Surely each of us at least once in his life was puzzled by the following question: "Where does the mole come from in the house / apartment?" Believe me, even in the cleanest and most well-groomed houses, such a problem may well appear, and the appearance of a wardrobe or even a food small flying pest can cause not only moral, but even material damage.
Today we invite you to talk about what a mole is, find out the answers to exciting questions (how to get rid of a moth), and also consider the main reasons for the appearance of such a pest on your legal territory.
How a moth enters an apartment
Very often we bring home food moths with groceries purchased in stores. If in a store, in warehouses, food is stored incorrectly or the reason is in a leaky, albeit original, packaging, then the appearance of food moths is inevitable. Therefore, you should always take a good look at all the blend products you buy in the store before you start putting them in storage jars or special pouches.
The moth is very often found in products such as nuts, flour, cereals, dried fruits, seeds, dried berries, animal feed. Sometimes a moth enters the apartment from neighbors, it can move through ventilation pipes, or it can fly into an open window or door.
We also bring moths to our home not only with food, but also with new things purchased in stores, since the pest loves to wind up in items made of wool and fur. Therefore, take a good look at things, especially furs, before placing them in the closet for storage. The pest gets into the house and with the help of pets, settling on their fur, this rarely happens, but it is possible, especially if the animals have fluffy hair.
To quickly determine where the moth larva comes from in the apartment, you must first determine the species. Indeed, both food and clothing pests appear in the dwelling. They enter the room along with infected cereals and wardrobe items. Sometimes gray butterflies appear in the house, using ventilation shafts, pipelines and window openings for penetration.
Food
In the kitchen, insects appear along with cereals infected with larvae or eggs. In stores, sales of cereals are often held, in which the owners found pests or their excrement. Therefore, they try to get rid of such products as quickly as possible. But infected products are sold at normal prices in supermarkets and high-end stores.
People don't understand why the parasite starts in stores. Although the reason is simple - it is the storage of cereals, dry fruits in the wrong conditions. In the house, caterpillars and adult butterflies appear along with previously purchased flour or confectionery products. Ventilation insects are used to enter the apartment much less often.
The appearance of a moth in an apartment can provoke:
- Excess food stocks.
- Rare ventilation of the kitchen. In an apartment that is not ventilated, humidity rises, which is why pests appear in cereals and things.
- Irregular cleaning of headsets and cabinets from food debris and crumbs.
- Lack of rich aromas.
Wardrobe
Housewives encounter at home not only food, but also a clothing butterfly.The reasons for the appearance of moths in the house and its further spread are varied:
- Carpets made from natural raw materials.
- Slippers and boots made from natural materials.
- Wardrobe items made of fur or wool.
- Furniture upholstery.
To provoke the emergence of pests, it is not necessary to use old things. After all, parasites enter the room together with purchased products and interior items. Larvae and eggs hatch in fur coats, which are located in warehouses or back rooms.
Causes of the appearance of moths
Where does a mole come from in an apartment or house, there are several versions:
- A butterfly flies into the room in the evening through open windows. The moth is nocturnal, at this time mating occurs, the female begins to look for a suitable place for laying eggs. Moths are attracted by bright light, so at the slightest opportunity the butterfly enters the apartment.
- The reasons for the appearance of moth larvae, eggs are contaminated products, things that a person himself brings to his house from a store, warehouse, barn, garden. Moth eggs can appear on the surface of apples, pears, larvae inside. Often, the infection of an apartment occurs through stored dried fruits. From there, the larvae move to all cereal, food reserves.
Where the mole comes from is very clear, but not always a person can notice the very moment of infection. It is impossible to notice small eggs of the pest in cereals, products, on things. Their size is extremely small, the coloring resembles a randomly attached speck.
Signs of infection
Signs of the presence of moths
You can find out about the existence of a moth in an apartment by fluttering butterflies and caterpillars. Moths are active in the dark, often appear in the evening. During the day, moths hide in dark places, away from bright sunlight. With a strong infection of an apartment, moths can be found during the day, and not only in the room where the larvae parasitize.
