How to Get rid of Carpet Beetles Naturally | Prevent Carpet Beetles Infestation

Carpet beetles are a kind of beetles that generally feed on different types of materials made from animals such as animal hair, wool, fur, leather and silk.

They generally don’t like synthetic fabric but if soiled with oil or food, they might change their mind. These beetles enter your homes through open windows, doors, or even through holes. They can also come in through flowers or plants from the outdoors. 

Not many know but, if they bite you, it may cause itching or even rashes on your skin. It may also lead to different skin diseases such as dermatitis, vasculitis, and lymphadenopathy.

Larvae of a carpet beetle feed on wool, fur, silk, and other products and can cause severe damage to your household furniture, materials, carpets, clothing, etc.,

If you are someone who is surfing on the internet to get rid of these small devilish creatures, then you might have just clicked on the right article. 

Are Carpet Beetles harmful?

Carpet beetles do not bite humans but can cause rashes as well as skin and respiratory tract irritation through their hair.

Larvae carpet battles can cause more damage as compared to adult carpet beetles as they are not easy to notice and hence, can easily damage food items.

13 Ways to Get rid of Carpet Beetles Naturally

Here are the most effective natural ways to get rid of carpet beetles.

1. Use Alcohol

If you are aware of the carpet beetles in your house at a very early stage, alcohol might just be the thing you need. Before it gets out of your hand, regularly apply alcohol to get rid of carpet beetle from your house.

Alcohol will melt the cells of these beetles. It will just save you from further infestations, which would be a huge load off your shoulders. Alcohol is found in all the carpet beetle sprays as it is very effective. 

How to apply alcohol to get rid of Carpet Beetles?

  • Add alcohol to a sprayer
  • Isopropyl alcohol is best when it comes to getting rid of these bugs.
  • Spray the alcohol directly on the furniture or clothing which has been affected by the beetles.
  • Wipe it off immediately with the help of a cloth, so that the carpet beetles and their eggs are removed.
  • You need to wash your cloth or furniture with water after using alcohol, as it may leave an uneasy smell.

2. Use Cider Vinegar

Cider Vinegar is one of the best things you could use to get rid of the Carpet beetles, as it can be found in any kitchen and is very effective. It will help you to get rid of carpet beetles from your house without causing much harm to your housing environment and your family.

It is a natural enemy of pests as it is a natural pesticide. It is very good for cleaning carpets or wooden furniture naturally.

How to apply Cider Vinegar to get rid of Carpet Beetles?

  • Pour it in a sprayer
  • You could even add borax to the mixture
  • Spray it directly on the affected area
  • Keep it on for 5-10 minutes
  • Wipe it off with the help of a dry cloth.

3. Use Cedar Oil

Cedar oil will help you get rid of these beetles from your house in several ways. It can cause them suffocation and osmotic dehydration, thereby killing them, or they also have the ability to dissolve the eggs and larvae of the carpet beetles. This approach won’t only repel them but kill them.

How to apply Cedar Oil to get rid of Carpet Beetles?

  • Pour it in a sprayer
  • Add water to it 
  • Spray it directly on the area infested by the carpet beetles
  • Keep it on for 5-10 minutes
  • Wipe it off with a dry cloth

4. Use Neem Oil

It’s said that, once these Carpet beetles have grown fully, they are hard to kill. But, not when you use Neem oil, it can kill them at any phase of their lifecycle.

Neem oil kills them by weakening the functioning of the hormonal system of these pesticides because of the compounds present in neem oil. Once their hormonal system malfunctions, the carpet beetles stop mating, eating, flying, and laying eggs.

Even if they are successful in laying eggs, those eggs won’t hatch, and eventually, they will be wiped out from your furniture or carpets. 

How to apply Neem Oil to get rid of Carpet Beetles?

  • Pour it in a sprayer
  • Apply it directly to the affected area
  • Keep it on for 5-10 minutes
  • Wipe it off with a piece of cloth

5. Steam clean them

Killing them with hot water is more effective than cold water, or even better you could steam them, which will chock them and they will eventually die. You could also use any detergent while applying stem. 

How to Steam clean carpet beetles?

