Carpet Moth Control for Landlords and Rental Properties in Windsor

Why Period Rental Stock Gets This Repeatedly

• Suspended timber floors with a continuous void beneath, running the footprint of the house and past every internal wall
• Board gaps holding decades of accumulated wool fibre, hair and dust
• Old underlay, often felt, sometimes several coverings old
• Deep skirtings with a gap behind them
• Unused chimney breasts and open flues collecting nesting material
• Alcove cupboards beside the chimney breast, dark and never emptied to the back
• Rooms a tenant does not use, in a house with more rooms than the household needs

None of that is anything a tenant brought with them, and none of it can be improved by how carefully they live.

What That Means Practically

A landlord who treats it as a tenancy issue each time pays for it repeatedly. A landlord who treats it once as a building issue usually does not.

The Void Between Tenancies Is the Opportunity

It is the only period when the property can be dealt with properly, and in a period house that matters more than usual.

• Rooms are empty, so every carpet edge, board gap and skirting run is reachable
• Rugs can be lifted and dealt with
• Alcove cupboards can be cleared to the back
• Nothing has to be worked around or coordinated with an occupant
• Access under floors, where it exists, is available
• The work has time to be done properly rather than in a day

It is also cheaper, because the problem has usually had less time to spread than it would have by the end of the next tenancy.

What Is Worth Doing To the Building Itself

1. Deal with the underlay when a carpet is replaced, rather than fitting over it
2. Have the floor and the perimeter treated before a new carpet goes down
3. Cap unused flues
4. Close obvious gaps at the skirting line where practical
5. Clear alcove cupboards and deal with what is at the back of them
6. Keep the loft clear of stored textiles
7. Treat the whole property rather than the one room, once

What Is Reasonable To Expect of a Tenant

Worth setting out at the start rather than arguing about at the end, and worth keeping modest.

• Vacuum regularly, including edges where they can reach them
• Report moths or damage promptly, in writing
• Not block access to a room or a floor area indefinitely
• Not bring in second-hand rugs or upholstery without a look at them

What is not reasonable is expecting a tenant to manage a population living under the floor. Asking them to is how a landlord ends up with an unhappy tenant, a deposit dispute and the same problem next year.

For Managing Agents

• Record floor construction on the property file — it changes the scope every time
• Note whether the property has had this before, and when
• Treat a second occurrence as a building question, not a repeat visit
• Keep the invoice and the scope on file, described specifically

Treatment starts from £220. For a period property tell us the floor construction, whether there are open flues, and whether it has had this before — those three answers usually decide whether this is the last treatment or the next one.