The second clear sign is caterpillars. From time to time they crawl out of the infected cereals, travel around the apartment. You can meet them in the kitchen, bedroom, living room. Caterpillars develop from 1 to 2 months, at the last stage they reach 1.5 cm in size, pupate. After a few days, adult sexually mature individuals appear, which immediately begin to mate, lay eggs. In 14 days, one female is able to lay about 100 eggs.
Where and why does food moth start?
If several gray butterflies appear in the house, then their presence is difficult to notice. Owners learn about the infection of things or dry fruits only after the number of larvae has increased significantly. To get rid of parasites, you need to know where the moth caterpillar comes from in the house. It is necessary to study not only the paths of penetration, but also the main signs of the pests that have appeared:
- In a container with cereals, where caterpillars and eggs have wound up, lumps, cobwebs, excrement and dust appear.
- Bald spots may appear on the clothes. Lint and pieces of woolen items accumulate at the bottom of the cabinet.
- In wooden and brick houses, gray butterflies move in the evening.
If the caterpillars are wound up in huge quantities in the container, then they become noticeable. They move in cereals and form protective cocoons. Excrement and the remains of cocoons are located next to the sealed packages.
Food moth
By the name of the pest, it is easy to guess that the moth eats food. After all, the food moth makes nests exactly where there is a suitable food base for it. She can start in:
- Flour;
- Krupe;
- Dried fruits;
- Nuts;
- Powdered milk mixtures;
- Animal feed;
- Dry herbs and roots.
Food moths cannot appear in the kitchen by themselves. The reason for its appearance in the apartment may be leaky packaging or non-observance of the conditions for storing food in warehouses and shops.You should not purchase the above food products at bargain prices, since most often such goods are infested with insects.
The moth can be in the apartment by moving through the ventilation system, through a window or front door. The appearance of insects is also facilitated by placing a grocery store on the ground floor of the house. After all, it is the large food reserves that provoke the spread of pests.
Varieties of moths
There are several types of home moths, each group prefers a favorite product, but does not neglect others. There are eight main types of domestic pests.
- Flour moth. Small moth with beige wings. This type of insect reproduces faster than its counterparts. If you notice small cocoons in the flour, then the parasite has entered the house. Sift the flour through a sieve, then heat in the oven for at least half an hour. Store flour in a sealed container.
- Grain moth. A moth with narrow wings of a yellowish tint, the color is similar to the color of the grain, so that you can merge with it. She focuses on buckwheat, rice, rye and wheat. The safest way to get rid of the parasite is to use special traps.
- Mill moth. A butterfly up to 1.5 cm in size, with dark gray wings at the points. In an apartment, this type of moth is rare, they usually settle in mills.
- Potato moth. An inconspicuous moth of small size, with gray wings and long antennae. The larvae love to attack old potatoes as their tubers are softer. They bite into fruits, causing rotting. You can fight potato moths by adjusting the storage temperature of root crops below 0 ° C. For the best effect, the tubers can be treated with biological preparations.
- Onion moth. Wingspan up to 17 mm. The body and forewings are brown, the hindwings are gray with fringes. The larvae eat onions, causing the vegetable to rot.
- Groats moth. A butterfly with silvery-gray wings, the span of which reaches 14 mm. The larva destroys cereals and seeds by gluing the grains into pellets using a cobweb. Its appearance indicates that the grain in the warehouse is already stale.
- Chocolate moth. Eats coffee, cocoa beans, chocolate and other "confectionery". She makes moves in the chocolate products, leaving behind grains of feces. The size of the worms does not exceed 0.5 cm, so they creep into the smallest holes in the wrapper.
- Fruit moth. The gray butterfly is about 10 mm in size and is nocturnal. Moles are found in dried fruits, fruits and mushrooms. Its larvae break through the canals, turning the fruit into dust. The insect does not disdain other foods, so you can see moths in walnuts, almonds or hazelnuts.
In the apartment, the food moth eats all the groceries. Therefore, first check for tracks:
- cereals;
- pasta;
- beans;
- peas;
- flour;
- sugar;
- candy;
- nuts and dried fruits;
- bread;
- cookies;
- spice;
- tea;
- coffee;
- cocoa;
- animal feed.
Different types of parasites can easily live next door to each other. Therefore, if you find a moth, carefully check not only food, but also your wardrobe.
