Pantry Pests

Pantry pests or stored product pests are problematic because they’ll consume your food products. In general, they consume flour, dry pasta, powdered milk, crackers, spices, bread, and other products. Detroit is home to many pantry pests, but the most common pests include Indian meal moths, cigarette beetles, and saw-toothed grain beetles. You’ll want to do everything you can to eliminate these pests from your home. After all, they live in the food they consume. Since they do this, they can breed around the calendar year.

Nevertheless, you can sleep soundly knowing pantry pests have nothing to do with your cleaning habits. It doesn’t mean that you didn’t clean your home well enough.

Appearances

Indian Meal Moths

These pests have two colors. They’re reddish-brown and coppery. Some will agree that they’re pretty, but they’re not when they’re in your home. These pests create serious food damage. Just remember that it is the larvae that cause the damage. They will consume various food products found in residential dwellings. Unfortunately, Indian meal moths are difficult to eliminate. You likely won’t be able to fix the problem on your own.

The moths can build cocoons in your kitchen and other rooms throughout your home.

Grain Beetles

Next, you have saw-toothed grain beetles. These pests are small since they’re roughly a 10^th of an inch. They have teeth on both sides of their thorax. Those teeth look like saws. Adults and larvae will damage the dried food products found in your home. They’ll consume many products, including dried fruit, candy, flour, and cereal. From time to time, they’ll eat birdseed and rodent bait.

Cigarette Beetles

Cigarette beetles are roughly an eighth of an inch and have a humped back. Their wing covers are smooth. Since they have body hairs, they are fuzzy. They prefer consuming cured tobacco products, but they’ll also eat candy, nuts, and pet food. They can eat spices too.

Reasons For Pantry Pests

You’re likely wondering why you have pantry pests. Well, it was likely nothing you did. Instead, these pests can be found in many products on grocery store shelves. There is a good chance that you purchased an infested products and brought them home with you. If this happens, you’ll need to dispose of the product in question immediately. It takes two or three insects to create a full-blown infestation in your home. Since they live in their food sources, pantry pests never stop breeding.

They’ll produce a handful of generations each year.

Pantry Pest Signs

You need to scan your home for the common signs of pantry pests. The problem is that pantry pests are small. Plus, they tend to blend in with their primary food sources. Unfortunately, this combination makes them incredibly difficult to spot. Check around your pantries for small moths and other bugs. If you find moths flying around, there is a good chance that you have pantry pests.

Dangers

Are pantry pests dangerous? In general, they’re not. They’re not physically dangerous. They won’t bite or attack. Furthermore, they do not spread illnesses. Although they can contaminate your food sources, swallowing them is not dangerous. Even if you swallow the pests or their eggs, you’re not going to get sick. They don’t carry parasites or dangerous pathogens.

The primary problem is that pantry pests will destroy your food products. They spoil your food so you’ll have to replace it later. Over a period, the costs will add up.

Preventing Pantry Pests From Invading

Use the steps below to prevent pantry pests from invading your home.

• Store your food products in airtight, sealed containers. Don’t use paper or cardboard because their larvae can chew through these materials.
• Clean your pantry at least once or twice a week. Get rid of food crumbs and vacuum up pantry pests and their eggs.
• Always use clean or new containers when storing food products. Don’t add new food to old food.
• Test to see if your food products are infested. Put them in a plastic bag and let them sit for a month.
• Always clean containers before reusing them.

How Do I Get Rid Of Pantry Pests In My Detroit Rental Property?

Pantry pest infestations are complicated because they generally involve more than one species. For example, the cigarette beetle may be accompanied by the Indian meal moth, which will complicate the entire pest control process. For this reason, we highly recommend industrial strength pesticide that is only available to exterminators licensed by the State of Michigan.

Professional pantry pest control combines visual inspections and an industrial-strength pesticide to ensure maximum results. We also customize treatment plans in severe cases.

How Do I Schedule A Pest Control Inspection In Detroit?

Contact our local office to request your pantry pest inspection. We will initiate the processing of the request immediately upon receiving it. It may take 48 hours to complete the processing before you are permitted to schedule the appointment.

Do Pantry Pest Insecticide Pose Environmental Risks?

Chemical-based pesticides and insecticides do contain harmful ingredients. By heeding the pesticide safety guidelines, our exterminators can protect the occupants from unnecessary, dangerous chemical exposure. We have partnered with Michigan’s top manufacturers to obtain pesticides approved by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

EPA is a federal government agency responsible for the oversight of pest control products in the United States. All manufacturers operating in the United States are required to seek EPA approval for their products before they can legally enter the market.

How To Fight Back Again Pantry Pests The Second Time Around?

Pantry pests target all homes and businesses that deal with food preparation. In Detroit, Michigan, the most commonly reported pantry pest sightings involve the Indian meal moth, and cigarette “tobacco” and saw-toothed grain beetle species. To prevent future pantry pest infestations, it is crucial to remove their food supply. Replace manufacturing food packaging with glass or stainless steel containers with resealable lids.

Pantry pests feed on just about any non-refrigerated food product. Prevent access and the pantry pests will not hang around too long if they do get lucky enough to infiltrate your home.

If you have any other pest control issues please check out other services.