Have you ever wondered what those black and gross-looking worms living in your bathroom really are? The black worms sometimes found in toilets, showers, and sinks are called drain worms but they are not really worms at all.
These black invertebrates you find in your bathroom are the larvae of drain flies. It is not unusual to discover drain flies living in the damp areas of your home and those gross black worms in your shower are just their offspring.
Drain flies and their larvae can not cause you any direct harm. However, whilst they don’t transmit diseases, drain worms and flies do carry bacteria that can spread around your home.
They may not be life-threatening but you will need to deal with the black worms in your bathroom as soon as possible. In this article, we share how to get rid of black worms in your bathroom.
Contents
What Causes Drain Worms?
Drain worms thrive in damp and moist areas and feed off decomposing organic matter. It is no surprise the shower drain is their ideal home! If your drain is clogged up with hair, soap residue, and dead skin particles, you can consider it to be a drain worm’s dream feeding ground.
Drain worms are the larvae of drain flies, these are moth-like flies that thrive in damp and moist conditions. If your shower, sink, and toilet are not regularly thoroughly cleaned, you are giving drain flies the perfect environment to grow and multiply.
Female drain worms can lay up to 100 eggs and these will all hatch into larvae at the same time. If the conditions are correct, these larvae will then grow into flies and the cycle of having black worms in the bathroom continues.
Leaky pipes and clogged drains can both create the perfect environment for drain flies and their larvae. Keeping a close eye for any leaks and quickly repairing any plumbing issues can help you to keep these icky creatures at bay.
Get Rid Of Black Worms In Your Bathroom
If you find black worms living in your tub and terrorizing you in the shower, do not panic. Remember, drain worms can’t hurt you and they don’t carry harmful diseases.
However, it is important to eliminate the black worms as soon as possible, otherwise, they will grow into drain flies and continue to take over your bathroom.
Not sure how to get rid of black worms in the bathroom? No problem, we are here to help. Keep on reading for our step-by-step guides on how to get rid of black worms in your shower, toilet, and sink.
How To Get Rid of Drain Worms in the Toilet
Spotted some wriggly black worms in your toilet? It’s ok, they are just drain-fly larvae! These black worms can’t hurt you but you need to get rid of them before you have a drain fly-infested bathroom.
Here is our easy to follow step-by-step guide on how to get rid of black worms in the toilet:
Step 1
Stick sticky tape over the drain in the toilet overnight. It is important to know exactly where the drain flies are coming from to help you better target your cleaning regime to kill the flies and their larvae. Wherever the flies are stuck to the tape in the morning, that is where they are coming from.
Step 2
Use a heavy-duty toilet cleaner to remove dirt and grime inside the toilet drain. You need to remove as much dirt and debris as possible in order to starve the larvae and kill any eggs before they hatch.
Step 3
If you prefer to use a natural homemade toilet cleaner, mixing 1/2 cup of salt and 1/2 cup of baking soda will eliminate the drain flies. Leave the mixture in the toilet drain overnight and then rinse it away with boiling water in the morning.
If the baking soda and salt failed to kill all of the flies and larvae, the boiling water should finish off the job.
Step 4
As drain flies and their larvae feed on organic matter, if you notice them in your toilet pan it can be a sign of a dirty or clogged up drain. To prevent future infestations of black worms in the toilet, regular bleaching, and cleaning of your toilet with a drain cleaner.
If the drain is blocked you may need to use a more heavy-duty cleaning product. Scrubbing the drains can also help to remove built-up debris and it is important to kill the adult drain flies to stop them from laying more eggs in the toilet.
Flies can be killed with a swatter, fly tape, chemical sprays, or home cleaning sprays made with dish soap and hot water.
How To Get Rid of Drain Worms in a Sink
If your toilet is worm-free but you keep finding black worms in your sink, drain flies are likely still the ones to blame.
Fortunately, getting rid of drain worms in the bathroom sink is just as straightforward as getting rid of them in the toilet. Drain flies love to live in moist damp areas so if your bathroom tap is constantly dripping, you are unintentionally creating heaven on earth for the worms living in the sink drain.
Want to get rid of black worms in the sink? It’s easy, just follow this step-by-step guide:
Step 1
Firstly you need to unclog the drain. The drain larvae and flies are living off the biological matter in your sink drain and as long as they have food, they will continue to thrive and breed. Using a regular drain cleaner may not be enough to unclog the drain and kill the larvae, flies, and eggs in the process.
If you want to get the job done quickly, swap your cheap bleach for a bio-enzymatic cleaner as this will soften all the debris that is clogging up the drain. Green Gobbler is a good example of a drain cleaner that softens and unclogs grime and debris.
Step 2
Run the hot water tap regularly. Regularly running hot water down the sink drain should be enough to clear the pipes and remove any larvae lurking in the drain. However, if your sink drain is clogged with hair, soap, and grime, just running the hot water tap won’t solve your problem.
This step is important but if you have a clogged sink drain it is essential that you do not skip step 1 and think running the hot tap will solve all of your drain worm problems. It won’t.
