Why undisturbed rooms are the risk
Wool and other natural fibres are the food source, and carpet moth larvae do most damage wherever they're left alone for weeks at a stretch, much as it does near Hornchurch, where a mix of interwar semis and later estates spreading out towards the Essex border. Typical starting points are a spare room, furniture that's rarely shifted, and the back of a wardrobe, in any type of home, as anyone near Gidea Park will recognise, where leafy streets of larger detached houses.
Larger older houses in Gidea Park and Upminster
The larger detached houses of the Gidea Park estate and the houses towards Upminster often have more rooms used only occasionally, more fitted wool carpet, and more stored clothing and soft furnishings passed down over the years, all of which gives carpet moth larvae more places to establish without being noticed.
What to look for
You're looking for a small pale larva with fine bristles, silk strands worked into the pile, and thinning that appears in patches rather than evenly, usually near a skirting board, just as near Upminster, where larger detached and semi-detached houses on the borough's eastern edge. Adult moths are unremarkable, small, pale, and don't fly much, which is why the holes and bald patches tend to show up before the moth does, whether that's near Rainham, where riverside and marshland industrial land to the south, or elsewhere in the borough.
Protecting clothes and furniture as well as carpets
Once moths are established, they are rarely limited to the carpet. In the same rooms, check stored clothes, blankets and any upholstered pieces, particularly wool that's been left unworn or unaired, just as near Gidea Park, where leafy streets of larger detached houses.
What to do before treatment
- Vacuum thoroughly, including under furniture and along skirting boards, and empty the vacuum outside
- Have any affected clothing dry-cleaned or washed hot rather than just put back in a drawer
- Move stored boxes and furniture away from walls so the edges can be reached
- Avoid simply vacuuming and hoping - the larvae causing the damage sit deeper in the pile
Booking carpet moth treatment in Havering
Carpet moth treatment in Havering is £180 for the first room and £60 for each additional room. The Havering carpet moth page has the rest. When you book carpet moth treatment, tell us which rooms show damage and whether any clothing or furniture is affected as well as the carpet.
