Carpet beetle: how to get rid of a pest in an apartment?

Sometimes carpet beetles, which few people have heard of, settle in the house. They cause harm to interior items and clothing that are in the house and directly to the owners. Not everyone knows how to get rid of them, but the methods of control are quite simple, and if you know them, it will be very easy to drive out the nasty bugs.

Who are leather beetles and what do they look like:

1. The carpet beetle is a small beetle, about 3 mm in size.
2. They have a brown color , but its shades can be either light and slightly reddish, or dark, even black.
3. They have little hair and a small tail.
4. Skin beetles move slowly and pretend to be dead as soon as they sense danger, while they can roll over on their stomachs or hang motionless on a curtain.
5. These insects reproduce very quickly , so it is necessary to fight them as quickly as possible, otherwise they will simply fill the house.
6. The larvae of these parasites can continue to live without food for 4 years. As soon as they receive the required amount of food, they begin their transformation into an adult.

Bugs getting into the house is very simple: in the summer they can fly through an open window or door, and at any other time, you can simply bring them with infected things.

The habitats of parasites are different and it is quite difficult to detect them. They love dry and warm places.

Therefore, as a rule, their habitats are:

• window sills;
• skirting boards under radiators;
• genital slits;
• cabinet drawers;

They can also be found in carpets and zoological collections made from natural materials.

A sure sign that you have skin beetles is the following:

• the presence of scuffs on the carpet;
• minor damage to the sofa upholstery and clothing;
• small pieces of skin that bugs shed;

Ways to fight

It is very important to begin the process of getting rid of pests as soon as you discover them in your home.

It is more difficult to destroy skin beetles than other pests, since they are more resistant to various poisons, and therefore the treatment must be done several times to make sure that they will not appear again.

At the same time, it is best to treat the house during the breeding season of parasites, that is, in May:

1. The very first thing you need to do is find their habitat . You should carefully examine window sills, baseboards, sofa upholstery and other warm and dark places in the room. If you have found the place where they are located, then you can be sure that you will be 100% able to get rid of them.
2. Pests can be controlled using chemicals .
3. You can try traditional methods . But it should be remembered that folk remedies will not always give results, and it is better to use chemicals.
4. And if the parasite infestation is severe , then only specialists can help.

In any case, no matter what method is chosen to combat pests, there is one rule, the observance of which will help achieve greater results and avoid their re-infestation: during the period of destruction of skin beetles, you should vacuum the entire house several times a day.

Chemicals

Treating premises with chemicals is a very effective way to remove unwanted bugs.

There are several types of chemicals that are selected depending on the habitat of the parasites:

1. Powder preparations . Powders must be poured into the habitats of parasites. If these are cracks and baseboards, then a broom will help, which should be used to place the powder there. Boric acid works very well for this.
2. Liquid emulsions . They are used if the number of parasites is large. They leave no marks or stains. They process either the entire room or individual items. When processing each item separately, they should be placed in a bag, inside of which the product is sprayed. The item should be left in this state for several hours.
3. Aerosols . These drugs work just like aqueous concentrates. The difference is that it works a little slower, but the eggs will remain intact. The treatment must be done several times, and the consumption will be greater than that of aqueous concentrates. The advantage of these drugs is their price.
4. Poison in tablets . This remedy will help more against larvae, since adult parasites do not eat solid food. The destruction process will take quite a long time and it is better to use tablets as an additional measure, using them together with powders or other chemicals. These products have a rather pungent odor and permeate the furniture.

Effective means

There are quite a large number of different chemicals that are designed to combat skin beetles:

1. Difox . This product has a capacity of 50 ml. for a price from 80 rub. up to 200 rub. You can buy a 500 ml bottle for 400 – 700 rubles. It is very easy to find, but it is important to know how to breed it. To destroy parasites you need to dilute 2 ml. drug in 1 liter of water.
2. Antimol . These are tablets that can be purchased at a cost of 20 rubles. up to 300 rub. The price depends on the number of tablets and additional effects. They need to be placed in several places around the house in gauze bags, which must be looked for separately. They do not affect adults.
3. Mittox . This is a liquid concentrate that is sprayed in places where parasites are localized. Its price is on average 600 rubles. 50 ml. This product must be mixed with 1 liter. water and then disinfection can be carried out. The prepared solution can be stored for no more than 5 days.
4. Molemore . This aerosol costs 50 rubles. – 100 rub. It is used to treat skin beetle localization sites and other surfaces where they could settle. Its effect lasts six months.
5. Boric acid . This product in powder form is the cheapest: 1 package costs from 6 rubles. up to 100 rub. It is odorless and harmless to humans; you just need to sprinkle it in places where parasites live.

