Ever since the weather got warmer, we've been finding moths around our flat. They're little brown ones which look like scraps of brown paper. When I was away last weekend, Rob went on a determined hunt and killed all the moths he could find. For a few days, we were moth-free, but I knew it wouldn't last. They must be breeding in the flat somewhere. Killing off all the adults we could find wasn't getting to the source of the problem.
Today I found it. I was searching for an elusive 3.5mm circular needle to swatch with. I wasn't having much luck, so I took all my wool bags and baskets off the top shelf and started to rootle them. Imagine my horror on finding my baskets of oddments full of little grey-ish specks and papery cocoons. I squished one of the cocoons and found it full of sliminess - a definitely active clothes moth larva. :( Many of my odd balls were full of cocoons and eggs and some were chewed into short lengths.
Three wicker baskets full of oddments have now gone straight off to the bins (which are outside and a distance from the building). I've had a look through the other bags of wool that were up there and they look ok, but I don't think I want to risk it. I've put some precious whole skeins in the freezer (including my gorgeous honeymoon yarn), but I suspect that I shall just ditch much of the rest. It's mostly oddments, odd balls and partial skeins, although there's a large-ish amount of Rowan 4ply soft I'm hoping to make into a short sleeved jumper that I don't want to bin.
Fortunately, my stash isn't enormous. I've got maybe half a dozen balls/skeins of sock wool, my honeymoon laceweight, the Rowan, a couple of things I've got 4 or 5 balls of (left over from jumpers) and then oddments, which I doubt I''ll miss. I hope this will teach me to keep my stash small, and to keep it in sealed plastic bags, not open wicker baskets.
Next, a grand search of the rest of the flat. Starting with the laundry basket which has several dirty woollen items which have been waiting a while to be washed. I fear the worst. :S
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O no! Evil moths!!
We had a similar icky moth problem with the dirty honey comb last summer. We used to keep it all in a shed and fumigate at the end of the summer but our new apiary building, whilst very nice and shiney and new, doesn't have a shed. It has a vary warm little room apparently perfect for wax moth breeding! We (and by we I mean Jenny) had to chuck a load of good frames just crawling with the things:S
We now have freezers to freeze all dirty combs before storing. Hopefully no more moths this summer...
I hope you manage to salvage some of your good wool!! I'll have to remember to check my own tiny stash in the bottom of my cuppboard... Slightly worried now:S
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