Step 3
Use a wire brush or plumbing snake to scour the sides of the pipes. Sometimes a drain cleaner, bleach, or hot water is not enough to successfully remove all the biological matter living in your drains. As long as they have a food supply in your drains, there is always the potential that drain flies will return after all of your cleaning efforts.
Scouring inside the drains with either a metal wire brush or a plumbing snake will hopefully remove hair and debris from the sides of the drain, making it easier to wash away with a drain cleaner.
Step 4
Clean the surface of the sink and around the plug and grouting with bleach. Regular bleaching will kill any eggs the drain flies are laid on the surface and also any larvae that managed to escape your extermination efforts with the drain cleaner and metal wire brush!
How To Get Rid of Drain Worms in the Shower
Are black worms in the shower making you feel grossed out every time you try and get washed? As drain flies love a damp environment full of biological matter, the shower drain is about as good as it gets for these creepy crawlies.
The process of getting rid of drain worms in the shower is extremely similar to the method shared above. However, as there are more crevices for flies to lay their eggs in your shower, you will need to be a bit more thorough with your cleaning routine.
Step 1
Remove the drain filter/cover and remove any hair, grime, and built-up fungus. How often have you noticed hair in the shower drain? Not only does it look unpleasant, but it could also be full of drain fly larvae!
Step 2
Unclog the drain. As we said above, using a bio-enzymatic cleaner is the best way to unclog a shower drain as it softens and removes debris trapped in the drain. You could also use a plunger to help remove any stubborn strands of hair that are causing a blockage in the shower drainage system.
Step 3
Using bleach, clean the grout around the base of the shower and any other crevices or cracks where drain flies may have laid their eggs. You can also use an insecticide to kill any of the remaining drain flies.
If you don’t want harsh chemicals in your bathroom, natural insecticide powders like Diatomaceous Earth (DE) effectively kill drain flies without the risks associated with heavy-duty chemicals.
Top Tips On How To Prevent Drain Flies
All of the methods we have shared above will effectively kill the black worms in your bathroom – drain fly larvae – and the drain flies and their eggs. However, to prevent future drain fly infestations. you may want to think about implementing some or all of the following preventative measures:
Reduce humidity in the bathroom
Using a dehumidifier can help to reduce the moisture inside your bathroom. Also, having a well-ventilated bathroom can reduce moisture build-up and will in turn create a less favorable environment for drain flies to thrive.
Repair damaged tiles, grout, and pipes
If you have any damage to your shower, bath, sink, or drainage system, there is more opportunity for drain flies to enter your bathroom and make themselves at home. Cracks in the tiles or holes in pipes and gaps in grout are all damp and moist little nooks for drain flies to lay their eggs and there is a good supply of food for them too.
If you notice any repair work that needs doing, get it done before you have a drain fly infestation to deal with.
Regularly clean surfaces and drains
Use bleach to clean your bath surfaces and use a bio-enzyme cleaner to keep your drains clean and clog-free. Removing their food source of hair and dead skin cells will stave off any drain worms and flies. You need to keep a strict bathroom cleaning routine and avoid any build-up of debris in your shower and sink drains.
FAQs
How to get rid of drain fly larvae?
You can easily get rid of drain fly larvae by either using insecticides, bleach, or home remedies made with baking soda and salt. However, to completely eliminate drain fly larvae your need to remove their source of food and create an uninhabitable environment.
Will bleach kill drain worms?
Bleach will kill drain fly eggs and their larvae. However, bleach often is not enough to completely resolve the problem. Drain worms are the larvae of drain flies and these flies often only thrive if your drains are blocked with hair and other biological matter that they can eat.
Bleaching your bathroom is an important step in preventing drain flies, but more heavy-duty drain cleaners and insecticides may be needed to completely cure the infestation.
Why are worms coming out of my drain?
The worms coming out of your drain are actually drain fly larvae. These flies live in the sewers and fly up into drains to feast on the dirt and debris found in household drains. As well as being common in bathrooms, drain flies and their larvae can also be found in kitchen sinks.
What do drain worms looks like?
Drain worms are small larvae that rarely grow any larger than a fingernail. The drain worms grow into drain flies that look similar to moths. If you look closely at a drain worm you will see it has brown and black stripes along the top. They are small in width and length but are still an alarming sight to see, especially when you trying to have a relaxing shower!
Can drain worms live in humans?
Drain worms can not live in humans. These worms and the adult flies feed of dirt, grime, and the sludge found inside pipes and drains. Drains worms are not thought to be a risk to humans as they do not bite and cannot transmit diseases.
However, drain flies can spread bacteria around the home and potentially onto your food if they were to land on it.
Conclusion
Spotting black worms in the bathroom can be a shock and a really unpleasant surprise while you are brushing your teeth or taking a shower. These black worms are drain fly larvae and their presence in your bathroom is an easy problem to fix.
In this article, we have shared thorough step-by-step guides on how to get rid of black worms in your bathroom. Whether there are drain fly larvae in your toilet, shower, or bathroom sink, we hope this article has provided you with all the knowledge you need to eliminate these pests once and for all.