Pest Management FAQs

Pheromones are natural compounds that are created in the body of an insect. Insects use pheromones to communicate with each other. We have isolated many of these compounds in our own laboratory and use them to lure the insects into a sticky trap. Click to view our insect pheromones and traps for some of the most common insect pests, like clothes moth, black carpet beetle, varied carpet beetle, and Indian meal moth.

Indian meal moth (Plodia interpunctella), Cigarette beetle (Lasioderma serricorne), and Warehouse beetle (Trogoderma spp.) traps should be placed 25-50 feet or 7-15 meters apart on a grid pattern. Clothes moth (Tineola bisselliella) and Flour beetle (Tribolium spp.) traps should be placed 25 feet or 7 meters (or less) apart.

In general, all pheromone traps should be placed at eye level for optimum performance, but pheromone traps will perform at higher or lower levels as well. Flour beetle (Tribolium spp.) traps should be placed on a surface. Floor placement may be necessary.

Not necessarily. Pheromone traps are designed as a monitoring tool.

Pheromone traps are meant to be used as part of an integrated approach to pest management. Sanitation, inspection, and removal of infested material are all very important parts of an integrated approach.

No, just open the lure package, take the entire lure lure out of the package, and place it in the trap.

In general all pheromone lures last for 60 days. After that, they should be replaced with a new lure. Insects Limited offers pheromone lure replacements in our online store.

If kept in a freezer or refrigerator, all pheromone lures should be effective for at least a year.

It really doesn't matter. Bullet lures should be placed in the bottom of the trap, but other lures can go in the top.

No. Pheromone traps are species-specific. They are designed to catch either one species or several closely related species.

We currently cannot accept a PO Box as a shipping address. All US orders are shipped via FedEx/UPS. Be sure to include a valid street address as they will not deliver to a PO Box. 

Yes! All Canadian orders are shipped via USPS. While we don't expect delays, sometimes this can happen when the package goes through customs. If you would like to have your package shipped via UPS, please give us a call at 317-896-9300. Please note, that a brokerage fee will apply, on top of the shipping cost, when the package arrives in Canada. 

Most stored product insect pests do not actively fly or crawl around in temperatures <65°F/18°C degrees. With cooler temperatures, the insects will move less and thus will not end up in traps. When it becomes too hot (>95°F/35°C), the insects can also shut down on movement to preserve energy.

Odors in the environment, such as nearby food products, can draw insects away from traps and toward those food sources.

Factors that can come into play as to whether an insect prefers to feed or look for a potential mate at any given time can include its age and how well fed it is as well as the temperature and relative humidity in the environment.

Strong chemical odors can also negatively affect how well a pheromone lure might work.

Pheromone plumes emanating from a lure will follow any and all air currents blowing across it. Insects follow these pheromone plumes back to the source which can be a female insect or a pheromone lure in a trap.

If a lure and trap are placed in an area of high wind velocity, the insects attempting to reach the trap cannot physically make it without being blown away. Strong air currents also jumble the pheromone plume, making it impossible for an insect to locate the source.

Another common problem with air currents is when a lure/trap is placed too near to an air intake vent as part of the HVAC system within a structure. The pheromone plume coming off the lure will never make it to where the target insects are located since the plume is pulled directly into the HVAC system and mixed with other air at a high velocity.

Changes in the population dynamics of the target insect species, such as fluctuations in population density or behavior, could affect their response to the pheromone traps.

Also, sex ratios of pest insects often fluctuate, which will lead to times where a high number of adult females are flying around that are unresponsive to a pheromone lure.

Pheromone traps must be deployed at the appropriate time in the insect's life cycle to be effective. Pheromone traps only attract adult insects. If all of the target insects are in the larval stage and actively feeding on food product, no adults will be found in the pheromone traps. If they are set up too early or too late in the development of the insect, they may not capture any insects at all.

Ongoing construction or demolition in areas where the traps are placed, movement of infested products, dock doors being opened and shut, and other environmental factors could alter the behavior of the target insects and their response to pheromone traps.

Placing the pheromone traps in the wrong location can result in reduced effectiveness. They should be positioned where the target insect species are most likely to be present. E.g., a trap for crawling beetles placed in the center of the room away from any walls will rarely capture a beetle.

The design of the trap may not be suitable for the target insect species or may not effectively release the pheromones to attract them.

E.g., a trap for crawling beetles hung, suspended in air will never capture a beetle.

Lack of proper maintenance, such as cleaning the traps regularly or replacing damaged components, can reduce their effectiveness over time. E.g., sticky traps in dusty areas rapidly lose their tackiness allowing insects to enter and exit the trap without being captured.

If the local insect population is high, the glue adhesive in the traps may become saturated with captured insects, making it difficult to capture additional insects. Pheromone traps greater than 50% of the adhesive surface covered with dust or insects should be replaced.

Like a lock-and-key analogy, pheromones are species-specific, meaning that an insect will only respond to their own pheromone and not to other species pheromones.

If a misidentification of the pest species occurs, and the wrong pheromone lure is placed out, it will not be effective.

(E.g., if an Angoumois grain moth is misidentified as an Indian meal moth, the Indian meal moth pheromone placed out will never attract the Angoumois grain moth flying around.)

Click to identify your pest by photo.

A pheromone trap competing with large quantities of pheromone in the air from mating disruption products or from an excessive amount of pheromone traps placed in a small area will capture fewer insects simply because it is harder for an insect to locate the source of the pheromone.

Pheromone lures that have exceeded their recommended life in the trap are much less effective or not effective at all. Pheromone lures need to typically be replaced every 90 days or they may not be attractive at all. Click to shop pheromone lure replacements.

Pheromones are highly volatile chemicals that can evaporate quickly when stored in exceptionally hot areas such as in direct sunlight, within hot vehicles and in areas with no climate control.

Over time, sunlight or high temperatures can break down or change the insect pheromone, rendering it ineffective. Click to order pheromone lure replacements.

Checking a pheromone trap that has only been placed out for a short amount of time may yield low capture numbers simply because the insects have not had time to locate the trap to be captured.