Carpet Beetles Eating My Clothes

The best way to protect your clothing and furnishings from damage from fabric eating insects is to use the following measures.

Carpet beetles eating my clothes.

Woollen clothes insulation rugs and other items may be attacked and damaged. The female beetles lay soft white eggs in concealed places on clothing furniture cracks in flooring and carpet. To know where to focus the brunt of your cleaning first look for the primary source of the infestation which will be the area with the most signs of damage and beetles. These are solid or splotchy black with specks of white tan and yellow.

Female carpet beetles lay around 100 soft white eggs in concealed places that hatch in eight to fifteen days. Common carpet beetles that eat clothes are the variegated black and common carpet beetles. They are capable of feeding on a wide variety of items and do so usually undiscovered until after damage is done. All moths and beetles progress through egg larva pupa and adult stages.

Damage to woolens is actually done by the larvae of two types of insects. Adult clothes moths and carpet beetles may not eat at all. Often most of the eating and damage is done by the larvae. Purchase items the manufacturer has treated so they resist clothes moths and carpet beetles.

Clothes moths and carpet beetles the latter being more prevalent than moths in most areas of the country. The most common carpet beetles in new zealand are the varied carpet beetle anthrenus verbasci and the black carpet beetle attagenus unicolor. Here s what you need to know. They all are destructive towards fibers and only differ slightly in their appearance and lifecycle.

They may eat through your clothes rugs and furniture. Clothes moths and carpet beetles are frequently found in birds nests and discarded animal based textiles such as old carpets and underlays in loft areas. They can also sometimes cause an allergic reaction. Their larvae are reddish brown and covered in fine hairs.

Both insects lay eggs in secluded spots with plenty of food wool fur down shed pet dander and other animal based materials. Both adult carpet beetles and larvae can infest your home but the larvae do the most damage by eating organic materials like wool leather and silk. These beetles typically produce four generations within a year. So it may not be just your carpet that is damaged by these fibre eating pests.

Apply protective treatments to likely targets of clothes moth and carpet beetle infestation. They hatch more quickly in warmer weather. These beetles have black white red and orange scales. The eggs are laid on clothing furniture cracks in flooring and of course carpet.

They re only about in length and are ovular. The long term solution to infestations is to make sure that birds nests are removed from attics and particularly from disused chimneys.