Small, brown, bristly. Finding one tells you what it is, that something is being eaten, and — with a bit of thought — roughly where it came from.
The damaging stage of the carpet beetle — elongated, brown, densely bristly, up to about 5mm, often called woolly bears. They feed on keratin: wool, silk, fur and feather.
The adult beetle does not damage fabric. Finding larvae means active feeding is happening now.
If it is smooth and cream rather than brown and bristly, that is a carpet moth larva. Similar damage, comparable treatment, different search.
Read nextCarpet Beetles or Carpet Moths in Wealdstone – How Can You Tell the Difference? →Carpet beetle larvae moult repeatedly and leave the empty bristly skin behind. Those skins look almost identical, which causes two problems: people overestimate how many are present, and people conclude a treatment failed when what they are finding is old skins.
A live larva moves when disturbed. A shed skin is papery and hollow. Worth checking before drawing conclusions either way.
See our complete service, published room prices and treatment information.
View Carpet Beetle Control Wealdstone →The most common source in a flat, and the easiest to check. Wool, cashmere or silk stored unworn in a wardrobe, suitcase or under-bed box. Soiled items are considerably more attractive than clean ones.
Carpet beetles feed naturally on keratin from feathers and remains. In a block that means an old bird's nest in a roof void or eaves, a nest in a disused chimney, a dead bird or rodent in a ceiling void, or pigeon roosting on a ledge or flat roof.
If you are top-floor and finding larvae in several rooms, this is the likely explanation — and it is not something you can fix from inside your flat.
Adults feed on pollen and are drawn to flowering plants. They come in through open windows in spring and lay indoors. Balcony planters and window boxes increase the exposure.
| Material | At risk? |
|---|---|
| Wool carpet and rugs | Yes |
| Wool clothing, especially stored | Yes |
| Silk, cashmere, sheepskin, fur, feather | Yes |
| Upholstery with natural-fibre content | Yes |
| Polypropylene and nylon carpet | No |
| Cotton and linen | Not usually, unless soiled |
On clothing, beetle damage is typically several small separate holes rather than one larger area.
Carpet beetle larvae do not bite. Some people react to the bristly hairs with an itchy rash, which gets mistaken for bites — and in a flat, sometimes for bed bugs.
If someone has an unexplained itchy rash and you have found bristly larvae, the two may be connected. A doctor can advise on the rash; we deal with the source.
Report it in writing with photographs. Two reasons: carpet damage is a common deposit dispute, and if the source is a roof void or pigeon roosting, that is the freeholder's or landlord's to deal with rather than yours.
Any live larvae mean active feeding. The extent — how many rooms — matters more than the number.
Not on the fibre, but they can live in the debris that accumulates in it — pet and human hair are keratin too.
If the source is still there, yes. Which is the argument for finding it rather than only treating the rooms.
An old wasp nest is a carpet beetle food source — and a live one is £90 fixed cost in Wealdstone, guaranteed.
Elongated, brown and densely bristly, up to about 5mm, often with a tuft of longer hairs at the tail.
A live larva moves when disturbed; a shed skin is papery and hollow.
Most often stored wool in a wardrobe, or a source above — a roof void, disused chimney or pigeon roosting.
A roof-void source, which is not something you can fix from inside your flat.
Keratin — wool, silk, cashmere, sheepskin, fur and feather. On clothing, several small separate holes.
No. Some people react to the bristly hairs with an itchy rash mistaken for bites.
Yes, in writing with photographs — particularly if the source may be a roof void or pigeon roosting.
Not on the fibre, but they can live on the hair that accumulates in it.
Photograph one and tell us where. Check the wardrobes too — that is often where these start.
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