If you're a home or business owner with high standards for quality and cleanliness, pests are the last thing you want to encounter in a space where you feel safe and comfortable. You always imagine pests invading your home, but what happens if you unknowingly bring them? Indian meal moths are one pest that can seemingly appear out of nowhere in your pantry, and they're usually brought in with your groceries. For reliable pest control in Sugar Land, All-Safe Pest & Termite presents prevention tips and other information about pantry pests in your home.
What Kind Of Bugs Invade Pantries And Cupboards?
While our focus will be on Indian meal moths, other types of pantry pests in Sugar Land are cigarette beetles, drugstore beetles, and rice weevils. Indian meal moths carry out their activities during the night, invading food preparation and dry storage areas. You can tell if an Indian meal moth has been present in these areas by a noticeable silk web they place over food.
The adult Indian meal moth has an oval-shaped body and wings with nude, brown, and bronze coloring. They use these multi-colored wings to fly in a zig-zag formation. The adult Indian meal moth’s only purpose in life is to breed. The larvae are about half an inch long and have rounded, brown heads with pinkish, greenish bodies.
Indian Meal Moth Infestations Can Be A Nuisance In Your Home
What makes Indian meal moths so tricky to deal with? While most pests choose far-off, dark corners to lay their eggs, adult Indian meal moths lay their eggs on dry food packages, thus creating an easy source of food for their offspring. The eggs become larvae eat the food, and then secrete fluids and excrement on the food. This contamination, while unsettling, will not cause any health risks in humans or pets if consumed. The tricky part lies in removing them from your pantry thoroughly, ensuring the moths have been eliminated at every stage in their life cycle. If you come across signs of an Indian meal moth in your Sugar Land home, seek the help of a certified pest control company that promises safe measures of removal.
What Are Indian Meal Moths Attracted To?
Indian meal moth larvae are the ones that feed on the food in your pantry, and they are attracted to dry food such as grain, dried herbs, fruits, nuts, flour, spices, dry dog food, and bird seed. These items tend to come in accessible packaging that tears easily for Indian meal moth larvae. It’s not uncommon for these pests to be in your food before you even bring it home. These pests enter throughout the process of being packaged and shipped to local stores.
However, there are ways to help prevent them from entering your home. We recommend inspecting packages at the store for tears or shreds that could indicate bug activity. As for keeping pantry pests away from your dry goods at home, replace the original packaging with airtight glass or plastic containers and jars. Use the switch-up as an opportunity to clean your pantry and throw out expired items.
The Best Solution To An Indian Meal Moth Infestation In Your Home
Once you have an Indian meal moth infestation, a home remedy like bay leaves can only do so much. Once adult Indian meal moths lay their eggs, they seek shelter inside walls and continue to breed. All-Safe Pest & Termite will put an end to the Indian meal moth life cycle in your home or business using the least amount of product possible to ensure everyone’s safety. It’s never too late to contact us and discover how we can bring your home or business back to its original pest-free state. Reach out today to get started, and to learn more about our residential and commercial pest control services in Sugar Land.