Have you ever had a large swarm of small moths coming out of your kitchen cabinets or flying around your home?

Generally these are going to be the Indian Meal Moth.

The adults of this moth have a wing spread of about ¾”. The front wings are tan on the front third and reddish/brown with a coppery luster on the back two-thirds of the wings. Their larva is about ½” long, and usually a dirty white color, sometimes with a yellowish, greenish or even pinkish hue.

This moth is most often found in products in the home. The Indian Meal Moth larva (pdf) feeds on all types of grains and grain based products. They also love seeds, pet foods and treats, crackers, powdered milk, bread crumbs, nuts and almost any other dried foods. Having these moths in your home isn’t usually a cleanliness issue because they are normally packaged in the food when it was purchased. It only becomes a cleanliness issue if you don’t take measures to get rid of the insects.

Eradicating the infested food source is 75% of the battle, followed by a crack and crevice treatment to eliminate the stragglers.  It’s important to note that there are other moths that look similar but may have different habits, and this is why a professional technician should be called out to properly identify the problem.

Centipedes are common house pests that are often misidentified by a homeowner. The most common homeowner description of a centipede is a big spider with lots of legs.

The body of a house centipede is usually about 1″ to 1- ½” long and has 15 pairs of very long legs, which is why it’s often confused with a spider. The body of a house centipede is grayish yellow with three dark stripes extending along the full length of the back; which also makes the insect look larger than it really is.

One major difference between the house centipede and other species of centipedes is that the house centipede generally lives its entire life inside a building, where most other species will live primarily outside.

In homes and other buildings, the house centipede prefers damp areas such as closets, cellars, bathrooms and unexcavated areas under the house. House centipedes will lay their eggs behind baseboards and the bark of firewood stored inside the building.

Aside from their creepy appearance, house centipedes are considered to be a beneficial insect since the bug hunts at night for spiders, smaller insects and their larvae. House centipedes typically leave humans alone but on occasion, a house centipede will bite which could cause swelling and redness.

Treatments by a professional pest control company are all a homeowner needs to keep house centipedes at bay.