Prevention of the appearance of a clothes moth
The dressing moth lives in folds of natural fabrics such as broadcloth or drape, and is larger than the previous species. Its color is dominated by a shade of purple. Sometimes its caterpillars also harm semi-synthetic tissues.
These gray little butterflies can appear after purchasing items such as:
- Knitted or woolen clothing.
- Things with fur.
- Bedspreads or carpets made from natural wool.
- Old or new furniture.
- Shoes with natural fur.
As soon as you see flying insects around the house, then it is safe to say that it came from these things.This means that at the time of purchase, the larvae already existed there, and when they get to your apartment, they began to multiply and spoil not only the recently purchased item, but everything that is in the house.
Also, moths can get into your home with the help of dogs with large hair: South Russian shepherds, bobtails, wire-haired dachshunds. Such cases are very rare, but it is better to check your pets carefully.
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The appearance of insects of this species in the house may be due to several reasons:
- Purchase of wool clothing or footwear with fur containing larvae;
- Purchase of upholstered furniture with caterpillars or masonry;
- Pests entering the house together with pets, in whose fur they could find temporary refuge.
The damage that these small butterflies can do to property is enormous. Caterpillars can damage fur and wool clothing, furniture upholstered with natural fibers, woolen carpets, wool shoes, stuffed animals. Some larvae do not disdain synthetics, if food from natural materials is not enough. In some cases, caterpillars can ruin even book covers.
Many are perplexed where the moth comes from in an apartment or house, if the closets are in order and all things are folded. To determine the reasons for the appearance of the pest, you need to remember what kind of new items you have recently become. Were among them:
- Carpets, rugs and bedspreads made of natural wool;
- Fur and woolen products;
- Furniture items upholstered in natural fabric;
- Leather boots or boots with natural fur.
Clothes moth
If a mole starts up in your house after any of these purchases, then this means only one thing - at the time of purchase, the thing was infected with insect larvae. Having settled in a new apartment, the pest began to multiply actively, spoiling other things. It cannot be ruled out that even an expensive item purchased in a well-known elite salon cannot become a source of infection.
Particular attention should also be paid to used furniture, as it is an excellent "vehicle" for transporting moth larvae. Such an interior is more attractive to them: worn-out upholstery does not represent a solid obstacle that prevents them from reaching the inner filler.
Pets can become another way for moths to enter the apartment. The insect can use their long hair as a temporary shelter.
Knowing how a clothes moth appears and its habitat, you can prevent the emergence and spread of an insect in an apartment in advance.
- When making a purchase, carefully inspect it both from the outside and from the inside for the presence of insects. Do not forget about the seams, since they are the favorite places for the larvae.
- It is better to store woolen and fur products in special covers treated with a moth spray. In advance, things should be cleaned and dried well.
- There is no place for dirty clothes in the closet, as it is they that attract moths.
- In the closet with things, you need to put some kind of insecticidal or folk remedy for moths.
- In hot weather and severe frosts, woolen and fur products should be hung out on the street. Excessively low and high temperatures are detrimental to adult moths, their larvae and eggs.
- Periodically, things should be reviewed and the inside of the cabinet should be treated with an anti-malady agent.
What to do if a mole is in the closet with clothes
Mole in the closet.
If a woolen or fur moth starts up in the closet, measures must be taken immediately.
All items from the cabinet should be removed to fresh air. You need to carefully examine the clothes. Shake scarves, sweaters, sweaters, knitted hats well, then wash and dry in the sun.
Most often, nests are found in winter clothes, tidied up for the summer. Thoroughly brush fur coats, coats, fur hats, jackets with fur lining, paying close attention to the seams, cuffs, folds and darts. After cleaning, hang things in the sun all day.
While the clothes are drying and airing, the closets need to be cleaned. The inner surfaces should be thoroughly wiped with a sponge and laundry soap (72%), and then treated with vinegar (9%) - especially scrupulously in the corners of the bottom and shelves.
Before returning things to their place, it is necessary to process them with products approved for use at home: "Protection from moths Raptor", "Raid" or "Mosquito". These products help to eliminate the pest the first time.
More recently, naphthalene was placed in wardrobes with winter clothes to kill lepidopteran butterflies. It is an effective drug, but dangerous for humans and animals.
