The first installment of “Most Disgusting Places to Find Pests”

PantryPests 300x199 Insects in the Pantry

There are people who can tolerate the occasional ant on the wall or infrequent moth caught in the light; but there are two locations even the most bug tolerating homeowner cannot endure seeing pests.  These locations cause extreme frustration to homeowners and are worthy of their own intensive treatment plan.

This week’s setting, the pantry, is often invaded by pests that do not sneak into the house through walls or cracks but are actually brought in to your home through your groceries.  The USDA allows certain parts per million of insect eggs and insect parts in all agricultural products.  Because of this, several foods are at risk of harboring invaders.  Contaminated food can be anything ranging from spices, flours, chocolate, soup mixes, and processed foods such as pancake or cake mixes, nuts, rice, dried peppers, pet food and pet treats.

There are a variety of pantry pests ranging from moths to beetles.  The adults are visible with the naked eye.  Everyone who experiences insects in the pantry should follow the necessary steps in order to ensure a pest free pantry.

1.       Locate the source of the infestation.  It will be important to identify the source to safeguard from further problems.  Pay particular attention to dry pet foods, treats and bird seed, as they have a much higher allowance of insect eggs or insect parts.  Other common bug breeding grounds include soup mixes, nuts, red pepper flakes and flours.

2.       Inspect all products in the infected area.  Start on the top shelf on left side and work your way to the right.  Open and examine every product because just one item can spawn a large infestation.  Look for actual insects, silk webbing or exit holes in paper or cardboard containers.  As you move along the shelf, keep the items out of the pantry until the end of the five steps.   Once you find an infested product, discard it and continue with your inspection.

3.       Vacuum the shelves to remove any eggs, larvae, pupae and adults.  This ensures the pest is eradicated at all stages of its life cycle and will not cause further problems in your pantry.

4.       Examine the junction where the wall meets the ceiling.  This is a common area for the pupae of many pantry insects.

5.       Scrub the shelves with soapy water.

Following this 5-step guide will help you exorcise your pantry pests.  If the job seems too much to handle, call the professionals at HomeTeam Pest Defense and let trained professionals complete the guaranteed inspection and treatment process.

Be sure to come back next week to hear about another common bug that appears in some of the most intrusive places in any household.

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