# Moths! Moths! Moths!



## sunnysmom (Sep 23, 2011)

Does anyone else have problems with moths? Awhile back, I think I got some contaminated seed, and some moths appeared. I thought I had the problem under control, and then realized that some had laid eggs or whatever in a cupboard where I had some oatmeal packets. So I cleaned out the cupboard, put all food in sealed plastic bags, bought some bird-friendly moth traps and again thought I had solved the problem- until the past 10 days. Moth larvae! Before I only saw moths. Now I have the crawly little buggers on my ceiling. I have scrubbed, cleaned, bought more moth traps, all my seed is in the freezer and I cannot find where they are coming from. As much as it annoys me, it completely freaks my fiancé out (you think he was the girl.....) Anyway, has anyone else experienced this? Advice? Suggestions? I did see on a bird store site that this is "moth season". But holy cow, where are the larvae coming from?


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## MeanneyFids (Aug 24, 2010)

well, my mother in law deals with this problem (we dont, we rarely see moths... the cats take care of them fairly well)

eucalyptus oil on a cotton ball taped inside your cupboards and such will keep them away, but wont kill the larvae. i'd lock away all the food they eat in freezers and such (they can get inside baggies...) and let them die off in traps and by avoidance using the eucalyptus oil.


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## Clair (Jul 31, 2012)

If you have wallpaper or a wallpaper border, the moths lay eggs behind it.


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## Mezza (Feb 19, 2013)

OMG! I would die. I have the biggest moth phobia. Just reading that has wigged me out.


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## Vickitiel (Oct 10, 2012)

Haha, on that subject: I have a collection of moths! (Dead, of course). They can be so pretty!

I once bought a bag of contaminated seed, except it wasn't moths that came out of it; instead it was some kind of worm/caterpillar thing that ate the seeds and left trails of silky stuff everywhere. It was so weird. I've never bought from that place ever again after that. Gross.


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## Mezza (Feb 19, 2013)

CharVicki said:


> Haha, on that subject: I have a collection of moths! (Dead, of course). They can be so pretty!.



You're sick! LOL! :rofl:


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## Kiwi (May 12, 2013)

Dried mint leaves and lavender work. 

I think moths are cute up close! I especially like the hummingbird moth. It looks just like a little hummingbird!! I see them all the time in the garden outside.


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## Vickitiel (Oct 10, 2012)

Mezza -- I won't post a photo to save you from being deeply horrified (I have a LOT of moths  )


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## jennygn (Feb 14, 2013)

Kiwi said:


> I think moths are cute up close! I especially like the hummingbird moth. It looks just like a little hummingbird!! I see them all the time in the garden outside.


Those are awesome looking! I haven't seen one in a long time. But when I was REALLY young, we saw them a lot. And I called them "hutterflies", because I didn't know if they were some type of hummingbird or a butterfly! :rofl:


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## sunnysmom (Sep 23, 2011)

Thanks all. I will try your suggestions. And there is a wallpaper border in our kitchen. There from the former owners- we keep meaning to take down and paint the kitchen but haven't yet. I think this just moved it to the top of the house to-do list. Wall paper border is coming down this weekend.

(And I saw a hummingbird moth once when I was little. They are pretty amazing.)

But my current worm-things are a little gross. : ( (And I have stopped buying from where I think I got the bad seed.)


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## Clair (Jul 31, 2012)

Prepare to be amazed at the sheer number of moths who hid behind it.


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## sunnysmom (Sep 23, 2011)

Clair said:


> Prepare to be amazed at the sheer number of moths who hid behind it.


I am actually a little grossed out just thinking about it. But I think that does answer my question of where they're coming from and why I couldn't find them. Ugh.


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## Clair (Jul 31, 2012)

sunnysmom said:


> I am actually a little grossed out just thinking about it. But I think that does answer my question of where they're coming from and why I couldn't find them. Ugh.


And why they're on the ceiling.


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## sunnysmom (Sep 23, 2011)

Clair said:


> And why they're on the ceiling.


Yes. I kept checking and dusting the tops of the cupboards. Seems kind of obvious now that it would be the border, but I didn't think of that. Thanks.


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## TínaBrá (Jun 8, 2013)

What is so bad about moths? (Dont have them in Iceland) they are just bugs what harm do they do??


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## Clair (Jul 31, 2012)

They get into your food and lay eggs. The larvae eat your clothes. They multiply ridiculously fast.


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## TínaBrá (Jun 8, 2013)

yukk and yet its cool not the food thing and ones agin I'm happy to live in my small isolated country


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## Mezza (Feb 19, 2013)

CharVicki said:


> Mezza -- I won't post a photo to save you from being deeply horrified (I have a LOT of moths  )


Hahahaha! Don't you dare freak me out. :rofl:

Ironically, I love butterflies. Even had a friend try to convince me that moths were 'unfortunate butterflies'. Obviously I was not convinced. LOL!


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## Vickitiel (Oct 10, 2012)

I've always thought of moths as nocturnal butterflies haha. Except fluffier.


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## Haimovfids (Sep 19, 2012)

Today I took a walk at the park and I saw a HUGE moth on the floor squirming around!!
I was thinking about you mezza LOL


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## Mezza (Feb 19, 2013)

Haimovfids said:


> Today I took a walk at the park and I saw a HUGE moth on the floor squirming around!!
> I was thinking about you mezza LOL


EEEEEIIIIWWWWW!!! Stop it! They are furry and just wrong! LOL!


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## Haimovfids (Sep 19, 2012)

> They are furry


This grossed me out lol

There is one thing that creeps me out more than moths...cockroach
I will scream and run if they are near me and I always have bad dreams of me covered in them 

To be honest this morning I woke up because I thought there was a roach under the blanket lol


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## TínaBrá (Jun 8, 2013)

Then do you know that cockroaches can fly I've seen it and it was pretty cool. I'm not scared of bugs I like them they can be so cute


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## Haimovfids (Sep 19, 2012)

I almost died when I saw a bunch fly 
EEEWWWWWW!!


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## Vickitiel (Oct 10, 2012)

TínaBrá said:


> I'm not scared of bugs I like them


I like bugs too.  When I was a little kid I used to collect bugs from the garden and try to keep them as pets inside in a cardboard box. It never went well with the snails, I'd put 10 or 20 in there and when I woke up in the morning there were none in the box but loads of tell-tale silvery trails all over the carpet. :rofl:


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## Haimovfids (Sep 19, 2012)

Haha same with my brother:lol:


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## TínaBrá (Jun 8, 2013)

It worked with my spider pets and I had many worm farms


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## Loopy Lou (Jul 26, 2012)

I was away in Ireland for a month and when i came back the place was full of moths. I was swatting loads every day. Luckily the plague of flesh flies took my mind off them. Then of course there was the dead pigeon in the roof space, killed by a rat which the flesh flies had been feeding off and breeding in.

A visit from environmental health later and i find out about the woodworm in my windows. But it's ok cos it's coming into giant house spider season soon, so they should take care of any remaining flesh flies, the carpet beetles eat the woodworm and moths then the huntsman and pholcius/daddy long legs spiders should take care of the giant house spiders.

I should write my own book on organic bug management.

(Yes, i am just as much, if not even more horrified than you probably are by reading this lol)


Wanna borrow my big ole can of bug spray lol?


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## Abby (Jul 30, 2010)

I had and have moths. They stink to have and are really difficult to get rid of unfortunately. :/ Get moth traps and kill them any time you see one. That's what we do and it helps.


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## sunnysmom (Sep 23, 2011)

Thanks all. We took down the border in the kitchen- and no moths. I really thought that was the source of where the eggs were being laid. We can't take the wallpaper down until next week, as I have to get Sunny out of the house to paint the kitchen. I will try the other suggestions too and will make a trip to get oils, etc. I do have moth traps and they definitely help with the moths. Our main problem now is the larvae. Little worms. Ugh.


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## Gingershine12 (Jul 1, 2013)

I have a HUGE moth problem at my house. They're everywhere and I can't seem to get rid of them.


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## sunnysmom (Sep 23, 2011)

Gingershine12 said:


> I have a HUGE moth problem at my house. They're everywhere and I can't seem to get rid of them.


They sell bird-safe moth traps and they definitely help. I got mine at www.mysafebirdstore.com.

I think (cross my fingers) we finally got the moth problem under control. It was unbelievable how many moth larvae we were getting (which the moth traps don't work for- just the full grown moths). I cleaned out our one cupboard for the THIRD time on Saturday but this time threw out everything that was wheat or grain related- flour, bread crumbs, cream of wheat. Even if it wasn't opened, it went. And I had liners on the bottom of the shelves, which I took out and threw away. Anything in card board boxes, I took out and put in plastic bags and threw away the boxes and washed everything down one more time. I am very happy to report that today I got up to 2 moths on the ceiling and that was it. :thumbu: This is compared to finding dozens of worms every morning and throughout the day. So I think the cupboard was somehow still the source even though I had cleaned it out before. I'm buying more moth traps too and will try some of the other remedies previously suggested to keep the moths from going back in the cupboard.


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