Picture this: you get home after a long week at work, and you and the family have big plans to make a cake and enjoy the weekend. You go to the pantry to grab the flour, open it up, and find there are small, dark specks in it. If this sounds familiar, you may have a grain beetle infestation in your home.
Grain beetles are a group of pantry pests that we deal with here in Woodlands. As their name suggests, they feed primarily on grains and other stored foods. Some of the common species of grain beetle we see include:
- Flour beetles
- Cigarette beetles
- Drug store beetles
Learn about grain beetles in Woodlands, the issues they cause, and what you can do to prevent them from the experts at All-Safe Pest and Termite.
Are Grain Beetles Dangerous?
It can be alarming to find bugs in your home, especially in your food. The good news about having a grain beetle issue is that they aren’t dangerous pests. The biggest issue with grain beetles is what they can do to your food. Having a grain beetle infestation makes food unfit for consumption and can cost you money since you will have to throw away and replace any food that these pests make their way into.
How Grain Beetle Infestations Start
Grain beetles usually make their way into your home in one of two ways. The first way is through an infestation that starts at the source, where the food was packaged. Grain beetles can make their way into factories and other food processing facilities and then get into your home when you buy food that was already infested.
An infestation in your home can also begin with an adult grain beetle getting into your home and laying eggs. These pests prefer to lay their eggs in or around grain, so they have a food source after they hatch. Depending on the species, grain beetles can lay between 50-300 eggs per year, and they only take about 10 days to hatch, meaning an infestation can spread very quickly.
What Can I Do To Prevent Grain Beetles?
With as fast as an infestation can spread, the best thing you can do is prevent grain beetles from getting into your home in the first place. Here are some tips to prevent a grain beetle infestation:
- Keep food storage areas clean and sanitized.
- Purchase grains, cereals, spices, and other items that grain beetles feed on in small quantities.
- Always use the older products in your pantry first.
- Store food in a refrigerator or freezer if possible.
- Keep stored products in glass or plastic containers with lids that seal tightly.
- Clean your pantry thoroughly, using a vacuum to get into the corners and crevices.
- Wipe up any spills quickly.
These steps will help keep grain beetles and other pantry pests out of your home and food.
Professional Help
If you do find grain beetles in your food, the first thing you need to do is throw away any food you find that has these pests in it. You also need to get professional help to make sure the infestation is eliminated, or else it will return.
At All-Safe Pest and Termite, our trained pest control experts can work with you to make sure the grain beetle infestation you are dealing with is completely eliminated. We can also develop a pest control plan for your home that prevents grain beetles, and the other pests that are common in the Woodlands so you can live and eat without worrying about pest problems.