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How to Get Rid of Moths
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Moths are pests that destroy your clothes and your plants. These creatures like living inside your closet, kitchen, bathroom and just about anywhere inside your house. Getting rid of moths must be one of your priorities, especially if there are larvae and caterpillars around. Moth larvae create holes in your clothing, while caterpillars destroy forests and crops.
If you came from the grocery store, you might bring moths with you from the shop without your knowledge. The grocery store is a place full of fabrics and food. It is no surprise that sometimes, you find moths even in sealed plastic bags and food boxes.
It's in your pantry where moths are easiest to find. If your food containers have tiny holes in them, then there are most probably moths thriving in them. You will notice that your food smells different and is stuck together by a sticky substance. If you don't see the moths flying around the pantry, then they may still be at their larvae stage, waiting to grow.
While you always have your handy pesticide to kill moths, you know you can't spray your bottle directly onto your cookies. You have to learn the proper ways of getting rid of these pests and here is a short list for you:
House Cleaning in a Few Simple Steps
You need to find out where the moths are inside your house. Are they in the kitchen, in your closet, or in your shoe rack? If you found where they live, clean the area immediately. When we say “clean,” we mean the spic and span kind of clean.
- Tidy up. Before you start cleaning the areas where moths are present, make sure you remove all the clothes in your closet, the food boxes, kitchen utensils and the products in your kitchen. Remove the shoes in your shoe rack.
- Vacuum and wash. Clean the area as best you can by vacuuming all surfaces. Vacuum your carpets, cabinets, shelves and walls. Hard surfaces must be dealt with using a scrub and a mixture of detergent and hot water. Scrubbing is an important part of the whole cleaning process because this way, you scratch the larva off the walls, cabinets and other surfaces. After scrubbing, rinse the surfaces with vinegar (For other uses of vinegar, read 25 other uses for vinegar). You can spray or wipe the surfaces with it. Some shelves can be removed. Take some time to pull them out and scrub the walls and edges. Whatever surface that comes in contact with food must be cleaned thoroughly.
- Throw it out! Any food item infested by moths should be thrown away, especially grain-based food groups, which are a favorite of moths. In the mean time, say goodbye to your tea, flour, raisins and nuts, even if these are sealed properly. You don't want to eat moth larva, do you?
- Be thorough. It helps a lot to be thorough in cleaning surfaces and walls because a single larva can make your cleaning efforts go back to zero. Clean your food containers with vinegar or detergent solution.
- Trap the moths. If you see moths flying, kill them with a fly swatter. Using a moth trap will also make your job easier. Local home improvement shops offer products that help you get rid of moths. If you do not have time to shop, you can purchase products online.
Dealing with Moths in Your Pantry
Moths come and go. What you need to do after your initial infestation is to prevent the moths from getting inside your food containers and in the whole kitchen.
You can buy your grain-based food items again, but be more meticulous in storing them. After taking them out of your grocery bag, put them in the freezer immediately and let the items stay there for four days. The temperature will kill any larvae and eggs that are present in the bags.
Always store your grain-based food items in air-tight containers. The best air-tight containers are those made of metal, glass or hard plastic. To identify an air-tight container, fill the container with water and watch for leaks. If the container is leak-free, it's air-tight. Do not use plastic bags. If the problem persists, then keep your grain-based food items in the freezer all the time.
Dealing with Moths in Your Clothing
Dealing with moths in your pantry is the same as dealing with them in your clothing. You will have to kill all larvae and eggs. If you think a shirt or a pair of pants is infested, then wash it. After washing and drying the infested piece of clothing, put it in the freezer. If you are freezing small items like socks and handkerchiefs, put them all in a ziplock bad and inside a freezer for as long as two to three days. After this, take them out for thawing. Remove dead eggs and larva by shaking the items.
The area where you store your infested clothes should be cleaned, too. Remove all drawers from your dresser and the rods and shelves from your closet for thorough cleaning. Clean the area thoroughly using a bleach solution. Make sure that you clean every edge, corner, nook and cranny. Cracks appeal to eggs, so don't complete your cleaning without passing through these areas.
So Far, So Good
Cleaning your pantry and closet isn't as difficult as it sounds. As long as you are determined to get rid of these pests to protect your family's health, these are very manageable tasks.
If you have no time to follow the thorough cleaning tips mentioned above, you can always use insect-foggers and mothballs. If you want to use these materials, be ready for the odd odor. Insect foggers and mothballs are also poisonous, so it's best to get rid of these pests with your own efforts. After all, it is your family's life and yours you are protecting.
