On this page
Images of textile pests
What are textile pests?
Textile pests are insects whose larvae feed on various textile fibres and may thus cause damage to textiles.
Some of the textile pests also live in the wild and can move into apartments from the outside. They are also transported to apartments with textiles and furniture. Used clothes and furniture in particular should be washed or treated with a pesticide if you suspect that they may contain pests.
Insect pests may also live in the structures of buildings if there are materials suitable for their nutrition such as insulation materials for old buildings.
Pests are quite common, and you should not be alarmed by them. Pests do not usually carry any diseases.
The presence of textile pests does not depend on the cleanliness of the apartment, but they live and reproduce more easily in an untidy apartment. Wardrobes that have not been used for a long time provide them with a peaceful living environment in particular.
Textile pest extermination
If you find pests in your home, it is a good idea to check all textile storage areas. If there are signs of pests in textiles such as holes or shells of larvae, pesticides should be used.
- Empty the textile storage areas and clean them.
- Treat storage areas with a pesticide.
- It is also a good idea to spray pesticide on baseboards, feed-through conduits of radiators, ventilation valves and similar spots where insects may be hiding, or through which pests living in the building’s structures may access the apartment.
- Some of the pesticides have a long-term effect, so you should leave them on the surfaces for as long as they are effective.
- Please remember to not use too much pesticide, as it will not become any more effective, and some solutions may leave yellow stains behind.
- After vacuum cleaning the area, remember to change the dust bag.
You can exterminate insects and their larva and eggs from textiles with the following methods:
- Washing textiles at 60 °C.
- Freezing the textiles for a week at a minimum of -20 °C.
- Applying a suitable pesticide on the textiles. When using pesticides, remember to adhere to the instructions given by the manufacturer/importer.
You can carry out the extermination by yourself. When using professional companies, follow the instructions they give.
You can prevent textile pests appearing by making sure that birds, bats or wasps cannot make nests in the structure of the house. When the weather cools down, beetles may crawl from their nests into your apartment.
Identification marks
Adult: 4–6 mm
Larva: 10–11 mm
An adult Attagenus woodroffei beetle is a dark brown, round beetle about half a centimetre in size. It has a yellowish saw blade-shaped stripe on its back. The surface of the beetle is covered with fine and thick hair. Its antennae are short, filamentous and thicker towards the tip.
The larva will grow to be around one centimetre in length. It is dark brown and tapers at the end. Its end has a tuft of hairs, and the larva is clearly segmented and therefore looks like it has stripes. If bothered, the larva will curl up.
Occurrence
The Attagenus woodroffei beetle is not a domestic species and it therefore only inhabits heated spaces such as apartments and storages. It hides behind the skirting and in cupboards and similar dark spaces.
Damage
The larvae eat furs and wool, cotton and linen cloth, creating tiny, sharp-edged holes. The adult beetle does not require any sustenance.
Prevention and extermination
Attagenus woodroffei beetles are exterminated like other textile pests.
Identification marks
Adult: 5 mm
Larva: 10 mm
The same size as the Attagenus woodroffei beetle, but the wings have two spots, and the neck has one (three in total). The larva is covered with thick hair, tapers at the end and is yellowish in colour. Its back end has a long tuft of hair. When touched, the larva will curl up.
Occurrence
This species produces one annual generation. Fur beetles are a native species of Finland. The female lays eggs in bird nests, and the larvae can hibernate indoors.
Damage
The larvae eat smooth-edged holes into textiles. The fur beetle is allergenic.
Prevention and extermination
Identification marks
Adult: 2–3 mm
Larva: 4–5 mm
An adult museum beetle is around 3 mm long. The museum beetle is almost round, dark in colour, and its elytrons have shapes formed by lighter hair.
The larva is around 4 mm long, brown, and has thick hair and a V-shaped tuft of hair at the end of its body. As with the adult beetle, it pretends to be dead when touched. Close relatives of museum beetles may also reside in indoor spaces, for example, a species with yellow shapes on its elytrons.
Occurrence
The female lays eggs in bird nests and dry carcasses. The larvae eat feathers and hair, as well as dried insects. The beetle eats pollen. If there are bird nests in the eaves of the house, the larvae may crawl indoors during the autumn and hibernate in the rooms. During the spring, they will gather near the windows in an attempt to return to nature.
Damage
The larvae harm textiles and furs by eating small holes in them or by cutting the hairs. They are also attracted by collections of insects or animals. Damage is usually minor in apartments.
Prevention and extermination
Birds’ nests and dead rodents should be removed from the attic, eaves, cellar and chimneys. If necessary, they are exterminated like other textile pests.
Identification marks
Adult: 6–9 mm
Larva: 12–16 mm
The bacon beetle is around one centimetre long, quite black in colour and narrower than the fur beetles. It has a light stripe on its back with six black dots on it. Its antennae are short and mace-shaped.
The larva is brown, around one centimetre in length and has sparse fur. It has two upwards curving claws at the end of its body.
Occurrence
The bacon beetle is a native species of Finland and resides in dry carcasses, bird nests, etc. It mostly eats dead animals. The beetles can also eat scraps of food. During the autumn, they may eat dead flies in the attic.
Damage
The bacon beetle can sometimes harm textiles, furs and pelts.
Prevention and extermination
If there are a large number of beetles, they can be exterminated in the same way as other textile pests.
Identification marks
Adult: 9–16 mm
Larva: 10–12 mm
The forewings are straw-yellow, and the back wings are greyish-yellow and surrounded by grey lashes. The moth’s head is russet coloured. The size varies significantly between different moth populations.
The larva is around 10 mm long. It is light in colour, which varies, depending on the larva’s food. It lives in a small tube that it makes out of fluff, so any textiles damaged by the larva can be recognised due to the large amount of fluff, unlike textiles damaged by fur beetles, which eat a clear, sharp hole into the cloth.
Occurrence
The clothing moth is not a native species of Finland. It is usually apartment-specific and is quite rare these days. Clothing moths have been found in the insulation materials of building structures if they are made of animal hair. This is why they are also called “building structure moths” in Finnish.
Moths occurring in apartments are usually from old products brought in from an old storeroom.
Damage
The larva eats wool fibres and makes holes into cloths. In particular, goods felted from raw wool and carded yarn are vulnerable to damage caused by clothing moths.
Prevention and extermination
Damage can be prevented by storing unused woollen clothes and furs in plastic bags. The larvae will die during freezing or clothes washing. They are exterminated in the same way as other textile pests.