How to get rid of cigarette and drugstore beetles?

[tzelyn]

Hi, is there anything I can use to control/eliminate cigarette / drugstore beetle issue? May have located the source and thrown this out, but still finding these beetles in the pantry and  areas apart from the pantry. Are there any solutions e.g. spray / traps? 

[Akanksha]

A warm welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community, @tzelyn. We're thrilled to have you join us.

Thanks for your question. Our resident Bunnings D.I.Y. expert @MitchellMc will be happy to assist as soon as he can.

Let me also tag our ever-helpful members @robchin and @Aussie-Garden to see if they have any thoughts.

Thanks for your patience in the meantime.

Akanksha

[Aussie-Garden]

G'day @tzelyn.

I have no experience with traps and sprays, so I am sorry about that and I am sorry you have this situation.

What I can add is that you were correct in eliminating the source.

It's best to put the source in a sealed bag and dispose of it, so you don't have any escapees in the process.

If you have suspicions on rice and flour in the pantry, a method people use is to place bags or rice or flour into a freezer for 5-7 days to kill off any larvae that might be in there.

When defrosting, some people will place the bags on cake racks and leave them overnight to minimize any form of condensation.

Then once clearly back at room temperature and no signs of condensation, store the rice/flour in containers with a good seal.

This may not be for you, but I thought I would share this information for yourself and future readers as might help in some way.

You said you "may" have found the source and thrown it out, so certainly look into what else you have stored and how it is stored.

A good vacuum and wipe down in the pantry and wipe of pantry containers could not hurt too.

Good luck and hopefully you can get on top of it.

[tzelyn]

Thank you @Aussie-Garden ! At this stage, I am just keeping an eye on it. After what I did, they seem to be less last night but I did buy a couple of pheromone traps and have put them out. Not sure if it will do anything, but figured will try. 

[Aussie-Garden]

@tzelyn, sounds like a plan!

Good luck!

[MitchellMc]

Hi @tzelyn,

Depending on how well you can resolve the issue, you might consider using an insect bomb in the kitchen. Please follow all recommended advice on the packaging.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell