Yuck! I have so many little fruit flies in my kitchen! I know they can come from fruit, and they're attracted to fruit, so I keep all my produce in the fridge (though I'd prefer to have it out in a fruit bowl on the table). But they're even in the fridge! Today I found two in my milk pitcher in the fridge!

I also have 2 cats and 2 litter boxes, which also can attract fruit flies. Nasty! And I don't want to spray dangerous chemicals around my food-prep surfaces or where it can hurt my cats. So does anyone have a suggestion? A product, or a home remedy? I've even thought of getting a Venus fly trap, but they're expensive and seem to only "eat" one or two bugs at a time, very slowly.

We bought some little fly traps in the grocery store.

They're for flies, fruit flies, etc. and they've worked really well.

They are little boxes that have 3 or 4 compartments, but darned if I can remember the name of them. Fly hotels, sort of.

People suggested the fly paper strips, but somehow I didn't like them - hair got caught in them and it's no fun looking up at them - rather disgusting, really! lol

Good luck,
Lorace

Have you heard the old saying that you can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar? When it comes to fruit flies, the "conventional wisdom" is wrong.

Fruit Fly Trap:

Need: 1) a glass jar, any size, but taller than wide
2) a piece of paper
3) a piece of masking tape
4) a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar
5) a piece of decaying fruit

Put the vinegar in the jar and add water so that the liquid is about an inch deep. Add fruit bit. Twist the paper into a cone shape, leaving about a 1/2 inch opening in the bottom of the cone. Place the cone in the jar so that the opening is at least an inch, but not more than 2-3 inches, above the liquid. Tape the cone to the jar rim so that there is no opening other than the one at the base of the cone. Place the jar where there is air movement, as the flies will be drawn by scent. When the liquid starts to fill with dead flies, pour it out and make a new batch.

Fruit flies are attracted to things other than fruit. They like almost any decaying organic matter - like stuff in a compost pail. Check your kitchen to see what is drawing them in, and get it out of the kitchen.

Great info... thanks!

--Bob

Ada,

I don't know how you do it. But no matter what comes up, you always have such great information for us.

Thanks so much, I'm in awe

Lorace

Thanks for the tip! I had heard about using a jar with vinegar and soapy water. Our break room at work is also always full of fruit flies, so I've done the jar there and it catches a TON! But it also looks gross, a jar filled with liquid and dead bloated bugs...

I think they must come in with fruit I buy - and once they're in the house, they stay and multiply! They hang around the litterbox (can't get rid of that, though I clean it more frequently when flies are around), they get in the fridge (I guess with the fruit I put away in there, but they quickly die in the cold), they get in my herbs and catnip plants (although I try to quickly clean up any dead leaves from the plants), they get on damp washcloths I use to clean in the kitchen...

Of course they get in the trash too, and that's the one area I can spray to kill them.

Right now I actually have a sink full of soapy water and vinegar, and it's attracted lots of flies. How weird that they like vinegar!

Hey Ada, do you have any advice for killing fleas? I've treated my cats - but fleas are still biting ME!

1) Yes, the vinegar solution works better if you add a drop or two of soap to break the surface tension of the water. I forgot to mention that.

2) You can always cover the outside of the jar with some nice paper and a pretty bow. The fruit flies won't care.

3) If you have indoor plants, remember that the fruit flies will be attracted to any decaying plant matter, and they will take up residence and lay eggs. The same BTi that kills the fungus gnats will also kill fruit fly larvae in the soil. (Not recommended for litter boxes, though.)

4) Soap/cleaning sprays that contain citric acid (lemon, grapefruit, orange, etc.) are good for repelling both flies and meal moths. They find food by scent, and the citrus confuses them. Citrus cleaners are also good for breaking the pheromone trails used by ants.

5) When you bring fruit in, wash it in water with a mild liquid soap, rinse thoroughly, and let dry before storing. You can also use a commercial fruit/vegetable wash, but a drop or two of dish soap is just as good. I wash fruit in a solution of Grapefruit Seed Extract, which is a good antibacterial cleaner, as well as containing a powerful citric acid.

As for fleas:
If you have carpets, then you can dust the carpet with DE - diatomaceous earth (the garden kind, NOT the kind used for swimming pools), sweep it in well, then vacuum thoroughly. DE looks and feels like fine flour, and it can be handled safely. However, it is NOT safe to breathe it, and not safe for your pets to breathe either. (Though interestingly enough, it will not harm them if they eat it. Or get it on their fur and lick it off. In fact, a lot of the treatments for internal parasites contain DE.) Recommend you corral the cats before using DE, and have good air circulation while you vacuum. Best if you use a vacuum with a HEPA filter. The DE in the vacuum should kill any fleas that escaped it before.

Watch for cat bedding, too. Fleas love to live there. When you clean the bedding, add some citric acid to the wash. Fleas don't like citrus either.

Ada

Those are lots of brilliant suggestions! Thanks!

Ah, Ada. Here I go again.

Now we're having roof rat problems. This is an area in Arizona where these things started being a terrific problem. They subsist on fallen oranges, but now in the summer, the oranges are gone and they've started coming into homes and stealing food and water.

We managed to trap one of them in a sticky rat house, but, unfortunately, he had brothers. We're afraid of poison because of the dog and grandchildren.

We have a storage shed out back and there are traces showing that they've been there, so we've baited a trap with poison out there as we can lock it.

Do you (or anyone) have any other suggestions? We are truly
sick about these things.

Lorace

I don't have roof rats here, just Norway rats. However, my Norways managed to do more than $1000 worth of damage to my truck (tucked away in a closed garage) by eating out the wiring, so I have no love for rats.

You can try rat traps (like oversized mouse traps) or the live catch traps. In my experience, rats are too smart for these traps. You might catch one, but the others will then avoid them.

I haven't found anything but poison that works. The safest of these is a compound with Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol), because the amount needed varies with weight. The rat-sized baits won't seriously harm a larger animal like a dog unless they eat a lot of them (like 30-40)at once, so they are (relatively) safe. The other advantage is that any scavenger that eats the rats won't be harmed. You can find this type of bait under several names. Rampage makes one that I have used successfully.

