She shuns the light, likes to hide in the closet and leaves unsightly traces: the clothes moth. Whoever has them in the house should act. Otherwise, the wardrobe suffers. Öko-Test cannot recommend pesticides containing insecticides. Others conditionally.
The clothes moth (Tineola bisselliella) is only up to nine millimeters long. Their shiny, straw-yellow wings are characteristic, without any markings. She tries to hide when disturbed. A female lays up to 250 eggs on woolen fabrics that are only about half a millimeter in size. When the larvae hatch, they begin to eat.
In short, you don't want them in your house. There are a few ways to get rid of the insect. However, not many are really suitable, as Öko-Test found in an examination of 33 products from supermarkets, drugstores, hardware stores and online retailers. 14 are control agents (a), which are intended to kill the moths with insecticides. Ten are sticky traps that attract male moths with sex attractants (pheromones) and thus serve to control infestation (b). Nine are repellants (repellents) in the form of dispensers and sprays that are supposed to keep insects away with scents (lavandin oil, neem extract) (c).
A basic distinction must therefore be made between three different means. Poisonous clubs (a) are out of the question for the testers, although they kill effectively, they can also be harmful to people and pets. All corresponding products were rated "poor" or "unsatisfactory".
The infestation controls (b) are not really convincing either. They do not pose any danger to people, dogs or cats, and they are also used to catch moths. The larvae, which may already be gnawing on the cashmere sweater, don't care. But at least the test winner comes from this genus. The only product that was sold was the "Nexa Lotte dresses
As for the repellent or preventive means (c), none goes beyond "satisfactory". For example, the cheapest product in the test, the "Naturkraft Moth Protection Bag" by W. Neudorff for 3.29 euros for 3 bags. Household remedies such as lavender or cedar wood can keep moths away with their scent. Natural products do not offer 100% protection, nor do the preventive products in the test.
If the moths do bite the clothes, the following applies: Throw away the infested clothes, vacuum out the wardrobe, wash uninfested woolen items and put them in the freezer for a few days.
(This article was first published on Friday, May 20, 2022.)
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