Moths are invading my house!!They've been in our cupboards for years and getting into our oatmeal and stuff

My mom is kinda lazy and cheapo so she refuses to call any proffesionals.She just got some spearmint gum and put it in the cornerrsof the cupboards.Ya know what?Nothings helping!They start out as disgusting worms and make cocoons on our kitchen ceiling!Even as a guy, I find it disgustingThey live in my room, and get into our food.Like cereal and oatmeal, candy whatever.The nastyest part is when I'm eating breakfast and theres 10 dead moths floating in my cereal.I personally think the worms are the worst.Somebody please help us!





-brenn

Moths are invading my house!!They've been in our cupboards for years and getting into our oatmeal and stuff
The life cycle of a moth is pretty short. Throw out all the cereal, oatmeal, cornmeal, flour, etc. you have in the house. Go out and buy new and store in plastic snap tight containers.



Once the food and breeding ground is gone, the moths will slowly fade away.



You can call in an exterminator, but they will come right back if you don't change your housekeeping and storage patterns.
Reply:Pantry moths. Really hard to get rid of, some once got into a closed jar of peanuts in my cupboard! Hard to find, but there are pantry moth traps available that lure them into the trap with an attractant (female moth hormone, wonder how they get that!) that work great-- will need to buy several and keep them out until the infestation is gone. The no pest strips also kill them-- big yellow cheesy looking things designed to kill flying insects- but you are not supposed to put those in a living area like a kitchen. but you can in a utility room. First though, toss everything with moths in it, or is open like cereal or crackers-- anything not in a can. They can get into sealed cake mixes, for example. Toss everything, then use a spray insecticide to spray all the cracks and crevices. Then put out the traps. if you can't find the traps locally in hardware or feed stores, then buy them onine.
Reply:Remove everything from the cabinets and shelves.

Buy the tupperware that fits the kind of food you keep.

Throw away all the open food containers and open or closed boxes, especially anything with a short expiration date or past the expiration date.

Buy new food in smaller sizes so it gets used up quickly and store in the sealed tupperware.

Open containers of pet kibble, bird seed, dried flowers, spices are the worst offenders. Are any of these things in the house?

Then follow the cleaning suggestions the previous posters advised. If cost is an issue, it is possible to save some of the food. You can freeze things for a few days and the bugs will be dead but not so tasty!
Reply:They are very hard to get rid of once they have infested your pantry. All of the dry goods (oatmeal, rice, cereal, flour, candy, crackers, baking mixes, cookies, etc) need to be thrown out. take the trash bags that you throw this stuff in outside immediately.



Then, remove everything else from your pantry and wipe each container down with hot bleach water.



If you have shelf paper on your shelves, pull it all up and dispose of it. They could be hatching under the paper.



Vacuum out the inside of your pantry, paying extra attention to the corners and edges of the shelves. Then, use the bleach water to wipe the entire inside of the pantry. Top to bottom, even the undersides of the shelves. Do not slack on this.



Buy some cinnamon sticks, bay leaves or eucalyptus and scatter these inside the pantry. Re-load the sealed items that you removed earlier.



Watch carefully over the next few days, they will probably come back and you will have to repeat the process. This is a battle. They are not easy to get rid of.



If they are all over your entire house, you may be out of luck. An exterminator might be your only answer.
Reply:suggestion fire. its just like a fly trap. preferably lots of candles
Reply:I solved the same problem in my pantry - eventually - In addition to doing most of all the other "Answers" suggestions, I used a sticky tape fly trap, this fly strip caught any critters that managed to hide during the cleaning process. The fly tape was messy to handle, but it really did the job. The fly strip is the old fashion type that you pull out of a round cardboard tube. Good luck !!
Reply:Cloves smell better than moth balls and are a natural deterrent against winged pests. You can also create a water trap by filling a small basin with water and leaving a night light suspended over it. Moths will be attracted to the light and will end up crashing and burning and falling into the water. Add a little dish soap to break the surface tension of the water
Reply:I totally agree with the first guy. We had the same problem. Get rid of all of their food. Take your remaining food and seal it up tight in steel or airtight plastic boxes. It's a pain but it gets rid of them fast.