Clothes moths - no idea where they're coming from

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:After years of finding holes in my fine cashmere and woolens I finally started to throw them in the dryer after every time I wore them. After pumping for 15-20 min. I'd immediately fold them into ziploc bags and store them in my cedar drawers.
At the end of every season, I pump my wool coats, skirts, etc.. in the dryer. Heat will kill them. Them I hang them in the closet with plastic sheeting, like the ones from the dry cleaners.
By just wearing these clothes outside you are dragging in microscopic larvae, not just moths but carpet beetles, etc.. They love fine wools. Carpet beetles can thrive on most any organic product, they are a freaking pestilence.

My ex-ILs had a moth and carpet beetle infestation in their home. I could literally see stalactites of moth chrysalises hanging off the bedroom ceilings. ex-MIL ended up wearing polyesters because her garments were constantly developing holes. But they never dealt with any kind of thorough cleaning. Their weekly housekeeper was always charged with polishing the silver and tidying up ONLY THE VISIBLE. There were huge dust bunnies under the beds beneath the expensive ruffles. The attic was full of clothing from the previous generation - think pointy bullet breasted ball gowns. All crawling with larvae.
I swear they brought these vermin into my home with their visits.

Ew.

Yowsers! How did you get rid of them?

[Anonymous]

I lost a cashmere Burberry coat that way. A gift from my mother. I was so sad! It's been years since we've had an issue (knock on wood!), but living in an old 1920s house, I pack my woolens in boxes or drawers with cedarwood or lavender sachets, and have stopped buying cashmere - the moths are drawn to cashmere as to a flame, and don't go for the woolens so much.

OK, now I worry it's a seasonal thing. I will go check on my few remaining cashmere things immediately!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:After years of finding holes in my fine cashmere and woolens I finally started to throw them in the dryer after every time I wore them. After pumping for 15-20 min. I'd immediately fold them into ziploc bags and store them in my cedar drawers.
At the end of every season, I pump my wool coats, skirts, etc.. in the dryer. Heat will kill them. Them I hang them in the closet with plastic sheeting, like the ones from the dry cleaners.
By just wearing these clothes outside you are dragging in microscopic larvae, not just moths but carpet beetles, etc.. They love fine wools. Carpet beetles can thrive on most any organic product, they are a freaking pestilence.

My ex-ILs had a moth and carpet beetle infestation in their home. I could literally see stalactites of moth chrysalises hanging off the bedroom ceilings. ex-MIL ended up wearing polyesters because her garments were constantly developing holes. But they never dealt with any kind of thorough cleaning. Their weekly housekeeper was always charged with polishing the silver and tidying up ONLY THE VISIBLE. There were huge dust bunnies under the beds beneath the expensive ruffles. The attic was full of clothing from the previous generation - think pointy bullet breasted ball gowns. All crawling with larvae.
I swear they brought these vermin into my home with their visits.

Ew.

Yowsers! How did you get rid of them?

I don't know that I got rid of them. Like I said, I pump all woolens in the dryer and store for the season in plastic. Every now and then I inspect all food containers in the pantry. I usually store foodstuffs in sealed containers, but sometimes the stuff from the store will be in a loose container so I bag it up in ziploc. With some food from bulk food bins I throw then in the freezer for a few days.
It's a constant battle with food because guess what? The FDA cannot guarantee all pantry food will be clear of larvae - that's why they have the sell by/consume by date. You eat it before it blooms into generations of critters.
I once opened a bag of noodles to find a bunch of carpet beetles inside the sealed plastic. It must have been sitting around a while in the store.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've checked our wool clothes. I found two sweaters with holes last year, I threw them away, but haven't found any damaged clothes since then. The pheromone traps inside the closets don't catch anything, only the traps out in the open are catching stuff.

What makes you think you have an infestation? These are insects that live outside your house and may get in at the rate you're finding them. You clean, and make sure stored items don't go undisturbed for too long, it's not a problem. Or they're breeding in an eighty-year-old rat's nest behind your wall.

How would I differentiate between them coning from outside vs an infestation? I've only lived in this area a few years, I've never lived in any other geographic area where clothes moths fly in from outside.

I think with moths, they do congregate and hatch all at once, and you know if opening a closet door or drawer, suddenly you see them. One or two in an open room over the course of weeks, I'd believe they're coming from outside. Carpet beetles are much worse because they really do dissipate into the woodwork and you never see them all at once. In nature they both turn up in animal nests eating fur, feathers, insect casings, so you want to be sure there isn't any other infestation.

[Anonymous]

I bought these cedar balls and cost hanger thingies on amazon. We also have those triangular sticky traps.

[Anonymous]

They could be in the food: rice bags, any food container in your pantry that can provide food for the larvae.

I have moth flying around in my house right now and desperately searching for the food source myseflf...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They could be in the food: rice bags, any food container in your pantry that can provide food for the larvae.

I have moth flying around in my house right now and desperately searching for the food source myseflf...

Clothes moths and pantry moths are different.

Clothes moths love wool rugs.

[Anonymous]

So could it be that I'm just catching moths flying in from outside and there's no actual infestation?

[Anonymous]

Sounds like pantry moths, not clothes moths

[Anonymous]

Is it better to put merino wool sweaters in the dryer (when dry, not wet), or to bring them to the dry cleaner to kill moth larvae?