Clothes Eating Moths. Look for patches of silk webbing and feeding tube which webbing clothes moths leave behind. Steaming can help but is not a certain treatment to kill clothes moth larvae - it depends on the thoroughness of the treatment duration of exposure to the steam and depth of the steam reaching into the garments fibers without risking damage to your precious garments.
It might come as a surprise to learn that the moth itself does not eat clothes and cause the damage but the moths larvae. According to Blake Newton an Extension Entomologist at the University of Kentucky moths lay eggs on fabrics caterpillars hatch from those eggs and then the caterpillars munch on. It is only the clothes moth larvae that have the mouth parts capable of chewing through fabrics the adult moths do not feed and of course you dont see the larvae unless you really look for them.
Freeze it for a week or two and that will kill all the larvae and eggs.
Clothes moths are known for feeding on wool but theyll also consume synthetics or cotton blends that contain other animal fibres. The webbing clothes moth is uniform in color while the casemaking clothes moth has dark specks on its wings. A useful way to stop them eating your clothes is to create a physical barrier with storage bags that either sit on a shelf or hang on a coat hanger. 2162018 Clothes moth larvae certainly made a meal of this wool beanie.