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How To Get Rid Of Fruit Flies

Posted By TipNut On May 17, 2010 @ 5:45 am In Cleaning | 5 Comments

Fruit flies are tiny, pesky flies that are brown and appear to have no fear of people (often it seems they’re trying to fly up your nose and in your mouth) but they’re mostly just clumsy fliers. The good news is that getting rid of and killing fruit flies is not difficult, you just need to do some cleaning, find their food source so you can remove it and lay out a fruit fly trap to bait them with.

Below I have a few cleanup and prevention tips plus a handful of easy & natural homemade fruit fly traps you can make that will capture and kill them–no need to run out for supplies since it’s likely you have all that’s needed in the kitchen already.
Getting Rid Of Fruit Flies: Cleanup & Prevention

Wash The Kitchen Sink Well
Fruit flies love sweets, ripe vegetables and fresh fruit, especially if it’s overripe (the fermenting process is a strong attraction for them). If they’re in your house, they’ve found a food source to feed from and lay their eggs on. To effectively get rid of fruit flies, you need to find their food source and remove it immediately.

* Wash kitchen counters and surfaces daily with soap and water. Wipe up sauces and spills immediately, look under heavy appliances.
* Make sure to keep kitchen sinks and drains washed and clean, if dirty the residue can attract fruit flies. If you think your kitchen sink drain is where they’re gathering, pour boiling water down the drain each day.
* Make sure all food dishes are washed and put away (do not leave dirty dishes out). If food is eaten throughout the house rather than just at the kitchen table, look for dirty plates, fruit pits, rinds and peels that may be left out in another room. Look under furniture.
* Don’t leave beverage bottles, cans and glasses filled with fruit juices, soda pop, wine, sweet liquors or beer sitting out–these are big attractions to fruit flies.
* On hot summer days, tie up and remove garbage from the kitchen daily, the refuse and kitchen scraps start turning faster in the heat and the smell attracts the fruit flies. Or make sure the garbage bin has a tight fitting lid to keep out the flies.
* Make sure to rinse out all cans and bottles before placing in the recycling bins.
* Keep food and fruit wrapped in plastic or in the refrigerator (especially overripe fruit, this is like a magnet to the little pests). Fruit flies love to lay their eggs on food.
* Watch the pantry, bags of potatoes and onions are quicker to turn in the heat and this will attract the little flies. Keep pantry shelves clean of all drips and spills.

Homemade Fruit Fly Traps

Fruit Flies Love Bananas
Fruit flies are one of the easiest little pests to bait and kill, no elaborate trap setups required. Here are a handful of homemade traps you can try, all of them are free from harsh chemicals.

Quick & Easy Trap

* An easy & effective fruit fly trap is to set out a bowl of vinegar with a couple drops of citrus smelling liquid dish detergent. This attracts the fruit flies and they drown. Lay a fresh bowl out each day to keep the smell strong enough to attract them.

Cider Vinegar Trap Recipe

1 cup water
1 cup cider vinegar
2 tsp dishwashing liquid

* Directions: Pour into a jar or bottle and set out close to fruit & produce. The smell will attract the fruit flies and they will come investigate, getting themselves covered with soap and then drown.

Fresh Fruit Bait

* Place a piece of cut fruit in a jar (use a ripe/overripe banana if you can, this seems to be their favorite). Roll a piece of paper into a funnel (cutting the bottom tip so there’s an entry) and place into the top of the jar to trap fruit flies. Make sure the bottom opening of the funnel doesn’t touch the fruit (you don’t want the fruit flies to have an easy exit) and that the sides of the funnel fill the jar opening completely (no cracks for the flies to get out). Make sure to remove and replace the fruit every two days to avoid breeding new fruit flies. You could also skip the funnel and just cover the jar with plastic wrap, poking a few small holes in the top for them to enter.

Coca-Cola Trap

* Leave an inch or two of Classic Coke in the bottom of a pop bottle and twist on the cap. Take a hammer and nail or drill to make a small hole in the cap (about 1/4’’ diameter). Set the bottle in the room where the fruit flies are heaviest. Fruit flies will crawl in and won’t be able to get back out.

Beer Trap (Works With Wine Too)

* Fill a mason jar about 2’’ to 3’’ deep with beer, cover opening with a piece of plastic wrap secured with a rubber band. Poke a few holes in the top of the plastic so the fruit flies can get into the jar to get at the beer–they won’t be able to get out.

Yeast Trap

* In a mason jar, sprinkle active dry yeast over 1/3 cup warm water. Add 1 teaspoon of sugar and stir.
* Once the yeast is activated and starts to foam, cover the jar top tightly with plastic wrap (try to keep the surface wrinkle free), secure with a rubber band.
* Make a small hole in the top for the fruit flies to find their way in, most will be unable to get out.

Tips

* If you have an especially heavy infestation, set out a fruit fly trap in a small room with the light left on overnight. Although fruit flies are most active during the day, the flies will be attracted to the light and make their way to the room (and their tempting trap bait).
* Once it seems you’ve gotten rid of the fruit flies, you may notice a fresh batch flying around–these are likely those that have hatched from the eggs of the previous fruit flies (the gestation period is about 7 to 10 days). Repeat the cleaning process and lay out the traps until there’s no recurrence. This is why it’s important to find all their food sources, fruit flies lay eggs on the food that will hatch later.

Originally Published June 23, 2009
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