Anyone who has ever struggled with moths in pantries or closets knows it's no fun. With the help of moth traps, thanks to early detection, a serious infestation can usually be avoided and the damage kept to a minimum.
Clothes moths and food moths come into the house quickly. They can easily get into your own four walls through the window or via infested food from the supermarket. There they often find optimal living conditions, which leads to rapid reproduction. Pheromone traps are a straightforward method of early detection and monitoring of moth infestations. The moth traps contain certain attractants that attract male moths, causing them to stick to the trap's adhesive layer. If an infestation is detected in good time, taking appropriate measures can usually prevent greater damage.
How do moth traps work?
Moth traps are pheromone traps. They are used for monitoring and early detection of a moth infestation. The traps are equipped with special sex attractants, the so-called pheromones, which only affect certain moth species. There are traps for food moths, such as grain and dried fruit moths, and traps for clothes moths and fur moths. In nature, females use this to attract male animals to mate. The attractants on pheromone traps against moths are based on natural pheromones. In contrast to nature, the males are not expected by females, but by an adhesive layer of glue. In this way you can quickly and easily determine whether, for example, your wardrobe or pantry is infested with moths. Since only the male moths in the immediate vicinity are attracted to pheromone traps, moth traps are not a control method. Because a single male is enough, who does not fall into the trap and fertilizes a few females. Depending on the species, they can lay about 250 eggs after just one fertilization.
Tip: Some manufacturers also call moth hangers with pesticides moth traps, as this term is less toxicsounds. "Real" moth traps always work with pheromones and do not contain insecticides. That's why you should look carefully at the packaging when buying, so that unwanted toxins don't accidentally end up in the house.
Set up moth traps
Moth traps are easy to use and can be used all year round. They should be used at the latest when you have found the first moths, webs in food or holes in clothes and carpets. It should be noted, however, that the traps only emit pheromones for a certain period of time, so their effectiveness will wear off over time and they will have to be replaced. Most pheromone traps are also completely free of insecticides and poisons and are therefore harmless to humans and animals.
Use parasitic wasps and pheromone traps at the same time: The simultaneous use of parasitic wasps and moth traps is harmless and even recommended. Pheromone traps only serve to monitor the infestation, whereas parasitic wasps parasitize the moth eggs and thus interrupt their reproduction. With the help of the pheromone traps, the successful control of the parasitic wasps can be made visible. However, when using it, you should make sure that there is a distance of at least 1.5 m between the traps and the parasitic wasp cards. Otherwise the parasitic wasps may accidentally run over the traps and stick to them.
Set up food moth traps
If you suspect an infestation with food moths, for example flour moths, dried fruit moths or grain moths, you should equip all cabinets, drawers and shelves affected with food moth pheromone traps. Our Plantura food moth traps, for example, are extremely suitable. Once you have ordered them, you will receive 6 of them in an envelope.
Our pheromone traps have a sticky layer on both sides. One side is for easy placement in cupboards or drawers where the food moth traps can be glued directly to side panels. Since they do not contain any dangerous substances, the moth traps can also be used in kitchens without hesitation. On the other side are the pheromones to attract food moths. The trap is activated as soon as the protective film covering the layer of glue with the pheromones is removed. Then the sex attractantsreleased over a period of time and thus attracted males. In the following period you should check the traps once a week. In the case of a heavy infestation, it can make sense to change the traps before the end of the casting time so that moths can continue to stick to the traps.
If about 10 moths stick to the trap within a week, it is very unlikely that they just flew in through the window by accident. Then you should take further steps to combat it. We go into more detail on this in our article on combating food moths.
Setting up clothes moth traps
The use of pheromone traps against clothes moths and fur moths is similar. Our Plantura clothes moth traps should be hung in a dark, draught-free place and not in the direct vicinity of lamps, doors or windows. When using against moths in the closet, it is best to place one trap per closet compartment with textiles of animal origin, such as wool. For furniture and carpets, the rule of thumb is one trap per room. Here, too, the trap is activated as soon as the protective film over the adhesive layer with the pheromones is removed. Check the traps weekly and, in the event of a heavy infestation, change them before the end of the effective time.
Since the pheromone traps are only surveillance instruments, you should also take further steps to combat clothes moths after you have determined an infestation, for example with the help of parasitic wasps. Check out our article on fighting clothes moths for more tips.