Pantry Moth Eliminator

Overview

The Indian meal moth (Plodia interpunctella) is the moth most kitchens eventually meet: it hitches in via birdseed, bulk grains, dried fruit, pet food, or grocery packaging gaps. One fertilized female lays ~400 eggs; in a warm kitchen the cycle (egg→larva→pupate→adult) runs 4–8 weeks, so "just throwing out the flour" fails — larvae are already pupating in the ceiling corner, under shelf liners, and inside the seams of sealed-looking boxes.

This skill generates a staged protocol calibrated to infestation level:

1. Level triage — mild (moths seen, no webbing) / moderate (webbing, larvae on walls) / severe (recurring catch, multiple cabinets).
2. Disposition engine — for every category of dry food: freeze-kill (−18°C/0°F for ≥4 days), heat-kill (140°F/60°C for 30 min oven), or toss — including the non-obvious calls (spices, tea, chocolate, pet food, unopened boxes with larvae-sized gaps).
3. Timeline — day 0 pull, freeze windows, deep-clean cracks (where pupae hide), day 7/14/30 trap checks with pass/fail thresholds.
4. Trap math — where pheromone traps go, how many, and how to read them (traps are monitors, not control).
5. Re-infestation defense — incoming-goods quarantine, storage hardening, and expected moth-free date math from biology.

When to Use

• Moths fluttering in the kitchen or near dry goods
• Webbing / clumping / larvae in flour, rice, oats, nuts, cereal, pet food
• Larvae climbing walls or ceiling corners (they seek dark pupation cracks)
• After bringing in bulk grains, birdseed, or dried fruit and wanting to prevent an infestation

Don't use for: clothes moths (different species, different protocol — look for holes in wool, cases not webbing), weevils in pasta (disposition similar but no trapping), or commercial kitchens (call a licensed pest operator).

Quick Start

python3 scripts/moths.py protocol --level moderate
python3 scripts/moths.py disposition --item "brown rice, opened"
python3 scripts/moths.py disposition --item "spices"
python3 scripts/moths.py traps --cabinets 4
python3 scripts/moths.py timeline --start 2026-10-04 --level moderate
python3 scripts/moths.py watch --start 2026-10-04 --catch-day7 3 --catch-day14 0

Stdlib-only, no network.

The Biology You're Fighting (why partial attempts fail)

Key facts the protocol encodes:

• Larvae chew into packaging that looks sealed: folded carton seams, plastic bags. Cardboard is not a barrier.
• Pupae hide away from food — cleaning only the pantry shelves misses the ceiling corner, under-cabinet lip, and shelf-support holes. This is the #1 reason infestations "come back" (they never left).
• Freeze at −18°C/0°F for 4+ days kills all stages (standard food- industry disinfestation). Home freezers vary — give it a week for thick bags.
• Pheromone traps catch males only — they confirm and date-stamp the infestation but will never eliminate it. Zero catch for 3 consecutive weeks = clean.
• Adults live ~2 weeks without mating success once traps + food removal collapse the population — the visible-moth tail after a proper day-0 is normal, not failure.

Workflow

1. Triage: protocol --level mild|moderate|severe prints the full staged plan (find → pull → freeze → clean → trap → watch).
2. Pull everything dry from the infested zone — including unopened boxes (larvae enter through seams). Run each through disposition --item "..." for freeze/toss/heat calls.
3. Freeze-kill keepers (−18°C, ≥4 days; a week for thick packages), then transfer to glass/metal with gasket lids. Moths cannot chew glass.
4. Deep clean on the same day — vacuum every crack, seam, and corner in and around the cabinets (include under-shelf lips, shelf pins, ceiling corners within ~1 m, and the cabinet top gap). Wipe with vinegar/dish soap; let dry. Empty the vacuum OUTSIDE.
5. Traps: traps --cabinets N — placement plan (one per cabinet zone, at eye level, away from windows/drafts, never stacked near each other).
6. Watch: watch --start DATE --catch-day7 N --catch-day14 N → verdict against thresholds (day7 >5 = protocol gap, day14 >1 = missed source, day14 =0 = on track, day30+ 3-weeks-zero = declared clean).
7. Quarantine everything new: freeze bulk goods for 4 days before shelving; inspect birdseed/pet food on arrival (top sources).

Common Pitfalls

1. Throwing out only the visibly infested bag. Larvae have already migrated — pull the ENTIRE dry-goods zone, not the casualties.
2. Trusting "sealed" boxes. Cardboard seams and folded flaps are larva-doors. Unopened ≠ safe.
3. Skipping the crack-cleaning. Pupae sit in seams away from food; this is the actual comeback mechanism.
4. Treating pheromone traps as the weapon. They catch ~males only and saturate; they date-stamp progress, they don't collapse populations — food removal does.
5. Cleaning before pulling. Adults re-oviposit on the next night's goods. Pull → freeze/toss → clean, in that order, same day.
6. Forgetting pet food and birdseed — the two most common import vectors. Dry pet food must go through the same protocol.
7. Sprays/aerosols in food cabinets — unnecessary and contaminates food-contact surfaces; vacuum + soap is the whole job.
8. Declaring victory at day 10. The cycle is 4–8 weeks; only 3 consecutive zero-catch weeks (day ~30–45) is a clean verdict.

Verification Checklist

• Level triaged and full protocol printed before touching anything
• ALL dry goods pulled (incl. unopened, spices, tea, chocolate, pet food)
• Every keeper frozen −18°C ≥4 days (or heat-treated) before re-storage
• Keepers re-stored in glass/metal gasket containers
• Cracks/seams/corners vacuumed then wiped; vacuum emptied outside
• Traps placed per plan (count + eye level + spacing)
• Day 7 / 14 / 30 trap checks logged; verdict from thresholds
• New bulk goods quarantine habit installed (freeze-on-arrival)

Safety Notes

• Freeze-treat, never microwave sealed bags; heat-treat only true oven- safe containers at 60°C/140°F for 30 min.
• Pheromone traps are non-toxic; keep out of reach of pets that might eat the sticky insert.
• If larvae appear in bedroom closets or wool items — that's clothes moths, a different protocol (see When NOT to use).