Traditional methods

If there is no need to use strong chemicals, then you can resort to traditional methods of pest control.

Quite effective in the fight against skin beetles are:

1. Temperature difference . This method is very good to do in winter, you just need to cool the apartment. Beetles do not like sudden temperature changes and die at -10 degrees. This procedure should be repeated several times. If you need to remove parasites from individual things, then you need to take them out into the cold several times and bring them back.
2. Steam . Pest habitats can be treated with steam, and clothing should be boiled.
3. Permethrin pyrethroid . Woolen and fur items in which beetles live are soaked in this solution. This method will help get rid of not only skin beetles, but also other parasites that can settle there.

Pest control services

Apartment owners who are not confident in their abilities can turn to professionals for help. Disinsection against annoying skin beetles is carried out by special services. Employees of such companies have all the necessary arsenal to exterminate parasites. This is not only special equipment and destructive means, but also possession of certain knowledge and skills.

The problem will be resolved as soon as possible. Objects and property treated during disinfestation will be reliably protected for a long period from such a disaster.

Rating of pest control companies

We suggest that you familiarize yourself with the rating of companies from which you can order disinfestation against skin beetles in an apartment, at home, or in domestic premises. The website provides up-to-date information, contact details, and estimated cost of services.

Processing rules

The drugs used to treat the house are very strong and can harm household members.

To avoid possible negative consequences, you must follow a number of rules:

1. All inhabitants of the house, including animals , must leave it during disinfection.
2. When spraying poison , windows and doors should be tightly closed, and the walls should be free of furniture.
3. After finishing the treatment , the one who carried out it must also leave the house for several hours.
4. After the house has been disinfected , all rooms should be thoroughly ventilated and cleaned, but you should only wash those places that you touch with your hands, so that there are few chemicals left for the larvae that may appear.
5. Repeated treatment can be done no earlier than after 14 days.

Removal sequence

Skin beetles must be removed in the correct sequence:

1. First you need to find their habitat . There may be several of them, so it is necessary to carefully examine every corner of the house.
2. The next step should be general cleaning . You should try to collect as many parasites as possible with a vacuum cleaner. The vacuum cleaner bag should be shaken out very vigorously, or simply thrown away. It’s also good if you have a water vacuum cleaner, then the pests will definitely not run away after cleaning.
3. After cleaning, you can begin disinfestation . It must be done very carefully and try to get to all possible crevices in order to completely get rid of the beetles.
4. After treating the house, you need to monitor the possible appearance of insects and, if skin beetles are detected again, disinfection must be repeated.

How dangerous are these insects?

The main danger of skin beetle larvae is their gluttony and indiscriminate eating. If in wild (or semi-wild) nature they feed mainly on the remains of dead animals - wool, dried and hardened meat, skins, skin, chitinous coverings of dead insects, feathers, sometimes even dry grass - then in apartments they look for substitutes for such food, and easily damaged:

• Fur
• Wool knitwear
• Leather shoes and clothes
• Carpets made of natural wool or cotton
• Various collections – herbariums, insect collections
• Skins
• Stuffed animals and birds
• Various animal products - cheeses, sausages, dried fish and meat, meat and bone meal, dog and cat food
• Cereals and groceries (by the way, they are not eaten by the larvae of all types of skin beetles)

This is, for example, what a fur coat looks like after encountering skin beetle larvae:

And it is clear that if, say, no one is particularly upset because of a kilogram of damaged cereal, then a chewed expensive fur coat, or good shoes with ugly furrows, is serious damage.

On a note

Skin beetle larvae can eat any tissue of the animal body, except bones. This is used in some museums: the remains of animals whose bones they want to preserve for collections are specially placed in a room where thousands of beetles and their larvae are located, and in a few days these voluntary cleaners “remove” absolutely everything from the bones, including ligaments, tendons and places muscle attachments. After their work, the bone will not rot or stink - there is simply nothing left that could rot.

Moreover, due to their small size, immediately after hatching from eggs, the larvae of skin beetles can get through the smallest cracks into boxes, for example, with collections of insects . Of course, doors to closets with fur coats and sweaters will definitely not stop them.

It is interesting that larvae can begin their destructive activity in an apartment, for example, in a sofa drawer, or behind a baseboard, where they will simply eat microscopic exfoliating pieces of skin, hair and the remains of cockroaches. And when they grow up and their appetites increase, they will already go in search of more abundant sources of food. And at this stage the larva is already dangerous for things: it can gnaw through a sweater, “shave” a stain on a fur coat, or make holes in the carpet. And when there are many such larvae, this danger increases many times over.

