When you specialize in very old wool fabrics, you become very proficient in all things damaging. There are not a huge list of things that can damage wool fibers (making wool rugs an excellent choice,) but moths are at the top.

In order to understand how to best deter and prevent moth damage to your fine wool fabrics you do need to understand a little bit about the lifecycle of a moth.

• Moths are the most destructive during their pupil stage.
• One little larva can eat a whole lot of wool – so you need to catch them before they hatch.
  • If you’ve ever wondered why mothballs were so effective read on.
• An adult moth can lay 50 to 100 eggs a day!
• They will lay eggs in a safe place there’s an abundant food source.
• Once those eggs hatch, they are going to eat and eat and eat and eat.

To deter them, we need to make the environment less inviting. Moths are naturally repelled by cedar, lavender, and the chemicals used in what was used to be so popular in the mothball. Now we know that these things are toxic so we have to use more natural deterrent.

Old school mothballs contain chemicals that are harmful to both humans and animals when inhaled, ingested, or absorbed through the skin. The two most common active ingredients in mothballs are Naphthalene (causes red blood cell damage) and Paradichlorobenzene (PDCB) which can cause liver and nervous system damage with long-term exposure and is also a possible human carcinogen – meaning it could alter our DNA. What?! So it is great at killing moths and allegedly anything else it comes in contact with on that scale.

If you are unable to deter moths with the methods below, and you end up with moth eggs in your wool fibers, then you need to move on to extermination and that’s a whole different ball of wax. We are not going into that here, this article is specifically about deterrent, but if you want to learn about extermination, read the article I posted about that here.

There are a number of moth products on the market. Here at Mother Nature‘s Cleaning, we are very focused on upholstery and rug fibers, but the below information is equally useful for deterring moths from your walk-in closet and linen closet and other areas where you store fabric. These are all natural defenses, because ridding a pest by introducing a toxin just doesn’t work for us.

NUMBER 1 also has a side effect that is very enjoyable. Sachets of cedar and lavender hung in your closets, wrapped inside rugs that have been prepared for storage or simply placed in dark corners. If you have a piece of furniture in storage, throw a sachet under the cushions. Just make sure your sachet will not leak oils onto your fabrics and will only dispel the scent. We also like these because unlike a cedar block, you don’t need to sand them – just give them a squeeze every so often.

NUMBER 2 is Cleaning and Vacuuming! Moths lay eggs in dust, fabric and hidden corners. Regularly cleaning closets, shelves and under furniture (areas we don’t typically disturb) makes for an uninviting habitat.

NUMBER 3 Essential Oil Moth Repellant spray – there are a number of products like this on the market that you can purchase, or make your own at home with a combination of distilled water, witch hazel or white vinegar (we prefer witch hazel due to the odor of vinegar) and the following oils in order of effectiveness: Cedar, Lavender, Mint, Rosemary.

NUMBER 4 Dried Citrus Peels in a satchel – they help to disrupt the moths’ ability to locate suitable laying spots. Just make sure they are fully dry to prevent mold.

So now you have an arsenal of defenses for the invasion coming this spring! Please be sure to check your hidden corners and dark places for the enemy!! if you find any evidence, give us a call, otherwise deter, deter deter!!

Happy Cleaning !!

The post Wonder What is the Best Moth Deterrent? first appeared on Mother Nature’s Carpet Cleaning: Residential and Commercial.