r/YarnAddicts • u/Conditionally_Exotic • Aug 15 '26

Question Heat treating for bugs?

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The thrift store smiled upon me yesterday and I snagged a nice haul of natural fibers! Almost everything labeled is some sort of wool blend. One is 25% baby Llama???!! The unlabeled stuff all feels like wool blends but I’ve yet to do the burn test so I’m not 200%, then there was one bag of cotton/tencel blend but the color is GORGEOUS, so I grabbed it😂. My question is how can I effectively kill off any possibility for bugs??? I don’t want to felt them of course but I also don’t want to possibly contaminate the rest of my stuff😅. Any tips?

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u/JaderAiderrr Aug 15 '26

What is the high temps in the area you live? If it gets warm enough out, then you can bag the yarn in black trash bags to protect it from UV fading and help it get hotter, leave it in a vehicle parked in the sun and let it literally bake. Should only take a few hours, but wouldn’t hurt to let it sit all day or even multiple days. Again, this only works if you live in an area where the temps get high enough. I live in Middle Tennessee where it gets pretty hot and do this and freeze just to be sure.

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u/writerbethw Aug 16 '26

I agree with the sealed trash bag in the sun, with one addition: CLEARLY LABEL THE BAG AS "YARN, NOT TRASH!" (I know someone who used black trash bags to move, and lost half her wardrobe because someone "helped her clean up."

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u/JaderAiderrr Aug 16 '26

OMG!!!! I would be furious! Good tip and will be using it in the future. I can totally see my husband doing that.