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, whether that's near Herne Hill, where victorian villas and terraces near the railway station and Brockwell Park, or elsewhere in the borough. A rarely-used spare room, furniture left in place for years, and the back of a wardrobe are the usual places it begins - the same pattern holds near Vauxhall, where riverside tower blocks and newer developments close to the railway arches.
Larger period houses near Clapham Common
The larger Victorian houses split into flats around Clapham Common often have more fitted wool carpet and more stored clothing passed down over the years than a smaller terrace elsewhere in the borough, giving larvae more places to establish unnoticed.
What to look for
The usual signs are pale, bristly larvae, silk tubes woven into the carpet pile, and irregular bare patches near a skirting board or under furniture, as anyone near Brixton will recognise, where dense Victorian terraces and converted flats around the market and the town centre. 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, true near Stockwell too, where ex-GLC estates and Victorian terraces close to the Underground and bus garage.
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 Lambeth
Carpet moth treatment in Lambeth is priced at £180 for the first room and £60 for each additional room, and given that around Brixton, where dense Victorian terraces and converted flats around the market and the town centre, it is worth checking older rooms first before you book carpet moth treatment and tell us which rooms show damage, with the rest on the Lambeth carpet moth treatment page.