The other (relatively) safe poison is warfarin. It is an anticoagulant that has a cumulative effect, so you have to resupply your bait stations for several days to make sure the rats get a lethal dose. This has worked for me, but I have read that roof rats are a bit harder to kill with warfarin than the Norway rats. Like the D3, warfarin won't seriously harm a larger animal unless they get a large amount of it, and the rat carcasses are (relatively) safe.

There are anticoagulants that are stronger than warfarin (brodifacoum, bromadiolone), but they are also much more dangerous to larger animals if they eat them (or eat the dead rats.)

If at all possible, you need to block the access routes the rats are using to get into buildings. Definitely not easy with roof rats. Where the rats nest, you are likely to get other "visitors". I've come nose-to-nose with a copperhead while trying to clean out a shed and rid it of rats. Fortunately, copperheads are rather lethargic and not especially mean-tempered. If I remember correctly, the Arizona desert rattlesnakes are neither sweet-tempered nor lethargic. (And I have reason to remember, as one had taken up residence in a foxhole I was supposed to occupy during a training exercise. He was not inclined to share, and was very outspoken about it. I decided not to argue the point.)

The most "organic" solution to my rat problem came in the form of a couple of nesting barn owls, which took up residence in an old rat-infested outbuilding. Owl boxes are a good investment, if you live where they are allowed.

Ada

Last summer my kids left some bananas in our camper van. One heat wave and two weeks passing equaled many fruit flies. LOL. I cleaned. I vacuumed. I sprayed. But the buzzing pests remained. With some searching I found instructions on how to make your own fruit fly traps. If you have orange juice and a pop bottle you have a cure!

http://deadeasy.com/hometrap.htm

Thanks for the info!

--Bob

Ada,

I'm glad we don't have Norway Rats --that's so horrible. We've lost water hoses and had water all over our utility room from the holes they've chewed, but, thank heavens, they don't seem to go after the electric wires.

Thanks for all the great information, again. I wouldn't wish an infestation of rats on my worst enemy! It's just horrible.

Lorace

This started 2 years ago in the Phoenix area and it's become a super problem out here.

Hi there!

I think I have a solution here. After some research on the web I see the little things are also named vinegar flies and drain flies. Whatever they are called I found a way to get rid of them for good. These homemade fruitfly traps worked for us.

http://fruitflytraps.com/hometrap.htm

Joe

Read all info, just jumped up and made my gnat trap (pop bottle and vinegar- caught 3 before I sat back down!!
THANK YOU!! THANK YOU!!

I have what I thought were fruit flies as well, but they don't have red eyes- I'm thinking that they are just gnats. There are TONS on them that fly around our outside door and then come in our house that way. And I did notice them around some of our house plants. Will the orange juice thing work outside? Or should I spray something else?

And, Ada, what was the chemical you said to use on houseplants, and where might I be able to get some? Thanks so much!!!

Have you written a book on this stuff, Ada? If not, you should. You'll have a lot of thankful readers out there.

--Bob

*chortle snort* Not this century.

There are plenty of books already written - from gardening encyclopedias to Organic Gardening for Dummies
.
.
Which I just realized has not been reviewed. Guess I should get busy and write a book review.

Does anyone have suggestions on getting rid of a groundhog? I live in a townhouse and one has burrowed underneath my place and the house next door. Lots of people have pets, so I hate to spray a poison that kills everything that moves.
On the other hand, he wasn't too friendly when we met, so I want him out of there quickly.
Thanks, Dave

Sounds like a situation for a Hava-heart trap and some woodchuck bait. Whatever that is.

--Bob

I put some poison in the hole and covered it up. I haven't seen him in 24 hours...maybe he went away! -Dave

I am in the city of Los Angeles and every summer we get one in our front yard, tearing it up. It even gets into the walls of the house and one night from midnite to 1 am I was hiting the ceiling with an umbrella directing him out of the house.

I did a google search and learned of a product that costs about $15 that has the scent of the fox, known to be their enemy.

So one morning at 7:30 I see his head pop out and could not bear to kill him. Then a few nites later at 7 PM I saw him again. Got my 10 year old out with me and we took several photos over the course of a few nites. He was quite amusing peaking out and eating up the weeds.

Then I asked my landlord for help and they did the hose all the way down the hole for about 30 minutes and never saw him again, been about 2 weeks now.

I advise getting the book Tiny Game Hunting - it has a section on gophers.

Bonnie

Quite an experience,Bonnie. I'm so glad that the landlord helped you out.

The problem is that these things are so cute, unlike the darned rats that I'm still being plagued with.

Rats just LOVE dog food. They store it all over, the ol' Roy Rounds and the liver snaps - It took us a year before we realized this. So, if any of you leave dog food out at night, I'd advise you to pick it up till daylight.

Why do these things, gophers and rats, work only at night? Smart, aren't they?

Thanks for sharing your experience, Bonnie

Lorace

Great advice, Acropolis. Thanks so much.

I'll surely try this, too.

Lorace

Hi!

I have been swarmed with fruit flies or what I think to be them, insanely this summer. I found a couple of gross looking "worms" about 1 cm long. Could this be the larve? I wouldn't think so since that is sizable and the fruit flies are smaller, but it is quite a coincidence. Any thoughts? Thanks!

That would be the larvae of the fruit fly. If not killed, they will form a hard little oval shell about 2 mm long (looks kinda like a seed) which will hatch into a fruit fly.

First, you need to get rid of whatever is drawing the fruit flies. You can kill the larvae with a soap solution with a bit of rubbing alcohol mixed in, or a citrus or mint liquid soap.

Hi!

Thanks so much for the replies, you have all been awesome help. I found these larvae/worms under some newspapers on the ground in my kitchen and also on my sofa chair that we never use. Gross huh? I just picked them up with a tissue and flushed them down the toilet.

I am not sure if these are fruit flies persay. I tried the vinegar cider and have caught none. These are the little black flies that swarm towards the light and perch on the light bulbs even though it kills them. What are these pesky flies? Are they actually fruit flies? I am getting so grossed out by this whole thing!

-Cindy

Those might be Fungus Gnats

Thanks Ada! I was wondering if they might be gnats after they didn't take to the cider vinegar. The weird thing is that we have absolutely zero plants or soil around. Do you have any idea why they might be cropping up so much inside? They are just nasty. I'm hoping they perch up on my lightbulbs and fry themselves.

