Not so fast! Are you about to introduce your favorite wool coat to the back of the closet for its summer hibernation? It isn’t a good idea – especially if you don’t want to discover moth holes when you pull it out this fall.
Cold weather clothes like heavy silks, cashmere sweaters, and wool coats need to be properly cleaned and prepared for their seasonal slumber if you want to prevent them from getting munched on by moths. It’s why we’re offering our two current discount specials on winter clothing right now. Besides saving money, here’s why you should take advantage of these two cleaning specials.
Blame It on the Kids
Butterflies and moths are closely related. It might be difficult to believe – we’re all used to blaming the holes we find in our silk and wool clothes on moths – but nearly all butterflies and moths only eat plant nectar. In fact, most adult moths and butterflies don’t even have the ability to chew on things. They have what’s known as a proboscis, which is a tube-like apparatus that allows them to sip the nectar from flowers, or other liquids.
Those moths you see fluttering out of your closet have no interest in munching on your wool or silk garments. There are only two moth species throughout most of North America that damage clothes. They are members of the family Tineidae bisselliella, more commonly known as the casemaking clothes moth or the webbing clothes moth.
Blame the holes you find in your clothes on their gluttonous children. Although they can’t eat your clothes, the adult moths know exactly what’s best for their offspring. It’s your winter wool coat or you’re your favorite cashmere sweater.
Adult moths seek out garments made of these natural materials because it contains keratin, a natural protein that turns out to be extremely nutritious for larval moths. When they hatch, they’ve got only one purpose – to feast on as much appropriate food as possible in order to prepare to become a moth. And yes, a larval moth has a very capable mouth that’s evolved to grind up keratin-rich silk or wool fibers.
Most moths are attracted to light. These two species are not, so it’s no surprise that they prefer to hang out in your dark closet toward the back – where your winter wool coat just happens to be for the summer.
Ruining Their Appetite
It’s not just the keratin found in wool or silk that attracts moths. Any protein-based stain will get their attention, too. That’s why it’s important to have your winter season garments professionally laundered and prepared for storage. Food stains on silk and wool are difficult to remove if you let them sit long periods of time, which is another reason to get your winter coats and sweaters to Wayzata Home Laundry and Dry Cleaners.
The professional dry cleaning process we use for these types of garments cleans, removes moth larvae, and gets your winter coats and sweaters ready for their summertime slumber in the back of the closet.
Through the month of May, take advantage of our 20% discount on cleaning Winter Coats & Jackets (every Thursday through May, 2019) and Sweaters (every Friday through May, 2019).