Don’t Let The Clothes Moth Steel Your Clothes!
Most of us typically notice the odd moth in our houses, certainly during the summer and don’t think anything of it. Most of the time this is fine, as the majority of moths are harmless pesky insects that are only intrigued in the light. However, how would you feel if the moths in your home were the kind that breed and infest a home, munching its way through all your fine garments and soft furnishings?
The Common Clothes Moth, also known as Tineloa Bisselliella, have a completely different nature in contrast with various other types of moth. They hardly ever fly as they favor undisturbed, dark areas of the home and often journey through either by running or hopping. They survive and breed in the home through feeding their way through different fabric items and sadly they have a tendency to love the most expensive materials and will do anything in their power to reach them. These can include wool fur, silk and feathered items, as the majority of these materials include a substance known as keratin, which is actually one of the most ingestible proteins. However, certain insects including the clothes moth have special conditions in their stomach, enabling them to break down the keratin producing it a digestible material.
In terms of their appearance, clothes moths are generally around 5mm long and are yellow/brown looking in colour with narrow wings fringed together with long hairs. They are actually rarely noticed in the home due to their tendency to immediately hide inside clothing or furniture if ever interupted, making them incredibly difficult to get rid of. Carpeting, blankets, feathered and fur products can be drastically damaged by this pest and there have been scenarios where victims have had to replace the carpet in their entire home!
Generally there is no genuine answer why only certain homes suffer from infestation, although older homes have a tendency to be more affected than newer builds, due to a moth’s love of slightly older garments and the difficulties in completely eradicating a moth infestation. The bad news is that over the last twenty years there has been an increase in the amount of homes affected by these pests. Some say this is due to the temperature of houses in today’s society, as many years ago moths would be killed off in the winter, others say the increase is due to the sheer amount of clothes the average woman now owns, meaning hundreds of moths have plenty of products to feed on, or on the other hand the increase could also be down to lack of hygiene, moths adore dirty materials, therefore putting away unwashed clothes items, or leaving a winter coat hanging up that hasn’t been dry cleaned, is like leaving crumbs of bread out for a rat.
There are specific remedies that if followed can reduce the probabilities of becoming the victim of a moth infestation; regularly banging items in the light where moths tend to remain, such as rugs, seat covers or blankets, will disturb them and motivate them to leave. As already mentioned moths love un-clean clothes particularly clothing such as coats and suits that sit in a wardrobe for many months without being cleaned, regularly deep cleaning any textiles and then storing them in sealed plastic cases will also help prevent an infestation.
If all else fails or you are uncertain, contact the experts – A reliable pest control company will handle each case differently and offer diverse types of traps and treatments dependant upon the severity.
Terminex Pest Control Services are expert specialists who take their role of supplying quality pest control and exceptional customer services very seriously. The company is also a full member of BPCA (British Pest Control Association). Visit their website today Terminex
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