The carpet beetle is one of the most destructive insects, capable of causing extensive damage to bedding, clothes, carpets, and upholstered furniture. Please keep reading everything you need to know about carpet beetles, including their appearance, eggs, and signs of a carpet beetle infestation.

A healthy carpet beetle diet consists of EVERYTHING you have in your house. You may face the terror of the carpet beetle if you notice ladybug-like creatures crawling around your home and holes in your clothes, furniture, and carpets.

how to get rid of carpet beetle

As their name implies, carpet beetles sometimes infest carpets. In addition to clothes moths, these pests also feed on wool, fur, felt, silk, feathers, skins, and leather. Such materials contain keratin, a fibrous animal protein that the larvae can digest. Cotton and synthetic fabrics such as polyester and rayon are rarely attacked unless blended with wool or heavily soiled with food stains or body oils. Carpet beetle infestations can develop undetected, causing damage to vulnerable items.

What Are Carpet Beetles?

A carpet beetle is a small insect that can become a pest in the house if not controlled. Young carpet beetles and larvae feed on natural fibers like wool, silk, leather, animal products, and pet hair. The adult carpet beetle feeds on pollen, plants, and flowers.

Cyrus Crafts; Luxury & Unique Products

How to Identify a Carpet Beetle

There are three known species of carpet beetle. These are the Varied Carpet Beetle, the Furniture Carpet Beetle, and the Black Carpet Beetle.

black carpet beetle

Varied Carpet Beetle

Or"Anthrenus verbasci". With a length of around 0.25cm, these are the smallest carpet beetles. They have a slightly rounded shell and are usually black/brown with flecks of white on their backs.

Furniture Carpet Beetle

Or "Anthrenus flavipes". Their shells are light brown speckled with black and white markings, slightly larger in size than the Varied Carpet Beetle at around 0.3-0.5cm.

Black Carpet Beetles

Or "Attagenus unicolor". As the last member of the carpet beetle family, it is also the largest, measuring approximately 0.3-1cm long. Additionally, their shells are either solid brown or shiny black, unlike their counterparts, which are rounded.

While all carpet beetles eat anything, the Varied and Furniture carpet beetles prefer natural fibers like wool and leather. The Black carpet beetle has more refined tastes, they tend to feast on dry foods such as cereal, oats, and dry pet food.

How Do You Prevent Carpet Beetles?

  • Clean rugs regularly and thoroughly
  • Keep food in well-sealed containers
  • Cover windows and doors with bug nets
  • Inspect plants and flowers before bringing them indoors
  • Ensure that all cracks and gaps around doors and windows are sealed

Controlling Carpet Beetle Infestations

To eliminate carpet beetles, you must locate all infested items. Typical sources are seldom-used wool or fur hats or scarves in closets, antique handmade rugs in basements, or the remains of a bird or squirrel nest in the attic. Carpet beetles prefer to dwell in dark, undisturbed areas where susceptible items are stored for long periods. When inspecting clothing, pay attention to seams, folds, and creases (e.g., cuffs and collars) where larvae often prefer to feed. Larvae also tend to infest the lower edges of rugs and carpeting.

varied carpet beetle

What is the Life Cycle of a Carpet Beetle?

An adult carpet beetle's life cycle will be between 3-4 weeks. It takes 7 to 28 days for freshly laid eggs to hatch; once they do, they resemble hairy worms. At the end of their life cycle, they will become pupae - their beetle-like state - and live between 2 and 3 weeks. Carpet beetles have a life expectancy of 3-4 weeks as adults.

Where Can You Find Carpet Beetles?

A variety of household items and furniture can be infested by carpet beetles once they have entered your home. Wool-made clothing, rugs and carpets are easy prey. Having mounted trophies can attract carpet beetles if you are a hunter with a collection of mounted trophies. If a small animal, such as a squirrel or a rat, has been trapped in your walls and died, the beetles will infest its fur, too. In addition to dried flowers and potpourri, some beetles feed on dry pet and human food (pasta, flour, breadcrumbs, etc.). If you've looked into all those places and still are not finding the source of the infestation, consider checking out a professional pest control service.

beetle carpet

Do Carpet Beetles Cause Allergic Reactions?

Yes, their dead skin sheds, and hairs may cause skin irritation. To stop the reaction and increase humidity in the house, you must physically remove them. Pesticides alone won't stop any irritation, as the problem is the physical presence of dead skin shells.

That's it, your carpet beetle removal guide. You just need to find the source, vacuum thoroughly every day, throw away infested items, and wash everything else. If you have been struggling against a carpet beetle infestation and are at your wit's end, it may be time to call in the professionals and let pest control experts rid your life of the carpet beetle menace.

You can get complete information about all home and office rugs, carpet tiles, etc., in Cyrus Mag.

What do you think is the best way to deal with carpet beetles? Leave a comment.

Cyrus Crafts; Luxury & Unique Products

Related Posts

Instead of spending money to replace an ugly carpet, you can paint it! Go for a classic, solid color or tap into your creativity to make funky or modern designs.

16 Jan 2023, 07:36

Rugs are both functional and aesthetic. They need periodic cleaning and occasional repair. Here’s how it’s done. This Fix-It Guide on rug repair tells how to identify a rug problem, and what parts and tools you will need to fix a rug.

08 Jan 2023, 07:10

What is carpet bleeding? When do carpets bleed? What measures should be taken to prevent dye bleeding?

14 Dec 2022, 04:19

If you are considering buying a washable rug, take a minute to read these honest reviews and details about what these rugs are like.

01 Aug 2022, 23:54

Carpets can give a lot of beauty and vitality to the home, but at the same time, they are very prone to getting dirty and any stains. In this article, we will talk about the methods of cleaning all kinds of stains on carpets at home.

19 Apr 2022, 02:58

In this article, we talk about multiple methods on how you clean a rug in the best way without losing color and harming its texture. Rugs are essential design elements that can transform a normal room to an elegant one. But from foot traffic (even foot traffic of the pets), food spills, stains, dirt and water, your beloved rug can get dirty.

12 Mar 2022, 07:02

Gabbeh World Market is not an ordinary market of handicrafts, but a place for art lovers and artists who know the value of art and want to add a new color and fragrance to the interior decoration of their home or workplace by buying a unique product. Stay tuned with the upcoming brief article to learn all the details about the global market of Gabbeh, B2B wholesale of Gabbeh, and buying a Gabbeh with the best conditions.

05 Mar 2024, 03:22

Persian rugs are consistently among the most luxurious and royal interior design elements. They are popular worldwide, so they retain a profitable market. Here are great offers if you want to buy wholesale Persian rugs and sell them apiece.

27 Jan 2024, 02:00

The carpet is part of the beauty and decoration of the house, But when it comes to buying a kid's rug, in addition to the beauty of the pattern and color, we should pay attention to aspects that were not so important to us before.

13 Feb 2023, 02:06

The oldest surviving knotted carpet is the Pazyryk rug, excavated miraculously in the frozen tombs of Siberia, dated from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., now in the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg. 

20 Dec 2022, 03:12

Adding a rug to your kitchen is the perfect way to add warmth, character, and color to the heart of your home.

02 Nov 2022, 07:52

What do you know about rugs? Here we have provided a complete guide to introducing, choosing and buying these beautiful carpets.

25 Jan 2023, 07:43

Get to know one of the most famous types of machine-woven carpets. Advantages, disadvantages and characteristics of polypropylene carpet.

14 Feb 2023, 04:57

Comments (0)

No comments at this moment

New comment

You are replying to a comment

Product added to wishlist
Product added to compare.

Welcome to CyrusCrafts Wonderful World...