What to put in the closet
To remove the pest permanently and prevent re-infection, after cleaning, you need to put one of the following means in the closet:
- moth balls "Clean House";
- Raptor traps;
- plates "Stop Moth";
- fresh or dried lavender bunches;
- cotton pads moistened with fir or lavender oil;
- cedar bark;
- geranium sprigs;
- dried tobacco leaves or packaged chopped tobacco;
- bags with ground cloves (spice);
- orange peels, laurel leaves (in kitchen cabinets - from barn moths).
The expiration date of the chemicals is indicated in the instructions. Folk remedies should be replaced with fresh ones 1-2 times every six months (as the smell is lost).
If none of the listed funds were at hand, you can use the proven folk method. Sew a small bag made of canvas or other dense natural fabric. Prepare saline hypertonic solution.
For its preparation, such an amount of salt is taken so that a fresh, raw egg immersed in salt water floats to the surface. Boil a bag in the solution for 1-3 minutes and hang to dry (without wringing). Fold woolen and fur items for summer storage in a dried bag and tie it tightly.
Damage caused by butterflies
Gray and brown butterflies, which appear in the house in winter and summer, cause significant harm. Various types of pests appear in the apartment, each of which consumes a certain product. By taste preferences, it is easier to determine how the parasite appears, how much damage it can cause.
Food grade destroys all stocks that are stored in kitchen units and cabinets. If it was not possible to quickly find out where the food moth comes from, then its caterpillars will destroy all food supplies. The mouth apparatus of food larvae is well developed. Therefore, they easily gnaw through plastic, plastic and cardboard packaging. The gray butterfly uses containers and bags with grains to form masonry. The number of clutches depends on the degree of infection in the kitchen.
Clothing pests do more harm as they spoil expensive wardrobe items. They consume fur fibers and woolen products. It will take 2-3 days for a bald spot to form in a cashmere coat. Eliminating the consequences of an attack is problematic. Some things are simply impossible to recover. Pests not only spoil the pile, but also leave sticky marks. If you don't know how to get rid of the insects that have appeared, the damage can be serious.
Modern insecticides and folk methods are used to destroy caterpillars and adults. If what is causing the large moth to start was determined late, then it is better to use chemicals and special devices to fight.
- Sprays. Manufacturers produce aerosols to kill insects and protect wardrobes. The treated premises are left for 2–4 hours. After that, the apartment is ventilated.If the processing was carried out in the kitchen, then all surfaces and sets are washed. If the question arises of what to do when a moth appears, then it is better to use proven sprays, as well as aerosols.
- Standard and gel sections. They fit into wardrobes and bedside tables. The components used for preparation scare away gray butterflies. The substances that make up the sections do not affect the state of the tracks. The sections are used if prophylaxis against moths is required.
- Plates, stripes and tablets. For their preparation, toxic components are not used. Therefore, they are harmless to children, pets and adults. The cost of such drugs is low, so many can purchase them.
- Gel formulations. For the manufacture, components that are unpleasant for pests and vegetable oils are used. They are located in containers, which are distributed throughout the room, shelves. It is allowed to use gels to protect wardrobes or kitchen furniture items.
- Fumigators. Used for prophylaxis. Modern fumigators are equipped with self-contained power sources. Some models plug into an outlet. The gadgets emanate a rich aroma that scares away butterflies. The duration of the fumigator depends on the brand and equipment.
- Vegetation. To scare off a variety of pests, lavender, wormwood or citrus fruits are placed on window sills, near ventilation shafts and in kitchen sets. The use of extracts and essential oils is allowed.
To protect wardrobe items from pests, it is necessary to take into account information on the pathways of entry. After all, insects start only in those rooms in which conditions are suitable for development.
The methods of dealing with clothing and food pests are somewhat similar, but they also have their own characteristics. It is best to get rid of any type of insect at the very early stages of infection, since an increase in a colony of butterflies can bring great harm and a lot of trouble to destroy them.
The most effective way to combat wardrobe pests is washing. Clothes should be washed well at a temperature of at least 50 ° C for half an hour. The issue with woolen things should be solved with the help of insecticides, which are available in the form of sprays, powders, and washing solutions. To scare away insects, you can use various trap devices, as well as aromatic essential oils of lavender, cedar, and juniper.