I'm not sure. The ones I get are coming in because I have plants in pots, and the potting soil contains mushroom spore.

Fungus gnats are drawn to (Duh!) fungi, so you should check for mold. If they were on an old, unused chair - is it possible that the chair stuffing has mold?

Adults are drawn to yellow sticky traps, if you can find them in a garden store in your area.

I have bought and used fly traps that are like hotels. They are white cardboard and shaped like a triangle sliced in half. There are entrance holes in the top.

You set these in a window frame and the flies go in and will not be able to get out. After a few days, I peered into mine and lo and behold, it not only had captured flies but, also, was loaded with fruit flies and/or gnats!

This has completely rid my home of the "plant gnats" that had driven me crazy. I wish I had saved the wrapper, but we bought them in a grocery store and they came in packages of two, very reasonably priced.

Hope this helps,
Lorace

Just happened to run across this page looking for a solution for what I "think" may be a fungus on my zinnias outside. But if you can stand another suggestion. I just had an attack of the nasty fruit flies ( seems like it happens every year at this time).Someone told me to put a piece of banana and the peel inside a small bowl, cover the top in saran wrap ( I also used a rubber band to secure it, and rubbed the top with banana) poke holes in the top, and for some reason the little buggers can get in but not out.I kept mine near the kitchen sink along with a bottle of citrus cleaner if I caught them landing around it I shot them with the cleaner, needless to say I have the cleanest counters of anyone I know.I also clean all the drains in the house as I believe they will live in any small clog or drain. This works along the same principle as the other suggestions, but I thought it might help if you needed substitutions.

Thanks for the tip! If this keeps going, Epinions may come to be known as "You know, the site you go to when you want to kill fruit flies."

Hey, if it helps, I'm all for it!

--Bob

I like this one and will sure try it.

Thanks so much for adding it,

Lorace

By the way, all this discussion reminds me of the old saying:

Time flies like an arrow.
Fruit flies like a banana.

--Bob

I hate to bring this up, but is it possible that the worms are parasites from an animal?

Also, does anyone know if fruit flies hurt intact fruit or vegetables? If fruit flys have been on something do you have to throw it all away, or just wash it off?

On another note, borax or Boraxo kills fleas. If you sprinkle it on your rug (with a small shaker of 20 Mule Team Borax), they will all die. You have to keep it up though and eventually would have to clean the rug. I put it on my couch and it's never been the same. Killed the fleas though.

I have tried everything. Then I started getting mad, so everything was personal. I sent the wife and kids away for a day and started experimenting. On the third hour,I discovered something,something that may be working,this may be the solution I thought. Could it be a can of hairspray works. I continued to spray the baseboards,corners and every other aspect of our lives these little pests had infiltrated.I can say that this truly has been a blessing to us. The numbers we had, as to the couple we have now, is remarkable. By the way, I use Suave EXTRA HOLD SHAPING SPRAY. Hope it helps you all, it sure helped in my situation. GOOD LUCK !!!!!!!

Well, I have an update, albeit a disturbing one, on the fly problem.

The pesky gnat problem eventually went away. After some focused cleaning and just plain swatting them, they started to diminish. Yay!

But I figured out what the gross worm/larvae were. For a couple of years now, we have had these strange little bugs crawling around. They are oval shaped, point at the ends, with antennae. They are beetle like but don't have the hard bettle shell and are not segmented. I had noticed more of them this year.

They have striped lines on their body and if you flip them upside down, they don't really have beetle legs but instead, a fuzzy underside of legs.

I have been unable to identify what these bugs are so I don't know how to get rid of them. But I realized the worm/larvae I found were them. Because of the stripes.

I also began to find the larvae shells after they had grown out of them, all around the kitchen. There were like 40 of these larvae shells in one of my kitchen cupboards! I freaked out. Since they are transparent, it was hard to see them. Wow, how disgusting.

And they had managed to crawl into most of the food we had in the cupboards as well. Food that was in BOXES! How the heck they got in there, I will never know. Sealed boxes, for goodness sakes.

I still see a few of them crawling around now and then. If anyone knows what these are, please help!

Mealybugs

Hi,

If they are mealy bugs, just know that it's a common problem. I've been led to believe that they materialize inside the boxes.

I haven't read the link that Ada put on yet, but we've found that if we put the suspect boxes in the freezer after purchasing, the bugs don't ever materialize. I don't know if we're killing their eggs, or what, by doing that.

We put flour, rice, large bags of pasta, etc. in the freezer, products that you won't use up in a short time. Oatmeal is another product prone to the bugs, but freezing stops them.

The joke around here is that at least they are protein!

Thanks for the post.

Lorace

Hi Ada and Lorace!

Thank you so much for all your help. You two are wonderful!

I looked at the pictures of the mealy bugs and sadly, those don't look like the type of bugs that are in my house. They are slightly similar in shape but not at all fuzzy (except for their underside). They are a little more sharp looking, dark gray (or brown) in color and range from 0.5 to 2.5 cm in length. I have even found them crawling on my ceiling - weird!

Any new ideas as to what they are? If I had a camera, I'd find one and take a photo and submit it to www.whatsthatbug.com! LOL. But I can only draw it. It is similar to the mealy bug but not at all fuzzy on outershell and darker. However, I do find that their materializing from inside the boxes makes sense. Your advice about freezing those food items is great. Thanks!!

Cindy

There are lots of different mealybugs, and not all of them are fuzzy. Some are waxy, like the Longtailed Mealybug .

If you have an Agricultural Extension Station in your area, take them one of the bugs and see whether they can identify it.

Cindy,

Glad you're finding help and hope you nail these little critters down.

I notice I wasn't too clear about the freezing bit. I didn't intend that you'd leave them in the freezer forever, which would clog it up slightly.

I've been told that by freezing them about a week would do the trick and I've never, ever had a mealy bug in those items that I've frozen.

Sorry I was so vague.

