How to Get Rid of Maggots in Car Carpet | Expert’s Solution

Imagine you are going for an outing with your family and there are maggots in the car carpet-it’s just like a bad dream, isn’t it? The maggots are uninvited and unwanted guests, which are ugly, dirty, and definitely not something you want to see in your car or even in your house. The presence of this creature is such a problem that you have to deal with it immediately.

Usually, maggots appear for a reason or with a purpose. You need to find out the reason why they come and take proper steps to get rid of maggots in the car carpet. The presence of these tiny fly larvae in your car carpet means you need to clean a particular area where you might leave some unclean thing. If you find them in your car carpet, you need to clean it immediately before they start hatching eggs. We don’t ask you to hate maggots, but we recommend you take proper steps quickly before they enter your house from the car as they are much annoying.

What is a maggot

Maggots are the larva of the flies. Flies lay eggs, and within a few hours, eggs turn into larva, which we called maggots. After a certain period, maggots become flies and start laying eggs, and the cycle goes on.

Rubbish, dirt, rotten leftover food attracts flies. They tend to take their food from this rubbish and rotten food. So, the dirty place like a dustbin, kitchen selves and so on is basically the maggots’ source. Even your unclean, filthy car carpet also can be a breed of maggots.

Sources of the maggots

As we already said, a dirty place is the ideal source of growing maggots. They grow on the rubbish and spread very fast even they can cover your entire house within a few days only. There are some of the common sources from where do maggots can come-

1. Still water in the ponds

Standing water is an ideal source for growing maggots. If the pond’s water stands stills for a long time, it can attract maggots; in fact, still, water invites flies and becomes a sanctuary for them. Even many times, maggots can become alive underwater, and once they turn into flies, they leave the pond and fly for the dry ground. 

2. Rotten fruit and vegetables

When fruits and vegetables rot, they become a place of attraction for flies. If you leave fruits and vegetables unprotected, they will soon start to rot. The nasty odor of rotten vegetables attracts maggots.

3. Rotten meat

Some of the maggots live in the rotten meat and survive by eating that meat. When they turn into flies, they leave the meat, and their eggs take their places. The flies start to leave in your kitchen, carpets, upholstery, etc. 

4. Dirty kitchen area

You should keep clean the kitchen area along with shelves; otherwise, it can attract flies. If maggots are in your kitchen, that means you do not maintain your kitchen properly. It sounds not only disgusting but also unhealthy.

5. Unclean trash bins

Though holding trash is only the trash bin’s duty, you need to clean the bin regularly. If you do not empty the trash been regularly, it can invite maggots into your kitchen along with few health threats.

6. Untreated wounds

Whether the wound is on the humans or animals, if you leave them open and untreated, they can captivate flies. They lay eggs on the wound and, by this, go on their life cycle. Your or your pet’s wound’s entire situation becomes worst when the maggots start inviting infections and diseases. 

Even maggots do not let heal the wound quickly. So, never leave your and your pet’s wound untreated. 

How to remove maggots from the car carpet

If you leave your car carpet unclean for a long time, it can also invite maggots. Once maggots enter your car, they gradually reside in the carpet, trunk, and into seats. If you do not take a quick step, maggots start to live in your car and begin to spread rapidly. Let us see how you can get rid of maggots in the car carpet.

1. Find out the sources

Find out the source is the first and the most crucial step of removing maggots from the car carpet. If you do not deal with the source, it will come back again and again. So, inspect appropriately inside the car. Eliminate the attraction of the maggots.

2. Kill the maggots

Now you need to kill maggots. Remember, a single maggot and turn into a large group in a few days. You can kill the maggots following the bellow listed methods.

• Boric acid

Boric acid is one of the most effective cleaning products that can kill maggots. You just have to spread some of the Boric acids on the car carpet, over and under the seats, and it will kill the maggots completely.

• Hot boiling water

It is one of the most useful and safe and effective methods of killing maggots. Take some boiling water and spill over the maggots. It will kill them immediately. You should be very careful as the boiling water can burn you. 

• Borax

Like the boric acid, borax also effectively kills these creatures. Most of the dish-washing soap contains borax. So, pick a dish-washing soap that contains borax and spill on the carpet, trunk, into the seats, and all possible corner where maggots can hide.

3. Vacuum deeply

You should use a top-quality vacuum with great suction power to remove all dead maggots. You can repeat the cleaning process if needed. A good vacuum can successfully remove all dead maggots. If you still find dead insects, vacuum once again and run the machine until you remove the last number of dead maggots.

4. Steam clean

Finally, you have to steam clean the car carpet, the trunk area, and the seat to ensure that you do not leave a single live maggot in your car. It is necessary to avoid come backing this insect in the future. Steam clean will remove even the eggs and prevent your car from next harvest.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What kills maggots instantly?

Hot boiling water can kill maggots instantly. Just pour boiling water on them, and they will die. Dish soap is very useful in killing these insects. You can also add one cup of bleach and one and a half cup of hydrogen peroxide to each gallon of boiling water to get a quick result. 

Can Apple cider vinegar kill maggots?

Vinegar contains an acidic component, and examination shows that maggots cannot survive in this acidic solution. So, you can make a solution of 1/6 part of apple cider vinegar and 5/6 part of water and spray on the maggots. It will take nearly 18 hours to kill these insects.

How long does it take for salt to kill maggots?

Salt takes about 6 hours only to kill maggots.

Can maggots survive the washing machine?

No, a normal washer cannot successfully kill maggots. Moreover, if you leave damp cloth, there will remain a chance that flies can lay eggs. You may need to use hot water or some cleaning detergent to kill them.

How long do maggots live?

Maggots live only five to eight days. Then they turn into a pupa and soon transform into flies.

Wrapping up

Though maggots do not create any alarming health issues, undoubtedly, they are annoying. We hope above listed cleaning method will help you to get rid of maggots in the car carpet. Well, like other cases, here is also prevention is better than deal with them after spreading. So, keep your car and house clean and tidy. Do not store trash or garbage in the trash bin. Throw away leftover spoil food and rotten vegetables and clean the spill of food from the car carpet as soon as possible. A clean and tidy environment will keep away maggots from you.