Of the chemicals, it is important to use naphthalene or 1,4-dichlorobenzene in crystals, these drugs have a pungent odor and are toxic, so care should be taken that children and animals do not have access to them. Do not forget about observing the rules for storing things. They need to be periodically ventilated, since it is in stale clothes that dangerous butterflies most often start up.
If small caterpillars have appeared in the cereals, then it's too late to wonder where the black moth comes from. It is urgent to take measures to destroy it, until the number of pests has grown. If insects in cabinets can be controlled with chemicals, then pests in the kitchen should be dealt with more carefully, since toxic substances can get into food. When destroying larvae in products, it is important to adhere to the sequence:
- Throw away any spoiled food.
- Process cabinets and cabinets where cereals and food with insects were located. It is advisable to use a solution of vinegar with water, but you can also resort to household chemicals, after which you should wash the furniture with water and soda and ventilate thoroughly.
- After processing the cabinets, special traps should be placed in them, sprigs of dry lavender or wormwood, which will scare away pests with their smell.
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Mechanical methods are very effective in pest control - frying and freezing. All things or products are heated to a temperature of 60-70 ° C using an oven or special installations. For freezing, airing on balconies in winter or artificial refrigeration units is used. The only drawback when using mechanical methods is the remainder of the waste products of pests in the products.
In order not to suffer from where the mole is at home in cereals or cupboards, you should inspect food and clothing in the store, where you can see a cobweb or live caterpillars. It is necessary to carry out preventive measures by airing and inspecting clothes, as well as cereals that were purchased in reserve.
Insect control methods
To begin with, it's worth talking about safety and prevention measures, namely:
- You should always inspect food products even in the store before you buy them, for the presence of cobwebs in the package, and if there is one, then this will already indicate that someone has been in the pack before you and left their marks.
- Examine the purchased items of furniture and clothing carefully for the presence of the same cobwebs.
- The use of folk remedies for the prevention and repelling of harmful insects - for this you need to place bags with dried lavender or tansy in places where moths may appear, as well as citrus peels (orange / lemon, cloves of garlic.
- Brush your pets' fur after a walk.
To get rid of food moths, you will need to conduct a complete audit of all supplies and find the source of the "infection". Find a bag or jar with food containing unwanted guests, discard the contents, and sift the remaining food (cereals, pasta), dry it, sort it out, and if possible, warm it up in the oven or microwave. Then it remains to store everything in tightly closed jars and containers. To get rid of clothes moths, use fir oil, lavender, and for the summer, be sure to seal the most valuable things from the encroachments of moths in special sealed covers for fur coats.
Chemicals for repelling moths
If we are talking about the case when there are a lot of moths at home, then you will need to resort to the help of chemicals, fortunately, there are a lot of such drugs, but not all of them are effective and safe for human health. The oldest way to fight moths will be dichlorvos and naphthalene, but modern moths are unlikely to be penetrated with naphthalene, and with dichlorvos you will most likely kill yourself, but not the moth.
For this reason, you should not skimp and buy in bulk special plates (or a repelling liquid composition) for the fumigator, which after 5-7 days will exhaust all the moths in your home. In addition to these proposed solutions to the problem, you can get rid of unpleasant butterflies with the help of insecticidal sections and aerosols, but remember that whatever drug you choose, there is always an instruction to it, and you should read it in advance, before you go to warpath with moths.
Food moth: where the insect comes from
Mole repellents
To prevent moths in the apartment, you need to buy groceries in trusted stores, periodically clean the closets, use deterrents, and put an anti-mosquito net on the windows.
- In their activity, moths are guided by the organs of smell, if, once in the house, the butterfly cannot find a favorable place for laying eggs, it will either leave the room through the window or die within two weeks.
- You can create unfavorable conditions for the pest with the help of smells. The insect does not like the aroma of citrus fruits, mint, lavender, garlic, spices.
- The lockers are periodically wiped with water with the addition of vinegar, ammonia, essential oils.
- Garlic cloves are laid out in the kitchen, cinnamon, mustard, coffee, pepper are left in a saucer.
- Citrus skins, chestnuts, toilet soap are placed in closets with clothes to fight the pest.