Lorace

I have a very bad fruit fly problem in my home and I am going crazy trying to remedy this problem! I have read alot of good tips online but, unfortunately, most are not safe to use around cats such as essential oils, pine sol, fly traps, etc. I purchased flea/tick spray to spray around doors and windows because it was all i could think of that might work yet still be safe. Not so sure it did the job, though. I have been reading alot of tips about 'fly traps' which seem to work in the short term but they are not effective long term. Traps that contain vinegar, fruit, wine, soda...just attract the flies and they fall in and die. But this does not attack the source of the problem. You end up re-filling these home made traps continually and they are not very pleasant to look at in your kitchen. I want to attack the source and cannto seem to be able to do that. I have no fresh flowers, no fruit left outside of the refrigerator, no drain issues (i tried the old 'tape the drain and see if they stick to the tape' routine), so i cant combat this problem! Any advice on what my next move should be if I want a long-term solution?

Have you tried the medicated chest rub product (the ointment with vapors)? I had a bad problem with those pesks and took a plastic lid and rubbed some ointment on it and set it near my fruit in the kitchen. Amazingly they vanished. They didn't drop onto the ointment, I guess the smell was too much for them. It is so nice to have bananas out now without those critters.

I was searching to find info on how to get rid of fruit flies and found all of you and your great advice! Not only does everyone have great ideas, but it makes me feel so much more at ease because it's not an isolated problem. I was feeling like my house was so unclean because I was finding these darn pesky fruit fly/gnats near my drain, but now I know I am not alone! Thank you!

My sister uses a electric paddle she got from brooks-zapit.com. She also uses it for most crawly things in the house.

My sister uses a electris paddle she got from brooks-zapit.com. She uses it for all crawly critters in her house.

Is there any other method besides the applevinger solution?
What else can you use?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

The method that I use to get rid of fruit flies: Take a bottle of beer and dump half of it out. Then add some vinegar and some dish soap. Just let it sit on the counter a day or two. You will be amazed. It really works. I was told that the fruit flies fly inside the beer bottle, become drunk, and cannont fly back out. I'm not sure, but it works!

Sorry I had wanted to reply to this so I registered. Then it got posted as a new subject and I don't know how to delete it.

I've been having a bug problem. They are tiny and fast. I just read some posts. I put some vinager in glasses about 1 minutes ago and nothing yet. I'm gonna try the dish soap one in a minute. These are not just in aone place though. Of course we have a small house. But, they are in the kitchen, living room and computer area. I don't know if they are after food or what. I don't really see them in the bedrroom or bathroom. But, my goodness, they like to fly around my face. My husband hasn't said too much about them. But, then again, he's been working nights and I don't see him much. They are driving me crazy. I guess they have been around for about 2 weeks. I don't know if this makes a difference but, I'm in the area where there was flooding from hurricane Rita. We couldn't get to our house for like 2 weeks except for by boat. It still smells really bad outside. We did have some flood water (not a lot) in the house and some things got wet. There was a smell in the house at first until I cleaned everything up. I could try take a digital picture of some and upload it somewhere and post a link if you think it would help it to be identified. Thanks guys!
Oh, we don't have any plants anywhere. Also, I don't mind spraying something if it will help. I don't have any hairspray. But, I could get some if you think it will help.

Update: They don't seem to case about the vinager. Does that mean they aren't fruit flys?

Wow! What a mess you're going through. The fact that you say they're tiny and fast and go for your face makes them sound like the little pests we're calling fruit flies.

They seem to multiply anywhere where there's dampness and it's a possibility that they're breeding in the damp soil around the house.

I certainly feel for you and can't give you any firm answer not having gone thru this myself. I think, though, that it wouldn't hurt to find a bug spray and try spraying around inside like you would if you were inundated with flies, or something. It might give you some relief anyhow and I'd spray outside, too.

Good luck and please do keep us informed.

Lorace

Hope life gets better for you soon!

Thanks for the responce. I've never sprayed for flys. I've sprayed for roaches and crawling bugs. Is there a special spray for flys? I need to find out from my neighbors if they are having the problem too. Yes, it's been annoying to deal with all this mess. But, there are others that are much worse off from it than I was. We had lots of roaches, sppiders, crickets, ailversish and who knows what else. We actually had to set off two bombs in the house. So, then we had to wash every dish after that. My husband said we are never doing that again.We don't have a dishwasher. I still see some things around now and then. It would just be nice to enter a room and turn on the light without knowing you will see something crawling or flying around. Oh, it has been dry outside for weeks now. It is just the odor that has been left behind. It's been really cool outside. The type of weather where I'd just like to open the windows. But, not with that smell.

If the bugs go for the face and eyes, they sound like gnats to me. Do they bite? The gnats here in Virginia (which are very common at our home in the mountains) will bite if you let them on your skin for a minute. They will also fly into your eyes. However, it's been my experience that gnats are almost exclusively an outside pest... I really don't see them inside. Your climate and the after-effects of the storm may be making a difference in this regard, though.

Gnats breed in tiny fetid pockets of water, including places like mounds of leaves and brush, as well as clogged gutters on your house. The first step to eliminating them is to remove all possible pockets of standing water. Then, I'd seal the house and set off a couple of bug bombs. Stick whatever you want to protect (dishes, pots, cutlery, clothes) into trash bags but still plan on rinsing your plates, cookware and cutlery just to be safe.

I'm sure Ada knows a heckuva hot more about this than I do, so maybe there still some advice to come. Good luck!

--Bob

We don't have carpet. Just Lenoleum floors. We didn't get very much water in the house. But anything touching the floor got wet. We went through everything that got wet. Not much as far as mold. Anything with a fabric that got wet was smelly. But, we took care of all that. As far as itentifing what it looks like, it won't stay still long enough. It seems to like the light of the computer screen. But, when I try to see it up close, it flys away. All the pictureshave side views of the legs and all. I can't see the legs or a side view. I called a local agriculture place. They said to try and catch some and bring them buy to look at. Oh, no they don't bite. They really don't land on me at all.

RE: hey Ada...

STEPS:
1. Take an old, large cottage cheese container and punch holes in the top of its cover with a screwdriver (or something like it) so it resembles a huge salt shaker. Pour in the 20 mule Borax detergent. Shake a generous (medium-amount) over all your carpets and use the push broom to press/push the powder between the fibers and down into the bottom of your carpets/rugs.

