How to stop clothes moths from eating your wardrobe
You spent way too much money on that sweater for it to just turn into a fancy dinner for a moth.
I opened up my closet doors today and my heart sank to the bottom of my chest as I saw the last thing I wanted to see – MOTH HOLES. If you have ever had the misfortune of being in my position, you know just how devastating this sight is. Moths can wreak havoc on an entire closet faster than you can say “cashmere sweater.” Luckily for me, I was able to catch it early and can get rid of these nasty pests before they make a snack out of any more of my winter clothes. However, as a personal organizer, I have seen too many people whose closets look more like swiss cheese than a wardrobe. After years of dealing with moths, here are my tried and true tips that I give to all of my clients to keep their closets pest-free!
Fight the good fight
What moths really need to survive isn’t just the fabric of the clothes themselves, but what we leave behind on them. Our sweat after a long day of running around or the crumbs from our midday sandwich are as enticing to them as that sandwich was when you first grabbed it from the deli counter. Before you put your clothes away, especially before putting them away for long periods of time, make sure you clean them. Get them dry cleaned if you have to, but make sure those clothes have as little appeal to the moths as you can!
If you find moths on your clothes, another option if you don’t want to pay high dry cleaning costs is to freeze the clothes for 48 hours. The moths, eggs, and larvae can’t survive in the cold temperature. If you have a chest freezer, that’s ideal. In fact, mine has 2 wool peacoats in it right now!
In addition to cleaning your clothes to battle moths, you need to clean the area that they were spotted in. Remove all clothes from shelves, drawers and hanging spaces, and wipe the empty spaces down with bleach & water to kill all the eggs. Make sure that all of your carpets and floors are vacuumed on a monthly basis– it’s the nooks and crannies around the edges of furniture and carpets that are moth breeding ground. Wool carpets are a moth's happy place to live and mate so staying on top of maintenance is the best way to make sure the moths don’t get too comfy. Remember, a moth's favorite environment is a dark, quiet spot. So be sure to move furniture when you vacuum to break up the moth party!
Moth traps
The number one thing you can do to get ahead of the moths is setting up moth traps in your closet. These handy little tents are loaded with pheromones that will attract male moths to alert you if you have any in your closet, as well as attempting to break the breeding cycle if there truly is a swarm! These will not get rid of the problem, but they will put you on high alert and make sure you can take care of the moths before they cause any more damage. Another thing you can do to try to prevent the moths from coming in is placing moth away sachets in your closet. These are a non-toxic method of keeping moths out of your closet, and have the bonus of keeping your clothes smelling fresh!
Seasonal storage
If you have clothes that you only wear during certain seasons, such as heavy wool coats that you only break out for winter, consider putting them in sealed containers. If your clothes are barricaded by the walls and lid of a bin, the moths and their larvae won’t be able to munch their way in! You can use just about any type of storage for this, as long as it is air-tight. I love using watertight bins, because the lids snap right on and I can stack them away in the very back of my closet. You can also use garment bags if you don’t have the space for big bins. However, you can use what you have and even fit a sweater into a 2-gallon Ziploc bag. This is so important that I’m going to say it again– don’t forget to clean the items before storing them!! That will ensure that you aren’t sealing up moth eggs to make a meal out of your clothes all winter.
As the weather begins to warm up, moths will be waking up from their hibernation and starting to look for their next wool sweater to fill up on for breakfast. If you take these steps and give your closet a little more care and attention this year, you can mitigate moth damage like a pro. And remember, moths are all around us so unfortunately, battling them is not one and done. You have to stay on top of it to make sure they don’t come back. Especially if you have pets, as pet dander is one of their favorite snacks. So arm yourself with moth traps, a vacuum, and a bright light to chase those pesky moths away.
Tracy McCubbin is the CEO and founder of dClutterfly, one of America’s top decluttering companies. In the last two decades, she has helped thousands of clients clear the clutter in their lives to create space for positive life changes. Tracy is also the author of Making Space, Clutter Free and her latest book Make Space for Happiness. Tracy looks at the root of our clutter to find the real cause and ways to find real solutions.