Bloody moths! ⚠️

[madeinmanc]

I just went to put a silk dress away that I had got out to try on and left hanging for a couple of weeks. The front has tiny moth holes in it, and a case so I know it was definitely them and not some other kind of damage.

I didn't even know they could be active at this time of year! Why do they always get to the very best things?! That was a gorgeous dress I've been saving for a special occasion, honestly I could cry 😢 I can't go out and buy another one, I just can't afford that kind of dress any more (I bought it when I had a higher income than now).

Anyway, this is a warning to anyone with a moth issue to start your moth proofing now, as they seem to have got started early this year. I have a cold house so central heating was not the issue at play.

Can anyone tell me if moth beetles that attack carpets are the same pests that attack jumpers and clothes?
We have multiple bald areas on our carpets that pest control have identified as carpet moths

Pest control is booked for next Monday where they will spray and smoke the whole house.
We have to vacate the house for 6 hours. And it's v expensive.

But I've not noticed any holes in clothes.

No you just chuck away the envelopes once it's all over.

They are the exact same larvae. The adults lay eggs in mostly natural fibres, so both clothes and carpets. And anywhere with microscopic bits of crumbs, hair etc. so basically everywhere.

Same here. They are the same moths, I believe, but although we have holey patches in carpets - the fight has been ongoing for a couple of years or more - there is no damage to clothes.

I keep all my woolies in giant zip lock bags and freeze regularly. I also spray chemical stuff in the wardrobes and drawers. I would say they are reduced but still there

Liberal use of Protector C spray, every few weeks for a few months fixed it for us. I found a few case-bearing moths very recently but they were dealt with really easily. The other ones are the trickier type I think. I keep all woollens etc in sealed plastic boxes now, make sure everywhere is hoovered, and check regularly. They like gloom so anything edible must be somewhere that gets a decent amount of daylight (hard when in wardrobes and winter I know).

They’re more attracted to anything with bodily fluids or food residue on them. After losing some lovely jumpers to moths, I NEVER put clothes I’ve worn back in the wardrobe or drawers. Have only had one moth hole since learning not to do that, and it was on a skirt hung on the back of a door which was rarely closed. So it became a dark, undisturbed space.

Had the people who resorted to insecticide foggers tried the mini wasps first? I want to try one of two options but I'm wondering if some people had found the mini wasps ineffective and then moved on to foggers, or maybe they just hadn't heard of the mini wasps? 🤔

Foggers could possibly be harmful to the health so I'd be interested to know.

a skirt hung on the back of a door which was rarely closed

Ah, the same as my dress as it happens.

Op, try visible mending or embroidery to rescue 👗. I turned a tea bag of holes back into a camel hair Burberry at the weekend.

We debated about those wasps but thought we'd try the foggers first as they were alot cheaper, the wasps were £80 at that time. Yes they are toxic & had to leave the house. I believe pets, aquatic life and plants can be affected. I managed to get some matching cashmere in the same colour from the company I bought the cardi from & invisibly mended it. A friend deals in Persian rugs and says moths are the bane of his life!

@madeinmanc I'd not heard of the wasps before this thread tbh. Our big problem with moths was in 2016 and I've just used Protector C periodically ever since.

The wasps are amazing! You can’t see them at all, just put the sachets down and no more moths. About to do another preventative cycle but haven’t seen a moth in about 6 months and we were pretty infested