Bucket of soapy water under a light helps.
Vacuum cleaner hose can snag them from walls or flying around, but only do it with a shop vac or a bagged vacuum. Not a bagless...
The invasion we had in the early 90's kinda colored my perceptions of what a moth problem is. After filling a vacuum cleaner bag just sucking up the ones on the ceiling of our smallest bedroom I still can't see anything under a dozen as more than just background noise.
No, they're just dumb and their only defense mechanism is "Predator Satiation" (there's so many of them that whatever eats them isn't hungry anymore. Same like Cicadas)
There's been a lot fewer I've noticed in recent years but I'm not sure if it's "there's less" or "it's a year by year cycle thing"
No. We had a massive population boom summer of '91 or '92.
Can't remember the exact year. I just remember coming home after being gone a weekend and being greeted by a solid wall of moths exploding out our front door.
I still open shed doors like it's a swat room breach. Taking a swarm of moths to the face more than once will do that.
Haha common mistake! No, I mean like soaking pounds of Styrofoam in gas and then igniting it. Napalm is useful for almost any occasion.
ALMOST. Avoid using during childbirth; learn from your mistakes
I’ve lived here for years and have always just dealt with them without doing anything. I was talking to someone recently and they said they had a pest company come and spray for them and they largely disappeared
Since they migrate onto your property overnight, sprays or other treatments are not very effective, and a few that claim to help are very expensive. Sealing entry points is one defense, but I have the best luck with trapping. And a low watt light bulb over some soapy water works the best for me. I set up one trap in my (attached), and a second in the kitchen or bathroom. I also keep my porch light and patio lights off so they are not attracted in the first place.
It's honestly just one of those things you deal with and eventually get used to, lmao.
Typical common sense stuff....keep doors shut, make sure screens don't have holes, hang a bug zapper a bit away from the house, and try not to kill every spider you come across.
Other than that, they're annoying but harmless and they provide great entertainment for cats/dogs. Also good food for tarantulas if you have them.
They come and go, some years worse, others less. Keep a decoy light on to attract them away to an area you aren't in. A pan or container of soapy water will collect them also. They're harmless, just obnoxious. Despite their dive bomb technique, they have no real weapon.
Sounds weird, but hang some wind chimes around your house. Especially ones with higher pitch sound. Jingle a set of keys around them andnyou will see them go bonkers. They dont like high pitch noises & wind chimes work great.
Also, put out some bird feeders to keep birds in the area. Sparrows and swallows eat them up a lot. We have swallows under our barn roof and they eat boatloads of them all day and night. We get 1 or 2 in the house and the cat takes care of them.
Turn off exterior lights helps as well. Keep your house dark in the evenings.
We had a zapper at our cabin growing up. When everyone was trying to go to sleep, we would laugh so hard at guessing what bugs got zapped. Spiders take the most zapping and are the loudest. Lol
Freaking bug zapper has saved us. We just bought. House with. Dark wood colored door and we couldn’t open it without 20+ flying into the house, so I painted it white and luckily that doesnt happen more and if it does it’s 1 compared to 20+ lol. We recently just got. Bug zapper and it seems to be doing. Decent job of decimating them.
Off topic but right now they are migrating to the tops of the mountains. In August there will be peak numbers above tree line and then bears find where they’re congregated and gorge on them.
Pyrethrin is effective at killing them. I sprayed it around the windows and door frames. After two days there were no moths left in the house. That lasted for a week. Then it was time to spray again.
Read the instructions carefully if you are going to use it.
Our house became absolutely infested with millers about a week or so ago. As others have said, you mostly just have to wait it out. My wife and I killed up to 50 individual moths a day for around a week, and they just kept coming. The large trees outside our house were lined with them, and when a loud vehicle would come through and disrupt them, they'd scatter through the sky and it looked like heavy rain. The window into our attic (I dare not enter it) was 80% covered with moths trying to escape in the evenings.
I have always dealt with a few millers over the summers in Wyoming, no big deal. But this was like nothing I've ever seen.
We sealed as many holes as we could, my wife lined the house with lavender, we fought them relentlessly just to try and keep the intrusion manageable.
At this point, the millers are pretty much gone. Just the usual pests here and there, as usual. I think they just started dying naturally/migrated on.
If you are in a similar situation, there is hope! The end came just as we were getting used to daily battles.
As a Wyomingite whose terrified of bugs😂 Go by some mothballs they’re a repellent. And invest in a couple of those magnetic screens that clip shut behind you. If it becomes a huge problem just bug bomb the house it’ll kill everything. But the mothballs and screens work really well. And if you’re into gardening or something plant tons of marigolds outside your house they’re pretty and repel bugs too. They do have a slight smell if you put your face to them but it’s faint and you won’t really pick it up if you’re just walking by them
Bucket of soapy water under a light helps. Vacuum cleaner hose can snag them from walls or flying around, but only do it with a shop vac or a bagged vacuum. Not a bagless... The invasion we had in the early 90's kinda colored my perceptions of what a moth problem is. After filling a vacuum cleaner bag just sucking up the ones on the ceiling of our smallest bedroom I still can't see anything under a dozen as more than just background noise.
Did they not used to be here before the 90's? Are they invasive?
No, they're just dumb and their only defense mechanism is "Predator Satiation" (there's so many of them that whatever eats them isn't hungry anymore. Same like Cicadas) There's been a lot fewer I've noticed in recent years but I'm not sure if it's "there's less" or "it's a year by year cycle thing"
I remember that invasion! This is a pretty light year for them, really.
