Moths are pretty much harmless to you, but they can cause serious damage to your home by eating away at your clothes and cupboards. So, even though they aren't disease carriers, that doesn't mean we want them around.
Although you may not notice a moth problem right now, when the weather starts to get warmer, they may begin to take over. The warmer weather makes for a perfect breeding ground for them. It's best to prepare now so they stay away when it warms up. Here are six things you can do to prevent and get rid of moths.
1. Patch your screens.
Winters can be very hard on our screen doors. The cold weather can leave our screen doors with plenty of holes that are the perfect size for moths to fit through. When the weather starts to warm up, take a look at your screen door and make sure there isn't any holes in it.
If it does have holes in it, patch them up before you start using your screen door again. This will remove an entry way for moths to get in, and any other bugs for that matter.
2. Bowl of soapy water.
This is a common trick: it won't perfectly, but it's worth a try. Just mix some dish soap in a large mixing bowl of water, and set it under a lamp. Any moths you do have will fly towards the lamp, bounce around, and land in the water.
This will make a difference if you only have a few moths in the house, but won't make much of a difference if there's hundreds.
3. Keep your porch lights off.
When the warmer weather begins, try your best to turn your porch lights off when they're not necessary. Since moths are attracted to light, they will be guided straight to your house if they see lights. Keeping the lights off will keep the moths away.
But how do you get them out once they're in?
4. Clean your closets.
Moths can eat away at your clothes and ruin them over time. Keep your closets and wardrobes clean and tidy, and vacuum often. Moths are attracted to warm places so try to keep these areas cool and well ventilated.
Also, try using cedar hangers, because moths are repelled by cedar. The number one thing you can do is wash your clothes often, and keep your closets clean and neat.
5. Place moth repellents in cupboards.
Your kitchen is probably the number one place you don't want moths to be. Moths are attracted to grains, dried herbs, and sweets. They get into opened packets and lay eggs, which if left alone eventually hatch into larvae, contaminating your kitchen cupboards.
To avoid this, place moth repellents in your cupboards such as lavender, cedar, bay leaves and mint.
6. Keep any open packets in airtight containers.
Your food is the last place you want moths to have access to. If you're not sure whether you have moths around your food, look for a fine cobweb-like thread in jars of opened food. This is the clue that your food has been contaminated.
Throw it out immediately. To prevent this from happening, keep opened packets in airtight plastic containers and don't overbuy dried goods. Also, make sure you often clean your cupboards with hot water and anti-bacterial cleaner.
