Effective ways to combat moths - folk remedies and modern chemistry

Moths in the house are a real disaster for the owners. If you do not declare war on this winged pest in time, then both food and clothing will constantly be at risk. There are many ways to get rid of moths forever. These include industrial chemicals and hand-made products that have proven themselves for a long time.

How do moths appear in an apartment?

It is not difficult to find out that winged “guests” have appeared in the apartment. Adult pests do not hide from their owners, but shamelessly fly out of the closet as soon as the door opens. In appearance, the moth resembles a small butterfly with whitish wings. It is almost impossible to confuse it with any flying insect.

The parasite does not appear in a person’s home on its own; it appears for several reasons:

• along with old items purchased at a thrift store or rented;
• with old furniture;
• migrates through ventilation shafts from apartments located on the floor below;
• In flour and cereal products, kitchen moths are introduced in the store, penetrating into inconspicuous holes in the packaging.

If adult butterflies are easy to see with the naked eye and can even be swatted with a newspaper, then pupae and especially larvae are much more difficult to reach. Caring females hide their offspring in the most inaccessible places: in the seams of stale clothes and furniture upholstery, in the smallest cracks of wooden furniture, in open and long-unclaimed bags of cereal.

How to fight kitchen moths?

The kitchen moth “specializes” in spoiling food. Packages of cereals, flour, and spices that are nearing the end of their shelf life may contain tiny pest eggs. Within a few days, larvae emerge from them, which soon pupate and turn into butterflies.

To deal with food moths, the following measures must be taken:

• Carefully inspect kitchen drawers and the supplies stored in them. The presence of moths can be judged by the thin webs on the inside of the lids of plastic containers. Packaged groceries may also contain pest larvae.
• You need to examine the top of the kitchen cabinets - you will find many moth cocoons there. The ceiling plinth and the ceiling area near the chandelier are also one of the favorite places for pests to be located.
• Carry out general cleaning. Throw away all loose products, vacuum the kitchen furniture using a crevice nozzle, wipe the furniture with a solution of laundry soap or a special food moth repellent.
• Adults can be removed using pheromone traps.

Moths, like any living creature, are unable to live without water. Therefore, you should shut off all sources of moisture that are in the public domain, thoroughly dry the dishes, and close the ventilation and drain with a fine mesh.You need to put allspice in the cabinets or lay out a bay leaf. The smell of these spices will repel annoying insects.

Folk remedies for clothes moths

Clothes moths feed on paper, felt, cotton and wool. In addition, when reaching a food source, it can make holes and passages in polyethylene and other synthetic material. Don’t think that it’s the butterfly that does the most harm – swatting a couple of them will not get rid of the problem forever. The main damage comes from larvae and caterpillars, so first of all you need to look for and destroy the nests of the pest.

If no larvae are found, and butterflies continue to appear in the apartment, the following measures should be taken:

• Shake up all things and dry them on the balcony. The larvae are afraid of exposure to sunlight and cannot tolerate low temperatures. Therefore, the best time to clean your wardrobe of moths is a hot sunny day or severe frost.
• Wash clothes that can be washed at +60°C.
• Vacuum the cabinets, treat the inner surfaces of the drawers with a 9% acetic acid solution.

To combat moth larvae, it is very convenient to use a Karcher household steam cleaner. The temperature of the steam emitted under pressure through the nozzles of this device is +140°C. If the stream is directed at the nest or at the expected place where the larvae accumulate, not a trace of the pests will remain.

To finally get rid of clothes moths, you can use proven folk remedies:

• Fresh lemon, tangerine or orange peels are laid out in wardrobes. Moth butterflies cannot stand the smell of citrus fruits, so they will immediately rush to leave their home and never return.
• Garlic spirit will scare away uninvited guests. The garlic is peeled and cut into rings, after which they are placed in gauze bags and hung or laid out in clothing storage areas.
• Bouquets of tansy or wormwood - perhaps the most effective remedy for moths. Plants can be used both fresh and dried.
• The interior of the cabinet can be treated with vinegar vapor. To do this, remove all clothes from the closet and install a hot stand on the bottom shelf. Pour 1 glass of 9% vinegar into the frying pan, bring to a boil, place on a stand and close the cabinet doors. After 10–15 minutes of such treatment, not a single living larva will remain in the closet.
• Bags with various spices (allspice, cloves, coriander) are placed in the closet between textiles.

It has long been noted that moths cannot tolerate the smell and taste of printing ink. To protect your fur boots, hat or mittens from destruction by pests, you need to wrap them in a sheet of fresh newspaper.

Lavender for moths

Lavender will contain aromatic substances that have a detrimental effect on moths - the pest loses its ability to reproduce. The plant can be used in the form of a sachet or oil, which manufacturers of industrial moth repellents often include in their products.

To get rid of the annoying pest quickly and permanently at home, you need to soak cosmetic cotton pads with lavender oil and place them in places where insects are expected to accumulate. The repellent must be renewed every two weeks.

Dried lavender sprigs are placed in small bags made of cotton or linen fabric and hung in a wardrobe.Simple, practical and inexpensive, besides, the clothes will always smell nice of flowers.

Chemical substances

It is not always possible to get by exclusively with folk remedies. If none of the methods described above helps, you should turn to more effective chemicals.

Aerosols

Special insecticidal sprays can effectively combat moths. The chemical is sprayed onto clothing and inside the closet. The disadvantage of this product is that you need to get to a specific place, which means you will have to treat all the folds of clothing and cracks of the furniture surface.

Aerosol insecticides are not suitable for people with allergies or for families with small children.

Among the most popular drugs are "Raptor", "Armol", "Clean House".

Fumigators

Compared to an aerosol, the fumigator is safer for people and animals. A plate with toxic substances is inserted into the device and, when heated under the influence of electric current, emits vapors that are fatal to insects.

According to customer reviews, the most effective devices are DiK-3, Mosquitall and Reid.

Moth sections

These are special plates impregnated with a broad-spectrum toxic substance. As soon as the packaging is destroyed, the chemical begins to enter the air. After the required concentration of the toxic substance inside the cabinet is reached, the adult moths, larvae and eggs of the moth are destroyed, and a protective barrier is created for new insects for five months.

Traps

The principle of the trap is as follows: the plate is impregnated with a special substance that attracts insects. Most often these are pheromones synthesized in the laboratory.The butterfly flies towards the scent that attracts it and ends up on the adhesive tape.

There are many ways to get rid of moths that have settled in a kitchen or wardrobe. Both folk remedies and industrial chemicals are suitable for pest control. The main thing, once you start the fight, is not to stop until there is not a single butterfly or larva left in the apartment.