Have you started noticing small bugs inside of your bedroom? Are they making your skin crawl? Weevils are a common nuisance pest and can sneak into your home through your groceries or a crack in the door. If they’ve made their way into your bedroom and you’re wondering how you can get rid of them, you’re in the right place. We’ve researched in depth how to rid your bedroom of these annoying bugs.
Weevils are a type of small beetle. They live inside and consume grains and starches. Some steps you can take to remove weevils from your bedroom are to:
- Clean and remove any weevil food source from your bedroom
- Check your kitchen for other weevil infestations
- Use pesticides and traps
- Use weevil deterrents
We’ve given you some steps you can take to remove weevils from your bedroom, but what exactly are weevils and what are they attracted to? Are you more likely to see them at night? Keep reading as we answer these and more questions you might have about weevils. We’ll also go into detail about each of our steps listed above!
What Are Weevils?
Weevils, known for their elongated snout, are also known as flour bugs. They begin their life inside of a grain and eat their way out. They are fully matured by the time they emerge and then continue to eat the grains around them. You’ll notice weevils around dry grains such as rice, beans, or seeds, so the best way to know if you have weevils is by checking any of these products you might have in your home.
Weevils are a very small type of beetle with over 60,000 species known, so the chance of identifying the type that’s made its home in your bedroom is pretty small. Luckily, you don’t need to know the species of weevil you have in order to treat the problem because the processes are the same.
What Do Weevils Look Like?
Weevils are very small, brown or reddish in color, and are about the size of a grain of rice (around 3 mm).
Steps To Remove Weevils From Your Bedroom
Now that you’re aware of what these pests look like, let’s break down the steps for getting rid of them.
1. Clean And Remove Weevil Food Sources From Your Bedroom
It is actually uncommon for weevils to infest your bedroom. However, weevils live and lay eggs inside their food source, so they probably hitched a ride into your bedroom on one of your snacks. The first step is to clean your bedroom and remove any potential weevil food sources. Remove any leftover food from your room and thoroughly vacuum your entire space.
What Are Weevils Attracted To?
Wheat, rice, bean, seed, and maize weevils are the most likely to invade your bedroom. Like their name states, these weevils are attracted to the food you’d likely find in your pantry. Try to limit bringing any food into your room until you can be sure the weevils are gone.
2. Check Your Kitchen For Other Weevil Infestations
Unfortunately just cleaning out your bedroom probably won’t solve your weevil problem. Since they probably got into your bedroom through some kind of packaged food, there’s a good chance you have more of the pesky bugs in your kitchen. After cleaning your room, head to the kitchen, and be prepared to deep clean.
Remove any packaged foods with obvious weevil infestations and throw them in the trash. Immediately bag up the infested items and remove them from the house to prevent any chance of them getting back in.
Vacuum and wipe down the cabinets thoroughly with hot soapy water, a bleach-water solution, or vinegar-water solution, making sure to get any crumbs or flour particles. Try to leave nothing for the weevils to munch on.
3. Use Pesticides And Traps
Diatomaceous Earth
Diatomaceous earth can help deter and kill weevils. Sprinkle or dust it around the edge of your kitchen cabinets, your bedroom carpet, or any other location you’ve seen weevils. Let it sit for a few days and then vacuum it up. Diatomaceous earth is completely safe for pets and children, making it a great alternative to harsher pesticides.
Click here to see diatomaceous earth on Amazon.
Insecticides
If even after cleaning you are still finding weevils in your home, you can try a pesticide such as D-Force that is specifically made to kill insects, such as weevils, for up to 8 weeks. Make sure to follow the manufacturer’s instructions on the can to safely and accurately apply the insecticide.
Click here to see this insecticide on Amazon.
Glue Traps
If you want to keep chemicals out of your home, consider purchasing pantry glue traps instead. These are also a good idea to have even after you eliminate your weevil infestation. They can alert you quickly if the weevils happen to find their way back to your cabinets in the future.
Click here to see pantry pest traps on Amazon.
4. Use Weevil Deterrents
Now that you’ve successfully rid your bedroom and kitchen of weevils, how can you stop them from coming back? Well, there are a couple of things you can try.
Freeze Any Dry Foods
A great way to prevent weevils from invading your home is to freeze any dry foods for 3-5 days before storing them in your kitchen. This will kill off both larvae and mature weevil bugs.
Air-tight Containers
Don’t think you’re safe from weevils because your food is unopened. Weevils can easily chew their way through the packaging to lay eggs inside. Remove any dry foods from their original packaging and store them inside airtight containers.
Bay Leaves
Bay leaves are a natural deterrent of weevils. You can place a few dry bay leaves in your pantry or cabinets whole or crush them and sprinkle them around. If you place whole leaves in your cabinets, switch them out for new ones every couple of months. The great thing about bay leaves is that they not only deter weevils, they also keep away other pantry insects.
Inspect Your Groceries
Inspecting your groceries for weevils before they have time to spread to other dry food products is the best way to prevent another infestation. Check any packaged foods thoroughly before storing them in your pantry or cabinets.
Do Weevils Come Out At Night?
Weevils obviously don’t mind the dark since they are usually found inside dark cabinets and pantries, but that doesn’t mean they emerge only at night. Root weevils, a type of weevil that will cause damage to your garden, are nocturnal. But since flour and grain weevils are almost always in the dark because of the location of their food, you are likely to see them active throughout the day.
If you are seeing weevils in your room at night, make sure you are not misidentifying bed bugs. Bed bugs are nocturnal and will be most noticeable at night.
Do Weevils Bite Humans?
Fortunately, weevils are completely harmless to humans. They will not bite you or your pets. That being said, if you are convinced you were bit by what you thought was a weevil, make sure you aren’t mistaking another problematic insect such as fleas or bedbugs for weevils. For reference, we’ve included the images of a bedbug and weevil below.
Bedbug
Weevil
You might also be worrying that you consumed a weevil since they make their home inside pantry staples. But fear not, though the thought of it might gross you out, consuming a weevil will not harm you either.
Final Thoughts
Though weevils are annoying, they are also harmless, and treating your home for them isn’t all that difficult. Take a day to spring clean your bedroom and kitchen and you should be on your way to a weevil-free home in no time! Keep in mind our preventative tips and hopefully, you won’t have to deal with a weevil infestation again in the future.