How to Get Rid of Carpet Beetles - Five Spot Green Living

Carpet beetles can infest while looking for sources of food. They look like tiny furry caterpillars and breed incredibly fast. Learn How to Get Rid of Carpet Beetles naturally and effectively.

What are Carpet Beetles?

Having an appetite for fabrics, wool, fur and carpets etc., carpet beetles (or carpet bugs) are small brown-colored, dome-shaped pests, usually of size varying from 0.12 to 0.25 of an inch. Adults fly indoors mostly in the spring season due to the availability of pollen.

These adults are not the main threat, but the larvae in the nourishing phase. The females lay eggs in huge clusters near areas of their choosing inside houses, stores, junkyards and warehouses etc. Later these larvae nourish on the available animal-related items and cause damage to the articles.

Carpet beetles are common in dwellings, and their damage is often mistaken for that of clothes moths. In springtime, they often appear on windowsills, suggesting an infestation may be present inside the home.
Entomology of the University of Kentucky

What Causes You to Get Carpet Beetles?

Spring season brings these beetles to fly in houses from flowers. The females lay eggs at vulnerable areas in clusters that develop into larvae and feed on fabrics in our indoor setups, including carpets, ornamental fabrics and other clothing items derived from animal products like wool.

They can also intrude through infested items brought into the house or indoor. Threatened items, if stored without necessary cleaning, are the more likely cause of attracting these beetles.

How Do You Know if You Have a Carpet Beetle Infestation?

Presence of adult beetles in windows, crawling in flat plain surfaces and around lights.
The appearance of holes or lean exposed part in fabrics and other woolen items, including carpets, normally caused by the hairy brown larvae.
Hair from the carpet, animal fur items, fabric and woolen cloth, are seen falling from its base.
As larvae usually shed skins many times during its growth, accumulated light brown skins, if found would indicate adult ones in the vicinity.

Is it Hard to Get Rid of Carpet Beetles?

Prevention against carpet beetles is not a hard task. Eliminating the sources which may attract these carpet bugs is the first step. Regular cleaning of carpets, furry and woolen items and vacuuming the indoors can be effective as prevention.

The presence of a few beetles identified indoor may not be alarming; however, if larvae are found growing in abundance, then definitely a pest control is suggested. These are one of the hard pests to be eliminated once an infestation occurs and appears evidently.

What Kills Carpet Beetles?

Vacuuming.
This is the first thing to do when you find carpet beetles.
Steam cleaning.
Next, steam clean the same areas that you vacuumed. The heat and moisture in this step kills and removes remaining beetles and eggs.
Laundry.
Hot water will kill any bugs and clean clothes, pillows, towels and linens.
Spray surfaces with vinegar.
A mixture of white or apple cider vinegar and water can be sprayed on shelves, in drawers, window sills and cupboards.
Diatomaceous Earth.
This is a non-toxic pesticide, diatomaceous earth works by dehydrating insects that come into contact with it. Sprinkle food-grade diatomaceous earth on areas like window sills, rugs, carpeting, closets, along baseboards, etc. You can then wipe or vacuum to remove the dust.
Homemade Cedarwood Spray.
This will kill the bugs and then you can vacuum them up. You can add some drops of cedarwood essential oil with vinegar and water to a spray bottle!