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Good Questions: How To Get Rid of Grain Beetles?

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Tracy sent us this question:
I have grain beetles. Tiny beetles that love flour, cereal, and DOG FOOD. I suspect they came with a bag of dog food. I haven't been able to fully purge them from my cupboards. I purchased containers for all my cereal, flour is now kept in the freezer- but the dog food storage and the large quantity of dog treats I have to keep on hand has been a tough one. And therefore the beetles remain. I have already once purged all grain from my cupboards, which was the first round of trying to get rid of them. I would love any additional suggestions on how to get rid of them and good storage for dog food!

 
 

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Good Question, dog food, grain beetles

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Comments (7)

Well, for sure don't use any pesticides around your food products. We used to have a big problem with these bugs, but got rid of all the infested items and then did a really deep cleaning (vacuumed, wiped down, etc.) and shifted all of our loose grains, cereals, pastas, and dog food to airtight containers—most which have screw tops for a tighter seal. We found large airtight dog food containers at a discount store. I keep all of our dog's food stored in one of these on the pantry floor, and (knock on wood) we haven't had a problem yet. All of her treats are in airtight canisters found at another discount store. You could use inexpensive glass jars (think grandma's old cookie jar) with screw-tops for these, too. They have these types of things at big-box pet stores...but look at your favorite discount places first, or even Goodwill, and you'll save a lot of money! And once you've containerized, be sure to keep your pantry/storage clean of any loose bits that might entice the bugs back.

posted by amber77 on October 24th 2008 at 7:06am
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If the grain beetles really did come in the bag of dog food, I'd return it to the store. Sadly, most pet stores are accustomed to such returns and understand that some deliveries of dry food get "tainted" with bugs.

Now, if you're not bringing in new bugs, you shouldn't have to worry about how you store the large bags of dog food. I buy 40 lb bags, pour half of it into a plastic bin with a lid and then store the rest in the garage. I haven't had problems with it.

I did inherit some dog biscuits from my sister once after she decided dog ownership wasn't for her. They were full of bugs, something I didn't realize until every biscuit I pulled out had tiny holes in them. Thankfully, I keep the dog treats far away from their food, so it was an isolated area I had to deal with. I threw out anything that had bugs, vacuumed the counter, drawers, and cabinets, and then wiped it all down with a spray cleaner. Any treats that appeared okay went into storage canisters - the ones with the clasp and a silicone seal. That way, I figured if they had bugs, the bugs couldn't get out. If they were "clean", new bugs couldn't get in. I still keep treats in those canisters, even though I haven't seen grain bugs in a couple of years.

posted by leanneabe on October 24th 2008 at 7:10am
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My mom got rid of them when she had them. She cleaned all the shelves with bleach (Hot soapy water is suppose to work too) and froze everything grain related for at least 24 hours (up to 72). That's the key to freeze all incoming food so they don't come back: cereal, oatmeal, pasta, that kills larvae that comes in some foods. Here's something I found

http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/champaign/homeowners/041110.html

posted by atomicranch79 on October 24th 2008 at 6:47pm
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I put all packages of grain-based foods in airtight glass or plastic containers and some packages I put directly into large zip-top plastic storage bags. I also put a few bay leaves on each shelf, as they repel the little critters. So far, so good, as I haven't had any bug problems for years since I began doing this.

posted by Maureen on October 25th 2008 at 12:51pm
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We keep our dog food in a storage container (with wheels!) from the Container Store. It's been so nice for us in keeping the dog food fresh that we ordered one for my parents. They'd been having a problem with mice getting into their dog food.

Seriously, look at the pet food storage containers at containerstore.com

posted by lisbet on October 25th 2008 at 6:00pm
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If your dog food brand is not guaranteed (and they don't take it back and replace it) you should change your brand. There are a lot of brands of good quality food that will reimburse you if it gets buggy, smells off, or even if your dog doesn't like it.

When I buy my dry cat food I put it into ziplock bags and put it in the chest freezer, before the freezer it went in a cold room in the basement... In a rubbermaid bin

posted by Hollie on October 27th 2008 at 11:04am
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Hi there, I'm from Malaysia. To get bugs and weevils out of my rice bin, I keep a few dried chillies or some star anise in there. It works really well. The star anise also keeps the ants out of my sugar container. The spices won't change the taste of your food. If you don't want them to mix with the dog food, I suggest you put the spices in a mesh bag or a zip lock bag with holes in it. Hope this helps.

posted by flippetyjibbet on October 30th 2008 at 9:33pm
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