Carpet beetles are small and not easy to see with the naked eye. This is partly because they can be just 3mm in size and also because they live in carpets, ensuring the carpet pile gives them a good hiding spot.

In most cases adult carpet beetles will actually feed outside, they eat flowers and plants. But they may enter your home simply because a window is open, or they have been carried in by accident. When this happens, they lay eggs in the carpet and other materials full of fibers. This ensures the baby carpet beetles have something to eat as soon as they hatch.

What Carpet Beetles Look Like

Carpet beetles are oblong and can be different colors, usually within a range of a red brown to black color. They often have light stripes and if you can look closely enough, you’ll find they have lots of hair on their bodies.

Carpet beetles are not easy to see but you will know you have an issue if you notice any of the following 5 signs. If you suspect, you have carpet beetles it’s time to check here

and get the experts to sort the issue out for you.

1. Damage to Carpets

The larvae of carpet beetles need something to feed on when they first hatch. The fibrous material, such as your carpet, gives them the right nutrition.

It’s worth noting that the carpet beetle will usually graze on the top of the carpet, which means you’ll start to notice bald spots on your floor, telling you there is a carpet beetle infestation.

The good news is that carpet beetles won’t eat modern synthetic carpets.

2. Holes in Clothes

Carpet beetles generally target carpets, but they can hatch in your closet and then start feeding on, any clothes you have stored there. If you start noticing holes in clothes you may think you have moths, but it is more likely to be carpet beetles if there are a series of holes located closely together.

3. Irritated skin

Carpet beetles will generally avoid humans but that doesn’t mean you won’t come into contact with the fine hairs that they have across their body. These are left behind wherever they go and, if you are exposed to them, you can develop an allergic reaction, specifically itchy skin and a red rash.

4. Fecal Pellets

If you notice tiny specks in your carpet, similar to the size of a grain of salt but a black or dark brown color, then you’re looking at the waste product of carpet beetles. These can also cause allergic reactions and an irritating rash.

5. Shedding Skin

Carpet beetles shed their skin as they grow, allowing them to increase in size. The skin that has been shed will be translucent perhaps with a slight yellow hue. They are similar in shape to a sunflower seed, and they are larger than bed bug molts.

If you see them, you have an infestation and you need to take action.