And the worst is over. We have pantry moths, and have for some time. I've been ignoring the problem. :-/ I was too pregnant to cope with it when it became obvious. Finally, the other day, my DS1 found a "tiny caterpillar" crawling on one of his jellybeans (!) and ugh, had to do something. I was worried DH would be freaked out about it, but not so much, fortunately. (He grew up in a really clean house; his mom is a semi-neat freak, and they had a great housekeeper in twice a week for much of his childhood. I grew up in a sty, where you ALWAYS checked the flour for bugs before using it.)
I did the top shelf the other day, and it went pretty well. Only found one or two things with signs of moths in them. Today, I got to the second shelf (I'm going top-down so that if stuff gets knocked onto a lower shelf, it will still get cleaned) where most of my flours were stored. UGH! I think I found the main infestation. I'm kind of surprised at what does and does not get bugs, though; my not-so-tight cannisters were 2 out of 3 bug-free, but some bags with clips all the way across the top got way infested.
The best part: now, ALL of my baking stuff is on the second shelf! I used a bunch of shoebox-sized plastic bins to corral things, so I've got two bins of mixes, two bins of flours (grain and non-grain segregated), a smal bin of stuff like baking powder and xanthan gum, a bin of sweeteners (four varieties of sugar, five of honey, plus agave, molasses and grape concentrate). It will be so much easier to find stuff! I won't have two containers of potato flour, gelatin, etc. floating around because I forgot I had some and got more. ;-)
Whee, exciting! I can't wait until it's done (though I've used up all the shoeboxes, and need more!)
BTW, anyone (in the LA area) want some tea? I really have more than I will ever use before it goes bad. I inherited it from my cousin. Good stuff, but I have three or four boxes of some varieties!
I did the top shelf the other day, and it went pretty well. Only found one or two things with signs of moths in them. Today, I got to the second shelf (I'm going top-down so that if stuff gets knocked onto a lower shelf, it will still get cleaned) where most of my flours were stored. UGH! I think I found the main infestation. I'm kind of surprised at what does and does not get bugs, though; my not-so-tight cannisters were 2 out of 3 bug-free, but some bags with clips all the way across the top got way infested.
The best part: now, ALL of my baking stuff is on the second shelf! I used a bunch of shoebox-sized plastic bins to corral things, so I've got two bins of mixes, two bins of flours (grain and non-grain segregated), a smal bin of stuff like baking powder and xanthan gum, a bin of sweeteners (four varieties of sugar, five of honey, plus agave, molasses and grape concentrate). It will be so much easier to find stuff! I won't have two containers of potato flour, gelatin, etc. floating around because I forgot I had some and got more. ;-)
Whee, exciting! I can't wait until it's done (though I've used up all the shoeboxes, and need more!)
BTW, anyone (in the LA area) want some tea? I really have more than I will ever use before it goes bad. I inherited it from my cousin. Good stuff, but I have three or four boxes of some varieties!
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