How to Manage Moths

When it comes to the clothes moth, we’ve all got our horror stories. Losing your favourite cashmere knitwer to these little monsters can be heart-breaking.

Let’s face it, clothes moths know what they are doing. They could go for your merino, but somehow, it’s always the cashmere that gets decimated!

So, What do Moths Love?

Any hint of food on your sweater
Fine fabrics
Dark corners

A true moth invasion can seem impossible to cure and it can take a few attempts. Years of experience have taught us a few tricks though . . .

1. Hunt through your house – there is often a culprit you have not considered. It can often be a rug or soft furnishing that has become infested. These need to be treated professionally or discarded.

2. Scatter Mothballs in your draws and cupboards – We recommend Zensect moth proofers. These miraculous little orange balls don’t make your clothes smell of camphor like traditional moth balls and are an effective preventative measure. When they run out, they turn white, so you know to add more to your draw. Pay particular attention to any dark corners.

3. Use an effective moth spray – in spring moth eggs hatch. They’ve been lying dormant on items in your wardrobe and home furnishings since last year. You just haven’t noticed their white egg trails. They don’t live long, but during their short lives they can do a lot of damage.

Regularly spraying the most at risk rooms with an effective moth spray, just before you leave the house, works as a preventative measure. If you’ve already got moths, you’ll need to spray more often, targeting specific problem areas.

4. Wash items you suspect of having eggs on them – this is a challenge, because how do you do this without your machine? Well, anything that can go in there should. For your cashmere, take it down the dry cleaners or, at the very least, hand wash vigorously in warm water. In a serious case, you may have to wash everything!

5. Freeze the culprit – if you see a fine white trail of eggs on any of your clothes, freeze the culprit in a sealed freezer bag, for two weeks. Whether this works is debatable. You will still need to wash the item after freezing to remove any larvae, dead or alive.