2. Use the Virbac Knockout liquid from your vet and spray every inch of your carpets with it; this will coat the top of your carpet while the powder (i.e. 20 Mule Borax) coats the middle and bottom of carpet fibers. This leaves no area for fleas to survive. You must also spray linoleum and(or) tile flooring as well as between mattresses, all upholstered furniture (including under cushions), and any other porous or hard-to-reach areas in your home where fleas could hide and reproduce. Be careful not to contaminate pet/human food-sources.

3. Finally, you must pour an entire individual packet (liquid) of Frontline Plus (one pkt. per cat) on the back of the cat's neck, between where their shoulder bones meet. Spread the fur apart while doing this to make sure it touches the skin so it can't be washed away when/if you bathe them (this product is waterproof).

This whole process is a bit exasperating due to how tedious and time-consuming it is...but so well worth it!!! I've never had another flea problem since!

Lastly & most important, please consult your personal vet and physician before using any of these products. I personally have had no problems resulting from using any of the above mentioned products even though my family has various allergies, but everyone is different so please be cautious in your use of these items.

Here's what to do:

First, you go to your vet and buy Virbac Knockout (household spray pump); one 16oz. bottle will cover approximately a two-bedroom sized house.

Second, I noticed you said you had your cat(s) flea-dipped. Very well. However, I personally bought Frontline Plus from my vet which is simply a small amount of liquid you put on the back of your cat's neck (by spreading the fur so it makes direct contact with their skin, making sure it will stay). This kills any fleas of all life-cycle stages (eggs, larvae, pupae). Also, note: Hartz flea & tick shampoo (purchasable at Walmart; fuchsia colored) works great as well and is a good extra--kills the ticks almost instantly!

Third, if you go to Wal-Mart you can buy a detergent called 20 Mule Borax (you'll find it by the other clothes detergents). You will also need to buy a small push-broom.

This all is a lengthy & tedious process, but well worth it because it eliminates ALL the fleas and protects against reinfestation for an entire year! Also, you MUST coat EVERY INCH of your home...carpets & vinyl/tile-flooring--this means lifting furniture as well to get every square inch or the fleas will have an area to re-breed.

Another note: wear a cotton face-mask while you push the powder into the rugs so as to not breath this in, and if you have skin & sinus allergies like myself be very careful of this and wash your hands, etc., thoroughly after completing the whole process. The borax in this detergent is toxic to the flea's small digestive system & will kill them.

Then once a year you should re-do your house with the spray because it only lasts one year (though I've gone over that a bit and it has still worked for me). Fortunately, you probably shouldn't have to repeat the powder process (i.e. 20 Mule Borax) as it is fairly permanent even when you deep-clean your carpets.

Lastly & most important, please consult your personal vet and physician before using any of these products. I personally have had no problems resulting from using any of the above mentioned products even though my family has various allergies, but everyone is different so please be cautious in your use of these items.

Thank you, Ada...for your fruit-fly solution. I've tried a variety of things and nothing's seemed to work. I appreciate this idea/information. Thanks, again.
Cat

Thanks for the advice Coupeman. I had bought one at a fair this year. We took it everywhere until it broke. The one you recommended works great and it has a warrantee!!!!! Fries the little buggers. with no mess Poof! they are gone. Great gift idea too!
Thanks.

Bonous! Thanks again Coupeman you rock! the hand held zapper you recomended are on sale for the holidays. Works great
The brooks-zapit.com folks are great to deal with as well.
Again Thanks you rock!

In case anyone is wondering, this is the post from coupeman:

My sister uses a electris paddle she got from brooks-zapit.com. She uses it for all crawly critters in her house.

--Bob

I have been reading the posts with the great ideas about getting rid of these pests but havent seen any ideas about the cat litter box. What can I do? And I have seen the lovely little house guests crawling in the litter box. We already started our home made fruit jar traps & catching these little critters by the tons. What happened is while we were out of state our adult son was living in our home & had some food go bad. He did not discard it immediately & the problem began. WE WELCOME ANY IDEAS/SUGGESTIONS!

Hi - I also have a problem with fruit flies in my cat's litter box. I went on a weekend trip and forgot to take out the garbage, and when I returned, there were fruit flies in my garbage and cat's litter box. I am at a loss for how to deal with the cat box.
I've been spraying and swatting the flies, and throwing the litter away every few days, but somehow, the last few flies always manage to breed in the cat box again. I can't leave my cats without their litter! Help! Any ideas welcome. Thanks.

help i've got the water bags hanging pest strips in the house a dispenser with fly spray on the carport can't seem to get rid of the flies.

Whew! It seems you've done all that's possible. Do you happen to live in a rural area where there are horses?

Perhaps you could try the fly strips outside near the water bags? Also, don't forget you can buy those fly houses in the grocery/hardware store. These were very effective in my place. Perhaps they call them hotels? Not sure but there are such things.

Good luck. Keep us posted, okay? Maybe you'll find something none of us has tried.

Lorace

Hello,

It's been a while since I last posted but I have still been trying to get rid of these larvae / bugs that are rampant in the cupboards, in wall cracks, floor cracks, bathroom through the drains, etc.

The larvae are about 4 mm long or so, but the bugs get as big as 1.5 - 2 inches.

They vary in colour, usually grey or brown.

I managed to snap a photo of a fast moving one. This one was among 6 others in between two window panes in the window sill.

I think I'm developing severe anxiety over these things because I have no idea what they are and hope someone can help. Thank you.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v337/cricketc/Bug.jpg

My gosh. No wonder you're upset. This thing looks like its got a thousand legs. What part of the country do you live in? I'm amazed that you could post a picture on here, too! It was wonderful to be able to see it first hand.

The only thing that's ever really cleaned out everything for us is SPECTRACIDE. I noticed WalMart has some now with its own sprayer and it can be used inside or outside.

It got rid of ticks (for 5 years) and black widows and most of the sewer roaches we get. You might try it.

I wish I had a name for this. It sort of looks like the water bugs we get now and then.

Good luck, hope someone has other ideas.

Lorace

Well, first - where are you living? That would help narrow down the list of possible bugs.

Look at this site on Centipedes, Millipedes and Pill Bugs and see if any of them look like your culprit.

