Pest Control for Museums & Heritage

Heritage environments require a fundamentally different approach to pest management. Standard commercial pest control methods are often inappropriate for museums, galleries, and historic houses. Chemical treatments can damage artefacts, alter surface finishes, and contaminate display environments.

Our heritage pest management uses an integrated pest management approach that prioritises prevention and monitoring over chemical intervention. This includes insect monitoring traps, environmental monitoring, housekeeping protocols, and targeted treatments only where needed.

Clothes moths, carpet beetles, and silverfish pose the greatest threat to textile, paper, and natural material collections. These pests feed quietly and damage is often extensive before it is discovered.

Our monitoring programme uses a network of blunder traps and pheromone traps throughout the building, with regular inspections to identify pest species, activity levels, and trends. This data informs targeted interventions and helps prioritise conservation resources.

Historic buildings face structural pest threats from woodworm (wood-boring beetle larvae), death watch beetle, and rodents. These pests damage timber structures, panelling, floorboards, and roof timbers. In listed buildings, structural pest management must be carried out with methods that do not damage historic fabric.

We provide specialist surveys to identify structural pest activity, assess the extent of damage, and recommend appropriate treatment. All work in listed buildings is carried out with awareness of heritage constraints.

Temperature, humidity, and light levels all influence pest activity in heritage environments. We can advise on environmental conditions that help prevent pest problems, working alongside your conservation team and any existing environmental monitoring systems.

Good housekeeping, controlled storage conditions, and regular cleaning routines are the foundation of heritage pest prevention. Our IPM programmes incorporate housekeeping advice tailored to heritage environments.

Where artefacts are found to be infested, fumigation in controlled conditions provides effective treatment without the surface contact that spray treatments require. This is particularly suitable for textiles, documents, and wooden artefacts that cannot tolerate liquid or spray treatments.

Alternatively, freezing protocols and anoxic treatment may be appropriate for some collection types. We advise on the most suitable treatment method for each situation.

We provide heritage pest management across the North East, including museums, galleries, historic houses, and heritage sites in Darlington, Durham, Newcastle, and the wider region.

Museums and heritage is part of our wider public and specialist pest control programme, which also covers churches, education, and other specialist environments.