Need Help

[Mountaingirlnc]

Hello All
Mostly I lurk..but have come across something and would like to ask some to help check this out. I have had the problem of bugs in the flour..Now that is nothing you have not heard before am sure, but one of my cabinets had a smell to it when we moved in so would wash and put stuff back..Got bugs in flour..pull stuff out wash (clorox and soap) put back..Well one day I wiped off boxes of Jiffy Mix baking mix (This is a Fav. of all bugs) and still the cabinet had a light smell to it so put a few dryer sheets (stop laughing) under the boxes to help with the faint smell. NO BUGS..for months NO BUGS..so what I am asking is would several of you try by using a lightly damp almost dry cloth with clorox and water..wipe off boxes and set on dryer sheets..see if it keeps bugs away for you..tring to see if this is working or just a fluke..thanks for any help.
;D ;D

[DM]

I keep my bulk flower in my freezer, and my user small portions in the fridge... I've never had a bug since i started doing that...

DM

[annabella1]

I have read that you can use a dryer sheet in your pocket to keep mosquitoes away, so I can see how it would probably repel bugs. However, I have also read that it can attract bees and wasps (sweet smell). If you freeze your flour products when you first get them home it will kill any larva that is in them. Then you can leave it on the shelf and wont have any bug problems.

[Shamrock1121]

There's a variety of "varmits" that invade the pantry - flour beetle, meal worm, and grain weevil. The unseen eggs can already be in boxes or in the food when you bring things from the grocery store (Jiffy mixes seem to be a favorite camping ground for the little buggers, in my experience). The eggs hatch and you've got "bugs". Freezing dry goods is a good way to kill the eggs.

It's important to transfer foods from the original packaging to airtight containers. Transfering the product gives you a chance to check for bugs. Use glass, plastic and metal containers with tight fitting lids. If you open a box/bag and you notice a little beaded web, you know you have an infestation and to dispose of it.

Grain weevils, commonly found in flour, dried pasta, rice or other dried pantry staples are black, and about twice as long as they are wide. You will know them when you see them because flour doesn't have little black flecks in it.

I store all dry goods (beans/grains/pasta, etc.) in vacuum-sealed canning jars. Bags (paper and plastic), as well as boxes are easy for weevils to invade. Regular cleaning of shelves is also beneficial. Spilled flour and tins of spices with spice residue on the tops is like sitting up a banquet. So keep containers and shelves clean.

Bay leaves are an old-time preventative, although I've also read scientific information that says it's bunk - your choice.... Not to mention, keeping a new nail or a box of matches, or spirimint gum in the flour.

I keep hundreds of pounds of grains on hand, so my potential for infestation is very good. But because I store things correctly and check dry-goods when I bring them home from the grocery store and repackage them, I haven't had an infestation for years and years.

If you happen to store birdseed and dog food in your home, that's a good source for bugs.... Always transfer it to another container with a tight-fitting lid.

I'm going to say your extra cleaning was the cause of the bug control. But since dryer sheets are full of all kinds of toxic chemicals, it wouldn't surprise me that it keeps bugs at bay as well. I wouldn't use dryer sheets in my dryer because of the toxins, so I REALLY wouldn't keep them around food, but that's me. Just as I'd avoid bug spray around food.....

Ounce of prevention - pound of cure kinda thing.....

-Karen

[Funkhouser]

Found those little critters living in an unopened box of Hodgson Mill organic wheat flour. >:( Took everything out of the pantry, and wiped everything down with vinegar and a rag...no problems since.

I use the dryer sheet in the pocket during the summer (mosquitos are bad here, even with all the bats we have). It works quite well. My wife and son do it, too...now that they've seen how it worked for me.

[lostinthewoods]

We too have the stinking little creepy crawlies in the cabinets. We've gone through and thrown out everything twice now and still have bugs. We'll definately try the dryer sheets and see if it works. I can store flour, pasta, and anything else in the attic in my barrels and have no bugs for years on end but we can seem to nix them in the kitchen cabinets.

You say freezing them before they go into the cabinets will kill the critters too? We may start freezing everything before it goes in the cabinets from now on too.

lost