Carpet Beetle in Fleet and Church Crookham

I am always asked for advise from carpet retailers with regards to carpet beetle. Fleet & Church Crookham seem to be prone to infestations.Carpet & Flooring Co in the high street had noticed an increase in this problem when going out to measure up for new carpets. They asked for a report to better inform their clients. I will share this with you.

Appearance and Behaviour

Carpet beetles are a fairly common pest and they occur naturally outdoors. Larvae of carpet beetles are fairly distinctive and are known as ‘woolly bears’. They are quite hairy and tan in colour. There are several types of of carpet beetle, the most common being the black fur beetle. The beetles are fairly small, measuring 1.5 to 4mm in length. the body is strongly convex rather like a ladybird and is characterised by the pattern of yellow, black and whitish scales on the body. Carpet beetles can be found on the underside of furniture, along the baseboard where the carpet meets the skirting, under area rugs or in closets. The adult beetle will roam and generally does not stay in one area to often.

Lifecycle

An adult female will produce up to one hundred creamy white eggs, and deposit them in cracks and crevices during the spring and early summer. Within four weeks the eggs hatch and the emergent woolly bears feed, binge, and moult several times before pupating. On emergence the adult beetle seeks light, so they usally fly to the windows. They fly to light coloured flowers where they lay their eggs in bird’s nests in roof voids and other suitable places. The larvae can last a year depending on the quailty of the food supply. The adults appear in April, May and June and their resulting larvae hibernate during the following winter, pupating during the latter part of February and March.

Control 

Infestations  of these insects mostly originate in birds nests such as those of the house sparrow and the house martin. The carpet beetle larvae survive on the soiled wool and feathers in the nest-lining and then manage to get under the eaves in the roof space. From here they crawl into upper rooms of the property. They appear to be attracted to warmer situations, airing cupboards can harbour substantial  infestations. Carpet beetles do however sometimes fly through open windows and initiate infestations directly. But infestations from birds nests cause continual invasions.

The first rule of control is to remove bird nests from eaves and similar situations. If dead birds or rodents are found in chimneys or under floors they have to be removed. Any pieces of old carpet or similar material in lofts or roof voids must be removed otherwise they act as reservoirs of infestation.

Signifigance

The carpet beetle is a major textile pest of the home, but neither carry germs nor do they spread disease their presence does not constitute a risk to health. However, the activities of the woolly bears will cause damage and ruin carpets, animal furs and leathers.

If you think you have a  problem

If you think you have the first signs of a problem call Elbow UK Limited, we can advise you on the action you need to take. It maybe an initial treatment combined with regular carpet cleaning that saves you a lot of unnecessary expense.