Mothproofing wool carpets

April 25, 2008 12:53 PM

I'd like to know the best ways to mothproof oriental rugs short of taking them to a pro for treatment. Moths are sneaky and damage is found on hidden parts of rugs. mothballs are out, they smell too bad. Currently I use an ant/roach spray containing a synthetic pyrethrin compound. Does this seem a good idea, and if so at what frequency per year? Any one have a better method?
posted by fkeese to Home & Garden (4 answers total)

I had problems with carpet beetles on my rug. After I had it cleaned and treated at the rug place (where they advised me "they don't let us use the really good chemicals anymore"), they told me the best thing was to vacuum the hidden parts as often as practical, and rotate it every 6 months to get the hidden parts un-hidden.
posted by adamrice at 1:10 PM on April 25, 2008

My parents used to take their rugs outside in the winter when it was below freezing. After a day or so, they'd bring them back in.

They also rotated them, including flipping them upside down so that we walked on the backs of the rugs.

I have Persian carpets and Turkish kilims now too, but I'm not always doing as my parents did. And while I've never had moths in them--moths to my understanding don't like disturbances--like adamrice, I've had carpet beetles. No problem. I vacuum.

The worst is to roll up a carpet or have part of it obscured by furniture. That way the pests can do their work unimpeded by normal housekeeping.
posted by subatomiczoo at 3:21 PM on April 25, 2008

Cedar naturally repels moths and such (ie. cedar balls) ...I don't think you had them stored but if so you could throw them in a cedar wardrobe-come-carpet box. (Or trash some to knock one up?)

If cedar balls work than pieces of cedar should work too.
(I lived out in the sticks as a kid, had cedar furniture... the only bugs in my draws were those mud wasp thingys. So I can tell you that Cedar definitely works!!)

Depending on your layout and what-have-you, you could be very incognito and sneaky about securing the perimeter of any tasty bits with Cedar (aka bug kryptonite). I don't know how thick it has to be to do the trick, but depending on your floor maybe even sheets of it under your rug could possibly work??
posted by mu~ha~ha~ha~har at 3:44 PM on April 25, 2008

Cedar works very well to repel moths, and probably other critters. You can buy cedar oil spray.
posted by theora55 at 8:15 AM on April 26, 2008