- The essential oils of lavender, peppermint, chamomile, lemon balm, rosemary have an excellent deterrent effect. Applied to cotton wool, left on the shelves in the closet with food, things.
- Clothes intended for long-term storage are pre-washed and placed in plastic bags.
- After the end of the cold weather, the fur coat is taken to dry cleaning, or a storage cover is treated with a special tool.
- Cabinets are periodically ventilated, fur products are taken out into the street under the scorching rays of the sun at least 2 times per season.
A houseplant is placed on the window - geranium. The smell repels not only moths, but also other pests. For butterflies, sticky traps should be made, hung on a kuna, glued on furniture, in rooms where a moth can fly.
Anti-moth preparations
On sale there are special means for scaring away butterflies - sections, sticky traps, stickers, tablets in a plastic case. Their action lasts from 1 month to 6. The products smell pleasantly of lavender, mint, lime, and can be used in any room. Popular products - Raptor, Clean House, Moskitol, Reid, Antimol.
If a mole starts up in the house, they carry out a general cleaning in the cupboards, throw away spoiled products, or treat them thermally. For the final destruction of butterflies, larvae, eggs, disinfestation is carried out using insecticidal aerosols, sprays. The maximum effect is 2 hours, it remains to kill pests for another 14 days. It is allowed to fight with any aerosol with a wide spectrum of action.
They open the lockers, spray it, spray the whole apartment. Leave the room closed for 2 hours, then ventilate thoroughly. Wet cleaning is carried out with the addition of baking soda, laundry soap in places where food will be in contact with hands. The groats are poured into an airtight container - glass jars with lids are put in place. With the right approach, you can get rid of the pest in 1 procedure.
Knowing the path of movement of the insect, as well as where the moth appears from, it is easier to carry out preventive measures.
- Purchased cereals, fruits and fur products are inspected. Experienced buyers are able to identify the presence of a gray butterfly or its offspring.
- To store products made from natural raw materials, you should use covers soaked in aromatic herbs and extracts. Before that, everything is cleaned, dried or ventilated.
- Stained items are cleaned. After all, dirt attracts parasites.
- Fumigators, fragrant plants and insecticides are placed in dressers, wardrobes and cabinets.
- Even cleaned things are periodically inspected. This will allow you to immediately notice if insects appear.
This type of insect always appears only in the kitchen, where there are many different products.
The most common way it gets into your home is through purchases brought from a store. The reason is a leaky sealed package or box, in which the larvae grow very quickly.
After a while, they turn into moths. These insects are very fond of the following products: cereals, flour, herbs, nuts, dry milk mixtures, dried fruits and various roots. Learn more about food pest control.
These insects can get to you through the ventilation system, from neighbors on the staircase. If there is a store or supermarket on the ground floor of your house, then most likely the moth will come to you from there.
Advice! Products that contain moths are very often sold at discounted prices.
Food moth
Do not exclude the possibility of food-eating pests entering your home. After all, it is enough to buy flour or cereal, and find a moth in it. And after a short period of time, beige and brown butterflies will fly around the apartment.To prevent the appearance of parasites, you need to know what attracts them.
- The food moth lives mainly in kitchen furniture, where there are a lot of food supplies. It is important that they are stored in hermetically sealed containers. Food in cardboard boxes or plastic bags will be accessible to insects.
- More often, hanging cabinets, bedside tables and storage rooms should be cleaned and ventilated. After all, the winged insect likes to settle in darkened places where there is access to food.
- A favorable habitat for moths is a dark, damp, rarely ventilated apartment that does not have saturated aromas. Folk remedies with a pungent smell (herbs, citrus peel or garlic) will help scare off pests.
You can get rid of moths in an apartment and prevent its appearance with the help of:
- chemicals;
- folk remedies.
Modern moth insecticides are available in aerosols, gels, sections, tablets, plates and fumigators. Most of them contain substances that are harmful to human health, so they are recommended to be used to kill clothes moths.
Aerosols
With an aerosol, it is necessary to treat not only the infected thing, but also the place from which the moth appears. After 3-4 hours, the apartment must be ventilated and thoroughly washed. Aerosols of the following brands have especially proven themselves: Raptor, Clean House, Armol.
Moth Sprays
Sections
No less popular are the sections that are hung in the closet. They have a more deterrent effect on adults. They will not harm the larvae. Therefore, it is better to use such a remedy for preventive purposes.
