Are you sure you've gotten everything? Dried legumes, dog food, boxed stuff?

Washed undersides of shelves, cracks, everywhere a tiny cocoon could be?

And are you sure they came from the pantry? Did you actually find any webby stuff in any food? Is it possible they're clothes moths eating wool or something? If you first found them in the pantry probably not.

If you've taken away their access to food sources for the larvae, you just have to wait. There won't be another generation.

...unless you missed something...

With international foods importing, new bugs will be a big problem from now on.

I don't know about your moths. The moths here in NYC are different. They are not attracted by light.

I have many those inexpensive insect zappers (eBay $10.00) that look like tennis rackets. One zapper in each room. you can easily fry them with the zapper while they are flying around. Get rid of the moths, less moth eggs.

dcarch

Oh, my gosh...I feel your pain! I had them once at our last house....or, house before last....lol, anyway, they were just dreadful, but I did find the culprit grain products and threw out EVERYTHING that I even suspected. Washed and disinfected shelves and it completely solved the problem. But the little critters will get into the tiniest places and just make the problem worse if you don't get rid of everything....seriously. I know it seems wasteful, but it's the only thing that gets them out...good luck!!!

I feel for ya. Some say it's only an old wives tale, but quite a few here will agree with me in telling you to spread out the bay leaves. Since we started putting bay leaves on the shelf we haven't had one infestation of pantry moths. At least ten years now. I now buy jars of bay leaves at the dollar store just for this purpose. A few on each shelf. They sell those panty pest glue boxes and they work pretty good, so you might want to get a few of those at first and also put down the bay leaves. Good luck.

shop around for this one we buy it at home depot i put them all over the place

Here is a link that might be useful: linky

If you use potpourri, you may want to check it. I used to keep bowls of rose potpourri in my guest bath and had the little moth critters flying around and found their eggs in the potpourri -- yukky........

Can't believe Jessy didn't comment on the "panty pest glue boxes"...

Just the thoughts of spraying poison around the area where I keep and prepare food sends me up the wall.....so I buy those Safer traps like Jessy linked to.....they are a sticky board with some sort of scent attractant....and spread bayleaves; and, I have been free of pantry bugs for easily 20 years. I even stopped putting out the traps, because there were no bugs sticking to it any more.
Linda C

There can be many, hundreds kinds of moths, bugs. There is no one solution for all.

I had used different traps with no results, I have had the entire bottle of bay leaves eaten up by moths.

I have kept stuff in the freezer.

Also, they can eat thru thin plastic like Ziplock bags.

High heat works. High voltage works.

dcarch

Ooops coconut I didn't see that you posted about the glue boxes first. Great minds, lol.

Salix, those 'pantry pest glue boxes' are also called 'hungry teenagers' heh heh

Like Jessy, I use the Safer traps. I am also diligent about keeping things sealed and wiping up any flour spills in the cupboards.

Anything with grains will attract them. And things you might not suspect like powdered sugar which has cornstarch in it.

I had them once when we lived in NH. It was awful! The ones I had were Indianmeal moths (aka pantry moths). I threw out all grains, spices, crackers, cereals, etc. even unopened packages, cleaned out the entire cupboard with bleach/water solution, & let air dry. Got rid of them but tossed quite a bit of stuff. Now, all grains are in the freezer & stuff like crackers goes immediately into Lock n Locks. I also scatter bay leaves. Haven't tried the traps. I think as a precaution it's a good idea to stick flours & other grains in the freezer for a couple days even if you don't keep then there all the time.

Nasty critters!

/tricia

Here is a link that might be useful: This is the type moth that got in our pantry...

Tricia:

Do you feed thr birds ???

Sometimes moths come from Sunflower Seeds and other bags of Bird seeds.

For Fruit Flies,
I just put out a 4 " wide plastic cup,
with some Raspberry Vinegar and Orange Juice.
Then add a few drops of dish detergent to 2 tablespoons of
warm water, dribble this on top.

LOU

When I fund evidence of unwanted critters in cabinets... EVERYTHING they had any interest in went into sealed containers... t-ware type stuff and glass jars. Quart Mason jars became my friend for rice, beans, small pastas.

Don't have a real PANTRY... 2 shelf units in garage and a shelf over a work bench. Whenever I see a large T-ware container at a yard sale... I'll buy it... IF it's not cruddy and lid fits tight. Keep extra baking stuff that pretty much never goes bad in those cake container thingies... chocolate chips, brown sugar, etc. ANy container that can hold a 5 lb bag-o sugar or flour... good for storage.

Today I threw out a partial bag of semolina flour as it looked "webby." Also, cellophane noodles and dried fruit (that needed to go anyway). I may go get some some Safer Pantry Traps tomorrow. I'm so tired of these things! It's time for all out war!

