Ever faced a situation when you pull out your favorite wool sweater only to find holes or spot bare patches on your carpet? The main culprit might be moths, as they are known for destroying clothing, carpets, and food. In fact, thorough research notes that moths are increasing at a rapid rate of 21% each decade in Great Britain.
Outdated cleaning habits and warmer homes have helped moths thrive. However, you don’t have to be afraid, as we will help you solve this problem. This guide will show you how to get rid of moths after identifying them in your home.
We will even explain how thorough cleaning can protect your carpet and clothes from moth infestations. Read on till the end to learn the best tools for automated cleaning to prevent moths from infesting your home.
Common Types of Moths and How to Identify Them
Moths come in several pest species, so identifying them will help you learn how to remove moths from your house. Here are the ones most likely infesting UK homes:
1. Clothes Moth (Tineola bisselliella)
A small (5–8 mm) golden moth that avoids light. Its larvae feed on animal fibers, such as wool, silk, and cashmere, in dark cupboards and wardrobes. Larvae spin silken tunnels as they eat, causing tiny holes in clothing or thinning of carpet piles.
2. Carpet Moth (Trichophaga tapetzella)
Known as the tapestry or carpet moth, its cream-grey wings have darker spots. The larvae eat wool, fur, feathers, and even animal-skin furnishings, causing significant damage to carpets and fabrics. These carpet beetles spin webs on the surface, often hidden under furniture.
3. Case-Bearing Moth (Tinea pellionella)
This type of moth appears as a grey-brown creature whose larvae carry a silken case of fibers. They feed on wool, fur, feathers, and hair. Look for pea-sized mobile cases on clothes or carpet edges, as these open-ended tubes contain hungry larvae. Adults have pale greyish wings with dark spots.
4. Pantry Moth (Plodia interpunctella)
With a size ranging from 14 to 20 mm, these pantry pests are also known as Indian meal moths. The adult’s forewings are brownish and pale yellow. Larvae feed on grains, flour, cereals, dried fruits, or pet food, leaving silky webbing in infested packages.
How to Identify if Your Home Has Moths?
Before learning what repels moths, confirm an infestation with the following key signs:
- Holes in Fabrics:For early signs, check woolen sweaters or carpets for tiny irregular holes and thinning areas. Larvae eat natural fibers, so holes in cashmere or wool garments are obvious signs of infestation.
- Silk Webbing:Clothes moth larvae spin fine webbing as they feed. So, try to look for silky mats on clothing seams or rugs. Overall, web-like tunnels across these fabrics indicate larvae at work.
- Larvae or Casings:UK house owners can inspect garments and carpets for small caterpillars or their cases. Therefore, seeing moving larvae or empty cases attached to fabric means an active moth infestation.
- Adult Moths at Night:Spotting small moths fluttering around lamps at dusk is a sure sign of infestation. Clothes moths shun light but may fly indoors when disturbed.
- Food Product Damage:For pantry moths, you need to watch for webbing, larvae, or holes in cereal or flour packaging. Sticky clumps of grains mean larvae have been wandering through your pantry.
A Guide on How to Get Rid of Moths from Your Home
Follow these steps to learn how do you stop moths and protect your home:
Step 1. Identify the Scope of Infestation
Start the process by carefully inspecting all suspected areas, like wardrobes and carpets, for any kind of infestation. While doing so, note every hole, web, and live insect you find. Count any adults or larvae because even seeing as few as six months means a serious problem.
Step 2. Clear Out Infested Items
Once you detect infestation, remove all clothes and rugs from the drawers and floor. You also have to wash or brush off loose fibers. Moreover, keep in mind to dispose of heavily infested items, such as old blankets, that can’t be saved.
Step 3. Launder or Freeze Fabrics
Before bringing carpet and clothes back home, clean all washable items in hot water and dry thoroughly. For delicate woolens, freeze for 1 to 2 weeks in sealed bags to kill eggs and larvae. Carpets and rugs should be steam-cleaned or shampooed if possible.
Reach a temperature above 50 °C while steam cleaning to destroy unseen stages. Vacuum carpets manually or with eufy robot vacuums having high suction to suck out larvae from the pile.
Step 4. Deploy Pheromone Traps
After dealing with infested clothes and rugs, hang sticky moth traps with pheromone lures in wardrobes and near carpets. With such traps, you get to attract and capture male moles to stop breeding cycle.
Pheromone traps catch adults but don’t harm larvae, so they complement other measures. Place them low near the floor or furniture edges where moths fly.
Step 5. Introduce Natural Repellents
When learning how to get rid of moths, sachets of dried lavender and herbs like rosemary or cloves will prove useful. Tuck these natural repellents into wardrobes and drawers. In this regard, oil of cedar or peppermint on cotton balls also repels moths. Remember, these scents discourage moths from laying eggs, but they won’t kill existing larvae.
Step 6. Use Advanced Treatments if Needed
For persistent or severe infestations, consider professional methods. Heat-treat carpets and furniture to kill all stages of moths, including larvae and adults. Fumigation from Pest Expert or insecticide fogging can also be used, but cautions are required. Always follow UK regulations, such as approved insecticides, to get the best results.
