Desperate from New Have, Ct writes
Since the discovery of my carpet beetle infestation, a little over a month ago, I have been treating every 2 weeks with Fenvastar with IGR added to it. I've sprayed, vacuumed, inspected, & ripped apart EVERY part of my home. When I 1st began treatment I found beetles, larvae & lots & lots of cast skins but since then I haven't really found any of that except for 2/3 beetles the day before my 2nd treatment & 3 beetles the day I did the 3rd treatment. But the damage to my furniture, rugs & clothing have absolutely skyrocketed!! At first I thought it was because I was just more aware of the whole situation so that's why I was noticing it more, but now that I just finished my 3rd treatment (& have trimmed/cleaned up the damaged things along the way) I am still finding all new damage but with NO evidence of any larvae. Am I missing something/somewhere while treating? (Keep in mind I have vacuumed & sprayed every possible place I read where they like to go & any other places I can think of (Their cast skins were in some pretty strange places).. Including inside all upholstered furniture, mattress & box spring & underneath all rugs) Or is this normal? & if so when can I expect to finally get some relief from these pests? I am afraid to let ANYTHING out of a plastic bag or sealed container. And it seems that no item (natural or synthetic) is safe. There is visible damage to everything and anything. I vacuum thoroughly every single day and have washed & dried every article of clothing I own at least a dozen times. I am physically & mentally exhausted! I've found hundreds of articles & information online about carpet beetle identification, treatment & control but nothing about what to expect before, during and after.... Am I doing it all wrong or does this sound like a typical infestation that will be fixed with time?? Also I recently read somewhere that if you wash your clothes w/Borax & the larvae eat it they will die... is there any truth to this because I saw 1 lonely article about it & that was it. Thank you sooo much for ANY help you can lend to ending this nightmare!
It does not sound like you are doing anything wrong. It does take quite some time to fully eradicate carpet beetles. This is because the life cycle has to be stopped. That is done through the efforts you are making vacuuming daily, treating every two weeks, using an IGR. Alot of times if items are too infested or damaged, it requires discarding those items to help eradicate the beetles. You may also want to think about using a dust like Delta Dust to apply in wall voids such as outlets, light switches, cracks and crevices, where a liquid cannot be used. We recommend to keep checking to see if you are missing larvae somewhere. Check in corners of drawers, closets, if your carpet can be pulled up at the corner check there. Please let us know if you have any further questions 866-581-7378.
Answer last updated on: 05/09/2013