Of course, we really have to identify them for certain before we can determine how to get rid of them, but some things you can try:

1. First, eliminate their entrances by caulking up the openings! Not only will this stop the bugs getting in, but any opening big enough for a bug also lets in the outside air. You can cut down heating bills by simply eliminating these cracks.

2. It sounds like your bugs are attracted to dark, damp places. In cupboards, try using a dehumidifier, or leave the doors open and turn on a fan directed into the cupboard at night. Really dry out areas around sinks, showers, tubs after use. Same thing around windows that sweat: dry them with a dehumidifier or fan.

3. Look for a product called Baygon, which has a spray with a slender tip for spraying down in cracks and crevices. It uses pyrethrins, which are effective against most of the creepy/crawly crew. (Be careful with this around children and pets, as it can be toxic if ingested, but is generally safe otherwise.)

Hi Lorace,

Thanks for your reply! I was having trouble sleeping last night due to my bug anxiety! I'm a bit bug phobic so this is just creeping me out.

I had to snap a few photos to get a good one - this one was moving so fast, I'm surprised it came out so clear!

I live in the prairie region of Canada.

I have seen the underside of this bug and it looks like it's got a thousand legs for sure - but they aren't even like legs. The underside is really fuzzy.

I will try Spectracide - although I don't even know where to spray it! I have no idea where these bugs are coming from and am contemplating moving just to get away from them!

Cindy

Hi Ada,

Thank you for your reply as well! I checked out your helpful link. I wondered last year if they were Pill bugs. Yesterday when I poked one with a cotton swap, it did curl up in a ball.

However, their outside isn't a hard shell like the ones in the pill bugs and it's not segmented like that either. I do wonder if it is some sort of member of this centipede, millipede, pill bug family though.

Thank you for your wonderful tips! I will try caulking up the openings - if I can find them all! I hate that I don't know where they are coming from, if they are living in the walls or what. It grosses me out that they are just in the cupboards. Usually I will open up a box of pasta or reach out to grab some tin foil, and the larvae or the larvae shells will be in the boxes. Weird huh?

If I can't find out what these things are and how to get rid of them, well, I just have to MOVE!

Thanks again! Hope someone out there has maybe had this problem! LOL!

Cindy

Look at this site on Stored Grain Pests in Canada

If you have grain moth larvae, then you need to put your cereals and grains in sealed containers. (A good idea in any case, as it seals out insects and mice.)

If you can manage to catch one in an old jar, you might take it to your local nursery. They can probably help you identify it and also prescribe some kind of remedy to get these creepy critters out of your house.

I'm with Ada - looks like it's some kind of centipede or millipede.

Cindy, Why don't you submit this photo to the site in Ada's last post? Stored Grain Pests in Canada

It has loads of pictures of bugs that viewers have submitted, but I didn't seem to see any like yours.

It would be a shame to have to move because of these pests. You'll find a solution, I'm sure. Hold on.

Lorace

www.ratzapper.com

I know this was posted last year, but it's better late than never. I used the Rat Zapper Classic (the blue one) and it really worked.

http://www.ratzapper.com/rodents101_classic.cfm

-Jolea

www.ratzapper.com

I know this was posted last year, but it's better late than never. I used the Rat Zapper Classic (the blue one) and it really worked.

http://www.ratzapper.com/rodents101_classic.cfm

-Jolea

Hello, I'm going CRAZY because this spring, we're being invaded by Flies!! Not huge horseflies, but the standard bluebottle type, and another just a bit smaller.

Not Gnats, Not Fruit Flies, Regular, Annoying, Flies.

What Can I do to get rid of them?? I don't want to use chemicals if I can avoid it - and I HATE those pest strips, but I'll have to use some, I know it.

I've heard that others in my area are having similar problems - and none of us knows why...any ideas?

Flies are showing up inside about now because they are hatching from eggs. The easiest way to get rid of them at this stage is with sticky traps:

Woodstream Fly Scoops

Safer Fly Scoops

No toxins, and you can just toss them in the trash.

If you put basil in a terry cloth and hang it from your ceiling, you shouldn't get any kind of flying bugs. Also, if you add catnip in the basil it will work better, but, if you have cats, I would suggest only using the basil.

Any size terry cloth or should it be a certain size..also should I hang separate ones in problem area rooms? Im going insane with my fly problem and want it gone ASAP!

First of all I'd like to say that the idea sounds great.
But I just cant seem to get flies to go in,I live in germany (maybe the flies here are different than american flies)What I would like to know is what type of fruit works best?

Heeellp!!! We left for a weekend trip and forgot to take the trash out, now we are infested with fruit flies and they are driving me slowly insane. I've thrown everything out, trash, fruits everything but they are still around. They lie quietly until I walk by and swarm everything. I tried the whole, bottle with vinegar thing with what I had...I had wine vinegar with garlic flavor, mirin (sweet vinegry thing) and a little of soap. Nothing has happened yet! Is there anything that I can try in the bottle that would work better? :(

Whew! I guess no one has an answer here. We had so many suggestions in the thread and I wish we had heard back on the results people had.

The only thing I can think of is to spray with a bug killing solution that is not harmful to children, pets, or food and,offhand, I can't think of one by name.

I imagine, though, with fruit flies that it wouldn't take too strong a solution or very much of a solution.

Please do let us know if you found an answer!

Thanks,
Lorace

I squished a suspected fruit fly on a paper towel. Its abdomen is very dark, basically black and it seemed to have a smeer of blood come from its head. Its size is about the length of this letter "m".

Hard to tell, really. I didn't know they bleed, never having seen any blood from one -- Usually, if I'm lucky enough to kill one, the remains are so small they're almost invisible.

They are soft, very, very tiny, and they head for your eyes.

My initial reaction to this is not a fruit fly - but even there, I could be wrong. LOL

Hope someone else can help here.

