Preventing Rice Weevils in Stored Craft Rice?

I use to make heating pads a lot, but stopped for about two years. I just opened my box that had a half used jumbo bag of rice that I use only for heat pads, and of course it had the little rice bugs. It got me thinking and now my question is how do I store a jumbo bag of rice for crafts without getting bugs? It was in a new sealed tight container.

Also, if you leave a heat pad too long without using it, is it possible for that to get rice bugs?

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poehere
Bronze Post Medal for All Time! 105 Posts

April 8, 20200 found this helpful

Any time you want to store grains for a long time it is necessary to remove the gains from the bags they are in and store them in a very thick plastic container with a tight lid that seals or store them in a medal container with a tight fitting lid. If you have made these heat pads in the past the person can store them in sealed containers or even in their refrigerator to prevent bugs from getting in them.

Pghgirl40
Bronze Feedback Medal for All Time! 196 Feedbacks

April 8, 20200 found this helpful

I used to keep my crafting rice in glass jar in the freezer--like a giant mayo jug type. It always was fine. I would defrost what I needed (let it sit on the shelf) for a day before using.

I keep my rice buddies (the finished products) in a zip bag in my freezer. Then I heat them if I want hot or use them frozen for a migraine or swelling.

I have never had a problem with this method.

Ana
Bronze Post Medal for All Time! 140 Posts

April 8, 20200 found this helpful

Rice weevils do not like heat. Because this is rice you could store it in a sealed tight warm place. - here is a link for help - bugwiz.com/get-rid-of-rice-weevils

cybergrannie
Gold Feedback Medal for All Time! 949 Feedbacks

April 8, 20200 found this helpful

You are lucky if this is the only place you have these weevils as they generally infect other areas once they get 'loose'.
Truthfully; almost every grain/flour product you buy already has some type of weevil living in the package.

"They have the ability to fly and chew through plastic and paper, which can lead to food spoilage and damage."
It is always best to place newly bought containers in the freezer for recommended 72 hours (4 days) and then place them in sealable containers. You may have to purchase suitable containers but sever home products have good seals so save empty containers for things like this. You can also use 2 freezer bags (heavy plastic) especially if you plan to store these in the freezer.
Most people do not have room to store all their grain products in the freezer so sealable containers may be a necessity.

I generally always add Diatomaceous Earth (food grade) (DE) to my containers as well as my bird seed as it seems to keep my containers 'bug free'. You only need a small amount in each container and you can also use it to kill almost any kinds of household bug. This can be purchased online or in stores like Home Depot or Lowes.

richsoil.com/diatomaceous-earth.jsp

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