Nothing’s more terrifying than finding bugs all over your closet essentials—never mind your sleeping quarters too. While they might fit in with your upcoming Halloween celebrations, we’re pretty sure you’ll want to eradicate them as soon as possible.
That’s why we’ve rounded up a list of the most common laundry critters including bed bugs and how to get rid of them. Here’s to never seeing these insects ever again!
How to Get Rid of Bed Bugs and Other Common Laundry Insects
1. Bed Bugs
Bed bugs can easily stick to clothes and like to come out of hiding at night.
One way to check if you have a bed bug infestation is if your clothes suddenly have stains on them. These may actually be bed bug excrement!
If you want to know how to remove bed bugs from your clothes, there are a few different options you can try:
Try washing and drying your clothes with high heat.
Spray rubbing alcohol to kill bed bugs on contact.
For delicates that cannot be washed at high temperatures, put these in the freezer for about four days and wash as usual.
2. Moths
Clothes moth larvae are attracted to wool, cashmere, and silks because of the keratin that is in these animal-based fibers.
To repel moths, you can use products with cedar, lavender, mint leaves, cloves, and thyme.
You may also want to use moth balls to protect your clothes. Learn how you can use them correctly and safely in this dedicated blog!
3. Carpet Beetles
Carpet beetles are tiny insects that are black and brown in color. Since these critters are very small, it may be difficult to spot an infestation. Look out for bare and bald areas on your wardrobe and black droppings near your clothes.
To eliminate carpet beetles, mix a solution filled with water and apple cider vinegar.
Spray onto infested clothing and wash garments with a cup of the same vinegar thrown into the mix!
4. Cockroaches
If you store your clothes in a wooden cabinet or dresser, you may find cockroaches lurking around as they are especially attracted to wood. On top of this, they are also drawn to food or beverage remnants, plus body fluid stains.
As they eat away at these substances, they may make holes in your clothes as well as stain garments with their excrement.
A quick solution is to consider adding borax to your washer in order to poison the bugs.
You can also use insecticides that contain propoxur or Baygon, and chlorpyrifos or Dursban to control an infestation.
Organizing your clothes more effectively and more hygienically could also prevent any unwanted infestations. Check out our blog to discover 5 closet hacks to keep your clothes in check.
5. Termites
Similar to cockroaches, termites are also drawn to clothes that contain food or drink stains. Because of this, it’s easy for them to spread all over your clothes and create holes—most of which won’t be repairable.
If you’re dealing with a termite infestation right now, it’s important that you get to the root of the problem and find where they are coming from inside your house.
Once you’ve determined the infested area, try spraying borate and a separate mixture of lemon juice and vinegar.
If the infestation is already widespread, it may be best to contact a pest control service in your local area instead.
Looking for a professional laundry service? The search is over! No more endless Googling for the best “laundry near me”, because WaveMAX Thornton has got you covered.
We are a Denver laundromat committed to providing you with the best self-service and drop-off laundry solutions. Hope to see you soon!