Tablets and plates
Plates and tablets from moths give not a bad effect. They are not harmful to human and domestic animal health, as they are based on vegetable oils. In addition, the advantage of this tool is its low cost.
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Moth gels are also made on the basis of vegetable oils. Produced in special containers that can be hung or laid out in the closet. Gels Antimol and Raptor are very popular.
Fumigators
Fumigators are best used for preventive treatment of an apartment, since they provide for a long period of insect control. The principle of application is quite simple: you need to place a cone with liquid or a plate in the device and insert it into an outlet. The smell emitted during the heating process is detrimental to moths. For humans, it is safe and almost imperceptible.
It is preferable to deal with food moths with folk remedies, since they are safe for human health and pets.
Plants
Since ancient times, lavender has been used to protect against moths, this plant is still in demand today. Its smell is harmful to parasites. It is enough to spread dry lavender branches in gauze or cloth bags around the apartment and this problem will not arise.
Other herbs have a similar effect: tansy, wormwood, mint, geranium or thyme. The moth does not like the specific smell of plants. Therefore, in places where such plants are present, insects will not start.
Moth herbs
Essential oils
You can also get rid of moths in an apartment with the help of essential oils. The smell of eucalyptus, lavender, fir, clove, lemon or rosemary oils cannot be tolerated by the insect. Therefore, essential oils can be added to water to clean the interior of cabinets, tables and shelves. To enhance the effect, you can use pieces of cloth soaked in oil, which must be spread around the apartment in places where moths may be.
Other means
- You can also use vinegar and laundry soap for surface treatments.
- Winged insects are afraid of the smell of citrus peels and garlic.
- Pieces of wood and cedar twigs give a good effect and pleasant smell.
Knowing what the moth starts from, its habitat, and methods of destruction, you can easily rid your apartment of moths and prevent its subsequent appearance.
Caterpillars of this butterfly eat everything in their path, only garlic and hot spices are not to their taste. Pests can appear in such cases:
- Purchasing food with maggots;
- Adults entering the house through the ventilation system;
- Subdued lighting and lack of pungent odors can attract adult butterflies from the street through windows or open doors.
Most often, the appearance of pests is associated with the purchase of products in stores where the rules for storing goods are not followed. Violation of the packaging at the factory or at the outlet itself can also cause the appearance of caterpillars in cereals, chocolate and other products. If butterflies live in the kitchen of neighbors and no one fights with them, then you should not wonder where the moth comes from in the apartment.
Knowing what the moth is afraid of, you can effectively fight this pest. And compliance with some recommendations will eliminate the appearance of unwanted "guests" in the house.
- Check carefully woolen and fur items that you just bought. This must be done regardless of where the item was purchased: in the market or in an expensive brand store. Examine the outside and inside carefully for larvae and damage. It will not be superfluous to hang out a new thing on the balcony for 3 days. It is important that the weather is sunny.
- The pest does not tolerate the smell of vinegar, tobacco, lavender and citrus fruits. These scents cause insects to migrate as far away from their spread as possible. Spread orange zest in cabinets or put a bottle of lavender or tobacco essential oil, wipe kitchen cabinets periodically with a damp cloth dipped in vinegar.
- Woolen items can be hung on central heating radiators, the larvae will die from the high temperature. Cold acts in the same way, so cereals can be taken out on the balcony for several days.
- It is recommended to store cereals, nuts, spices and dried fruits in tightly closed glass jars. Lack of food for the larvae will exclude their spread. It is definitely impossible to store contaminated products in open original packaging. And it is not worth buying in stock products in which a mole may start. Take special care when purchasing products at discounted prices. The decrease in price may be due precisely to the fact that the product is infected with harmful larvae.
General information about moth butterflies
The main danger is not adults, but their larvae. The small, whitish caterpillars reach a maximum of 12 mm in length, have a powerful mouth on a small head and two sections: the abdominal and thoracic. The caterpillars move with the help of small legs, which help them to easily wade through the pile. During growth in this phase of development, the insect can molt 6 to 12 times, after which it pupates. To create a dense silk cocoon, the larvae need to constantly feed, so they constantly gnaw something. In the form of a pupa, the moth stays for no more than 7 days. An adult also lives no more than a week, during which time it manages to make several clutches of 60-100 eggs. The most favorable conditions for the maturation of eggs and the maintenance of the vital activity of the larvae are:
- A dark, dry place without strong odors and drafts;
- Temperatures range from 23 to 26 ° C, and in some cases it can reach 28 °.
