If you have found unexplained holes in clothing or threadbare patches in carpets, and have even seen small moths around your property, these may be clothes moths. These pests can cause significant damage to clothing, carpets, upholstered furniture, and other textiles containing natural fibres.
However, the moths themselves aren’t actually responsible for eating these materials. It is their larvae that cause the damage. This also means getting rid of the occasional adult textile moth is unlikely to deal with the underlying problem.
Before deciding what to do next, you need to know what you’re dealing with.
Below, we’ll explain what clothes moths look like, the signs they leave behind, where you might find them, and how to distinguish them from another common textile pest: the carpet beetle.
What are Clothes Moths?
Clothes moths are small moths whose larvae can feed on natural fibres found throughout homes and other properties. Unlike many of the larger moths you might see fluttering around a light or against a window at night, clothes moths tend to favour darker, quieter, and relatively undisturbed environments. That can bring them into close contact with wardrobes, cupboards, carpets, furniture, and stored textiles.
Understanding their lifecycle is important. Adult female clothes moths lay eggs in suitable locations. Once those eggs hatch, the larvae begin feeding on susceptible materials. They continue developing before eventually pupating and emerging as adult moths, allowing the lifecycle to begin again.
It is during this larval stage that damage to possessions occurs. As a result, spotting an adult clothes moth can be a warning sign that larvae may already be feeding somewhere else in the property.
What Do Clothes Moths Look Like?
Adult clothes moths are considerably smaller and less conspicuous than many of the moths that find their way indoors. The common clothes moth has narrow wings and a relatively plain golden or straw-coloured appearance. The larvae look completely different from the adult moths. They are small and pale, developing as they feed on suitable materials. Depending on the species and stage of development, you may also find evidence associated with larval activity around affected textiles.
Rather than being strongly attracted to light, clothes moths are more commonly associated with darker and less-disturbed areas. You may therefore encounter them around wardrobes, cupboards, carpets, or furniture rather than repeatedly flying towards windows and lights.
Finding the larvae or signs of their activity can often tell you much more about the extent of the problem than simply spotting an adult moth.
What Species of Clothes Moths Could You Find?
There are different moth species associated with textiles, so identifying exactly what you’re seeing can make investigating the source of a problem considerably easier.
Common Clothes Moth
The common clothes moth (Tineola bisselliella), also known as the webbing clothes moth, is one of the main species associated with textile damage. Adults are small, typically measuring around 5–6mm in length, with a pale silvery-golden appearance.
Female common clothes moths tend not to fly as readily as males and may instead be found moving around surfaces in darker areas while searching for suitable locations to lay their eggs. The larvae can grow larger than the adult moths and feed on suitable natural materials as they develop. How long this development takes can vary depending on environmental conditions, including temperature and the availability of food.
Case-Bearing Clothes Moths
The case-bearing clothes moth (Tinea pellionella) is another species that can be responsible for damage to clothing, carpets, and other materials containing natural fibres. As its name suggests, one of the most useful clues when identifying this species is the behaviour of its larvae. These larvae create and live within portable silken cases, incorporating fibres from the materials around them. As they move to find new sources of food, they carry these protective cases with them. You may therefore notice small cases attached to or moving across affected surfaces around the property.
Like the Common Clothes Moth, it is the larval stage that causes textile damage. The larvae can feed on animal-derived materials and fibres, putting items containing wool, fur, hair, and feathers at risk. Adult case-bearing clothes moths can, however, be distinguished from common clothes moths by their appearance. They are generally greyish-brown rather than the more uniform golden colour associated with the common clothes moth, with darker markings visible on their wings.
Finding cases alongside textile damage can provide an important clue that case-bearing clothes moths are responsible. However, identifying the full extent of the activity is still important. The moth or case you’ve discovered may not be the only area affected, so nearby carpets, clothing, furniture, and other susceptible materials should also be inspected.
What Do Clothes Moths Eat?
Strictly speaking, the damaging stage of a clothes moth’s lifecycle is the larva rather than the adult moth. Clothes moth larvae are associated with materials containing natural, particularly animal-derived, fibres. This can put items containing wool, fur, feathers, and hair at risk.
Potential food sources can therefore be found throughout a property, including:
- Woollen clothing
- Natural-fibre carpets and rugs
- Upholstered furniture
- Blankets and other stored textiles
- Fur
- Feathers and feather-filled items
This is also why clothes moth activity can sometimes go unnoticed. A frequently worn item of clothing may be checked regularly, but a woollen garment or blanket sitting untouched at the back of a wardrobe or a section of carpet underneath heavy furniture can provide a much less disturbed environment.
By the time the damage becomes obvious, larvae may have been present for some time.
What are the Signs of Clothes Moths?
Seeing an adult moth is one potential sign, but it’s certainly not the only one. If you suspect clothes moth activity, look at the materials and areas surrounding where moths have been appearing.
Holes in Clothing
Small, unexplained holes appearing in clothing containing susceptible natural fibres can indicate larval feeding. If you discover one affected garment, inspect other vulnerable items stored nearby rather than assuming the damage is isolated.
Pay particular attention to clothes that haven’t been moved or worn for some time.
Damage to Carpets
Clothes moth larvae can also damage carpets containing suitable natural fibres. You might notice areas becoming thin or threadbare as fibres are damaged. Less-disturbed sections deserve particular attention, including carpet underneath furniture and around quieter edges of rooms.
Moving furniture and inspecting areas that aren’t normally visible can sometimes reveal activity that wasn’t obvious from the centre of the room.
Damage to Furniture and Upholstery
Natural materials incorporated into upholstered furniture can potentially provide another food source. If moth activity is occurring around furniture, inspect susceptible fabrics and less-accessible areas rather than assuming the moths are simply resting on the furniture.