Lorace

Hello, I work in an ice cream shop, and so fruit flies are always a major problem for us. We had someone suggest that bay leaves keeps them away, I thought that would be because of the scent or something..but it didn't really seem to work that well. I'm going to suggest that we do that applecider/vinegar in a jar thing...because they are just getting outta hand. Why did Noah let them on the ark??? ;-) Thanks for all your guys suggestions

Tried this split into 2 bowls after i mixed it and nothing happened. Very disappointed.munkin

Hi .. had (and still have) way too many fruit flies in my house, mainly in the kitchen and I have put out the apple cider vinegar traps, using empty 500 ml water bottles and doing the whole inverted top thing, etc, etc, not to mention doing the whole "brave little tailor" thing and swatting 40-50 at least twice a day. While I have caught innumerable fruit flies, I still have hordes of them in the kitchen, a swarm now in the living room and the odd 2 or 3 in the upstairs rooms. I would have thought that catching/killing up to 200 a day would somehow slow them down but I'm beginning to think that I should just move. Of course I can't do that and need MORE HELP!

The homemade traps DO work but I can't seem to make any headway .. do I need 20 or 30 of them or some in each room in the house or what????

We recently had a major infestation of fruit flies in our kitchen after forgetting a bag of plums from a friend for over a week. Yuck! We tried the funnel traps with vinegar, rotten banana, and even beer. First off, the banana worked OK, the beer didn't work great either, and the vinegar made the whole house stink terribly. Then we noticed a jar of salsa left out was teaming with the little buggers. So we set up a funnel trap using plain old Pace salsa, and have caught tons more than any of the previous traps, without any smell. Hey, I know how these little things can drive you crazy, so anything is worth a shot! Hope this helps someone else. ^_^

sounds kinda like
carpet beetles
doyourownpestcontrol.com has some things to take care of them

I have heard that fleas in the yard don't like Eucalyptus scent and if you have a Eucalyptus tree or bush in the yard you will not have fleas.

I would be tempted to spray a scented Eucalyptus cleaner or what ever into the carpet and the other places where your pets sleep. It might work,

The last time I had a flea outbreak I didn't even have animals, it must have been from the people that lived there before me. Of course I am allergic to fleas and get big whelps where they bite me. I brought out the big guns and sprayed everything with an insect chemical killer.

There is also a product that kills the eggs as well as the adult fleas, that keeps you from having to spray again.

Diane

Down here in the south I use a fly swatter, I have one in every room. Thank goodness I don't get many. I want screen doors when I leave the patio open everything comes in.

Lorace as far as the rats I think I would get a couple of big cats or a dog all of these kill rats, another way to kill a rat, fill a metal barrel with water about 1/4 the way up then put something dead in the bottom that a rat likes, put a slat leading up to the barrel so the rat can climb up to the top of the barrel. When they go in for the bait they can't get out again. I used this method to kill the oppusums(sp)it worked well.

Diane

what is a good easy home remadie to get rid of fruit flys in the home.

We were infested with fruit flies recently. I had mistakenly left a bag of apples from apple picking in a corner of the dining room and forgot about them. Yuk! After surfing on the internet for ways to get rid of them, I did the following:

1. Threw away or refrigerated any food that was left out on the counter. This means everything - no fruit bowl, no ripening bananas, nothing. Bagged all bread in the bread box in ziploc bags.

2. Scoured the kitchen - counters, floor, crevices. Swept, vacuumed, washed down EVERYTHING, even the toaster.

3. Poured bleach down the kitchen drains and let sit for a little bit, then flushed the drains for a few minutes with water.

4. Disposed of all trash in the kitchen every day. If there were fruit peels or cores, immediately outside.

5. Set up three jelly jars with about an inch of red wine plus one drop of dishwashing detergent and a paper cone taped to the inside. The cone had a very small (about 2mm) hole at the bottom. I chose red wine because my husband and I noticed one night before we started dealing with this problem that as soon as we looked away from our wine glasses, a half dozen or so fruit flies had dive-bombed the glasses and were drowning. Yuk. We used Merlot :-)

The flies really loved the wine. We captured over a dozen within minutes of setting up the traps. I changed the wine in the traps daily, spilling out the wine-and-flies mixture outside in the woods. That was last week. I haven't seen a fly in a few days. Hope this helps someone out there.

did anyone else notice how many hits this thread has! I guess a lot of people have flea problems !

Yeah, I also had a major flea problem. The only sure fire way to get rid of the little buggers is frontline, then to flea bomb the house. it's a pain in the butt, but i wish i would have just sprung for the frontline instead of paying just as much for solutions that didn't work. good luck.

How do i get rid of a groundhog which is under my deck, possibly against the house?

Awful problem, I know. We had gophers who made tunnels in our yard and uprooted lots of plants in doing so.

We have used poison, but can't anymore because of the danger to our dog. As I remember it, we flooded their tunnels with water. Plug up one end if you know where it is, and put the hose down and run the water.

That's the only way we ever got rid of them.

Good luck,

Lorace

[quote]The only cat I ever owned (who ever REALLY owns a cat?) used to put bird feet under my computer desk for me. I hated it but knew she loved me.

Lorace[/quote]

The presentation of the prize is half of the fun of it for all cats of the world. Honestly Joyful, no offense but a cat wouldn't stand up to the groundhogs around here. LOL. I've seen mature groundhogs that are at least 25 pounds. We always shot them with a 22 rifle. This method would be a little tougher in town or around a building, but they do have a tendency to wander so there still could be hope. Also a friend of mine in our local town has live traps and will help people in such a situation. Maybe there is someone in your town that could help you out that way. Just a few suggestions.

Kent

Quote: Joyful Girl

Yep. She loved me from afar. That cat hunted so much, she didn't even eat cat food most days, and she was always torn up from the battle. I do miss that unfriendly kitty.

Funny that you should call the kitty unfriendly, because the cat I was speaking about of mine, I named her Friendly. The neighborhood was loaded with feral cats and she walked up to me one day and adopted me! She was something else. Loved her.

And Kent, WOW~ your groundhogs at 25lbs. You should be able to train them to be WatchHogs. lol (contact Harry Potter for the Warthogs)

Lorace

help please i just can't get rid of flies in my scalp they fliy around and walk in my hair i have try so many products even insecticides hard ones to g et rid od them. but the only thing worst it's that my sclap it's so damage now ! How can i get rid of them ? Please it's so disgusting and frustrating to have that ! I am begging for some help !!

