don’t be overwhelmed by lizards coming into your home. Today, we’re going to explore seven reasons why your house may be very welcoming to lizards. We’re also going to talk about why you don’t want lizards in your house, and some things you can do to deter these pests.
Also Read: Best Ways to Get Rid of Lizards for our top recommendations on lizard pest control products.
Why Lizards Are Coming in Your House
A swarm of lizards inside your home can be unsightly, annoying, and disgusting. The sight of seeing one run past you can be distracting. Geckos falling from the ceiling to land on your family members can be alarming. And if you see only one or two lizards in your home, chances are that you have more than that scurrying unseen throughout your house. Don’t admit defeat when it comes to unsightly pests; especially not to lizards.
Once you know why you see so many lizards inside your home, you will be able to figure out how to get rid of them.
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#1 Your Home Is Full Of Insects
The number one reason that your home is full of lizards is because your home is also full of insects. After all, lizards will go where the food is, and insects are their favorite food! If your home is full of insects, it may unfortunately mean that your home is not very tidy. After all, food crumbs, sticky spills, and other messes may attract insects of all kinds.
Most people who have a lizard infestation can reduce it by reducing the amount of insects in their home. However, insect population is not the only reason that you could find yourself with an abundance of house geckos or anoles.
#2 You Leave Your Door Or Window Open
If you leave your door or window open a lot, you may be providing an easy access point for lizards and other pests to come in your home. This is also true if you have any cracks or holes in a window or the side of your house. Dog doors are also an easy point of entry for lizards and insects.
Making a point to shut windows and doors can help just as much as sealing any possible cracks that are big enough for a lizard to crawl in through.
#3 You Live In An Area Where There’s Many Lizards
Not all climates are created equally. And if you live in a warmer climate, you may be more likely to get lizards coming in your homes. Likewise, some people living in a colder climate may never see lizards coming into their house.
For example, if you live in the United States then you may encounter a lot more lizards in the state of Florida than you may if you live in the northern state of Maine.
Living in an area full of lizards doesn’t mean that you will never keep them out of your house. However, this does mean you may have to work harder to do so.
#4 You Have A Warm House
Lizards do not like the cold! This is because they are cold-blooded animals, and they need to stay where it is warm at all times (70-85°F and higher). So if your home is excessively warm, and especially if it is also humid, that may be a big reason why lizards are attracted to your living space.
#5 You Have Too Many Places For Them To Hide
If your home is cluttered with a lot of objects, it may become a popular place for lizards to flock to in order to hide. When you find lizards behind every piece of furniture you move around, you might need to reduce clutter in order to reduce your pest population.
#6 Lizards Tend To Love Water
And if you have any standing water in your home, a leaky pipe, or even garden ponds, you could be unknowingly attracting lizards. If you have exhausted all other ideas, you might want to acknowledge the presence of water as the reason lizards are turning up at your residence.
Tend to leaky pipes, cover whatever sources of standing water you can, and generally try to make things more dry within your home.
#7 Fruits Could Be Possible Food Sources That Attract Them
Even though insects are a top reason why lizards are flocking to your house, uncovered fruits or even plants could be possible food sources that attract them. You don’t want to eat any fruit that lizards may have been in contact with, since lizards may be carrying germs and bacteria that humans shouldn’t be exposed to.
Now that we have talked about two more additional reasons that lizards are coming in your house, what should you do about it? And importantly, why should you do something to deter lizards from coming into your home? After all, you may not realize the downsides of sharing a living space with wild lizards.
Why You Might Not Want Lizards In Your Home?
You may be wondering what harm lizards could cause by living inside your home. A lot of people may not want lizards in their homes because they have a phobia of these animals. However, there are a lot of reasons you wouldn’t want to live with lizards running around loose in your home. Here are some of those reasons why you don’t want to share your space with lizards:
Some Lizards May Bite
This is especially difficult to deal with if you have small children, who may try to pick up small animals and play with them. This may lead to your child getting bitten by a lizard.
It Is Not Sanitary
Having any type of pest infestation in the home is not very sanitary; this includes lizards. This is because wild lizards can be carrying germs that could cause illness in human beings. You could even get salmonella this way. The risk is increased if lizards have been crawling around your food.
They May Fall Onto Humans
Lizards that crawl up walls and onto ceilings may fall unexpectedly onto humans and other items. While this isn’t especially dangerous, it can be unsettling and distracting.
Lizards May Nipple On The Plants
If you have plants or keep a garden, lizards may nipple on the plants. This could be devastating to your garden.
They Can Get Into Machines
Small lizards can get into machines or inside of other objects that could cause these things to be non-functional. However, this is also true for many small pests of various species.
Lizards Leave Their Droppings
Lizards can leave their unsanitary waste droppings all around your home. They may also even shed skin wherever they go. These droppings and shedded skin may also attract more insects, which could worsen your lizard problem.
They Are Hard To Catch
Unfortunately, lizards can be very fast on their feet. This means that they can run out of sight just as soon as you see one. This makes them harder to catch than some other pests.
As you can see, there are a multitude of reasons that you don’t want lizards to keep coming into your home. No matter what your reasons are, you need to know that you don’t have to surrender your peace of mind to a bunch of house geckos.