Depending on the species, butterflies can have different colors. Furniture pests are golden in color, clothes pests are silver or ashy. Food butterflies are found in black, brown, or gray.
Two types of insects
The most important factor is what kind of moth you have in your home. There are two types of these insects: food and clothing.These small butterflies enter the house in different ways, and it can be difficult to calculate their appearance.
There is also a wax moth. She lives in bee hives, and the tincture based on her larvae has many medicinal properties.
Important! The pest appears most often where there is a huge food supply.
Moth remedies
There are many effective remedies for moths. In industry and agriculture, various insecticides are used, and you can get rid of moths at home using affordable means:
- The moth is very afraid of lavender. For this purpose, lavender bags or tampons that smell of lavender oil can be placed in closets and on shelves with clothes.
- Does not tolerate the moth and smell of strawberry soap, tobacco, orange peel, pepper.
- The smell of geranium is an effective means of preventing the appearance of a pest. A few pieces of paper in the linen closets will help prevent moths.
- Chemicals are distinguished by pleasant smells of chamomile, tangerine, lavender. They are easy to use, they are simply attached to the inside of the cabinet, and they last for five or six months.
- Anti-moth plates have a wonderful effect on getting rid of moths, the smell is pleasant, the plate lasts up to six months.
- The tablets have a pungent smell of naphthalene or camphor, it is advisable to place them on the upper shelves of the cabinet, since the vapors of camphor or naphthalene begin to sink down over time, which prevents moths from laying their larvae.
- Before storing winter clothes, you can put a fresh newspaper in the pockets of your clothes, the smell of which is also unpleasant for moths.
- If moths are in your groats or clothing, you can freeze them. In winter, you can take food and clothes out onto the balcony, and in summer, place them in the refrigerator for several hours.
- Sunlight and frequent ventilation of the premises act against moths, and it does not tolerate clean fresh air.
How to fight
First of all, you should follow the precautions and preventive measures.
These include the following, namely:
- always inspect products even in the store before buying for the presence of a kind of cobweb in the package, the presence of which indicates that someone has already been here before you and managed to leave traces;
- carefully examine the purchased items of clothing and furniture for the presence of the same cobweb;
- use folk remedies for preventing and repelling insects, placing bags with dried lavender or tansy, as well as citrus fruit peels or chives in places where moths may appear;
- brush your pets' fur after walking and returning home from the street.
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Where to look for insects?
First of all, they don't like light, so check all cabinets and drawers.
Review any bags or packs of cereals and dry foods.
She also doesn't like overly fragrant odors, so look for her in places where there is no odor at all.
Examine all the dressers and furniture where the clothes are. Look in nightstands with old books and newspapers. There are many ways and reasons from which a mole appears in an apartment, so carefully check each thing before buying.
A few words about the insect
The moth belongs to the order of Lepidoptera (butterflies), which are characterized by small size and a predominantly crepuscular lifestyle. It is moth larvae that can cause serious harm. Adults, on the other hand, upon reaching puberty, perform only the function of reproduction (mate and lay eggs).
A distinctive feature of the moth is the absence of a proboscis.With the help of this organ, common butterflies extract the nectar hidden in the inflorescences of plants. Moth larvae are more primitive creatures and less fastidious about food. They have a well-developed mouth apparatus, which allows them to even crunch seeds of plants and seeds of fruits.
The absence of a proboscis does not in any way interfere with the normal life of the insect. This is explained by the fact that the moth, while still in the caterpillar stage, uses its jaws to consume food and accumulates energy reserves in the body for the future. Growing up, the insect not only loses the opportunity to eat, but also cannot digest food. The main task of an adult is to breed.
Since moths can cause harm while in the caterpillar stage, it is pointless to fight adult insects. Before you spot the flying butterflies, their larvae will have time to settle in a dark, secluded spot and harm your belongings and food. Moreover, it will not be so easy to find them.