Moths in kitchen without Pesticides removal?

Hey guys, what's the easies way without pesticides to get rid of Moths please?

 

If they are grain moths, figure out what food package they are living in and throw it away.

 

They are all over the kitchen now, in the cupboards, on the ceiling, I should have taken care of this earlier but....

Anyway they not in any food packaging.

 

So moths have invaded the kitchen out of thin air? Or did you leave a window open without the screen on? Try a vacuum cleaner.

 

No they had started like everything else, one at a time then started multiplying. I am thinking of getting for the cupboards but need something for like counter tops and ceilings/walls. Looking at this page not sure which would be easiest/best?

https://www.homedepot.com/s/moth%2520killer?NCNI-5

 

Moths come from caterpillars (worms) and worms need a food source. Finding the food source is kind of important if you want to get rid of them. If you dont want to use pesticides, vacuuming up the ones you see is about the only thing you can do. Moth balls will just chase them to another room, if anything.

Identifying the moth could help narrow down the source if you wanted to post a picture. Not that I could figure it out but PAbugman might.

 

this is that they look like:

https://i.postimg.cc/DZKvLZyH/Screen...9-42-33-AM.png

 

Hmm moths.
A flame?

Or, the 2020 version, one of those combined LED-bugzapper contraptions.

I usually have one of those LED-bugzapper lights on the part of the patio by the grill - helps to keep down the mosquitoes and flies that are drawn to the grill.

There have been a few instances where somebody leaves the screen door open and we get swamped with mosquitoes or flies, when I've simply closed all the doors to the room, swapped the LED-bugzapper light, and leave that on overnight as the only light...

 

Great photo.

Does it look anything like this?

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indianmeal_moth

 

Bug zapper might help but not for any getting into or living in our cupboards I think.

That link only leads to google?

 

It's the chicken-and-the-egg, err, moths and egg problem.

If there are no adult moths to lay eggs, then eventually there are no moths at all.

 

The link to Home Depot is mostly pesticides. Didn't spend much time on it though.

In any case, without a proper ID we don't have a positive direction to go. The behavior described is that of stored product pest moths though. The picture appears to be a larval stage (worm) but I can't see it well at all. Identifying larva stages of most insects requires close up detailed pictures, or better yet a real specimen in the hands of an entomologist or some biologists. Try to get close up pics, especially the top and wings with coloration pattern of the adult moths.

Whether using insecticides or not, fundamentally the potential food source has to be found and removed. If they are all over the kitchen, then no doubt there are, or were, multiple sources. Assuming everything is removed, then cleaning is next step as even crumbs are a big meal for insects. If drop ceiling is close by, try to inspect above the tiles as old rodent bait can get infested. More common than one would think. Also, the gestation periods can be months so cleaning can remove larva/pupae.

Remove shelving if possible, clean/vacuum shelf peg holes, adjustable tracking, etc. Clean the tiniest of cracks and crevices. Also check garage if attached to kitchen as they can live in pet food, grass seed, bird seed, etc.

If they are stored product pest moths then pheromone traps can be helpful. I'll try to find some.

 

Any one of these that uses pheromones and it looks like most do, will catch a lot of moths.

https://search.domyown.com/search?w=...one&apelog=yes

 

Ok thanks, I will try those traps from Home Depot like this one:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/TERRO-No...2900/204170491

 

Well, you came to my rescue again PA Bugman, the traps are working, thank you and many blessings!

 

Just an update guys, still having a lot of moths after all this time and changing the traps repeatedly, Any way to find where they might nesting maybe?

 

You say they aren't in any food products but I doubt you have cleaned all your cupboards out as was suggested. Get some big storage tubs with lids and put EVERY box, sack or bag of food into the sealed tubs. Flours, grains, cereals, pastas, etc. If nothing shows up inside the sealed tubs after a month or so, then you will have ruled that out as the food source.

Another source could simply be leaky windows with moths heading toward any lights that are on at night.

 

No I haven't done this as it is not an easy task as it sounds but there aren't any moths in any food item. Will see about the tubs issue, thanks.

 

Agreed. It's a pet peeve of mine, and something I've started to see when showing newer homes.
For some reason, builders are mounting their porch light / door light on the same side as the door handle.
This guarantees that when you open the door at night the air flow sucks in moths and mosquitoes. Traditionally, you mount the light on the HINGE side of the door, so that doesn't happen.

Because of this, I've started switching to the combo bug-zapper / fluorescent lights at the doors.
(unfortunately, I wasn't there when the lights were installed...) The newer lights are actually quite good, some have a "2 flip or 3 flip" setup, where they cycle through light only, zapper only, light & zapper each time you flip them on.

 

There is a source, by now there are surely secondary infestations, very nearby.

Is there an attached garage to the kitchen? If so, check all grass seed, pet/animal food, anything like that. Place a pheromone trap out there if you haven't done so already.

Move the pheromone traps around the house and actually inside the pantry to see where the density is the greatest; then you are closest to the infestation.

You've got to go through the pantry and all other cabinets/drawers/bins where food is stored and look/inspect every single package. This is a good time to throw out anything old, even if not infested. If/when you find infestation, don't stop as by now there will be secondary infestations.

Refer to my post of 6/29/20 for ideas.