This guide will reveal the tiny black mites in your house. These mites show up in windowsills, kitchens, wooden furniture, walls, porch, and deck.
Some of these mites can bite you and even cause serious skin infections.
In this guide, you’ll learn how to identify these tiny black mites, how they enter homes, and the steps to get rid of them from your property.
You’ll also get answers to the most common question that you have regarding these black mites.
Let’s dive in.
What Are Mites?
Mites are arachnids. It means they’re not insects.
Arachnids are the bugs’ family where the spider belongs. So, the tiny black bugs, which are mites and you’ll learn to identify, are not insects.
The small black mites show up in human dwellings or homes during the spring and summer months.
However, they can remain in your home during the winters too.
So, where do tiny black mites come from? How do you get rid of these small black mites?
What kills tiny black mites instantly?
The following sections answer them all.
6 Tiny Black Mites
The most common small black mites that invade homes are –
- Scabies mites
- Wood mites
- Clover mites
- Psocids mites
- Black pepper mites
- Soil mites
All the mites on the list are harmless, except scabies and the black pepper mites.
Both scabies and black pepper mites are a severe threat to your health, and they bite.
Let’s deep dive into each of these mites and find out how they enter your home and what you can do to eliminate them.
Scabies Mites – The Tiny Black Mites That Cause Serious Skin Issues
Scabies mites can give you serious trouble if they can get inside your skin.
As WebMD says, “scabies mites in your skin is not an infestation, it’s an infection.”
Scabies mites are tiny microscopic black bugs that burrow in the human’s skin layer to nest and lay eggs.
Scabies mites are contagious. They spread from one person to another.
So, if you’ve got scabies mites, you might have got it by making physical contact with someone who had the infection.
When these mites burrow and lay eggs inside your skin, it leads to intense itching and rashes.
The worst part?
The symptoms don’t show up fast. It takes 6-8 weeks for the signs of scabies mites to show up on your skin.
Symptoms include –
- Severe itching
- Rashes and welts
- Pimples on the skin
- Burrows visible on the skin’s layer
Initially, the symptoms appear like mosquito bites. But over time, the condition worsens, and the itching becomes intense.
Scabies mites infection itches relentlessly.
It doesn’t go away after scratching the pimples once or twice, just as it does in case of mosquito bites.
The most common places in human bodies where scabies mites get inside the skins are –
- Genital area
- In the webs between fingers
- Navel
- Waist
- Breasts
- And neck, palm, face, and earlobes in children
If you’ve scabies mites, it’s always best to see the doctor asap.
Older adults and children are more susceptible to scabies mites infection.
Wood Mites – Tiny Black Mites On Furniture
Wood mites are tiny mites that infest damp wooden objects and furniture.
These mites are tiny, and their size is similar to bed bugs.
Wood mites can come in different colors. Some of the standard colors are white, tan, and dark grey.
Experts believe that the color of wood mites depends on the type of things they infest.
Primarily, the wood mites that infest wood are dark grey.
However, wood mites can also be like tiny white bugs on plants and moldy surfaces.
The most common sign of wood mites on wood is the tiny cobweb that they spin on the infested wood.
Unlike termites, wood mites don’t damage the wood.
They feed on the molds and fungi that develop on damp wooden surfaces like moist furniture and patio deck.
Getting rid of them is easy too. And you don’t need any professional pest control intervention to get rid of wood mites.
There are three ways to get rid of wood mites on damp wooden surfaces – applying heat to the wood, wiping the wood with soapy water, and spraying essential oils on the wood.
Out of these three, applying heat to the wood is best.
It’s because wood mites can’t tolerate the heat, and it kills wood mites belonging to all lifecycles.
Use a steam cleaner to clean the wooden surface where you’ve noticed wood mites and the cobwebs.
Steam cleaners produce heat to the extent of 140 degrees Fahrenheit that wood mites, their larvae, and eggs can’t survive.
Steam cleaning the wood also reduces the dampness in the wood. And hence it protects the wood from further wood mites infestation.
Steam cleaners are the most underrated yet valuable pest control equipment you can ever have in your home.
The heat from the steam cleaner kills invasive and damaging pests like fleas, carpet beetle larvae, and even bed bugs.
Other options you have are soapy water and essential oil sprays.
