Clothes moth larvae

overthehill oh dear that is the destructive stage!

They are susceptible to temperature either freezing cold or really hot if you are going for the non-chemical route. In my experience chemicals are the only real killers though!

I am totally paranoid about clothes moths! I do my utmost to irradicate them ever since DS1 brought a collection of them, in his clothing, back from uni.

I have not found a natural way to deal with them once they are there. Hanging deterrents work at keeping them at bay, but it is getting rid of what is lurking unseen that is difficult.

I have got on top of them by using a spray product called Zero. Not easily found but I did get a can in Wilkinsons and then came across one in the pest control section of the garden centre!
Freezing garments does kill the lava, but that method is not always possible.

Apparently it is our well insulated warm homes that are to blame! I blame the moths!

x

Definitely the moths!

Give cupboards a good vacuum , thorough blast with a powerful steam cleaner , hang up those sticky strips which catch the moths, freeze any clothes, cushion covers etc for 24 hours , then wash and iron. Good as a start off.

I have had a clothes moth problem ever since I inherited my mother's piano back in the '90s. I had no knowledge of pianos and no idea that clothes moths go for all the felts. After about 10 years I conceded that realistically I was never going to learn to play the thing, so I called in a local dealer who had been recommended to me. When he opened it up I could see that it was full of larva cases and most of the felts were either down to a third of their original size or non-existent altogether .

It was only then that the penny dropped as to how our house had become infested with the dratted things - the fellow said that judging by the extent of the damage to the piano, it had had a moth problem for at least 20 years.

I've tried, and failed, to get rid of them. so the suggestions on here so far will be tried - thanks suzied (I'll try the steam cleaner trick, but the sticky strips were up for months and didn't catch a single moth ) and J52 (I'll look out for that spray)

Good luck Indinana . We also went to the extent of clearing sonbuilt in wardrobe scouring it, re painting the inside ( it was built into the wall of the house) and then thoroughly spray it. Shutting the doors and leaving for a week!

The problem had been a wool jacket brought back from Uni and left for a few months. I could not believe the devastation the moths had caused, they'd virtually eaten it all!

x

Kybosh works well too.

Yeah, very late, but I was waiting for it.