Thanks for you help and suggestions of remedies.

Teresa

I also battle those pesky moths year-round and get gets freezing here. The moths came with the house - I do keep them under control. I use the glue traps. Safer brand is readily available. I hang them everywhere - right outside the door coming in from the garage catches the most. Don't put more than 1 in a room , as the moths are attracted to the scent/hormone and more than one will confuse them :).
I was told by an exterminator, they love to hide in the folds of the bags of dogfood. All dog food goes in a plastic container immediately - the bag is never brought into the house. The previous owner had birdseed and suet stored in the garage & attic (why the attic???) and I'm guessing that is where they came from.
Clean - toss - get rid of the packaging - and use the traps. We also see them come in thru our sliding glass doors on the 2nd level - so they are out there - just waiting to get inside!

We are also battling Stinkbugs.

When I'm battling steep, icy roads I need to remember how lucky I am that in our climate we don't get many bugs in our pantry. I had some sort of bugs in flour one time and now toss some bay leaves into any containers that I want to store flour or grains long-term. No bugs since.

My other pantry bug experience was with dried morels. I soaked them, and there was a rehydrated worm....and it wiggled...yick.

Ugh, meal moths - I've had them twice.

Google the problem and learn what to do. There is a lot of good advice out there from experts.

One thing I learned is that heat in the oven or 4 days in the freezer kills any eggs. It may gross you out to think about them, but it seems there is a lot more than that that we don't see and it is harmless.

So take everything that looks like it could be a host, wipe it off good, and put it in the freezer. You don't have to do cans like this. Obviously, throw out -- outdoors -- anything with that web by frass on it

Very important: vacuum the pantry thoroughly. Make sure to get the ceiling, and if there is a light, remove the cover and vacuum that too. I hope I never have to do anything grosser than that was.

Keep a sense of humor and have a glass of wine. Or three. Just make a day of it and you will succeed. I did, and so can you! Then buy yourself a nice present.

And then keep as much as you can in the pantry in good thick well-sealed plastic boxes. It looks nice and neat, too.

Oh, I forgot - throw the vacuum bag out outdoors as soon as you finish.

Good luck!

Now when I buy nuts, dried fruit, grains, flour, etc., it goes into the freezer for at least 4 days before the pantry.

Gellchom:
Three glasses of wine and then a present ???

I may invite them moths in for a day.

***********************

I get one gallon plastic Mayo Jars from our local market.

The cook even rinses them with hot water.

They are cleaned again at home and used to store different things,like Cereal, Flour, etc.

LOU

Many years ago I had them... Like Tricia I used a bleach solution to clean the cupboards but only tossed out the opened packages... The only thing that had the nasty web thingies was the wild bird seed.

Since then I keep the bird seed in a metal can, with a tight fitting lid, in the garage and never bring it into the house.

Haven't seen one moth since then ( fingers crossed so it doesn't happen )... BTW, I don't use bay leaves or the sticky traps.

Rita

About a year ago I had this problem. You know what was causing it? A big bag of bird seeds we had in the garage. So we put the bird seeds in a container with a lid instead of storing them in bag and all the moths went away.

This morning I've been cleaning out the pantry....again! An almost new bag of barley from the new co-op that was not opened was full of meal moths. Could this have been the culprit? So it was tossed. Odd that a cannister of cornmeal mix with a loose cover was not infested at all. I've checked my boxes of pasta in a tin container and did not find any webs, larvae, or moths. I did find some tiny holes in the bag of 10X powdered sugar, but did not see anything in the sugar itself, so I transferred it to glass jars.

Tricia, the bugs look very much like the pic in your link!

I've placed many bay leaves on the pantry shelves and will go get some traps later today.

Teresa

Glad to see someone else besides me, had the experience with Sunflower and Wild Bird seeds.

They will always find hiding places. Eliminate the source to stop them.
LOU

After we moved in, I put a glue box on top of the kitchen cabinets & forgot about it, as you could not see it. When we renovated the kitchen 9 months later, that trap was full of moths! No food was ever kept by me in those cabinets or in the kitchen. I also set one on top of the TV - we had a bazillion of these little moths, and the previous owners had been getting regular exterminator treatments for them-I found the paperwork. That said, I eliminated the problem, except in the garage, and I am diligent about cleaning the pantry and using the glue traps in the garage year round. You will win! And yes, I suspect you brought them home with you in that bag of barley. I would not shop there.

