20 effective ways to treat moths at home to get rid of them forever

General information

Domestic moth.

In general, the butterfly itself does not bear any harm. She reproduces offspring, provides him with the food necessary for life.

With offspring, everything is not so simple: the eggs will turn into caterpillars and begin to engage in sabotage. Before getting rid of moths in the house, it will be necessary to fight all types of insect development, and using various methods.

Moth caterpillars.

Reasons for the appearance and spread of moths

You can bring moth into the house in different ways. She herself can fly in through an open window, but still the following are considered the main reasons for her appearance:

1. Products. If the elementary rules for storing goods were not observed in a store or in production, then it is quite possible for moth larvae to appear there. The same applies to goods with broken sealed packaging. Favorite insect products include dried fruits, mushrooms, spices, nuts, cereals, cookies, flour.
2. New things or interior items. The most "dangerous" are knitted and woolen products, fur coats, fur shoes, furniture, various carpets.
3. Items or furniture purchased in a buyout or hand-me-downs - possible carriers of larvae. After the purchase, they need mandatory moth treatment.
4. Animals. Usually pets with long hair become carriers of insect pests.
5. Ventilation. Ventilation shafts are a kind of way for adult butterflies to move to new territory.
6. Book. The copies stale in the library will be an excellent breeding ground for bugs.

An interesting fact about the appearance of moths in an apartment is that the insect lives and produces offspring, regardless of the cleanliness of the room. The presence of food is the only condition for the life of a pest butterfly.

How to understand that a mole has wound up

The main sign of the appearance of moths in the apartment is the presence of a flying individual. But there are others:

• in food storage places there are small pink caterpillars, empty cocoons;
• cereals are glued into small lumps;
  

  Moth in products.

• winding passages are eaten in sweets, bars, nuts;
• the appearance of white folds on clothes, larvae of a light yellow tint or eaten away areas;
• when cleaning, a web with the waste of the pest is found.

The entire life cycle of a moth is only five weeks. Already on the third day of the appearance, the insect can begin reproduction. That is why, at the first sign of a bug invading a home, you need to learn how to deal with moths, otherwise the scale of distribution will become huge.

How to get rid of moth larvae

Ways to get rid of moth larvae differ from each other depending on their location.

Voracious moth caterpillar.

Types of domestic moth

Moths can be of different types, therefore, in order to effectively combat it, you should figure out which particular representative should be limed.

food moth

Food moth.

So, if butterflies appeared with silver-white wings with a small pattern of a brown tint, then this food moth. The subspecies of such an insect are grain, fruit, potato and flour moths. They are placed in a bag with cereals, in dried fruits, flour and vegetables.

The most effective way to fight is considered to be preventing the extraction of water, as well as blocking the ventilation hole with a fine mesh. For adults, traps with pheromones are used or essential oils, black peppercorns, garlic, citrus peels are placed on the shelves.

Clothes

Moth living in the closet.

Butterfly of light yellow color with fluff on the head - clothing (clothing, woolen, fur coat) moth. Caterpillars of such an insect, usually no more than five centimeters, live in wardrobes and feed on wool, silk or fur.

This representative is unpretentious in living conditions, can even use semi-synthetic materials for food.

Parasites are destroyed by drying things in sunlight, washing, steaming and freezing.

furniture moth

Furniture moth.

An inconspicuous, small, gray-yellow butterfly with a reddish tinge of wings can lay at least 300 eggs in upholstered furniture or carpets - we are talking about furniture moths.

The larvae are inconspicuous, so you can find them only after causing damage. Experienced housewives claim that geraniums and other odorous plants will help get rid of this type of bug.

The fight against moths should be carried out comprehensively.

It is not always possible to cope only with washing, drying or freezing - such methods are not always available. On the shelves of specialized stores there is a range of chemicals for combating certain types of insects. Do not concede to industrial methods and home methods.

Moth causes irreparable harm.

Insect control methods

There are a number of ways to rid your home of harmful insects. In order to determine this particular method will be more suitable, you need to familiarize yourself with them in more detail.

Moth chemicals

Choosing a chemical moth control agent at home, should pay attention to the scale required for processing and the degree of toxicity of drugs.

Precautions are very important, since any chemical agent is dangerous for humans. This is especially true for children and those suffering from any kind of allergy.

Aerosols and sprays

An aerosol or spray will help you quickly and effectively achieve results in pest control. But such methods require a lot of time to conduct a thorough spraying, and also often have an unpleasant odor and are harmful when inhaled.

Spray Raptor from moths.

Some of the popular brands currently are:

• "Raptor" - an aerosol, non-toxic to humans, does not stain things and furniture, is able to destroy both adult moths and prevent the development of larvae;
• "Clean House" - a preparation for processing furniture;
• ARGUS - means for processing clothes and home textiles;
• "Armol" - the spray is effective in the fight against body moths, is available both with and without a smell.

