What Do Moths on a Rug Look Like?


With the longer days of spring upon us, we are well into clearing out all things winter and welcoming all warmer weather related happiness.  As part of this, many people are taking time to do deeper cleanings and are undertaking a wise careful inspection of their rugs.  As such, we wanted to remind readers what to look for in terms of any potential moth damage.  What does an active or past moth infestation look like?  The photo above is a good example of moth damage.  Moths tend to look like sticky white glue-like substances on the pile of the rug, in particular, on the wool sections of the rug.  It is really incredible to us even after all these years of restoring moth damaged rugs, just how moths can completely devour entire wool sections of rugs, and leave cotton fibers (like those making up the warp and weft in some rugs) completely untouched.  If you spot moths, it is important that you immediately isolate the rug from all other wool rugs and textiles and have the rug professionally cleaned as soon as possible to prevent the spread of the moth damage.  In addition, you should thoroughly clean the floor and area under the rug.  If the rug was on a pad, we recommend discarding the pad and replacing it with a new one.  If you catch moth damage early, a cleaning and minimal repair might be the only things that are necessary.  But if moths are left to devour a rug for an extended period of time, a more extensive restoration might be needed.  --    
                                           
                                                          www.traditionalrugrepair.com