Moths / strange white tube-like bugs, any ideas?

sammylou100

Hello,
In my rented flat I have found these silvery moths (they look a bit like small pieces of hay/straw) which appear to turn into these strange white tube things which hang from the ceiling. They are thin and about 1-1.5cm long. I have also found them on fabrics in my house such as coats etc. I complained to the landlord who sent around a pest control man who said that in 10 years in the business he has never seen these bugs, he took them away to get 'the lab' to identify them, but my landlord wouldn't pay the £50 to get this done. He did give me some heavy duty bug killer which seems to kill the moth things. Does anyone have any idea what they could be? They don't seem to be a result of damp as I have never found one in the bathroom but I am getting a bit freaked out by them!

Leon_W

Sounds like case bearing carpet moths.

Look out for bald bits of carpet under furniture and damage to other fabrics. The cases of the moths can usually be found hanging down under pieces of furniture. Wool carpets are particular favorites.

They can be stubborn to get rid of. Your pest control man is an idiot if he's never seen them and is just trying it on for an extra £50. Phone a few pest control firms and explain it exactly as you have done above and they'll know what you are talking about. All carpets will need spraying and other fabrics checking, but it's not a nasty smelly job, more of an inconvienience.

sammylou100

Thank you for your response, very helpful. Unfortunately my landlord refuses to do anything about the issue & I can't spend the money for the pest control myself, but at least if I know what I am dealing with I can do a bit of research into it myself and see if there is anything I can do to help the issue.

WestonDave

You can buy chemicals to do this yourself - I've just bought a second batch from a company called Hygiene Supplies direct - clearly they are probably less powerful than the professional stuff because they have to be safe for amateur use, but they do appear to have removed the problem in our lounge where we first noticed it. Unfortunately it appears we didn't get to it in time as we've started seeing them in a couple of the bedrooms hence having to order more spray.

Frequent vacuuming and making sure you empty the hoover "bag" so they can't get back out help although you probably need a chemical solution. Its possible something like a steam cleaner may also be hot enough to kill them off provided it doesn't damage the carpets.

sammylou100

Hi WestonDave, thanks so much for this, any idea what the product you are buying is called? I searched for moths on the site and about 150 products came up!

WestonDave

Protector C - there are plenty of other suppliers selling stuff with the same active chemical but having worked it out these seem to be cheaper. You also get some free powder stuff that helps knock out any that survive the spray. When they sent my first order they sent free gloves and a face mask - not sure if that was a one off as I've not got the second order through yet. The stuff doesn't appear to smell at all. They obviously recommend you buy the smoke bomb things, plus the powder plus the spray but the spray alone plus a good hard hoovering seems to have done the job for us.

sammylou100

Thanks, all ordered. While this has made me feel physically sick at least I know what they are and am ready for action!