Usually, the instructions for an aerosol or spray indicate that the product is safe for humans, but some spraying safety rules:

• use of personal protective equipment (mask, gloves);
• thorough ventilation after spraying;
• after processing the furniture, close it;
• exact observance of the accompanying instructions;
• general cleaning of the entire apartment after processing.

Fumigators

A fumigator is a special device that releases a poisonous substance into the air after the plate is heated. The concentration of the active substance is very low, so this method is not the most effective.

Fumigator.

Recently, the following brands have become very popular among fumigators:

• "Raptor" - the device is filled with both liquid filler and plates;
• "Dick" is a budget tool with a long service life. Effective in the fight against clothing and food moths. Like the first sample, it can be liquid and in the form of plates;
• Mosquitall - filled with liquid only, used against adults;
• "Raid" - can only be used in conjunction with plates.

Sessions:

Flavored sections from moths.

The section is a device consisting of a plastic container with the active substance and a hook for hanging in a closet or other convenient place.

The design helps to get rid of not only harmful insects, but also from an unpleasant smell.

Usually the sections are filled with essential oil and have a pleasant floral scent that will last long in the room. However, insects can adapt to one active substance and soon it will become ineffective.

The most common means are Mosquitol and Raptor. Both brands have a wide range of fragrances and come in the form of sachets or hanging plates.

Tablets and briquettes

In stores there are special tablets from insects. They come in a variety of shapes and forms, but are more commonly found in a spherical shape with a lemon, eucalyptus, or lavender scent. They are laid out on shelves and in drawers of cabinets to destroy and prevent the appearance of harmful insects.

Moth tablets.

Modern experts advise abandoning the once popular naphthalene in favor of new, safe means:

• "Clean House" - pills for the protection of fur and woolen things;
• "Dezmol" - an effective drug against clothes moth;
• "Antimol-effect" - a fragrant tablet will reliably protect outerwear.

When using any chemical poisons in your home, you should be extremely careful and prevent children or pets from coming into contact with them.

All chemicals should be stored or located away from food.

Crayons

Chalk Mashenka.

This method of dealing with moths and other domestic insects is considered the most effective and budgetary.

Precautions when using chalk are the most elementary: do not allow the product to come into contact with the skin and mucous membranes.

It is odorless and non-toxic to humans. Basically, experienced housewives advise two names: "Mashenka" and "Home".

Mechanical methods

In addition to chemical means of fighting moths, there are also mechanical ones. Let's highlight the popular methods.

Adhesive tapes

The principle of operation of adhesive tape is as follows: the tape is straightened from a special sleeve and hung by a loop in the habitat of butterflies.

The tape is treated with glue with toxic impurities, the stuck insect cannot escape and dies. According to the instructions, 10-2 tapes are needed for an area of ​​3 m kV.

This method is considered quite effective: the reproduction of insects is reduced. The tape will last for quite a long time and is environmentally friendly and safe for humans.

Traps

Sticky trap.

Traps are different in form and principle of operation. They are safe for humans, simple to use, and have a low cost. The sticky tape mentioned above is also a trap, but consider another variety - pheromone trap.

The device has the form of a pyramid with holes on the sides. The principle of operation is that inside at the bottom there is a bait on which bugs flock. They stick and die.

The main manufacturers are: Raptor, Argus, Delta-250, Aeroxon, Natural Control and Global. Such a trap is effective against eating adult butterflies, but is completely useless against larvae.

Physical methods

The moth does not tolerate low and high temperatures, as well as low humidity. That is why direct sunlight, freezing or heating are the main and very first methods in the fight against moths.

Freezing

The principle of freezing is that carpets, clothes and other textiles are taken out into the street and thoroughly shaken out. After that, things are left for several hours at temperatures below 10 degrees.

Cereals can be placed in the freezer, but only if traces of the presence of insects are not noticed in the product. Otherwise, the grain is thrown away.

Heat

Disinfection of cereals, pasta, dried fruits and nuts can take place in the oven for five minutes at a temperature of more than 40 degrees. Things are more appropriate to take out under direct sunlight and leave to air.

A steam cleaner and a quartz lamp are also effective against moths.

Folk remedies for moths

Among experienced housewives, a considerable number of folk recipes have been formed to combat flying insects. The moth disappears where it smells specifically, certain objects appear.

Methods of prevention

To prevent the appearance of moths in the apartment, some requirements should be met:

1. Regular inspection of products and cabinets.
2. Store bulk products in airtight jars or containers.
3. Compliance with product expiration dates.
4. Thorough wet cleaning.
5. Airing the wardrobe and drying textiles and clothes in the sun.
6. The use of vacuum bags for storing fur and woolen items.
7. Inspection of things when buying for traces of pests.
8. Timely "revision" of the wardrobe.
9. Carrying out preventive measures (tablets, sachets, folk remedies).

Сonclusion

Moth is a harmful and tenacious insect. If it was not possible to prevent the appearance, then the destruction is carried out by a combination of methods. Food products that have been inhabited by larvae should absolutely not be eaten, since the waste products of caterpillars and their remains can cause allergies and poisoning.