Tiny Black Bugs in RV

[MrMom]

They look like a common pantry bug. I have seen them enough. Look for pin holes in flour or pasta containing boxes.

https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...MygNegUIARCnAg

[Steve 716]

We have had two bug issues over the years. The first was with carpenter ants that were digging into one of our window frames. A shot of ant spray followed by some airing out took care of it. We also made a second application and never saw any after that. This was in a previously owned Bounder.

We had an infestation of stink bugs in our Entegra about six months after purchase. I don't know how they got in but they made a home in our ceiling and would come in through our ceiling return registers and buzz around. Some got into our ceiling light fixtures. We hated it. I looked online but didn't find any useful procedures to get rid of them. The infestation lasted for several weeks. I purchased some Ortho Home Defense from Lowes after reading the bottle and I sprayed it into the ceiling ducts as far as I could. After the second application they were gone. The Ortho did not have an odor and neither did the dead bugs, thankfully. I vacuumed out the vents half a day after each application and they never came back. I sprayed again every two months for three additional applications but never saw any more bugs. also, I was very careful where I sprayed. You might try the Ortho in your coach. It worked great in mine.

[Piros1]

Originally Posted by max meridius

I sure do hope this is the right forum to post this in, but I didn't see anything more specific. So, if I have posted incorrectly, please move it to where it needs to be.
_______________

I have searched Google about this issue and what I am finding on the RV Forums is totally useless. No one posts pictures of the bugs they are talking about.

I felt that in order for me to be specific about the issue that I am having, one needs to see what it is that I am actually talking about.

These bugs manifested about a year ago in the RV. I have a 27' 5th wheel. I bought it used and have traveled across the country twice in it and up to Alaska and back. It has seen road time in the last 12 months.

What started out as a small problem, has become quite significant here as of late. These bugs fly. They do not bite. They also don't have a long life span. They seem to congregate primarily in the floor cabinet in the kitchen. I have also found a fair portion of them in the ducting under the fridge. They also like to take up residence in the floor vents. I do find some on the floor near the vent in the bathroom. But they ARE NOT coming up out of the toilet.

They are not sewer bugs, they are not spider mites. WHAT ARE THEY? Someone must know, I cannot be the only person out here with this problem.

I did the best that I could with the pictures. I can only get in so close and maintain some kind of clarity. But I did what I could to help understand and HOPEFULLY identify these varmints and get instruction on how to deal with them.

Any help is greatly appreciated at this point!

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I honestly don't have a tried a true answer but if I were you and you cannot get a pro to come out I would first unload all my dry goods out of the RV put all of it into plastic bags tightly sealed. Store in a safe and dry place but not in your house. Keep your food products separate from your other items. Like kind products bagged separately. If any of the food product are very old bag it and trash it. Canned goods or frozen and refrigerated foods should be fine. I would personally empty my RV as described above and then I would get a few bug bombs and set a few in my basement storage and a few in the RV. Leave all rooms, cabinets, and closets open. Close all windows then walk through your RV setting them off as you walk out. Same with your basement area, do this area last, then lock her up and leave it set for a day or two. Once this is done and time has past open it up and let it air out for a couple of hours and then go in and clean up. You may want to do this when you have no trips planned for a while. I would give it a week or so and go back in and check it out and maybe repeat the fogging and cleaning process and you should be good to go. The reason for the second application is to kill anything that may have hatched out. I may have my wait time off so you may have to kind of watch for a new hatch after the first application. It appears you have an infestation of this bug and it may take more than one application. Good luck.

[Traveldude]

While I will certainly use insecticides when necessary, there are other ways. I believe these could be what some call “cigarette beetles” or “tobacco beetles.” They are very difficult to kill and the larvae are commonly found in cereal grains, pasta, flour, etc. a boron based insecticide may be used that is a bit safer around children and pets. Try cleaning cabinets, wash the surface with vinegar and place some dried bay leaves in the cabinets.