Lou,

No, we don't use birdseed or sunflowers. We are a Certified National Wildlife Site & the landscape plans we submitted for certification includes a large variety of plants that provide food & shelter for our feathered friends. And, that way, we don't have to remember to fill the birdfeeders! :) But, I am very worried about our birds. They disappeared during Irene & haven't returned - not even the ones that over winter on the site like cardinals. All the birds are just gone. We still fill the birdbaths every day just in case somebody shows up but nada, no birdies. I sure hope they are safe somewhere & will be back in the spring. We were so busy getting ready for evacuation that I didn't think to see if the birds had "flown the coop" in the couple days before the storm. :(

/tricia

Yes, Teresa, I think you found it. For me I think they came in in dried dates. But you never know.

Really, though, trust me and do the thorough cleaning, especially vacuuming up high. If you do a halfhearted job and then see grubs crawling around in your food, you'll want to kill yourself. Don't ask me how I know!

If there are little holes in a bag, be suspicious. Be very suspicious. They do indeed eat through plastic bags, even heavy ones.

Obviously, throw out anything with moths, grubs, or frass. Anything else that is in cans, bottles, jars, or thick plastic, well sealed, just wipe down. Anything in bags, including plastic, or boxes, even if it's unopened, gets a 4 day vacation in Club Freezer. If you don't have freezer space, google for the oven method.

A sense of humor is essential. One day when I did this, everything went wrong - one of those days where I would have been ahead if I'd never begun, you know? When I found myself sitting on the floor surrounded by a whole boxful of spilled cornmeal, I just started laughing. at some point, what else can you do? That's when I decided some wine was required before the fun task of gingerly opening each opened box and package of stuff, knowing that moths could fly out or grubs could be crawling in each one. Yes, it did happen with a few.

And remember what I said about the wine and the present.

I have a big ol bay leaf tree. If you would like me to send you many branches I would happily do that. It seems to be the only thing that worked for me when I had the bugs several years ago. I've only had them once...not moths but little black crawling bugs! I threw everything away, cleaned off all the shelves, and put dried bay leaves behind everything. I've not had a problem since then but now tend to put all my flours and rice in the fridge/ freezer. Ugh! I have enough bugs to deal with and don't need the pantry bugs.

I now have several dried branches, of bay leaves, hanging in my pantry and have no evidence of those creepy little bugs.

Did I miss it or did anyone mention mothballs?

Also get a can of air (for computer keyboards and such) and flush any corners where moths maybe setting up camp

Tricia :
I don't have the time and have physical problems, so I can't keep up with planting new trees , etc.

There are enough Evergreens and other food bearing plants
for cover and feed.

I'll have to keep feeding them Sunflower and Bird seeds.

I did a lot work with the Game Commission, with Animals and Birds.

A lot of people here were concerned with the Birds disappearing.

There are a few Chickadees and Juncos around but nothing like in the Spring.

There has been every kind of Species here, even the birds that migrate.

I'll have to go on line, to see if I can get any info.

If you or anyone else has any information on this, could you let me know.

In the meantime I'll contact the Game Warden.
Thanks, LOU

I've been told that dry dog food is a common source of pantry moths, as others have mentioned. Evidently dog food is allowed to have more bugs in it than human food! Keep the dry dog food in a sealed container, not the bag or box it came in. I used to get infestations before the kitchen was remodeled, but evidently the moths went out with the old kitchen.

Tricia:

I Googled " Songbirds Dissapearing " . There is so much info on this , it is mind boggeling.

There is one Post ( RCI 413 )that was very good but I disdn't have time to listen to all of it.
I'll go back later.

Another was ( dissapearing Hemlocks )

It is a little scary.

LOU

Sunday I cleaned out more suspicious boxes and bags of grains, put in a Safer Pantry Pest trap and scattered bay leaves on all shelves in the pantry. Although I don't see any moths stuck to the trap, I don't see any moths flying either! I hope the problem is solved, but I'll be vigilant to see the bugs don't return.

There are three possible sources of the bugs, three different places where I have purchased oats, barley, noodles, etc. If I can remember to do it, I will put all grains in the freezer for 4 days and then into glass jars with tight fitting lids for storage. I don't ever want to have this problem again!

Thanks for all the suggestions, info, and links! I knew I could count on my friends here to help!
Teresa

They have what they call traps for pantry moths ,just kleep using them youll get them,sticky traps.Another thing I heard was good to use a steamer to go over inside pof cabinets kills eggs & all,but didnt I hear the weivels are another stage of the moth????maybe not???

I will mention this again:

The insect zappers that look like tennis rackets are the greatest. ($10.00 eBay).

The moths do the most damage is when they are flying. That's when they are mating and spread eggs everywhere.

You can vaporize them easily with those zappers. Kids love them. You hear a gratifying "POP" when you get them in mid air.

But the most important is when you see them on your walls, you can kill them without messing up your walls.

A very humane way to kill them. LOL!

Works with flies, mosquitos, etc.

dcarch