  • Use a dryer to steam clean
  • Make sure to do it outside your house
  • Blow the steam directly on the affected area
  • Steam will melt them away or at least choke them to death

6. Freezing method to get rid of carpet beetles

There are clothes that you cannot dry clean or wash in hot water, for such types of products, freezing is the best option to get rid of the carpet beetles. The carpet beetle cannot survive the freeze and thus get killed immediately. 

How to freeze carpet beetles?

  • Put your clothes in a plastic bag
  • Make it an air-tight one
  • Put the bag in a freezer for 2-3 days
  • Take it out and then wash it with some detergent to remove all the dead beetles
  • Dry it properly

7. Use Mothballs

You can add mothballs to your clothes or wooden furniture, to prevent them from getting infected by Carpet beetles. You can put them in areas where you see beetle activities.

You also need to take full care while using mothballs, as they are harmful to humans as well. So, while it can kill the beetles, it’s very dangerous for you as well.

How does Mothballs to get rid of Carpet Beetles?

  • Take 4-5 mothballs
  • Place it on the affected areas
  • Beetles will wander into the trap of mothballs
  • The smell of it will kill them
  • It takes time, but will eventually kill them all

8. Use Borax

Borax is another way to kill carpet beetles. It is made up of natural compounds and is also easily available.

Due to the effect of Borax powder, the carpet beetles will get suffocated, and eventually, it will kill them. But you shouldn’t use it frequently, as it’s not that good for humans. You can easily find it in the laundry aisle at your nearest local department store. 

How to apply Borax to get rid of Carpet beetles?

  • Get a cup of borax
  • Sprinkle it around your carpet, rugs, and furniture 
  • Don’t sprinkle it directly on the affected area
  • Sprinkle it around the affected area
  • Let it rest for about 10-15 minutes
  • You will notice that the  carpet beetles have all gone away from its smell 
  • Then vacuum it up with the help of a vacuum cleaner

9. Vacuum them out

Vacuuming is one of the most obvious ways to get rid of the carpet beetles. Once you have vacuumed your house, make sure to throw away the dust with beetles, far away from your home. 

How to vacuum to get rid of Carpet beetles?

There are no particular steps that you need to follow,

  • Just vacuum your entire house frequently
  • if that’s not possible, at least vacuum the affected areas
  • Vacuum your house on a regular basis to clear the carpet beetles infestation
  • You need to at least vacuum your house twice a week.
  • Throw them away from house, so they don’t wander back 

10. Diatomaceous earth 

Diatomaceous earth is fine white dust that can naturally be found on the earth’s surface. This product falls under the mothball category, as it could harm both the donor and recipient. This is a natural product that kills carpet beetles very effectively. 

How to use Diatomaceous earth to get rid of Carpet beetles?

  • Sprinkle Diatomaceous earth  on the affected rug or carpet
  • Then spread it evenly by using a brush for clothes or a broom for your furniture
  • Keep it on for 10-15 minutes
  • Then you will notice that it slowly wears out the beetle’s outer layer of protection. 

11. Other Carpet Beetle Spray Made Of Essential Oils

There are many types of Carpet Beetle sprays that are made from different essential oils, Neem and Cedar are some of them which have been discussed in this article.

Other essential oils that are used are clove oil and peppermint oil. The names are different but they all have one mission- “kill the carpet beetles”. 

  • You can also make a Carpet beetle spray depending on which essential oil you prefer. 
  • For best results, make a carpet beetle spray by adding 9-10 drops of your selected essential oil to a glass of alcohol.
  • The oil will completely dissolve into the alcohol and can be used as a spray. 
  • Directly spray them on your furniture or clothes to see the effects.
  • Keep them on for 5-10 minutes 
  • Wipe them off with help of a cloth

12. Use Powdered Chrysanthemums

Powdered Chrysanthemum is one of the most widely used natural insecticides. It is made from the dried flower heads of Chrysanthemum cinerariifolium and Chrysanthemum coccineum.

Many would think as it is a natural product, it won’t be that harmful, but you will be surprised to know that it’s very dangerous. It can not only kill the carpet beetles or any other pests but also harm the small innocent insects as well. 

How to use Powdered Chrysanthemum to get rid of Carpet beetles?

