Invasion of the Clothes Moths

Have you ever looked down at your clothes that you are wearing and see several small holes? The holes are not really large, but are big enough for you to re-consider your outfit. The culprit behind these mysteries holes could be clothes moths.

Don’t Ignore the Holes

Clothes moths like to stay near their food source so they typically will be in your closets or other places that you may store clothes. Clothes moths are famous for their ability to consume wool. However, wool may be one of their favorite foods, but they will eat a wide range of other fibers including hair, fur, silk, felt and feathers. Serious infestations of clothes moths can develop undetected in a home, causing significant damage to clothing, bedding, floor coverings and other articles.

What do these pests look like?

Clothes moths are small at about 1/2-inch long and are a buff or tan color. They avoid light and prefer dark, undisturbed areas such as closets, drawer corners, attics, or folds of fabric. Surprisingly, clothes moth adults do not feed so they cause no injury to fabrics. However, the adults produce eggs which hatch into the fabric-eating larvae.

How to avoid Clothes Moths?

The best way to avoid the moths is to prevent them altogether. Before storing clothes, especially wool clothes, they should all be laundered before going into the corners of closets or packed away in air-tight containers. It is better to not store boxes of summer or winter clothes in the attic or garage (if possible) and store natural fiber clothes in closets in individual plastic covers. You should regularly vacuum carpets and rugs and try to clean out and wipe down closets once a year. Be sure to vacuum the edges of carpets, along baseboards, underneath furniture, inside closets and other “quiet” areas where clothes moths prefer to feed.

What about Moth Balls & Cedar Chips?

Moth Balls are an insecticide so they can help ward off the pests. They slowly turn from solids to toxic vapor. When you smell mothballs, you are actually smelling the insecticide. If you do not like the smell of moth balls, Cedar Chips may be another option. The dark-colored heartwood of red cedar contains natural oils that kill clothes-moth larvae. Unfortunately, it is not effective against the adult moths or the eggs. Also, as the cedar smell fades so does the effectiveness so they must be replaced regularly.

Infestation?

If you find that more and more of your clothes has little holes in them, it may mean you have an infestation. At Terminix, we can create a custom pest control solution to get rid of the clothes moths. Call us at 504-834-7330 and set up an appointment today!