Pour two tablespoons of dish soap into a spray bottle and mix it with water. Shake it well and spray the mixture on the wood.
Soapy water will kill the wood mites on contact.
You can also use peppermint oil spray on the wood to remove the wood mites.
Wipe off the sprays after 20-30 minutes with a piece of cloth or sponge.
Wood mites are nuisance pests, and they’re harmless. They don’t bite, nor do they spread any diseases.
Clover Mites – Tiny Black Mites On Windowsills
Clover mites invade homes during the warm days fall and spring months because their numbers outdoors increase during these periods.
Clover mites are not black. They’re dark red which makes them appear as black.
They’re common in homes with lush green grass lawns or highly fertilized soils.
Clover mites are arachnids, like all the mites on the list.
However, they’re incredibly tiny, almost the size of a pinhead.
In the peak of the summer and winter months, you’ll rarely find clover mites.
They feed on lawn grass and clovers. And when their numbers increase, they run out of food sources.
That’s the time when they try to sneak inside human homes.
Clover mites enter homes from the outdoors through the open windows.
They look like tiny black specks on the windowsills.
Clover mites tend to gather under direct sunlight or in the areas on the windows that receive sunlight.
That’s why you find them on windowsills.
The worst part?
Clover mites inside homes multiply fast.
Inside your home, they’ll sneak inside the cracks and crevices on the walls, windowsills, door frames, bed frames, and furniture.
They’ll remain hidden in these places to lay their eggs, molt, and even spend the summer and winter months.
When their numbers overshoot, these mites are visible in the most unlikely places like curtains, carpets, rugs, couches, and even on your bed.
Clover mites in bed look like tiny black bugs.
It tricks many people into thinking that these little black bugs are either bed bugs or fleas.
The best way to prevent clover mites from entering your home is to remove any overgrown bushes and grasses along the perimeter of the home’s foundation.
Clover mites use them as a bridge to sneak inside homes through the windows.
Chemical barrier treatment is also one of the options at your disposal.
You scatter these chemical barriers, also known as granules, around your home’s foundation.
These barriers are poisonous and kill the clover mites.
Vacuum cleaning is your best option to eliminate clover mites inside your home.
Vacuum clean the areas, furniture, and soft furnishings like carpets and mattresses to remove the clover mites.
Dispose of the vacuum cleaner dust bag outside your property so that the clover mites don’t re-enter your home.
Also, don’t use excessive fertilizer in your yard and garden. And do not overwater your yard or garden.
Clover mites are also dependent on moisture. Excessive moisture also draws the clover mites.
But clover mites are not harmful. They don’t bite.
Another surprising aspect of clover mites is that they are not black. They’re dark red.
Observing these tiny black mites under the magnifying glass or microscope, you’ll notice they’re dark red with visible legs.
Many people are surprised because they look like tiny spiders with big front legs under the magnifying glass.
Psocids Mites – The Tiny Black Mites On Walls
Psocids mites, also known as booklice, are tiny moisture bugs that sneak inside homes at the peak of the summer months.
These are small harmless black mites that are the most common kitchen mites. They feed on the molds and fungi that develop on the damp surfaces.
They grow only up to 0.5 mm to 1 mm in size. Psocids mites are soft-bodied, grayish, or off-whitish and don’t have wings.
Some psocids mites have underdeveloped wings, which makes them poor fliers.
Psocids mites sneak inside homes from outdoors.
They can also latch themselves on wood blocks, cardboard boxes, and clothes to enter homes.
Booklice on walls look like slow-moving tiny black specks. If the walls are damp and have molds, they’ll attract booklice.
Booklice are also common book bugs and pantry bugs.
Booklice also infest stored food like grains, cereals, flour, and many other types of stored food.
Booklice, along with weevils, also infest rice.
Booklice in rice storage jars and containers is common in kitchens that have serious dampness issues.
Like many nuisance pests, their numbers skyrocket if you don’t get rid of them quickly.
Maintaining cleanliness and reducing the dampness levels in your home are two ways to get rid of booklice.
Controlling the dampness in your home by fixing any leaky pipes is how you can reduce the moisture levels in your home’s walls and furniture.
That makes your home unattractive to booklice.
