carpet beetles

[Klaas Reißmann]

Hello,

I want to throw in this: no pest is able to produce holes in clothes within one or two ours. The more I read this thread I'm used to aks Pauls question if you are absolutely sure that there is no other pest. That is why I think this way:

Clothes moth produce a very similar picture of damage in clothes. But in contrast to carpet beetles their caterpillars hide very well and can be oversighted very easy. They use to hide in a woolen bag they produce on their own. Therefor they take fibers of the clothes they eat and fix them to a bag together. This bag is very, very inconspicuously and you normally find it, when you know what you have to look for.

Fact is, the caterpillars of clothes moth avoid light. So if you take out the clothes of the wardrobe and leave it alone for one or two hours, this would be time enough for the caterpillars to crawl away and hide somewhere, wherre it is dark or darker than on the bed.

If there is any interrest I can send one or two pictures by mail to show the damage and what this woolen bag looks like. Write to my Email reissmannMINUStextilvertriebADtMINUSonlineDOTde (sorry for this, but the bots crawling threw forums don't find my Email by spelling it this funny way).

Regards
Klaas

[juliette200]

Please do offer a solution to the problem

[Klaas Reißmann]

It depends on what you want to do. The pest controler would commend to spray, but there are some things why I wouldn't do so.

1. The toxin used to control the moth would be dangerous for persons, too. you have to stay out of house for one or two days. But it is never this, that there is no toxic left, even if you ventilate very well. Normally those toxins accumulate in the fat tissue and stay there, because our bodies are not able to release the toxin. Within many years and maybe absorbing more and more of this toxin, not only in your house, but somewhere else, you get the leathel dose to get ill or more.

2. The toxin normally must be used more than once, because of eggs and larvae surviving somewhere the toxic didn't reach it. So the quantity of the toxic raises and everyone gets a little closer to the lethal dose.

My solution would be of much work, the loss of cloth and maybe carpets, possibly would cost money, but would be without any toxic and if you are working with precise you would get rid of these moth.

1. You have to take out all cloth of the wardrobe. Empty your wardrobe. After you took everything out, clean it very tidily. Water, a good cleaning agent and a good rag. Eggs can be everywhere in the wardobe. You get rid of them in this way.

2. Take the vacuum cleaner and clean carpets very accurat. Take a cleaning powder and rub it into the carpet..., you no, do what you normally do with carpet cleaners.

3. Check the cloth. Throw all cloth away that show smaller or bigger holes. If you do have cloth like coats that have a flanell surface, have a good look for small marks that look like the hairy flanell surface is gone. Those are marks of the feeding caterpilars. Throw it away. The best would be to put it immediatelly into plastic bags you tie up, after they are filled and put it immediatelly into the dust bin.

4. All the cloth that look ok need a cleaning. Cotton and other fibres can bewashed in the washing machine. As hot as possible. They all can have eggs. The woolen cloth take to a chemical cleaning.

At last you have to clean everything again two weeks after you cleaned it first and two weeks after you cleaned it second time.

And do the cleaning in this way: take a cloth out of the wardrobe, check it, is it ok, lay it in the sun outside, is it not ok, put it in a plastic bag. Until you emptied the wardrobe.

At the end of this procedure for precaution you should use lavender bags for one or two years (you have to change them after half a year). Lavender is non toxic. Not for you and not for the moth. But however the smell of it keeps moth away from the wardrobe and is very kind for us.

You can see, it is a lot of work and it might be expensive by throwing away many cloth. But I did it ones when I had the problem and I never had it again.

If you do so, I wish you all the success one can wish in this world. Let us know, if it worked.

Regards
Klaas

[PGH Pest Control]

you can do all of this but why have you got them in the first place...


this would be my solution

survey of the property inside and outside to establish why the textile pest is there and where they are to.


residual insecticide treatments are not dangerous if used correctly I handle insecticide everyday with PPE when mixing and spraying but when its dry and I touch areas or equipment that have insecticide on your body sends it to your liver which takes it from your body like it does with alcohol ! no different! properly safer.


re entry to a property can be made usually within 3 hrs of the treatment and sometimes ask for the heating to be turned on to which helps the process

this lasts for up to 6 weeks.

during this time or at the beginning of treatment any woollens or other fabrics with keratin in ( a protein in natural fibres like feather and fur) need to be dealt with


check your lagging in the loft over your heating pipes this is often horse hair and will be infested with larva! or for birds’ nests. these need to be dealt with for long term control.

in all my pest control operations the least toxic method is a priority!

*physical removal and or treatment with infested products ...non toxic

*treatment of harbourages in the property insecticide with a residual effect

*pheromone traps to help cut out the life cycle! these are a non toxic method .. only work for the webbing clothes moth tineola bisselliella so you need to identify - it does not work for the case bearing clothes moth or the brown house moth or for carpet beetle!

if you want more detailed advise FREE! please contact us I love to help
we cover all the south of the UK

[juliette200]

Thank you for your help.
It would be great to find out WHY I have carpet beetles appearing in my house randomly.
In my experience, however, they are very common but most people don't notice them! I've seen them in my last 3 houses and in my parents and boyfriends houses too. I hate them and can spot them easily! I saw them in this current house before I moved any of my stuff in (so they didn't come with me) it's a modern house, clean and only 4 years old. I don't get where they come from.
Do you have a web site so I can contact you? I live in Croydon if that helps.
Thanks

[Klaas Reißmann]

Hi Juliette,

Anthrenus is a genus with a number of species, that occur almost everywhere in Europe. The species are specialized on dry keratin like of feathers and hairs (men and animal) and even on chitin like of insects.

Where ever one finds dry chitin oder dry keratin, one will find Anthrenus. The larvae feed and develope on this. The beetles can be found in flowers feeding pollen. so the beetles come in from outside and maybe can develope inside on dry hairs or even scales. So whereever you find a place that is seldom vacuum cleaned or never, because it is difficult to reach, there they develope.

And if your house is absolutely clean, like a hospital (how horrible) than you will find those coming in from outside.

Regards
Klaas

[juliette200]

So basically they're unavoidable. I do have a very clean house, vacuum daily, clean bathrooms and kitchens thoroughly but I guess there's always areas I can't access (behind and under kitchen units etc) in wall cavities and so forth.

[Klaas Reißmann]

You are right. They are unavoidable but you can avoid problems and damage. You're doing more than you need to, to avoid problems. It would be enough for having no problems with those beetles, when you take out the few you find during a year.

Regards
Klaas

[PGH Pest Control]

hi juliette


yes my website is beeing re designed as we speak but will be up in a few weeks use my user name and cranleigh or just put peter higgs pest control in google.

I would be pleased to help further if you want me to

regards

Peter Higgs

[NMP]

There are some ways to avoid carpet beetles and vacuum cleaning may not always be enough. I had this problem for really long time and bought this steam cleaning machine, it really helped, but is freaking expensive. You can see more information on my webpage:
Carpet beetles