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Carpet moths, also known as clothes moths or tapestry moths, are not strictly seasonal pests, they can be active year-round. However, their activity does increase during warmer months. This is when the environment is most suitable for their reproduction and growth.
Clothes moths (the same ones that eat your rugs) like to diet on anything that contains protein, particularly wool, silk, fur, feathers, felt, leather, animal hairs, and even cotton and synthetic fabrics such as polyester and rayon if they are heavily soiled with food stains or body oils. They are more likely to feed on soiled materials. [1]
These insects may remain at the larval stage (the stage in which they feed) for up to three years, during which time they can do immense damage.
In Figure B, there’s a video showing larvae being spread throughout a rug.
Introducing just one item infested with moths into your home could potentially lead to an infestation affecting all vulnerable items. Older houses with warped doorframes and siding meet the conditions these pests need to flourish, as well.
Other things that are likely to attract these moths into homes include:
Larvae are the worm-like creatures with transluscent bodies. The white specks and black specks are a combination of their eggs and digestive waste, or speaking more coloquially, moth babies and moth poop. (Figure A)
Yeah, gross.
You’ll likely notice their presence once damage has already occurred, where the foundation of the rug is intact while the wool pile has been disfigured, or is gone entirely. (Figure B)
Look into rug moth damage repair services if this is the case.
For rugs that have been laid out, all of this damage is most likely to be hidden under furniture legs, couches, and any other area that doesn’t receive regular light, traffic and vacuuming.
The silk-like webbing that they spin over the fibers they are feeding on is a surefire way of confirming the presence of clothes moths, although it’s difficult to distinguish this from strands of fiber in Moroccan-like rugs. (Figure C) This is why preventative care, outlined below, is so important.
Regularly and thoroughly clean the home, including vacuuming inside drawers and closets, on and around upholstered furniture, and even along baseboards, identifying the species of moth and addressing the infestation can be confusing.
For peace of mind, it is always best to call in a pest control provider who can assess the situation and implement a plan to address it.
In the case of clothing moths, cleaning the appropriate areas, such as carpet and/or fabric surfaces, is critical for removing larvae.
Make sure to clean underneath difficult-to-reach areas, under furniture, including their legs and under beds, which is where moths will most likely be.
The most effective way to eliminate moth in a rug is to have them washed by a professional rug cleaning facility that has an intensive deep cleaning process.
I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again: it’s better to be safe than sorry in these situations. This will fully eliminate the infestation in your rug.
If your budget absolutely does not allow for a professional rug cleaning procedure, you can lay your rugs out in the sun, rotating front and back, over the course of a few days to see if this helps.
Keep in mind that rugs with long piles will still have “dark spots” that the larvae and egg may be safe inside of.
We recommend thoroughly brushing the rug periodically to assure that different areas of the rug get exposure and brushing and exposing the rug to the sun again in 4-10 days for any eggs that may have hatched.
We haven’t found any moth sprays that are particularly effective.
In general, we don’t recommend spraying pesticides in your house without conducting research on the matter and knowing what the proper protocols are for undertaking such an endeavor.
Pesticides have been linked to cancer, ADHD, Alzheimer’s disease and birth defects.
Extreme temperatures can eliminate moths.
Sealing infested items and placing them in freezers for several days is an effective way of eliminating them.
As far as heat goes, because items have to be heated to pretty extreme temperatures, it’s generally not recommended to wash anything in water hot enough to eliminate moths, and rugs in general should never be washed with warm water.[2]
Moth balls can be somewhat useful in preventing infestations.
Mothballs are designed to be used in closed containers to eliminate moths by suffocating the moths in the fumes within the container.
The problem is that area rugs can’t be stored in air right containers, as they will begin to rot over time.
They are not meant to be used in a storage facility (and especially not in your home) to prevent moths from reaching your rugs when they’re rolled up as a fool-proof way of preventing infestation.
If you’ve ever paid the price of forgetting to spray just one area of your body with mosquito repellent spray, you’ll know that you’ll need a thorough inch-to-inch coverage here too; otherwise, the moths will gather up in a safe zone where moth balls aren’t present.
Taking your rugs out of storage and inspecting/vacuuming them every three to six months is the best way to assure your rugs are safe in storage.
There are products such as MasterBlend’s moth repellant that can be applied by professional rug service providers which may prevent new moth infestations from happening in your rug.
We haven’t personally tested these products, but from what we’ve heard from three different reputable rug experts who have used the product, they are effective.
Yes, a deep cleaning process from a rug cleaning facility that uses a submersion process will eliminate moths, larvae and eggs from rugs. For pickup and delivery please see rug cleaning glendale