Millers: The Epic Battle

Millers

To understand how a harmless moth can take over your house, you can read more about them according to the Colorado State Cooperative Extension. The gist of our situation is that each night, our office, bedroom and bathroom become filled with these flying annoyances.

For example, right now it is 10pm and from where I am sitting I can see more than 15 dusty black dots on the wall. In the beginning, I thought I'd be a strong farm woman, like my grandmother, and deal with the millers using just a bowl of soapy water held under the light. This is a great strategy to deal with them . . . IF, you don't freak out when one lands on you and spill dead-bug-filled soapy water down your back. Here, Dad is helping us out the old-fashioned way.



So, now before we go to bed I'll "ghostbust" them using my handy little Oreck vacuum. In the morning I'll do the same. I have to empty the vacuum bag almost daily, and it must be done outside, as the miller have a fairly high survival rate in the vaccuum.

When listening to our plight of the millers, many have suggested fumigation, spraying etc. but we're pretty sure that will do no good. I hope to gradually seal some of the holes and crevices in the house to reduce their methods of entrance, but I may need to give up hope of a miller-free existence. There are too many fields nearby (including on our property) for me to have an impact. Short of not using any lights in the house, I think they'll be an ongoing factor of life.