  • Pick some flowers
  • Dry them in a place with proper air circulation
  • Once dried, grind them into fine powder
  • Sprinkle it over the beetles infested area
  • Keep it on for 30 minutes
  • Clean it with water
  • Dry it properly in sunlight

13. Use of Eucalyptus Oil

Eucalyptus oil is an excellent way of controlling carpet beetles infestations right at the start. But Eucalyptus oil can only be used for mild infestations. It won’t be helpful when matters get out of hands.

How to apply Eucalyptus oil to get rid of Carpet beetles?

  • Add 20 drops of Eucalyptus oil
  • Add 10 drops of tea tree oil
  • 1 cup of water
  • Mix them properly
  • Pour the mixture into a sprayer
  • Spray the mixture directly on the affected area
  • Keep it on for 5-10 minutes
  • Wipe it off with the help of a wet cloth

How to Prevent Carpet Beetles Infestation Naturally?

As it’s said “Prevention is better than cure”, therefore here are the 5 best ways you could protect your home from Carpet beetles.

1. Clean Regularly

Keeping your house clean is one of the best ways to repel Carpet beetles. These beetles crave messy and untidy spots in your house. Their main target is to lay eggs in dry and messy places, like dirty carpets, stinky clothes, and even furniture covered in dust.

You need to make sure to keep your surroundings clean to avoid them. If you have a pet, you need to keep him/her clean as well, as carpet beetles can enter your house with them.

They just stick to the hair of your pet and enter your house unnoticed. The cleaner your house is, the least likely you’ll suffer from any type of infestation.

2. Use a Preventive spray

Preventive Spray is useful for those who have suffered the horrors of Carpet beetles previously. There are multiple sprays that are available in the market for this purpose, some of the best preventive sprays are: 

  • Tempo SC Ultra
  • Syngenta 73654 Demand CS Insecticide
  • Ortho Home Defence MAX insect killer for indoor

These preventive sprays not only kill the carpet beetles and their larvae but will continue to kill them for up to 12 months. 

3. Use Boric Acid

Boric acid is something that Carpet beetles just don’t like. They just don’t like the smell of it. You just need to sprinkle it in your house, at places where infestation chances are very high, like on your carpet, at the edges of your furniture.

You will just need to vacuum the remaining of the acid after keeping it on for about 2 hours, and you shall see that your house is no more hotspot for carpet beetles. You can get it easily at any departmental store near your house. 

4. Seal all the cracks and holes

Don’t give them any chance to enter your house, keeping it clean is one way to do that, and the other being keeping all the doors closed for them.

Cracks and holes in your house are generally doors for them to enter. Make sure you seal them all with the help of concrete or cement. 

5. Store with Mothballs and plastic

Keeping mothballs in the most common area for infestation is like keeping a slice of cheese for catching mice in a cage. The carpet beetles get attracted towards it and then as they go near it, they are dead.

Carpet beetles hate mothballs a lot. But you need to be very careful while using them. They are harmful, wash your hand properly after handling them.

How to get rid of carpet beetle rash?

Many people are allergic to carpet beetles, these allergies are specifically due to larvae bristles or skin that’s been shed. The carpet beetle’s rash is caused when they come in contact with your skin, eyes, airways, and digestive tract.

The carpet beetle’s rash looks like random red spots on the skin. These rashes don’t remain for a long time, if taken proper care of, they will go away within two weeks.

A Few of the steps to get rid of the Carpet beetles rashes are:

  • Wash the bite with water and soap
  • You can apply calamine lotion to the bites directly
  • Go for an anti-itch cream if you are experiencing too much itching
  • Apply an ice pack wrapped in a towel to the bitten area
  • You can use the paste of baking soda and water to the bite
  • Essential oils are another good option to apply on rashes
  • Take an oral Antihistamine to reduce itching and burning sensation in and around the bite
  • Try not to scratch it, as it may increase the risk of infection

Conclusion:

It’s very easy to ignore the deeds of these Carpet beetles as they are very small in size and also their effects of infestations on your furniture and clothes are also gradual.

If you take too long to drive these pests out of your home sweet home, they can end up causing serious damage to your sweet home. So, I hope this article helps you to at least get rid of the Carpet beetles, if not kill them.