As the seasons change, many people clear out their closet of clothes that they won’t be wearing until next year. But while this can help to keep your closet free of extra clothes and shoes, when you store these items, you’ll need to take extra care that they don’t become food for bugs and other pests. Even with the clothes that do stay in your closet, bugs and pests can get to them and ruin your favorite pieces.
To keep this from happening to you, here are three tips for keeping bugs away from your clothes.
Keep Your Closet Clean
The first and best thing you can do to ensure that you don’t get an infestation of bugs in your closet and throughout your clothes is to keep your closet and drawers clean.
If you wear clothes multiple times before washing them, make sure the clothes you’re putting away are free of food debris or smells that could encourage bugs to come looking for your leftovers. Additionally, you’re going to want to ensure that the actual storage area where you keep your clothes is clean. Things that get tracked in on your shoes or your clothes can invite bugs in. And if you’re not regularly vacuuming out your closet and wiping down the shelves, you could have an infestation taking place and not even realize it for months and months. At that point, you’ll probably need to call in a pest control professional.
Use Heat And Cold
Whether you’ve found evidence of bugs in your closet and clothes or you just want to discourage any pests from making their home in your home, it’s wise to use both heat and cold to help keep your clothes free of bugs.
For some bugs like moths, putting the clothes in the freezer for about 3 days will kill any eggs or larvae. And if you have clothes made of wool, temperatures between 110 and 120 degrees Fahrenheit for about 30 minutes should kill any bugs off. Additionally, if you have clothes that you keep stored for long periods of time, like wool clothes or blankets, hanging them out in the sunshine every few months can help keep bugs away as well. Here are some useful tips for getting rid of clothes moths.
Store Clothes In Garment Bags
For the clothes that you are going to keep stored in the back of your closet or in another storage space, the best way to keep these pieces safe is to put them in garment bags.
Ideally, you should choose garment bags that can seal up completely. Bags that are open at the bottom or have big gaps in them won’t be as effective for keeping bugs out of the bag and off of your clothes.
To help your clothes stay fresh and clean when stored in your closet or drawers, consider using the tips mentioned above as a few ways to keep the bugs at bay.
