Weevil often settles next to a person and very quickly makes pasta, flour and cereals unusable. It can be found in any country. Despite the fact that these bugs cannot fly, they move to new territory at a record speed.
If a weevil is found in the apartment, then you need to get rid of it immediately, as the females lay a lot of eggs. By the way, you can see only adult insects, and eggs and larvae are inside cereal grains. Therefore, it is not known how many more of them will appear. It is important to know how to get rid of the weevil in the apartment. This is a serious matter that requires careful consideration.
What is a pest
Weevils in the apartment (photo) appear quite often, especially with improper storage of cereals and pasta. This beetle has a long history, as the first mention of it was found in ancient Egypt.
Even then, the insect penetrated the vaults and destroyed supplies. Although the beetle is mostlyprefers a tropical climate, some of its species feel good in more severe conditions. For many years, it has not lost its activity and quite often appears where various products are stored. Therefore, it is important to know how to deal with it and prevent it from appearing where food is stored.
It is quite difficult to see what the weevil looks like, since the size of an adult insect is on average 3.5 mm. At the initial stage of its development, it is light brown, but as it grows, it acquires a more saturated shade. The weevil got its name because of the special structure of the elongated head, which crowns its body, which resembles a cylinder in shape. The insect does not know how to fly, but it moves very quickly with the help of its legs.
Its distinctive feature is very powerful jaws, so the weevil in the apartment can easily break the integrity of the packaging material and get to the products. For his comfortable stay, the temperature should be 10-25 degrees, humidity - 65%.
The female beetle gnaws holes in the grains and lays eggs in them, from which larvae appear after about 2 weeks. Developing, they eat out grains from the inside and pupate. The hatched bug gnaws through the wall of the cereal and is outside. It is because of this that insects are very difficult to detect at an early stage. Already adults are becoming noticeable.
The structure of weevils varies somewhat depending on their species. They are short-bodied and long-bodied. Their main feature is the length of the rostrumand location of mouthparts. In addition, they can develop inside the plant or in the soil.
Reproduction of bugs occurs in warm weather. Some species give offspring without fertilization. With a favorable climate, the breeding process takes place all year round.
What are the types
It is important not only to know where the weevils come from in the apartment, but also what types of bugs there are. In total, there are approximately 65 thousand varieties of insects. However, only 54 thousand species live in our country. Basically, bugs appear in the house, such as:
- granary;
- rice;
- striped;
- vegetable;
- fruity;
- nutty.
The barn weevil can't fly, but its paws make up for this shortcoming. The insect runs very quickly over long distances. Despite the fact that the bug is small, it is very voracious. The insect regales itself with flour, cereals and pasta.
Rice weevils often appear in the apartment, photos of which allow you to accurately determine how they look. It destroys not only rice. The beetle calmly eats other cereals, as well as bread. This type of insect can use wings. It infects grains still in the fields.
Striped nodule destroys leguminous plants. This insect eats not only fruits. It also eats the leaves, roots and shoots of plants. Vegetable weevils can completely destroy the entire vegetable crop in the garden.
Fruit elephants are the biggest enemiesfruit trees. Beetles feed on flowers, buds and fruits. The larvae can also feed on roots. The nut weevil lays its eggs in nuts that have not yet matured, in particular walnuts and hazelnuts. In the spring, bugs hatch from the nut. They start spoiling other food stored in the pantry or cupboard.
Why are they dangerous
The weevil beetle appears quite often in the apartment, as it settles in cereals in warehouses. Harm from an insect can be in any of its life spans. The larvae eat the stems or roots. The acorn weevil grows right in the fruit of the oak tree and feeds on its interior.
Elephants eat almost all types of vegetation, but pests can be divided into several varieties that consume only a certain crop, namely:
- berry;
- legumes and grains;
- vegetables;
- vineyards;
- fruit.
The weevil is not a predator. It does not bite, but does quite a lot of harm. People should not eat contaminated food. In such food, the chitinous particles of the insect and the products of its vital activity are preserved. Even a he althy person can begin to suffer from intestinal disorders. Allergy sufferers and people with weakened immune systems can get serious illnesses.
Insects can be the culprit of dangerous bacteria and fungal infections. That is why you need to immediately get rid of the weevil in the apartment. There are many different ways to do this.
Where do they come fromweevils
Quite often weevils appear in the apartment. Where they come from is of interest to many people, since bugs are very dangerous. The insect destroys all the products that it can get to. This pest quickly adapts to a new environment and tolerates various natural changes quite freely.
A person himself launches weevils into the house along with products from a store or market. Cereal products are infected with them while still in the warehouse, and then they end up on packaging and store shelves.
Purchasing products with weevil faces and eggs in the store, they are very difficult to notice, as the grains remain clogged inside. And only when an adult emerges from them, it will be possible to notice traces of damage and the bugs themselves.
How to deal with weevils
If weevils appeared in the apartment, absolutely everyone should know how to get rid of them, since they do quite a lot of harm. It is quite possible to get rid of insects, the main thing is to do it immediately after they are found in products.
If at least one bug appears, then you need to carefully check all pasta, cereals and even tea. Contaminated products must be immediately sent to the garbage chute. Those products that are not near the source of infection, you need to try to secure. To do this, you can influence them with low temperature. It is dangerous at all stages of development of this insect, so you can put packs of cereal in the freezer for a couple of days or, if it's frosty outside, take them out to the balcony. In addition, you can warm the cereal in the oven. It will be enough to keep food in it for several hours at a temperature of 60 degrees.
