Look after your investment!
We recommend you remove your feathers from their packaging upon arrival. Feathers need to breathe so at least open up your bags. It is up to you how you want to treat them.
Feathers are organic and they will break down in time if not looked after. Insects such as pantry moths and dermestes (hide) beetles can cause damage to your feathers and pelts, respectively. Mites are notorious for turning feathers into dust over time. They love dark and humid places.
We recommend regular freezing of your feathers. In our warm climate, insects and mites cannot cope with rapid freezing. Dave is formerly a cryobiologist so he knows what he is talking about when it comes to freezing stuff.
A bit of fly spray or pyrethrum will certainly help keep pests away. Surface treatments around windows and doors where you use feathers is always a good idea.
Moisture on your feathers can lead to fungus growth so keep them dry. It is fine to seal them in plastic bags once frozen a couple of times and once completely dry. If you fear you have critters on your feathers, freeze, thaw then freeze again.
Avoid direct sunlight. It will fade your feathers over time.
We do not treat feathers with any chemicals except for maybe a little fly spray while processing the birds. We do not want to put toxins or irritants on the feathers that you will handle. Our imported products are steam cleaned before being sent to us. They are also shipped with moth balls in the boxes to inhibit pests entering during transit.
We do treat the feather storage areas regularly to keep pests out.
