get rid of the little bugs in flour and stuff

verysagey

Have searched and cant find a topic on this - so here goes.... last winter i found very very tiny 'bugs' in my flour and also in my sugar - i was forever buying new packets, clearing my cupboards, starting all over again - in the summer they seemed to disappear...yeah, ive got rid of them - or so i thought - and now they are back again!! >:(
Does anyone know what they are, how they got there and how i can get rid of them so that i dont end up spending a fortune on flour again!!
I have seen board bugs before (variety in packaging - not bored bugs - ones with heads in hands moaning they have nothing to do! ;D ) they look similar - could this be what they are?

System

Chuck all the infected stuff out.

Clean everything.

Keep the new stuff in sealed containers.

DO NOT READ IF SQUEAMISH

http://www.insects-information.com/ungeziefer-e/vorratsschaedlinge-e/mehlmilben-e.html

vansboy

If I'm not mistaken, the thorogh clean you do, may not be good enough, if you've any little crevicies that get wet, while you clean.

Thats what the bugs like, damp conditions.

Think you need airtite containers & a different storage area.

VB

Savvy_Sue

I'm squeamish, so I haven't read that link, but I thought the ones in flour were a) pretty well harmless and b) damn near impossible to avoid in that they're sometimes there when you buy from the supermarket? Having said that, I keep my flour and sugar etc in 4 litre ice cream tubs and don't have a problem. Either that or my eyesight's failing!

verysagey

thank you for the advice - and yes the link did make me feel a bit squemish - but luckily i had already ate my curry!! - airtight containers from now on!!

Jay-Jay_4

OOOOHHHHH!

I've just had a VERY similar problem. They're WEEVILS.

About 6 weeks ago I noticed some little dark brown bugs, about the same size as an ant but looked like a beetle. I kept seeing them on my kitchen walls so I'd squash them and chuck them in the bin. Anyway, I started noticing them more frequently, they were migrating to the living room and I started geting worried.

I squirted bug spray frequently and hoovered all the time but every day, I would see perhaps 5 or 6.

I finally did a search on Google and after about an hour I could say with a certain degree of certaintly that they were GRANARY WEEVILS. They seemed to be coming from a particular cupboard in the kitchen to I got Mr Poochy to clear it out.

WHAT DID HE FIND? well.... a bag of wild bird seed from last winter. It was literally 'alive'! :-X These things were having a field day in there. He put the lot out on the bird table, we hoovered out the cupboard and squirted half a can of RAID insecticide. Not seen any of the blighters since.

The moral of the story is this: do not keep any grain, flour or seeds in open packaging.

Verysagey, you need to spray a residual insecticide (it sticks to the bugs and lasts for weeks on the surface) in your cupboards and make sure that they are empty of weevils before you replace the stock. They 'can' get into tupperware.

I recommend RAID, it's a bit pongy but works a treat. Yours aren't the same ones as mine but they're definately weevils.

Ticklemouse

I also started to get the weevils in my flour. Every time, I would chuck all the bags out, disinfect the cupboard and start again. However, if the flour was well within its use by date, I would take it back to the shop and dump it on them - the customer service people would take one look and just throw the money at me ;D

I now ALWAYS take a good look at my flour before using it. I also buy the Homepride 1kg flour in the box with the lid. Don't know if it makes that much difference, but makes me feel better. I also keep my flour away from all my other food stuffs.

My understanding is, that the flour comes with the weevil eggs in and as the flour gets older, they hatch. I found the value flour was particularly bad at producing weevils well within its use-by date, so stick to branded flour now - seems to be 'newer'.

ps have also found them wandering around a box of weetabix - but as the MIL ate them when she stayed, didn't bother to tell her. More protein as my dad would say!

pps - haven't checked that link yet - don't know whether I will. Does it give info on how to stop/get rid of them?

verysagey

Not sure if they are the same as flour mites and weevils  :-/ but they could be Psocids

YES !!!! had a look at the link and this is exactly what they are - they hide in the folds of the flour packaging - try to get rid of them as suggested but at least now I know they are not harmful - thank you!!