Larvae and Other Evidence
Discovering larvae around affected materials is a stronger indication that you’re close to an active source. Depending on the species involved, other signs associated with larval development may also be present around affected textiles.
Repeated Adult Moth Sightings
One small moth finding its way indoors doesn’t automatically mean your property has a clothes moth problem. Repeated sightings are more significant. If small moths continually appear around the same room, wardrobe, or section of a property, it’s worth investigating what is nearby.
What About Clothes Moth Eggs?
Clothes moth eggs are extremely small and difficult to spot with the naked eye. They are typically:
- Around 0.5 mm long
- Creamy-white to off-white in colour
- Oval or slightly rounded in shape
- Usually laid within or very close to suitable food materials for the emerging larvae
- Often tucked into creases, folds, and other sheltered areas, rather than somewhere conspicuous
Because of this, it isn’t often recommended to look for eggs as a sign of a moth infestation. You are much more likely to notice larvae, larval cases or webbing, adult moths, or textile damage than the eggs themselves.
Clothes Moths or Carpet Beetles?
The holes in clothing and blankets or damage to your carpet aren’t necessarily caused by clothes moths. Another textile pest can produce similar damage: the varied carpet beetle (Anthrenus verbasci). As with clothes moths, it is the larvae of carpet beetles that are responsible for damaging textiles rather than the adults.
This means the damage alone may not immediately tell you which pest you’re dealing with.
What Do Carpet Beetles Look Like?
Adult varied carpet beetles are small beetles that may be seen around properties, particularly during the warmer parts of the year. They’re small, brown, and covered in distinctive hairs that can irritate the skin of some people. They may curl up when disturbed.
Their larvae look slightly different, being elongated, hairier, and with an almost concertina shape to their body. Both the head and the rear end may be dark in colour.
Finding these hairy larvae or their shed skins around affected textiles can help distinguish carpet beetle activity from a clothes moth problem.
What Damage Do Carpet Beetles Cause?
Carpet beetle larvae can feed on many of the same types of natural materials that make a property attractive to clothes moth larvae. Materials containing wool can be particularly vulnerable, while other animal-derived materials such as fur, hair, and feathers may also provide food sources.
That means carpet beetle activity can result in damage to:
- Carpets
- Rugs
- Clothing
- Furniture and upholstery
- Other natural textiles
If you’ve found textile damage but haven’t actually seen clothes moths, you cannot always assume moths must be responsible.
Identifying the pest correctly is an important first step towards managing the problem effectively.
How Can You Tell Clothes Moths and Carpet Beetles Apart?
Start with the pest itself. Adult clothes moths are small moths, whereas adult carpet beetles are small beetles. Their larvae also look noticeably different, with carpet beetle larvae having the characteristic hairy appearance described above.
Where and when you’re seeing activity can provide additional clues. Look closely around damaged materials for larvae, shed skins, and other evidence rather than relying solely on the appearance of the damage.
If you still aren’t sure, that’s where professional identification can be particularly valuable. Knowing precisely which textile pest is present means the investigation and subsequent pest management can be based on the actual cause rather than guesswork.
What Should You Do If You Find Clothes Moths?
Don’t concentrate solely on removing the adult moths you can see. If larvae are already developing elsewhere, removing individual adults won’t address the source of the activity. Instead, investigate. Check clothing and textiles containing vulnerable natural fibres. Look through wardrobes and cupboards. Inspect carpets carefully, including underneath furniture and around edges. Examine upholstered furniture and other less-disturbed areas where suitable materials are present.
Thorough vacuuming can also help remove debris and accessible pest material from carpets, furniture, cupboards, and other areas. Pay particular attention to corners and areas behind or underneath furniture. If you find affected clothing or textiles, inspect other susceptible items stored nearby.
Most importantly, keep looking for the source and extent of the activity rather than assuming the first moth or damaged item you discover tells the whole story.
When Do You Need Professional Clothes Moth Pest Management?
Sometimes the source is relatively straightforward to identify. In other situations, clothes moth activity can be established across less-accessible parts of a property.
It may be time to speak to a pest management professional if:
- You keep seeing adult clothes moths
- New textile damage continues to appear
- You’ve discovered clothes moth larvae
- Several areas or belongings are affected
- You can’t identify where the moths are coming from
- Valuable clothing, rugs, carpets, or furnishings are at risk
- You’re unsure whether you’re dealing with clothes moths, carpet beetles, or another textile pest
Our Treatment Process for Clothes Moths
At Beaver Pest Control, good pest management starts with understanding the problem. Our technicians investigate the evidence, identify the pest involved, and consider where activity may be originating before determining the appropriate approach. It’s part of the way we work across pest management: Inspection, Exclusion, Restriction, Destruction, and Communication (IERDC).
Inspection and communication are particularly important with textile pests. A thorough inspection helps build a clearer picture of where activity is occurring and what materials may be affected. Clear communication means you’ll understand what has been found, what we’re recommending, and why.
Our technicians are trained to investigate pest problems rather than make assumptions based on the first obvious sign. All of our technicians hold RSPH Level 2 qualifications as a minimum and undertake ongoing professional development to keep their knowledge up to date.
Get Help Protecting Your Property
If you’ve discovered holes in clothing, damage to carpets or furniture, clothes moth larvae, or recurring moth activity, Beaver Pest Control can investigate the problem and identify what’s responsible.
And if it turns out your clothes moths aren’t clothes moths at all? We’ll identify that too.
Speak to our team online or over the phone to arrange a consultation and clear your infestation as soon as possible.