Step 7. Monitor and Repeat Cleaning
Continue vacuuming thoroughly at least weekly, focusing on carpet edges and along wardrobes. Robotic vacuums from eufy are ideal for this task, as they automate the process. Empty your vacuum or clean the dustbin outdoors after each use to remove hidden eggs.
Inspect stored clothes periodically and re-wash anything suspicious. Consistent cleaning, even just the edges of carpets, monthly, often suffices to keep moths away.
When to Call Professional Help to Get Rid of Moths?
If the infestation is widespread or expensive items are at risk, it is time to call UK pest-control professionals. According to experts, seeing around six moths or significant damage means professional intervention is warranted.
UK pest firms like Rentokil or Fantastic Pest Control offer moth-specific treatments. Professionals can apply targeted sprays, heat, or fumigation safely and advise on follow-up.
How to Repair Damages Caused by Moths?
If moths have eaten holes in clothing or carpets, follow these repair tips after learning what repels moths:
- Use matching yarn or thread to patch tiny holes by hand. For wool sweaters, a simple knit repair can hide damage.
- For minor spots, cut a matching fabric patch from an unnoticeable corner of the rug and stitch it in place. In the worst cases, replace badly eaten carpets.
- After repairs, treat the area with borate powder or a spray insecticide to kill any missed eggs. Then resume preventive cleaning with robot vacuums if you want.
Tips to Prevent Moths from Infesting Your Home
Staying ahead of moths is all about cleanliness and good storage. Implement these best practices to stop carpet beetles from infesting your home.
- Deep Clean Your Home:Vacuum every corner of the floors and furniture weekly to prevent future infestation episodes. eufy robot vacuums can automate this process, as they map rooms and run daily cleaning chores.
- Store Textiles in Sealed Containers:Try to keep off-season clothes and furs in airtight boxes. Wash or dry-clean items before storing to prevent any chances of moth attacks.
- Rotate and Air Carpets Seasonally:Every few months, take carpets and rugs out and shake them well in daylight. Such periodic shakeouts and sunshine deter these moths.
- Inspect and Clean Pantry Goods:Before storing grains or cereals, check packages for holes or webbing. Pour dry goods into airtight plastic or glass containers.
- Seal Gaps Around Windows and Doors:Prevent moths from entering by sealing cracks around windows and doors. A tight home is less inviting to egg-laying moths.
- Regular Carpet Care:Since carpet moths love wool rugs, keep carpets clean. Consider professional steam cleaning once a year to kill any hidden eggs.
Bonus. Use Eufy Robot Vacuums to Keep Home Clean
Vacuuming proves to be one of the best defenses against moths. It removes eggs and larvae from carpets, floors, and even small spaces. eufy robot vacuums emerge as a viable option, covering every inch of the floor to disrupt moth habitats. You can get these benefits from eufy robo-vacs while learning how to remove moths.
- Automated Cleaning: They clean under beds and along skirting boards where moths hide. No need for manual vacuuming, as you can set a schedule and let the robot cover the whole room.
- High-suction Power for Carpets:Most eufy Models like the X10 Pro or E25 offer very strong suction, ranging from 8,000 to 20,000 Pa. This deep cleaning power effectively removes hair and dust deep inside the carpet, which also dislodges any moth eggs or larvae from wool fibers.
- Handheld Mode for Spot Treatments: For clothes or sofas, detach the E20’s handheld vacuumor use E28’s spot cleaner. This converts it into a lightweight vacuum you can use on moth-infested garments. It’s perfect for vacuuming a wool coat on the hanger that’s out of reach for the robot mode.
Conclusion
As moths thrive in messy spaces, the solution lies in thorough cleaning and smart storage. In this guide, we covered how to get rid of moths after spotting them in your home. We have also looked at how preventative habits can help keep them away.
For cleaning purposes, using a powerful vacuum like an eufy robot cleaner seems to be a good idea. Along with cleaning your floors, they actively break the moth lifecycle with automated operations. When the going gets tough, professional pest controllers in the UK can step in.
FAQs
Why do I suddenly have moths in my house?
Your home gets infested by moths, as they hitchhike into your place on second-hand rugs or clothes. Their eggs can lie dormant on wool, and then a spell of warm weather or central heating triggers them to hatch. Moreover, reduced insecticide use in fabrics and warmer days also allows moths to survive year-round indoors.
How can I get rid of moths in my bedroom?
To get rid of moths, empty the bedroom wardrobe and wash all clothes and curtains for about a week to kill larvae. Thoroughly vacuum the mattress and carpet edges manually or with robot vacuums. Furthermore, place pheromone traps in the closet to catch any adults.
What smell keeps moths away?
Moths dislike strong natural scents like cedarwood blocks and sachets of dried lavender. They confuse adult moths and prevent egg-laying. Other herbs like rosemary or cloves work similarly. However, these smells only deter adults, as they do not kill larvae already on clothes.
What are the first signs of moths in a house?
The earliest signs of moths include small holes in woolen garments and thinning patches in carpets. You might also see silky webbing or tiny cases on fabrics, which are larval shelters. Adult moths fluttering at night around closets or ceilings is another red flag.
