Coping With Carpet Beetles
Have you noticed that your clothes are a bit torn up? Have you noticed that your carpet has been ripped up a bit at the seams? If so, then you might have a pesky pest on your hands, the carpet beetle. Carpet beetles can range from being fairly innocuous to quite the home wrecker, destroying your house and every product it can get its filthy little insect hands upon. There are ways to deal with carpet beetles, however, and this article will help you cope with them in a sufficient manner.
What Are Carpet Beetles?
Carpet beetles manifest themselves as small, fuzzy worms or darkly colored (almost black) beetles. You will find them in a number of places, mainly on window sills, food products and of course, the carpet. Carpet beetles burrow into cloth in order to make their home and propagate their species, much to your chagrin, not only because they will reproduce and continue to be a nuisance, but also because they will ruin your cloth related items. Carpets and clothes are far from safe when the carpet beetle is around, as they will burrow straight into such items, causing holes and sometimes stains from their excrement.
Signs Of Carpet Beetles
The easiest way to detect if carpet beetles are in your house is, simply enough, to see them. They are small, but not invisible to the naked eye. A full-grown black carpet beetle is roughly 3/16 an inch long, with varied carpet beetles being 1/10 inch long. They can be a wily beast, however, and you might not see them face to face, as they are known to burrow. Check your clothes and your carpet. If you notice any small holes in either, clustered together in such a way that the clothes in question could be ruined, then you most likely have carpet beetles. Likewise, check your windowsills, as they tend to make their homes there, as well.
Getting Rid Of Carpet Beetles
There are a number of things you can do to get rid of carpet beetles, short of calling in a professional to spray for them. Boric acid is one of the many home remedies that you can use. Boric acid should not be used if you have pets or small children that will consume this product, but it is completely safe for fully-grown adults to use.
Boric acid is a white, talcum-like powder that you place on the floor of your home. When carpet beetles come into contact with it, it stains their exoskeleton and will act like rust does on metal: it will make them unable to move and will completely dry out their skin, depriving them of nutrients and ultimately killing them.
Preventing Further Problems
There are a number of other further "home remedies" that you can perform to ensure that carpet beetles won't come back for more. First and foremost, store your clothes and starches inside of plastic. You do not have to keep your clothes that are usually out in your room and in sunlight in plastic, but the clothes in your dark closets should most definitely be stored in plastic, as should your starches that are stored in the back of your pantry. Make sure you clean regularly. You need to clean not just the offending area, but everywhere to make sure that conditions do not reach the tipping point where carpet beetles will want to return to your abode.
Dealing with carpet beetles can be a difficult proposition. Luckily, this article has given you steps to take to prevent them from becoming too much of a problem. If the problem is more than you can handle though, don't hesitate to call in the professionals. You can click here for more info about about pest control services in your area.