Also, cleaning the molds with a mold cleaner and thoroughly cleaning your kitchen deny psocids mites their food sources.
Black Pepper Mites – The Bird Parasites That Bite Humans
Bird mites, known as black pepper mites, are parasites on birds, especially on fowls.
These tiny black mites resemble black pepper grains. Hence they got their name as black pepper mites.
Bird mites are present in the bird’s nests. They latch themselves on the bodies of hatchlings and adult birds to feed on their blood.
These mites get inside homes if there’s a bird nest.
Homeowners who raise chickens in their yard can also have bird mites in their homes.
Bird mites drop off from their hosts and enter homes looking for a host.
These mites can be human-biting mites too. In the absence of their primary hosts, bird mites can bite humans for their blood meals.
Many homeowners notice these mites in unlikely places like the kitchen, patio deck, and bed.
Bird mites can be hard to get rid of because they’re hard to spot.
And spotting one bird mites can also indicate more in your home.
You might need professional extermination to eliminate these black pepper mites.
Removing the bird’s nests from your property is one of the basic steps to remove the bird mites from your home.
Also, if you’re raising chicken in your yard, you might need to eliminate the mites from the chicken coop.
Handling the chicken can make the black pepper mites latch onto your clothing.
Through your clothes, you can also bring them inside your home.
As bird mites are black, so their sightings inside the home can trick you into thinking that they’re black bugs like black carpet beetles, pirate bugs, carpenter ants, and fleas.
But they’re not. All these black bugs are bigger than bird mites, and they’ve entirely different infestation habits.
For example, adult carpet beetles target natural fibers like fur, leather, wool, and silk to lay their eggs.
The carpet beetle larvae feed on these natural fabrics, and they can even sneak inside closets looking for them.
Fleas are brownish-black bugs that are parasites on the pets. And they’ve got a completely different body shape.
Soil Mites – Tiny Mites On Soil
If there is one mite on the list that you shouldn’t bother to eliminate, it’s the soil mites.
You’ll find out why in a minute. For now, let’s find out what these mites are and how the identification of these mites can be a little tricky.
But soil mites aren’t typically black. They’re either white or dark brown.
Being present in the soil, they can have black mud on their bodies to make them appear as moving black dots.
Soil mites are beneficial because they break down the organic matter in the soil and increase soil fertility.
That’s why soil mites are essential in compost piles where they decompose the organic debris.
Soil mites are common in soil beds of potting soil for both indoor and outdoor plants and soil beds in your yard and garden.
Soil mites are visible as tiny white or brown dots moving on the top of the soil’s layer or along the edges of the pots.
These mites are also beneficial scavengers. They eat dead insects, worms, fungi, molds, dead plants, and dead plants.
However, soil mites can become a nuisance in homes with too many potted plants.
If that’s the case, then eliminate these soil mites by vacuum cleaning the surfaces where you noticed these mites.
And spray soapy water or a mixture of white vinegar and water on the soil beds of indoor plants.
Soil mites on the porch are a common sighting when there’s a thick soil layer underneath the patio or when the weather turns dry.
These mites are also dependent on moisture.
So, the decline in moisture outdoors can make soil mites search for alternative moisture sources.
You may confuse soil mites with aphids and fungus gnats’ larvae as these bugs also dwell on the soil’s layer.
Adult fungus gnats resemble mosquitoes, and they’ll lay eggs on the soil’s layer.
The larva of the fungus gnats is a tiny white worm that feeds on the molds on the soil’s layer and the roots of the seedlings.
As the fungus gnats’ larvae are also white, many people confuse soil mites with the fungus gnats’ larvae.
Summary
The six most common tiny black mites in homes are –
- Scabies mites
- Wood mites
- Clover mites
- Psocids mites
- Black pepper mites
- Soil mites
Scabies mites and black pepper mites can seriously threaten you as the former causes skin infection.
And black pepper mites, or bird mites, can bite you.
This guide revealed why and how these mites enter homes. It also has guidelines on how to get rid of these small black mites.
Plus, you’ve also learned how to identify these bugs and don’t confuse them with other bugs that look like them.
Dr. Thomas Orbert is a PhD in Entomology with extensive research experience in ectoparasites and microbials. He has also worked in the spaces of ecology conservation and has multiple years of experience in field research and scientific publishing.