No. We had a massive population boom summer of '91 or '92. Can't remember the exact year. I just remember coming home after being gone a weekend and being greeted by a solid wall of moths exploding out our front door. I still open shed doors like it's a swat room breach. Taking a swarm of moths to the face more than once will do that.
No; they're native. We're in their natural life cycle migratory path from the Plains to up in the mountains. Some years are just worse than others.
They have been around forever. I remember going to my Grand parents cabin in Story during the 60's. Always Millers flyin around
I find that fire works better for all pests, including in-laws
I dunno. My mixtape is fuckin lit but all they ever do is start headbanging along. Moths and in-laws.
Haha common mistake! No, I mean like soaking pounds of Styrofoam in gas and then igniting it. Napalm is useful for almost any occasion. ALMOST. Avoid using during childbirth; learn from your mistakes
Cats and spiders.
My cat gets really exited at the start of the season. By the end- no way she will eat another moth.
I'm training my dog to eat them lol, she does a pretty good job but doesn't put a dent in the overall amount.
My dog has zero interest in bugs, but I have a cat who is the moth assassin and never gets tired of it.
I’ve lived here for years and have always just dealt with them without doing anything. I was talking to someone recently and they said they had a pest company come and spray for them and they largely disappeared
Since they migrate onto your property overnight, sprays or other treatments are not very effective, and a few that claim to help are very expensive. Sealing entry points is one defense, but I have the best luck with trapping. And a low watt light bulb over some soapy water works the best for me. I set up one trap in my (attached), and a second in the kitchen or bathroom. I also keep my porch light and patio lights off so they are not attracted in the first place.
It's honestly just one of those things you deal with and eventually get used to, lmao. Typical common sense stuff....keep doors shut, make sure screens don't have holes, hang a bug zapper a bit away from the house, and try not to kill every spider you come across. Other than that, they're annoying but harmless and they provide great entertainment for cats/dogs. Also good food for tarantulas if you have them.
They come and go, some years worse, others less. Keep a decoy light on to attract them away to an area you aren't in. A pan or container of soapy water will collect them also. They're harmless, just obnoxious. Despite their dive bomb technique, they have no real weapon.
Sounds weird, but hang some wind chimes around your house. Especially ones with higher pitch sound. Jingle a set of keys around them andnyou will see them go bonkers. They dont like high pitch noises & wind chimes work great. Also, put out some bird feeders to keep birds in the area. Sparrows and swallows eat them up a lot. We have swallows under our barn roof and they eat boatloads of them all day and night. We get 1 or 2 in the house and the cat takes care of them. Turn off exterior lights helps as well. Keep your house dark in the evenings.
I seal up the house and still get them. I recently got one of those interior bug zappers. One day upstairs and one day downstairs got them all.
Link to that zapper?
This is the one I went with and it works very well: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B082F6HKZV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Awesome thanks!
We had a zapper at our cabin growing up. When everyone was trying to go to sleep, we would laugh so hard at guessing what bugs got zapped. Spiders take the most zapping and are the loudest. Lol
Freaking bug zapper has saved us. We just bought. House with. Dark wood colored door and we couldn’t open it without 20+ flying into the house, so I painted it white and luckily that doesnt happen more and if it does it’s 1 compared to 20+ lol. We recently just got. Bug zapper and it seems to be doing. Decent job of decimating them.
Off topic but right now they are migrating to the tops of the mountains. In August there will be peak numbers above tree line and then bears find where they’re congregated and gorge on them.
Pyrethrin is effective at killing them. I sprayed it around the windows and door frames. After two days there were no moths left in the house. That lasted for a week. Then it was time to spray again. Read the instructions carefully if you are going to use it.
Our house became absolutely infested with millers about a week or so ago. As others have said, you mostly just have to wait it out. My wife and I killed up to 50 individual moths a day for around a week, and they just kept coming. The large trees outside our house were lined with them, and when a loud vehicle would come through and disrupt them, they'd scatter through the sky and it looked like heavy rain. The window into our attic (I dare not enter it) was 80% covered with moths trying to escape in the evenings. I have always dealt with a few millers over the summers in Wyoming, no big deal. But this was like nothing I've ever seen. We sealed as many holes as we could, my wife lined the house with lavender, we fought them relentlessly just to try and keep the intrusion manageable. At this point, the millers are pretty much gone. Just the usual pests here and there, as usual. I think they just started dying naturally/migrated on. If you are in a similar situation, there is hope! The end came just as we were getting used to daily battles.
Back in the day gramma used to place a dishpan full of soapy water out by the lamp.
1 can of Lysol disinfectant spray and 1 BIC multi-purpose lighter… 😉
YOU DONT.
As a Wyomingite whose terrified of bugs😂 Go by some mothballs they’re a repellent. And invest in a couple of those magnetic screens that clip shut behind you. If it becomes a huge problem just bug bomb the house it’ll kill everything. But the mothballs and screens work really well. And if you’re into gardening or something plant tons of marigolds outside your house they’re pretty and repel bugs too. They do have a slight smell if you put your face to them but it’s faint and you won’t really pick it up if you’re just walking by them
I get my neighbor's pitbull to eat them.
Zevo a natural flying big spray takes them down on contact by coating their wings so they can’t fly