Clothes moths infest not only clothing but also other textiles and can even find a home in car seats. Here you can find out how to recognize such an infestation and how to successfully combat moths in the car.
Have you ever had small, shiny moths in your car that you just couldn't get rid of? Or maybe small holes in your seat covers and damage to the upholstery? These could be clothes moths (Tineola bisselliella). Because in addition to fur coats, wool sweaters and other items of clothing, clothes moths also nest in other textiles. This includes, for example, carpets, pieces of furniture, or even the upholstery of car seats. Find out below why these small moths are particularly popular in older cars, how to recognize an infestation and how to get rid of the pests.
Detect moths in the car
Not every butterfly that gets lost in your car poses a direct danger. Clothes moths are a very special group of butterflies that you can identify with certainty based on a few characteristics. The pests are between 0.5 and 1 cm in size and have unicoloured, shiny, yellowish, gray or brown wings. When the insects are sitting on a surface, the wings are always folded over their backs in a kind of small roof.
Fur moths can also nest in the upholstery of your car. You can recognize them by the fact that their wings are usually a little darker in color and have three diffuse points.
The moths lay their eggs in the upholstery of the car seats, which the caterpillars later feed on. The eggs and caterpillars themselves are inconspicuously small and whitish. Since they live in the pads, it is very unlikely that they will actually be spotted. The larvae of fur moths are characterized by a special feature: they spin a protective cocoon around their body, from which only the head and front legs protrude and which they always carry around with them. However, an infestation is easier to recognize from the adult animals or from small holes and signs of grazing on the upholstery.
Moth traps such as our Plantura clothes moth traps provide help in detecting adult animals. They are provided with a sex attractant that only attracts the male moths of clothes moths and fur moths. These follow the pheromone trail and go into the sticky trap to which they stick. Pheromone traps help with early infestation detection and moth identification. The traps only have to be installed in the car and are activated as soon as the protective film covering the layer of glue with the pheromones is removed. Two things to note when using it:
- The traps should be replaced every three months as they lose their effectiveness over time.
- Pheromone traps alone are not suitable for combating clothes moths, as they do not catch every male and do not affect females, eggs and larvae. So some matings can still occur, which keeps the moth population alive.
Why do clothes moths appear in older cars?
Especially older cars and vintage cars are often attacked by clothes moths. This is partly due to the fact that vintage cars are usually driven less often and the butterflies can therefore spread there in peace. More important, however, is the fact that older cars often used animal fibers for trimmings, such as fur or silk. Sometimes even the upholstery filling consists of real animal hair. Although clothes moths sometimes eat synthetic fibers that they cannot digest, animal fibers are their ultimate target and a welcome breeding ground.
Fighting moths in the car
To get rid of the small pests, many car owners use moth sprays. However, these chemical toxins are not only harmful to the butterflies themselves, but also to humans and the environment. Moths in cars can be combated more sustainably and harmlessly with heat, for example. However, since temperatures of at least 70 °C must be reached for a successful treatment, this method is rather difficult for use in the car. It is only carried out in special facilities by experienced pest controllers.
Another sustainable and natural control method that you can use in your vehicle is the application of parasitic wasps. Ichneumon wasps are tiny,spineless and harmless insects that are the natural antagonists of many borer moths. Therefore, they have been used for some time as an effective measure against the pests. Ichneumon wasps of the genus Trichogramma.
are mainly used for this purpose.We also use Trichogramma parasitic wasps for our Plantura parasitic wasps against clothes moths. The small beneficial insects are conveniently delivered to your home on practical cards and the application is very simple. Simply place the unopened cards in your car and lock all windows and doors. Since one card covers approximately 1m², we recommend using three to four cards per car.
Shortly thereafter, the parasitic wasps get to work: they specifically seek out moth eggs and parasitize them, causing the eggs to die. The parasitic wasps themselves also die off after the work is done and, due to their small body size, leave behind little more than a bit of dust. To ensure successful control of all moths and possible subsequent generations, this process should be carried out six times - at intervals of two weeks. So that you always have fresh parasitic wasps to hand at the right time, new cards will be sent to you every 14 days. The shipping and the refill of the cards are of course included in the price.
Note when using in the car:
- Parasitic wasps need at least 15 °C to work actively and effectively for you, which is why control in winter is only possible in heated garages.
- Whenever you put out fresh cards in the car, you should leave it alone for a week if possible and not drive it. This allows the parasitic wasps to do their work undisturbed.
Tip: After use, it is advisable to vacuum the car thoroughly to remove all remains - even if these are hardly visible to the naked eye.
Fighting car moths summary:
- Chemical control with moth sprays (beware of toxic ingredients!)
- Heat treatment in a suitable facility
- Simple, effective and biological elimination by Trichogramma parasitic wasps
Once you have defeated the small moths, you naturally want to avoid another infestation. The pests can be prevented by regularly vacuuming the upholstery and ventilating cars that spend a lot of time in the garage. To prevent an infestation of the shiny clothes mothnext time early enough, it is also worth hanging up sticky pheromone traps such as our Plantura clothes moth traps if the vehicle is parked for a long time.
Clothes moths can also cause a lot of damage in the house or apartment. You can find out how to recognize an infestation there, prevent it and successfully combat the small pests in our special article on the subject of clothes moths.