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Pantry Pests: Getting Rid Of Flour Bugs
Opening a bag of flour and noticing the contents crawling with little bugs is horrifying, but it happens. Throwing out the bag will not necessarily solve the bug problem and you may find frequent occurrences.
How To Get Rid Of Flour Bugs
Cleaning Tips:
- Remove everything from the pantry and wash the entire area well with a bleach and water solution (about 1/4 cup bleach per gallon of hot water), wear rubber gloves and use a scrub brush so that you can get into any cracks and corners. Wash both top and bottom of each shelf, all walls and the floor.
- Keep pantry door open and leave it overnight to dry completely before adding stock back to the shelves. Wait until the pantry is no longer humid from the washing before re-stocking the pantry.
- Check all food boxes and bags for bugs, throw out those that are infested or those you’re unsure about (bag and cart out to the garbage immediately–don’t keep in the house) and put the rest in the freezer for 5 days before storing in the pantry.
Preventive Steps:
- Keep all flour, cereals, rice, pasta, starch foods in canisters, glass jars with sealed lids or airtight plastic containers.
- Stack a few Bugs-Be-Gone Bags in the pantry.
- Freeze new foods for 4 or 5 days before storing in the pantry (to kill the larvae and eggs).
- Keep a bay leaf or two in the flour cannister and crushed bay leaves sprinkled throughout the pantry (weevils don’t like them).
Watch For:
- Drips and spills from syrups, honey, etc.–wash off immediately or your pantry will attract ants and other bugs.
- Once you notice an infestation and have done a thorough cleaning job, keep a diligent eye on your stock. Each time you notice a weevil or other pest, empty the pantry, wash everything well and repeat the steps above until you are bug-free. There’s no way around it, you have to remove every single bug, egg & larvae or the pests will grow in numbers until you do.
Did you know: The pantry pests may be coming home with you from the store? Weevils or mealy bugs can already be in the bags and boxes before you even pay for them. Before storing items in your pantry, you can freeze the bags and boxes first (for about 4 or 5 days), seal them in plastic bags or airtight containers. This way nothing else in your pantry will get contaminated.
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I have a very bad weevil problem. I have cleaned my pantry and now freeze foods before putting them in the pantry. The best thing I have found to keep them away is bay leaves. I just set them around the pantry and the weevils stay away!!
The ones in my closet are EATING the bay leaves I thought they were suppose to hate those things?
1. Are you sure their weevils, and not some other pest and
2. Are the leaves damp or rotting in anyway?
I just looked it up, and appearently ,heat will kill them too. popping something suspicious in the microwave for 5 minutes is supposed to rid of them. (I say suspect, because obviouly if you can see them, you might as well toss it, those things cause E. Coli.)
I have never had a problem with weevils for I freeze my flour and cornmeals, etc. I leave them in the freezer and I keep a black permanent marker in the kitchen drawer to date mark my foods on they day they are put away. that way I can see what has become too old to keep. I also date mark opened and leftovero foods in the refrig.
Wow, thanks for all the great information. I got weevils in my pantry for the first time ever last month. I wasn’t sure how to handle it so I ended up throwing away everything that was opened and disinfecting it with a vinegar/water solution. Wish I had thought of bleach.
I think I will give the freezing thing and the bay leaves a try from now on to make sure that they don’t come back.
in today i need all the tip i can get
I get ice cream in the gallon and two gallon tub containers. When the ice cream is gone I clean the empty tubs and reuse them for my different types of flour and meal. They make great shake n bake containers for whatever coating I wish to put on chicken, steak, fish, or livers and gizzards. mix the seasonings and flour and meat. put the lid on and shake like crazy. very handy and easy to clean in the dishwasher.
My family’s always had a set of containers that we kept flour, sugar, and so forth inside. They snap shut, and were real cheap, adn it was clear so You can always see inside of it- plastic does a good job; we kept flour over the course of a year or so- maybe longer. They work well, and go with anything. I didn’t even know Weevils EXISTED until I saw someone’s bag of flour. my rule is use something you can hear snapping (not crinkling or clanking) shut. Ziplock, tupper-ware, stuff like that. NOT any kind of box, jar, paper or plastic(that isn’t ziplock) bag. Those all fall short.