How To Recognize And Treat Your Home For A Pantry Moth Infestation

Posted on: 28 May 2015

If you think having a moth infestation in your home is no big deal, think again. Having a pantry moth infestation in your home or kitchen can be as damaging and frustrating as having a mice infestation in your home. Just as mice leave their droppings all over your home and chew into packages of food, ruining their contents, pantry moths can chew through food packaging, leave sticky residue, webbing, and eggs in your home. Here are some tips to help you recognize and clean up a pantry moth infestation from your home.

How an Infestation Begins

Pantry moths can enter into your home through a crack in a screen or door, or hitch a ride on the packaging or contents of food. But, this type of moth needs a food source for it to multiply into a full-blown moth infestation. If a stray moth finds a way into your home, without a food source it will usually die and nothing will come of its presence in your home. But, if a pantry moth finds even one food source in your home, it will eat and lay eggs that hatch into larvae to grow into new adult moths. 

Signs You Have an Infestation

If you see a moth flying through a room in your home, you may have a moth infestation. It is a good idea to look around your home for any others moths, and look around in your pantry for any other signs of an infestation. 

As pantry moths eat your foods and lay eggs, they will leave a sticky residue on packages, inside foods, and on your cupboards. If you open a package and have a moth fly out at you, or if you find cocoon webbing inside and around package wrappings, you probably have a moth infestation.

Look around your home to locate any areas the moths are living and multiplying. You will need to find all areas the moths are inhabiting so you can get rid of all of them.

Properly Clean Up Your Home

Throw away any food packages that are opened, even with the tiniest opening. Moths can get inside the package and lay their eggs in the food, so you don't want to keep it. Keeping any food containing moth eggs can lead to another infestation. You also don't want to eat any infested foods, especially since the food can go bad from the moth's sticky residue. 

Place any discarded foods inside a sealed garbage bag and leave it outside your home until garbage day when the trash is picked up at your home.

Any food packages that are well sealed, such as glass and hard plastic containers are usually considered safe from a moth infestation. But, check around the packages for any moth webbing or eggs. Look under the lid's rim edge on food jars and containers and any other place a moth could spin a web. Use vinegar on a cloth to wipe any webbing from and to wash the moth's sticky residue from surfaces. Wipe down the cupboards and shelves with vinegar where any sticky moth residue is present. 

Check all food packaging for chew holes because moths can chew through plastic and cardboard to lay eggs inside. And, don't stop at cleaning just your kitchen. Pantry moths can live in dried flowers and any other fresh or dried food items throughout your home. 

If you question if an item is free of moths, but you don't want to take a chance, you can freeze the items to kill any moths or eggs in the item. Seal up the items in a plastic bag and freeze it in the freezer for four days.

Use these tips to help rid your home of pantry moths. If these tips don't work, call a company like Ace Walco & Sons Termite & Pest Control.

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