The Easiest Way To Keep Indian Meal Moths Out Of Your Eugene Pantry
S-Tier
September 27, 2021
The average Oregon consumer doesn’t like the thought of throwing out months of food due to a pantry pest invasion, but the threat lingers. Searching for the easiest way to keep Indian meal moths out of your Eugene pantry? Then look no further than Infinity Pest Solutions, LLC; these specially trained Eugene pest technicians can easily handle pantry moth issues.
What Are Indian Meal Moths?
Forget beautiful visions of a light green luna moth; the Indian meal moth is not exactly a party for the eyes. Roughly the length of a half-inch, this species is fairly small. These flying pests exhibit a striping pattern of gray and mahogany brown with a coppery shimmer present on the outer wing areas; they have six legs and two antennae.
Indian meal moths are also called pantry moths for a good reason; they love to infest pantries and can be found in Eugene pantries getting way too comfortable. This type of moth lays eggs in and around stored food products, so larvae have easy access to food. Before pupating, the larvae leave the infested site, which can lead to problems when it comes to identifying the actual source of the infestation.
How Did These Moths Get Inside The Pantry?
If you are a neat freak, relax. Even if homes start spotless, an Indian meal moth can come right in and begin to reproduce happily. Every nonperishable food item brought into the house can potentially bring in one of these moths, their larvae, pupae, or eggs.
Warehouses, factories, bakeries, and grocery stores can be unwitting hosts to these pests and their offspring. This makes it super easy for them to hitch a ride into individual homes in paper grocery sacks, boxed foods, bagged foods, pet foods, birdseed, and even canned goods. When a homeowner unpacks groceries into the pantry, the fun begins for Indian meal moths.
Making Eugene Homes Inhospitable To Pantry Moths
Finding a remedy for an Indian meal moth infestation is no easy task. The easiest way to keep Indian meal moths out of your Eugene pantry? Don’t let these pests get inside the home in the first place. Just implementing a couple of steps could make a significant impact.
- Inspecting food: When shopping, carefully look at each product from every angle before putting it in the cart. Don’t forget to check non-food items as well. Paper products may be harboring a hitchhiker. Avoid using paper shopping bags, as they can also be compromised.
- Setting traps: These moths are attracted to pheromones, so setting out some pheromone traps can be useful in reducing the population. Unfortunately, these traps can also show homeowners how bad the infestation is.
- Storing food properly: Forget plastic bins and stick to metal containers with locking lids. Immediately empty purchased food into the specialized bins, dispose of the original packaging, and take the garbage outside quickly.
- Using natural remedies: Bay leaves, lavender oil, peppermint oil, cinnamon sticks, and diatomaceous earth are all noted for their helpfulness in deterring Indian meal moths. These methods are best used in pantries that are clean and not infested.
Moths Be Gone!
Deterring moths is one thing but removing them is quite another. Once this type of moth is found in the home, it can quickly escalate to an infestation. Perhaps the average homeowner can get all adult pantry moths out or clean the pantry to remove the larvae, but their eggs and pupae may remain. Then the cycle can begin again, contaminating more food and causing more anguish for the homeowner.
What’s the easiest way to keep Indian meal moths out of your Eugene pantry? Call in the Eugene home pest control or commercial pest control professionals! Our skilled technicians at Infinity Pest Solutions, LLC understand how to combat Indian meal moth infestations effectively. We handle this pest in all lifecycle stages to prevent recurring issues. Contact us today!