[careh]

I don't suppose they would be fruit flies?

If so - a wine glass with some wine in it - and plastic wrap over the top of the glass - with a few toothpick size holes in the plastic wrap would usually get them... just don't drink the wine after....

But if they are fruit flies - I usually only see a few at a time...not the amount you describe.

[Jay D.]

Originally Posted by Piros1

I honestly don't have a tried a true answer but if I were you and you cannot get a pro to come out I would first unload all my dry goods out of the RV put all of it into plastic bags tightly sealed. Store in a safe and dry place but not in your house. Keep your food products separate from your other items. Like kind products bagged separately. If any of the food product are very old bag it and trash it. Canned goods or frozen and refrigerated foods should be fine. I would personally empty my RV as described above and then I would get a few bug bombs and set a few in my basement storage and a few in the RV. Leave all rooms, cabinets, and closets open. Close all windows then walk through your RV setting them off as you walk out. Same with your basement area, do this area last, then lock her up and leave it set for a day or two. Once this is done and time has past open it up and let it air out for a couple of hours and then go in and clean up. You may want to do this when you have no trips planned for a while. I would give it a week or so and go back in and check it out and maybe repeat the fogging and cleaning process and you should be good to go. The reason for the second application is to kill anything that may have hatched out. I may have my wait time off so you may have to kind of watch for a new hatch after the first application. It appears you have an infestation of this bug and it may take more than one application. Good luck.

DO THIS, BOMB IT. cheep easy and very efective
Jay D.

[twogypsies]

OP: Come back with the solution!

[MBrant]

Carpet beetles don't fly.
I am sooooo happy they don't.

[MBrant]

Might very well be leaf beetles, which is a lot saying "a car" - not much help. Wikipedia says there are 37,000 KNOWN species of leaf beetles, but lacking better pictures....

[PaulandDot]

They are SEED bugs. You will find millions of these at rest stops on I-15 in the Mojave. We fought them every year we lived in the desert but had to wait for their short life span to end for them to be gone. Never found a way to keep them away. Yes - talk to a professional.

[jkorn]

We keep all dried goods in plastic containers. Flour, sugar, bisquick, pasta. They come in all different sizes. Might help. Jk

[PLDieter]

Originally Posted by astrnmrtom

I just noticed this comment and I can't tell you how many times this very thought went through my mind when dealing with itty bitty pests - frequently ants. I'd think to myself I can squish this little thing with my finger, but they can still outsmart me.

I read an amazing book not long ago that talked about the forms of life we live with in our homes. The book was "Never Home Alone" by Rob Dunn. Fascinating and frightening all at the same time. One infamous bug I learned something new about was the German Cockroach. One main reason it has been so difficult to control is the fact it's DNA can change so quickly in response to it's environment. Because of this, it can be exposed to a pesticide that's extremely effective, but within just a couple generations, it's almost completely immune to it. Because they breed so profusely, this can happen in a matter of days. Talk about "....then along comes this - not so teeny tiny bug."

True, however one thing they haven't developed even a slight amount of resistance to is a mixture of boric acid and diatomaceous earth. Both of these things attack the insect's exoskeleton. The boric acid dissolves the shell of the underbelly, and the tiny marine organism skeletons in the DE get wedged into their joints and leave them incapable of walking or moving. Those little things are razor sharp, like glass. That's why you need to be exceptionally careful not to inhale the dust from diatomaceous earth. Boric acid is relatively nontoxic.

[LETMGROW]

I was 23 YO and had just come home from active duty. Had been out for a night on the town and decided to stop off for one more on the way home. Then I spotted this gal sitting........ Never mind.

[MBrant]

Whoa! This is risky!

Those bug bombs are made for houses, not teeny RVs, and the concentration of explosive gases is way too high for safety. As it is, houses get blown to pieces every year from these.

At the very least, shut off the propane at the tank, and disconnect the batteries.