Hi Bernice, There are several factors to consider and eliminate in trying to figure out what environmental contributions are supporting Webbing clothes moths. If you’ve really got it narrowed down to just a couple of hundred square feet I’d be happy to have a phone chat to make sure you are ticking off all the boxes. My contact is below.
Adam Adam Osgood Collections Technician and IPM Coordinator Historic New England (he/him/his) Collections and Conservation Center 151 Essex Street Haverhill, MA 01832 617-994-6637 [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of Morris, Bernice Sent: Friday, September 18, 2020 3:31 PM To: [email protected] Subject: RE: [PestList] webbing clothes moth control and diatomaceous earth Thanks everyone, I have a grid of both traps with lures and without. We have data going back at least 15 years showing steady but moderate numbers with higher counts in the spring and fall. The trap captures don’t show just one source of infestation—they really are dispersed through a couple of hundred square feet of gallery space. We clean as best we can without real access to under platforms or in the ceiling and we avoid displaying any objects with proteinaceous material. I’m open to any and all suggestions the group has! Bernice From: 'bugman22' via MuseumPests <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> Sent: Friday, September 18, 2020 3:20 PM To: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Subject: Re: [PestList] webbing clothes moth control and diatomaceous earth The larvae, for which a dessicant would be aimed, are usually well hidden in the substrate materials where they are feeding. I seriously doubt if a dessicant would be of use. Tom Parker -----Original Message----- From: 'Majors, Gennifer' via MuseumPests <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> To: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Sent: Fri, Sep 18, 2020 2:07 pm Subject: Re: [PestList] webbing clothes moth control and diatomaceous earth At the Textile Museum we've had some success using Cimexa instead of diatomaceous earth (although this was for silverfish). Cimexa is essentially lab-made diatomaceous earth, and so it doesn't contain the crystalline silica that poses a risk of silicosis, but it does function the same way and could pose the same risk of just being a general desiccating irritant. Gennifer Majors Associate Conservator Foggy Bottom: 701 21st Street, NW • Washington, DC 20052<https://www.google.com/maps/search/Foggy+Bottom:+701+21st+Street,+NW%C2%A0+%E2%80%A2+Washington,+DC+20052?entry=gmail&source=g> Avenir Center: 44930 Knoll Square <https://www.google.com/maps/search/44930+Knoll+Square%C2%A0+%E2%80%A2+%C2%A0Ashburn,+VA+20147?entry=gmail&source=g> •<https://www.google.com/maps/search/44930+Knoll+Square%C2%A0+%E2%80%A2+%C2%A0Ashburn,+VA+20147?entry=gmail&source=g> Ashburn, VA 20147<https://www.google.com/maps/search/44930+Knoll+Square%C2%A0+%E2%80%A2+%C2%A0Ashburn,+VA+20147?entry=gmail&source=g> [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> [Image removed by sender.] On Fri, Sep 18, 2020 at 11:11 AM Morris, Bernice <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: Hello everyone, I’m in the planning stages of a campaign against an entrenched and long-term webbing clothes moth infestation in several adjoining galleries. I’m strongly in favor of a deep clean followed by the application of large amounts of diatomaceous earth. Some DE would be applied to cracks and crevices around platforms and below cases, but I’d concentrate large amounts into interstitial spaces behind walls, and above the ceiling tiles on the drop ceiling. I think I have a safe plan for the DE that would go in the lower interstitial spaces, but I have concerns about its use near the ceiling air vents since DE can be a respiratory irritant. Has anyone dealt with this problem? Is there a way to protect or consolidate the DE so it does not enter the HVAC system? Is there a better solution for the areas near the air vents? I’d love to hear opinions from this always helpful group. Bernice Bernice Morris Associate Conservator of Costume and Textiles t 215-684-7579 f 215-684-7550 Philadelphia Museum of Art PO Box 7646, Philadelphia, PA 19101-7646 www.philamuseum.org<http://www.philamuseum.org/> -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MuseumPests" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/pestlist/21572ca851b74e65b4126ca60b93a0d9%40philamuseum.org<https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/pestlist/21572ca851b74e65b4126ca60b93a0d9%40philamuseum.org?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer>. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MuseumPests" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>. 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