Moths are harmless to humans as they neither bite nor sting, but they can be quite a nuisance. Their presence can result in significant damage to your furnishings and clothes, leading to costly repairs in your home.
Since moths are considered household pests, it's important to know how to deal with them effectively. Understanding the specific type of moth, you're facing is crucial for keeping your home pest-free. Before taking action, make sure you identify what type of moth you are dealing with.
Read below to find out more about pantry and clothes moths and how to deal with moth infestations.
Are the moths in your bedroom due to a flickering light or are they attracted to your favourite outfits? Are they pantry moths, searching for a bite to eat?
Pantry moths
Pantry moths enter the house through your outdoor lights, coming through open windows and doors. Their first move is to the kitchen, and to feed on processed grains, nuts, fruit, chocolate, vegetables, and at times even tobacco. Their great sense of smell means that it doesn’t take them long to infest your pantry.
Some pantry moths will prefer dry foods and will chew through containers to get to their chosen food.
These moths are very small, with pale grey wings and reddish-brown outer wings, with the lower and upper wings having a black band.
Pantry moths can also be identified by the silky webs they leave behind, which can make food grains clump together.
These moths are very problematic if they are often found in large quantities as they are likely breeding pairs and are constantly multiplying. These adult moths will enter your pantry to lay eggs and so you will end up with more moths feeding on your food.
Clothes moths
Clothes moths differ to most other moths in that they don’t seek the light, rather they enter your house at night when it’s dark. These moths chew through clothes made from wool, fur, silk, hair, cotton, leaving holes in your favourite fabrics.
There are two types of clothes moths commonly found in the UK.
With clothes moths, it is actually the larvae that cause damage to clothing and other natural fibers, such as those in carpets and furniture.
Both types of clothes moths have similar life cycles and are not usually attracted to clean clothes. Instead, they are drawn to dirty clothes stained with food, sweat, or urine.
Common clothes moths can be identified by their golden-colored wings and reddish hair on their heads. The larvae can reach 13mm in length and are white with a hardened brown head capsule and no ocelli (simple eyes).
Case-bearing clothes moths have silver-gray to brown wings, which they hold behind their bodies. The forewings feature one large dark spot and two smaller spots. The larvae can reach 12mm in length, are white with a hardened brown head capsule, and have one ocellus (simple eye).
How to remove pantry moths
Part of moth prevention is understanding the lifecycle of the moth, pantry moths can live from 60-90 days on average. Despite their lifecycle being short, they multiply very quickly, and so quick action is needed to treat these pests.
Firstly, make sure to check your pantry regularly to identify where the moths are coming from and why you have an infestation. Look for out-of-date food or storage containers that have not been properly sealed or have been broken into.
Regularly move your pantry and cupboard contents around to ensure you are not providing these pests with a safe, undisturbed environment to roam.
Once you have checked your pantry for out-of-date food and points of entry for pantry moths, dispose of all infested food. If one of your reusable containers has been infested, dispose of the food carefully and then deep clean the container. When disposing of infested food, make sure to do it outside the home to avoid the risk of spillage and re-infestation.
Next, clean out all your cupboards and your entire pantry thoroughly, making sure not to miss anything. Do a deep clean and empty out the contents outside. After cleaning, use a residual pesticide (chemical or natural) on all surfaces, allowing it to dry completely. Make sure not to place unprotected food on surfaces treated with pesticide, and do not use it on drawers with utensils.
Once the cleaning and pesticide application are complete, replace your pantry and cupboards with non-infested food, ensuring that it is kept in airtight, sealed containers.
Finally, set out traps for the pantry moths, replacing them every eight weeks until you have eliminated the infestation. These traps may take a day or two to work and attract moths by using a sticky glue board inside a small box which will have a pheromone that attracts male moths. The moths stick to the glue board and die. Place these traps in one or more rooms, ensuring they are in dark, undisturbed areas such as underneath wardrobes.
Note: They should not be used inside a wardrobe.
How to remove clothes moths
Removing clothes moths requires a process similar to dealing with pantry moths, starting with a deep cleaning of the infested area. Begin by emptying your wardrobe completely and vacuuming every corner thoroughly. Then, wash and dry clean your clothes to kill any moth eggs and larvae.
Dry cleaning is effective, but you can also freeze your clothes to eliminate these pests. Place your clothes in plastic bags to prevent condensation buildup and keep them in the freezer for at least 48 hours, though a week is preferable.
Moths can be persistent, with a lifecycle of 65 to 90 days, but prevention is not difficult with regular cleaning of clothing and fabrics. This helps prevent costly damage to your clothes, carpets, and other household items.
To prevent future moth infestations, keep your clothes free of stains and food crumbs, and store your knitwear in garment bags.
As a last resort, consider fumigation, which suffocates and kills eggs, larvae, and adult moths upon contact with the gas.
But most infestations aren’t easy for a non-professional to handle. Calling for pest control specialists can save you time and money, guaranteeing the infestations are properly dealt with.
It is important to keep surfaces clean and to occasionally deep clean your kitchen and bedroom, at least a few times a year. To prevent moth infestations, regularly check your kitchen for broken containers, and clean up crumbs, food, and sweat stains on clothing promptly.
Setting moth traps can be effective, but in cases of high-level infestation, consider fumigation or spraying pesticide on moths.
If you’re worried about a moth infestation or any other pest, please call our dedicated pest control specialists on 0330 108 4111. And check out our website for more information on how to deal with moths and other pests.