For example, in the photo there is litter damaged by larvae:

And here are slippers, forgotten under the sofa and found by hungry leather-fed children:

In fact, this can happen to any natural fabric - leather beetles will happily eat silk, cotton, and wool. And if they get on a leather sofa, they will gnaw the leather too.

Prevention of occurrence

You can avoid the appearance of skin beetles by taking preventive measures.

Carpet beetles will not appear if:

1. Do general cleaning regularly.
2. Use a mosquito net.
3. Don't let clothes sit in the closet.
4. Place lavender , wormwood, tansy, camphor and tobacco around the house.

These measures will make you confident that pests will not choose your home as their habitat and will not spoil your things.

Preventive measures

Simple rules will prevent the arrival of skin beetles. First of all, close the places where insects enter, and pack items made from natural fabrics and fur. Hide bulk products under sealed lids. Treat waste collection areas and pet hair.

Wash clothes regularly, wash floors using a disinfectant or vinegar, and clean carpets with hot steam. Throw away or burn damaged items. Inspect cabinets, inside bedside tables, and the bottom and back of furniture more often.

Harm from skin beetles and danger to humans

skin beetle bites
Adult parasites practically do not cause much harm, but their larvae do the opposite. They feed on almost everything and thus damage clothing and home furnishings.

If skin beetles appear in the house, the following are at risk:

• wool;
• fluff;
• silk;
• leather;
• fur;
• felt;
• other materials of animal origin.
• In addition, they can easily ruin books by eating the glue that glues their bindings together.
• Bugs will happily feed on rubber cables, plastic, cardboard and asbestos.
• They also do not disdain foodstuffs, such as bread, oatmeal, fish, meat, cheese and dairy products;

Therefore, beetles become carriers of various diseases:

1. After being bitten by this pest, a person can acquire helminths (worms).
2. And larvae can be a source of viral diseases, causing chronic problems, which can only be gotten rid of by destroying the parasites in the house.

But even if the skin beetle does not tolerate any diseases, the bite itself is quite a big problem. It is very painful and manifests itself differently for everyone. For some, it may simply be in the form of small dots that will pass relatively quickly, while for others, the bite site turns into a huge spot that itches, sometimes even bleeds.

The skin beetle bite site should be treated with hydrogen peroxide and alcohol to prevent possible infections and other unpleasant consequences.

How the skin beetle gets into the apartment

It is generally accepted that parasitic insects settle only in apartments that are rarely cleaned. But even constant observance of hygiene rules in the apartment cannot protect against such a scourge as meeting a skin beetle. Therefore, if you are in vain interested in the reason why skin beetles have settled in your perfectly clean home, pay attention to the list of answers on how skin beetles can penetrate apartments.

• They can be brought home with old things - furs, books from the library, food products stored for a long time in a warehouse, vegetables bought at the market, cereals by weight.
• Carpet beetles can enter an apartment through window vents.
• They crawl away from neighbors through open doors and cracks in walls.
• They can be brought in from the street on their fur by pets - cats and dogs.

So no one is safe from meeting these parasites, who do not spare anything on their way.

Tips and tricks

To get rid of parasites quickly and permanently, you should know a few small tricks:

1. Carpet beetles do not like moisture. Therefore, the more often wet cleaning is done, the lower the risk of their occurrence.
2. In summer, beetles are most active , and during this period there is the greatest likelihood that they can move in with you.
3. Adult parasites fly around the house during the day and return to their shelter at night. Therefore, in order to discover their habitat, you can simply turn on the light bulb at night, to which they will flock.
4. The larvae are always active, day and night, they do not need sleep.
5. If the house is warm , small bugs will develop faster and in greater numbers. And if it’s the other way around, then it’s slower, but will cause more damage.

The sizes of these insects

The size of skin beetle larvae varies from half a millimeter at the stage of emerging from the egg to 9-12 mm before pupation in some species. Of course, the maximum body length of a larva depends on the size of the adult beetle: in species whose imagoes have a body length of 2-3 mm, the larvae grow to 4-5 mm, and in species whose beetles grow up to 8-9 mm, the larvae can reach up to 12 mm, and taking into account the length of the posterior hairs - 15.

In the photo, for example, it is noticeable that the unique “tail” of the skin beetle larva is not inferior in length to the body size of the larva itself:

In any case, the larvae of skin beetles are small and never reach the length of even a domestic cockroach. In part, such small sizes help them remain invisible to people for a long time, and due to this it is safe to grow and even turn into beetles and leave their own offspring even in completely clean and well-kept apartments.