I mixed 1 bottle of flea and tick shampoo with ammonia, sprayed it on the ceiling and in my cupboards and the moths were gone in less than 48 hours and I haven’t seen them back since!!! and I have Parakeets which the moths love to hang around!!!….NOT ANYMORE!!!!!!!!
larve appearing throughout house in random spots.(this is after origanal breeding ground had been dealt with in kitchen pantry).is there any way to kill all moths and existing larve,even the hidden larve that i dont know where are hidden but know there must be some, otherwise this problem should be fixed by now.i have been very thorough throught and im constantly checking all places in house (walls,celings,fittings,etc),for new or hidden larve.ive been dealing with this for a while and now i need all moths and larve out of my house permanentaly.can somebody help me??????????
someone please help!!!!!!!!!ive done everythingthat has been suggested and thought it had worked.the problem origanaly started in the kitchen pantry in some poridge but now slowly im discovering the larve and the more frequent moths returning but they are now (the larve)in the most random of spots, throughout the whole house.i get rid of them straight away once discovered and im constantly looking very closely at all the walls and knooks and crannies where im discovering the larve. im very thorough but cannot seem to totally be done with them.is there any way i can kill all moths and larve,especially the ones that i obviosly dont know about to eradicate the problem completely .im so over it and need them out of my house now.what can i do?
The cleaning method works a trick except for one major drawback. The moths love the vaccuum cleaner. Its moth heaven! I cleaned my house from top to toe with bleach and sat back proudly as no moths appeared. Then they started to come back so I thought, ah time for some more trusty cleaning so got out the vaccuum cleaner went to change the bag and the moths were living in it! It was absolutely disgusting I’ve never seen anything like it. They were living in the nice warm vaccuum cleaner with a plentiful supply of food (they eat dust and skin etc) and mates and they were breeding like wildfire! Had to throw the whole thing out as they were laying eggs in the filter which I couldn’t remove. So my advice is empty the vaccuum bag straight after the cleaning and then clean the whole vaccuum - its the only way.
i think it’s larvae appearing on kitchen bench just being hatching all morning so disgusting!!!! wiped down walls and bench with vinegar AND bleach praying it works.
if not going to get as much poison as possible
THIS IS DISGUSTING
I have a problem with larvaes in my BED!!!!
i first noticed them to be short and yellow grey and then longer and green and now thick long and brown black headed. Im absolutly petrified!!! Please Please I need some advice on this ASAP. How do i get rid of it???
Thank You
I have noticed these little buggers. First the tiny moths flying everywhere, not the larvae freak me out! I will start cleaning the pantry and kitchen asap. And put rosemary in the cabinets too.
Btw, I have a pet chicken (hen) and found some larvae in her corn feed. But she loves eating the larvae - yummy!
I have the same problem as Susan Anderson of Alabama. Please help.
I have a moth infestation which started with grits from Winn Dixie! I noticed them flying around the grocery but did not know the damage. I opened a brand new bottle of salad dressing and under the cap… larve!!! I threw out the dressing. Then I evacuated for Hurricane Gustav. When I came home 8 days later the moths were everywhere!!! The loved my bird seed and grits and cereal. I decided to buy Lock and Lock containers for my birthday present to myself. I washed everything and bought new food. The moths are pretty much gone. They cant get in my new containers and the cedar blocks helped. I stay up an extra 2 hours a night with a fly swatter and 409 (it makes them fall). My kids say I am OCD!! I only see 4 a day now. Kill them as you see them and they wont over populate. No more Winn Dixie for me! Im in New Orleans, by the way.
don’t eat grain products
Please HELP !!!!! We have been plauged with an off white colored
group/ thousands upon thousands outside, that keep eating most of
our plants, from evergreens,crape myrtle trees, and most of our shrubs. They eat or seem to suck the life out of a branch, one branch at a time. At first you dont notice, untill the tree or bush starts looking like a skeleton…and when I go to water the plants, these moths
come flying out from everywhere….I’ve used soapy water and another type of poison, to no avail…they keep coming back, till winter comes, but by the many of my bequtiful plants are half dead or on their way. I’ve asked at local home improvement places and even a private nursery.
No one has given me the right answer or remedy. I live in Madison Alabama….can anyone help..? Thanks…sa
I’m about to freak out ~ I can’t get rid of the pantry moths ~ I have taken all the steps ~ Should I call an extermanater? Would they be able to get rid of the nasty bugger?
I am planning on making a spray of lavendar and cedar oils and see if that keeps them off my clothing.
how do you get rid of indian moths?. they were found in a bag of bird seed, and now they are everywhere. we can’t get rid of them , what will take care of this problem ??? thanks for any help in advance.
~michele~
Be careful from the clothes moth.
read
What if you have cleaned everything you can think of in the pantry, closets almost everywhere and STILL find moths? I just can’t find the source or sources of the little buggers and I am not interested in living with all of them! (one or two is ok but no more then that)
That is so funny that you mention feeding them to your fish, that is what I have been doing! I will have to try your bait method and see how that works.
I have decided that since I haven’t been able to beat them, I will enjoy them instead. I have an aquarium of freshwater fish and they absolutely love the moth larvae. So I have made bait traps for the moths using a mix of cornmeal and wheat bran or wheat germ. I punch holes in the lid of a plastic container (margarine, etc) and shake it up to check every day for growing larvae. I keep it out somewhere nearby so I won’t forget to check it. The moths love it and will lay their eggs in it if you make the holes big enough for them to get in. But make sure to check for larvae often because they can also crawl out of the container. The moths love rice too so you could also use that as bait, or dry bread, or small pasta.
My fish get a good meal of larvae pretty much every day and they love eating the little boogers. It’s really good food for them.