Knowing how to rid yourself of the flies as well as how to prevent them from returning makes all the difference in the world. So stop being hassled by the flies and instead kill them, once and for all.
1. Vinegar Trap
Put dish liquid an inch deep into a jar and then add about one inch of water. For best results, you should use a dish soap that is fruity flavored. Now add a few drops of vinegar (apple cider). Place of few of these around your home where you are seeing the flies.
The idea here is that the flies will be attracted by the smell the vinegar puts off and they will fly in and drown from the water.
2. Citronella or Camphor
When it comes to repelling flies Camphor and Citronella are both extremely helpful. Flies already dislike smoke in general, but when the smoke comes from citronella or camphor burning it doubles the effectiveness. You should only use this outdoors.
3. Aromatic Herbs
Mint, Rue, Tansy, Wormwood, Basil, Lavender, and Elder are all fragrances that flies are not fond of. Using these would help in removing the flies that are present, and preventing any new flies from wanting to approach.
4. Lemongrass Spray
Mix lemongrass essential oil (25 drops) with hot water (½ cup). Add the solution into a spray bottle and use it by spraying around windows and doorways, or in any area that is fly infested.
5. Boiling Malt Vinegar
When you boil malt vinegar a smell is released that flies are not able to stand. This is great when it comes to a natural way to deter flies. You can boil it on the stovetop.
6. Plants That Are Carnivorous
Planting plants like the sundew or the Venus fly trap, which are carnivorous, provides a natural way for you to remove pesky little flies. These plants not only do a constant job for digesting flies but they are also nice to look at.
7. Using Vodka
Flies for one reason or another hate Vodka. They don’t like the way it smells and for this reason, people have come to find that it is great to use as a repellant.
Just use a cup of Vodka, aloe vera juice (2 tsp), lemon eucalyptus oil (1 tsp), and essential oil blend (½ tsp). Pour the ingredients in a bottle for spraying. You can use this in the area where the flies are, as well as on your skin.
If you have an allergy to any of the ingredients used to make this spray then you should not use it on your skin.
8. Pheromone Traps
These traps are effective among many species of flies.
Orkin’s website states that “There are approximately 120,000 species of flies that have been described by science.” That is a lot of fly species, to say the least. These traps are not much different from the other traps out there except they don’t use bait of odor or food, instead, they use pheromones. Once the fly is in the trap it will not be able to escape.
These traps are sensitive and they can attract insects even when there is a low-density present. They are good for infestations both outdoors and indoors. The drawback with these traps is that they often only attract one gender.
9. Fly Paper Traps
A cheap and great method for killing flies is a fly paper trap. This paper has a fragrance that is sweet to help with attracting the flies. This paper is very sticky. Sometimes it will have a substance that is poisonous as well. When the fly lands on the paper it becomes trapped.
You could definitely make your own fly paper at home, but it is often cheap enough just to buy the traps already made.
10. Flyswatter
Nearly everyone has heard of using a flyswatter to kill flies. This works if you are fast enough in hitting the fly to kill it. However, for large infestations, this is generally not the best idea.
It would take a great deal of time to eliminate a lot of flies this way. However, for just the stray fly here and there a flyswatter comes in handy and will take care of the job just fine.
11. Fly Zapper
This is an electrical device that sends off an electrical discharge. The device draws the fly in and then when it comes into contact with the fly zapper it zaps it. Since the fly comes to this device you don’t have to chase the fly down like you would need to with a flyswatter.
A UV light is emitted from the zapper and it attracts most insects that fly, not just flies. These zappers should have a guard on them that helps protect pets and people from touching the grid on accident.
12. Chemical Sprays
These kill flies relatively quickly when it comes into contact with it. Many people like it for its fast acting ability to kill the flies. However, it is important to note that many of these are not safe for pets. Reapplying the spray for a few weeks can give you results that are long-lasting.
13. Nematodes
These microscopic worms act like a parasite. Once they have been introduced they search for fly larvae, as well as other pests that are soil-borne, penetrate them and then, from the inside out, consumes the larvae. Nematodes are not harmful to plants, pets, people, or earthworms. These can work for up to 18 months once they are in place.
14. Homemade Sugary Water Trap
Mix sugar (¼ cup) and corn syrup ( ½ cup).into a wide-mouthed jar. Take a funnel and cut a hole around a centimeter in diameter at its tip. Now turn it upside down and place it over the jar. Check to ensure the cone isn’t touching the jar’s content.
Now put the glass jar in the area where you commonly see flies. They will be attracted to the smell coming from the jar and will go in it but they are not going to be able to figure out how to get back out again.
15. Bug Vacuum
These vacuums are usually very small but are also very effective. Once turned on it will suck in flies as well as other insects. Once the flies are in there is adhesive that they get stuck to.
16. Remove Breeding Grounds
You need to remove any place that the flies could be breeding. This means that your garbage cans need to be properly covered. All dishes used for feeding your pets should be kept clean, always. This is not going to kill the flies for you but it is going to help prevent them from breeding even further once the adults have been killed.
17. Close Doors
You need to make sure that you are keeping your windows and doors closed. Your mother likely told you this a million times when you were a kid. Leaving the door open or windows open, without a screen, will almost always result in unwanted flies, and other bugs entering your home uninvited.
18. Plant Plants
You can plant basil or mint plants in your kitchen. Place several of these small plants around in the areas where you are trying to kill the flies. This will deter them as they will not like the smell that is produced from these plants. You could also use them around the doorways, to help encourage them to stay out of your home completely.
Keeping Out Fruit Flies
To help keep away fruit flies there are a few things that you can do.
19. Clean Produce
As soon as you get home from buying any produce you should clean it. Then store it in a bag that is new and loose, don’t reuse the bag that you got at the store.
20. Cover The Bowl
You should either cover the bowl that you store your fruit in or you should place it in the refrigerator. Flies can really tell when the fruit begins to spoil.
21. Filtering The Garbage You Keep Inside
The garbage that you keep inside should not contain any fruit, vegetables, or even scraps of meat. You should place them in a sealed back and then take them out to the outside garbage can.
22. Keep Dishes Washes
You should make sure that all your dishes stay washed. Don’t leave them in the sink for hours on end. Also, place white vinegar and baking soda in your drains to aid in killing any flies that could be breeding in there.
Conclusion
Eliminating existing flies is half of the task, preventing flies from returning is the other half. Once you have your fly problem under control it will be much easier to keep them away going forward. You should have a much better idea of to effectively remove them as well as the different types of deterrents that you can use.