However, Some People Don’t Mind Lizards In Their Homes
Some may give you the advice that you shouldn’t worry about lizards in your home. They may even tell you that lizards inside can be seen as purely beneficial, since they hunt down and kill the insects that may come inside.
In some cultures, the sign of lizards in your home is viewed as “lucky”. Some people even see them as beneficial, since they will help to reduce in the insect population inside of the house. Read this to learn about lizards as a pest control for your garden. But chances are if you are reading this, you are looking to try and get rid of lizards as well as repel them from your home. Let’s talk about some ways you can solve your lizard problem.
Proven Methods How To Repel Lizards
Now, let’s talk about some simple things that you can do in order to keep lizards from coming inside your home, and also to draw them out once they’ve come in. Read this for a detailed guide about getting rid of lizards.
For a quick commercial solution you can get the Lizard and Gecko Elimination Kit below.
Also Read: Best Ways to Get Rid of Lizards for our top recommendations on lizard pest control products.
Get Rid Of The Insects
The most important tip I can give you is that if you feel like lizards are in your home due to a higher than normal insect population, you must get rid of the insects first. Clean up food crumbs wherever they may be.
Tidy anything dirty in your home that may attract bugs. Vacuum, disinfect, and do whatever you must to clean your home so that insects are no longer attracted to it. And when the insects begin to leave, then the lizard population should be reduced, as well. A great way to reduce the insect population is with a bug zapper.
Scent Of Egg Shells
Believe it or not, but lizards are repelled by the scent of egg shells. A few carefully placed egg shells can both drive current lizard populations away, and prevent new ones from coming indoors.
Leave Garlic, Coffee Powder, Onion And Chili Pepper Around Your Home
Other scents that tend to deter lizards include garlic, coffee powder, onion, and chili pepper. Mix some of these scents up in a spray bottle with water, and then mist the solution around your home.
Leave Tobacco Powder Around Your Home
If you want to do more than just deter lizards, try leaving tobacco powder around your home. This substance is highly toxic to lizards, and consumption of tobacco powder will be fatal to these pests.
Reduce The Temperature In Your Home
If possible, you should reduce the temperature in your home to 70°F and below. Warmer climates are more attractive to lizards. And if you cannot reduce the overall internal temperature of your house, try filling a spray bottle with cold water to spray at lizards when you spot them.
Get Rid Of Any Stagnant Water
Not only will stagnant water attract more lizards it also provides a breeding ground for mosquitoes.
Cover Your Fruit
You should also cover up any fruit that is sitting out. Fruit may attract both lizards and insects. As you know, excessive insects will certainly attract animals that want to eat them, like lizards.
Reduce The Level Of Clutter In Your Home
Clutter can make it easier for lizards to hide where you cannot find them. This makes them harder to get rid of.
Clean Your Home With Bleach
Not only do lizards dislike the smell of this popular cleaning chemical, but bleach can eliminate scents that are alluring to them.
Use Glue Traps
Glue traps can be very effective for trapping pests and removing them from your home. But keep in mind that glue traps will often mean the death of any animal you trap, since it will be impossible to remove them from the glue. We go into more detail about the best glue trap for lizards here.
Add Screens To Your Windows
Adding screens to your windows and doors may help keep lizards from coming in at these areas.
Get A Cat
Have you been thinking about getting a cat? If the answer is yes, that is a good way to help reduce indoor pests, including lizards. Cats are predators that are very likely to catch and kill lizards on sight.
Get Help From A Friend
When you are trying to chase lizards out of your home, try to get the help of a friend or family member. After all, it is harder to eliminate pests if you’re all by yourself.
Sometimes, these methods may not be appropriate for your individual circumstances. That is why there I wrote an article on the best way to get rid of lizards.
Conclusion: Why Do Lizards Keep Coming In My House?
Today, we’ve explored seven main reasons why lizards might be coming into your home. We also explored a few methods you can use to repel them, or get rid of them once they’re already inside of your home. If you have any other tips about why lizards come into homes or how to get rid of them, feel free to leave your tips in the comments section.
At Pest Control FAQ, you can learn tips about everything from bed bugs to rodents. If you’ve got a pest problem, this blog should be your first stop. For example, do you have a problem with birds, and you’re wondering if bird repellent gel works? We have an article on Pest Control FAQ that covers that, and many more related topics.
Related Questions
Are all lizards venomous? Fortunately, most lizards that invade homes are not venomous. The most common lizards that come into your home are anoles and house geckos. Neither of these lizards are considered venomous or harmful at all. However, take caution if you live in area populated by Gila Monsters, since these are venomous to humans.
What are house geckos? The Hemidactylus frenatus is otherwise known as the common Asian house Gecko. These geckos can be found in locations all over the world, especially in tropical countries. These lizards are not harmful, but they can definitely be considered pests.
What areas of the world have more lizards than others? Warm and humid locations are more likely to have lizards. If you live in the Southern United States, you may be very likely to have lizards coming into your home. And if you live in a location like this, you may have to take extra precautions against lizards coming inside.
