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flour mites - how/why do they appear?

11 replies

amess · 10/04/2007 12:48

Anyone got the answer?

OP posts:
chocolateface · 10/04/2007 12:50

Do you mean weavels? (sp?) I think they just come in the bags of flour. They are so horrid.

Winestein · 10/04/2007 12:54

They are already in the bag.
This means, if they are unhatched, you eat weevil eggs. Oh yessss sirreee!

See below:

Q: Weevils - does anyone know how to get rid of them and stop them coming back please?

A: Success again - we have been contacted by Sandra Girard (a health inspector) who has advised as follows:-

"If you keep flour, cornmeal etc. in a cool place such as a refrigerator, the weevils will not hatch out. Also, if you have other products that already have weevils they will infest most grain products; flour, cornmeal, cereal, rice, spaghetti, etc. so throw these away immediately. When grocery shopping look for small holes in the packaging, web like substance, particularly in flour, or flying moths around shelves etc. This is a sign that there is a weevil infestation in the product.

The reason they recur is because the weevils are already in the product but do not hatch out until the temperature is optimum for them which is usually the Spring or Summer. The only solution is to keep the products cool so that the eggs that are already in the flour etc. do not hatch. By the way, these are microscopic and can't be seen until the insects hatch out.

It may be an idea to wash down shelves with a solution of bleach and water to sanitize the surface but this will not get rid of the insects." Ugh. Ugh!!!

TheShopaholic · 10/04/2007 12:55

From memory, the mites live in the flour as eggs until they mature and hatch. We had a bag of old flour a couple of years ago and I was horrified to discover them all over the cupboard - yuk. I googled them at the time and this was the answer I got.

Katy44 · 10/04/2007 13:34

ewww are they dangerous? I found some in flour a while ago, threw that out but it didn't occur to me they would infest other things in the same cupboard, pasta etc

amess · 15/04/2007 17:26

Think they are weavels very very tiny brown bits almost. Have thrown out, cleaned out and bought some flour and keeping it in the fridge from now on!

OP posts:
Imawurzel · 15/04/2007 17:30

I had to throw loads from my cupboard away. I now keep all flour type stuff in air tight containers.
D'ya reckon thats ok?
Don't have much room in my fridge what with all the full fat food and wine and stuff

DimpledThighs · 15/04/2007 17:52

have you nseen this thread?

Imawurzel · 15/04/2007 17:56

Damn it.
Not noticed any yet. will have to go look in a tick.

drosophila · 15/04/2007 18:02

Somebody told me to use a hairdryer on high heat and go over your whole cupboard with it. The hot air will get into all the spacesand apparently will kill them.

hippipotami · 16/04/2007 08:27

Can you actually see flour mites then?? I thought they were really small and the only way to detect them was to spread some flour in a shallow dish and leave overnight. If you find footprints you have flour mites.

(or is the above a load of crock and I have been had??)

I have no idea if we have flour mites - we have bags of flour in our cupboard but make our own bread so go through them quite quickly. Getting worried now - hate the thought of creepies in my bread....

Katy44 · 16/04/2007 08:53

Yes, you can see them
But if you go through flour quite quickly you probably don't have a problem. I've only noticed them in a bag that's been sat there a few months.
Right, off to clean my kitchen cupboards

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