Discovering pests anywhere inside your Plano, Texas home can be annoying and gross, but one of the worst situations of all is when pests get into your food. Dealing with bugs inside of your kitchen and food items is disgusting, and one of the most common pantry pests in the area is the Indian meal moth.
These moths are commonly referred to as pantry moths, and they are known for getting into all kinds of stored products including grains, spices, cereals, and dried fruit. At the larval stage, these moths eat these items to grow. While the adults of the species don’t eat human food, they will lay more eggs, so the infestation will continue to grow.
What Do These Moths Look Like?
When they are larvae, Indian meal moths are only about half an inch long and look similar to worms. They are white with ribbed bodies, but their heads are reddish-brown. Once they are fully grown and turned into moths, they have reddish-brown bodies and wings. Indianmeal moth wings have some cream markings and black banding.
How Do Indianmeal Moths Get Inside?
There are three main ways that an infestation of these pantry moths can begin:
- Adult moths can get inside your home through doors, windows, or even cracks in exterior walls. Once inside, they start to lay their eggs inside items in your pantry, and the infestation takes root.
- The adult moths can also get inside if you bring in wreaths, flowers, or other plants that have moths on them already. While this is a slightly less common route once the moths are inside their population grows quickly.
- The most common way Indianmeal moth infestations begin is when you bring home items from the grocery store that are already infested. Eggs and larvae can be living inside flour, sugar, and other packaged foods that you purchase.
Are There Ways To Prevent These Moths?
It’s rather disgusting to think about tiny larvae living inside of food in your cabinets and pantries, but there are some things you can do to keep these moths away.
Here are some of the best ways to keep Indianmeal moths from getting inside your Plano home:
- Make sure to inspect food packaging, especially grain-based items, for signs of pantry moths. Look for small webs or what looks like a fine powder.
- Keep things like sugar, flour, and baking mixes stored in airtight containers.
- If you’ve had a recent infestation already, clean out cupboards, cabinets, and pantries with soap and water.
- Rotate prepackaged food items to ensure they are fresh.
- Make it more difficult for adult moths to come inside by fixing broken screens in doors and windows. Also, seal up holes in the walls using caulk and foam.
The Best Way To Control Indianmeal Moths
While you can help deter these moths on your own, the overall most effective way to get rid of Indianmeal moths at any stage of their lifecycle is with help from the experts at All-Safe Pest & Termite. We provide reliable, ongoing pest control options that will handle these pests, along with other common pantry invaders, and keep them from returning.
We make it simple to get started by providing free estimates, so give us a call today to learn more or book an appointment.