After the weevil was found in the cereal and the affected products were destroyed, it is imperative to wipe all the walls and shelves of the cabinets with soapy water, and then carefully treat the surfaces with vinegar diluted with water.
These are fairly simple measures that do not cause any difficulties at all. However, they are an integral part of pest control. After carrying out these activities, in the future you can use chemical and folk remedies to combat the weevil.
Use of chemicals
If weevils appeared in the apartment (photo), everyone should know how to get rid of them, as they spoil a lot of food. It should be borne in mind that absolutely any drugs used must be absolutely safe for humans. This is due to the fact that insects live in products. Setting traps or arranging drugs on shelves are simply ineffective methods of control.
In order to prevent the spread of the weevil in the apartment, it is necessary to carry out the treatment with such means as "Inta-Vir" or "Furafon". You need to cook them strictly according to the instructions.
In addition, it is possible to carry out chemical processing of stocks of cereals with such preparations as Aktellik, Arrivo, Karate. It is worth remembering that only specialists should carry out the processing. People can be in the room only after thorough ventilation. Thisthe method helps to completely destroy the weevils, however, it is not recommended to consume processed foods.
Folk techniques
Many people are interested in how to get rid of the weevil bug in the apartment with folk methods. Mustard powder and water are considered a good remedy. To make a solution, you need to dissolve 100 g of mustard in 3 liters of settled water. With this tool, you can treat the shelves in the cabinets in the kitchen where cereals are stored, or spray houseplants.
On the shelves you can lay out plants such as tansy, wormwood, lavender, bay leaf. They have a pungent odor. Mint and cloves are also suitable. If there is oil or lavender extract, then you can moisten a cotton pad in them and leave it on the shelf with cereals. Mint, citrus peel, eucalyptus have a deterrent effect. You can put unpeeled garlic cloves directly into a container with cereals.
If a rice weevil appeared in the apartment, then you can scare it off by treating the possible places of their appearance with a mixture of ammonia, turpentine, kerosene and liquid soap, taken in equal proportions.
Prophylaxis
When weevils appeared in the apartment, you need to immediately fight them. In addition, it is important to take certain preventive measures that will help prevent their recurrence. To do this, you do not need to buy too many bulk groceries. Stocks should be enough for no more than 2-3 months. The longer food is stored, the higher the risk of insect infestation.
For prevention, you can seal the purchased flour in a bag,intended for freezing and send to the freezer for 96 hours. This will help destroy weevils and their eggs if the product has already been contaminated.
Store bulk products best in airtight containers. It is important to strictly monitor their expiration date. In the kitchen, you need to maintain cleanliness, immediately clean up anything that spilled or spilled. Regularly wipe the shelves and walls of cabinets with soapy water and clove oil. It is enough to deliver just a few drops of aroma oil. The surface can be wiped with tea tree oil or eucalyptus oil.
Peeled garlic cloves, cloves, lavender flowers, bay leaves can be laid out on the surface of the shelves. Bay leaves can also be placed in a food container. It is recommended to send 2-3 pieces of nutmeg to the flour. In a bag with beans or peas - pour a little dried hot pepper. After a while, the bugs will leave the products. Next to the bags of cereal, place packages of mint chewing gum.
If the insects in the kitchen have nothing to eat, they will not stay in such a house. It is imperative to adhere to the basic rules of prevention, in particular, such as:
- use sealed containers made of plastic or glass to store cereals;
- do not stockpile nuts and cereals;
- monitor the level of humidity in the room;
- regularly wipe surfaces with a solution of vinegar and soap.
It is important to regularly check products in order to start the fight againstbugs.
Tips & Tricks
To prevent weevils from settling in the apartment, you need to follow the basic rules for storing food. So, in lockers where stocks of cereals, flour and pasta are stored, there should always be perfect cleanliness. Avoid using paper and plastic bags. The best option would be plastic, tin or glass containers with a tight-fitting lid. They are specially designed for food storage.
Before pouring the cereal into a container, it must first be washed using a detergent or simply wiped with a towel dipped in a weak solution of vinegar. After that, dry the container well. The optimal level of humidity in a container for storing flour or cereals can be maintained by placing a bag of natural fabric filled with s alt on its bottom. Stocks of cereals in the house should not be too large. You need to buy food on the basis that they will last for 2-3 months.
When buying flour or cereals, you need to pay attention to when they were produced and packaged. To prevent the possibility of the formation of insects in flour, certain preventive measures must be taken. If possible, store cereals and pasta in the refrigerator so that the temperature is no higher than 10 degrees.
Product storage rules
To store cereals and pasta, it is recommended to purchase containers made of food-grade plastic, glass or stainless steel with tight-fitting lids. It is not recommended to use paper bags, as the weevil will easily gnaw through them. Before reuse, the container must be washed with a solution of s alt and soda. To do this, dilute 1 tsp. in 1 st. water. Mustard and vinegar, taken in the same proportions, helps.
Bulk products should be stored in dry containers in a cool, dark place, preferably on the bottom shelf of a kitchen cabinet. To repel insects, put a dried orange peel on the bottom of the container.