HI Help! I cant find anything to kill fleas. saw your msg that was written last year and saw you had something to kill fleas and eggs. PLease tell me what it is-the name and the address of company if you please. I am gonna die if I cant kill these things! I've tried like 5 different things and they don't work. I am so desperate. I need whatever advice you can give me as well. thanks so much! ps- please send to skitts1963@hotmail.com. Thankyou, Coria

Even when I had a couple of dogs with free run of the garage, I never really had a flea problem. Their dog house and beds were lined with cedar chips. Their beds were aired out or washed whenever they started to look grungy, then dried and treated with natural cedar or lavender oils. The dogs didn't seem to mind as long as the scent came from real cedar or natural lavender. (They strongly objected to anything in a spray can.) I also added a pinch of brewer's yeast to their food daily, and a few drops of apple cider vinegar to their drinking water.

As to carpet in their living area - I would lock the dogs outside, then cover the carpet lightly with either powdered diatomaceous earth (the type used in the garden, not the type used for swimming pools) or powdered borax ( that would be the "20 Mule Team Borax" type laundry booster that you can find in the laundry aisle), use a broom to sweep it into the carpet, then vacuum it using a HEPA filter type bag. The bag was then taken out, sealed completely, then sealed in a plastic bag to go out with the trash. Then I let the dogs back in. Dogs and humans should not breathe the DE or the borax, which is why I used a HEPA filter for vacuuming.

That's it for fleas, even with dogs who ran lose in the country. Getting rid of ticks took a little more work, but that's another story.

More info on:

Natural Flea Prevention

Diatomaceous Earth

Borax

Here is a trick that someone told my mother. And it works.
What you do is get a clear plastic container (not very deep) and put in some warm water and a touch of dishwashing
soap. Put it under a night light when you go to bed. When you wake up the next morning you will be amazed. Keep repeating until the fleas are gone. If fleas are in more than one room you need to do it for every room. Hope it helps your flea problem.

I just wanted to say thank you, from one Ada to another! :o) I really appreciate the ideas for dealing with fleas and fruit flies safely and organically. Also, I love reading "Ada, you're great!" "Thanks so much, Ada, you're the best!" and other such accolades, even if I'm not the actual Ada doing all this smart stuff! ;o)

I will definitely be keeping my eye on this message board for other great ideas!

Ada (Floyd)

Last week I started noticing gnats or fruit flies in my apartment. It's very disturbing to me because I am a neat freak. I don't leave fruit out, I don't let my trash build up and my place is very clean. I can't understand what's attracting them. I went through my cupboards and cleaned out anything that was open, (cereal, pasta, etc) and it seems like they really came out of the woodworks then. I've literally been killing gnats for hours (not kidding). I set out some vinegar mixed with soap. They'll fly around the rim, but won't go inside. I checked my windows to make sure they weren't getting in that way. I ran my dishwasher (which I never use) to make sure they weren't coming from there. I even poured bleach down my sinks and put down the stoppers to keep them out. I've also called an exterminator and he told me there was really nothing they could do for gnats. Do you have any ideas on how to get rid of them. Like I said, I don't have plants or anything sweet in my apartment. The only fruit I have is sealed in the refrigerator. Please Help!!!

Construct a trap by placing a paper funnel (rolled from a sheet of notebook paper) into a jar which is then baited with a few ounces of cider vinegar. Place the jar trap(s) wherever fruit flies are seen. This simple but effective trap will soon catch any remaining adult flies which can then be killed or released outdoors.

Construct a trap by placing a paper funnel (rolled from a sheet of notebook paper) into a jar which is then baited with a few ounces of cider vinegar. Place the jar trap(s) wherever fruit flies are seen. This simple but effective trap will soon catch any remaining adult flies which can then be killed or released outdoors.

For killing fleas, sprinkle table salt on the floor very liberally, let it stay at least 12 hours (I do it overnight) then vacuum. Don't forget under beds, in closets or area rugs.

The salt we add to our food is poisonous to fleas, but won't harm children or house pets.

One important note - this method does not kill the flea eggs and must be repeated a few times to get rid of an infestation. If you can, I suggest leaving the salt in your carpet for a week, then vacuuming.

Lord help me!!

These suckers are not only in my kitchen, they are in my laundry room, bathrooms, bedroom, EVERYWHERE!

One of the things I got rid of is all of my potpourri....so for those of you who have this in your house...sorry! Although it makes for really good decor and a pleasant smell, unfortunately, these buggers like it too.

Thanks for the tips...I will try a couple and see how it goes....LET THE WAR BEGIN!

well this time last year i dont remember having hardly any flies in the kitchen..

however this year i have had lots and all seem to be in the kitchen. yesterday is when it all started, through out the day we killed and got rid of 28 flies and today when we got home there was 14 of them. there the normal house hold fly you get the blue/black ones. but what we have noticed is the 28 we got rid of and killed yesterday were very fat and were easy to catch as they didnt seem to want to fly yet all the ones from today were fat but flying all the time so it took longer to kill them or get them out of the house. not far from our house is few big trees all different types could these be a problem? but then its only in the kitchen the flies seem to be?!!!

yesterday when this happened i we went round the kitchen and cleaned everywhere again and also looked under everything and couldnt find anything? so we closed all the windows in the house and sealed up the air vent in the kitchen. i closed all the doors when i left home today and no windows were open yet we get home and were amazed to find yet more flys, so we opened the window in the kitchen and uncovered the air vent.they always seem to say on the window too. we have an alovra plant in the kitchen on the window seal could it be this? not that we have noticed anything? is there anyway of catching them in a jar or something so when we get hoe we can just throw the jar out?

is there anything that can be put inthe kitchen to stop flys getting in? any idea where these flys r coming from. we have a dog and his very clean and gets a bath one a week, his food and water is in the kitchen too should i move it to different room? i am really hating all the flys as they make me feel like im a dirty person, but im not and its making me not want to eat food from the fride even though i know they havent been in there.

PLEASE HELP ME SOMEONE!! im at the end of it now i feel like there is something wrong.

many thanks.
hope all this info is enough?

Charmagne

I don't know if anyone is still reading this thread, but we have fruit flies.

Here's what I've done already or am planning to do:
1. A lot of cleaning--I've moved everything I can move and washed it down with pine sol. Things I can't move I've just washed as best I can. I've wiped the now naked counters with pine sol. In all this cleaning and moving I didn't find any foresaken bananas or larvae/eggs.
2. I bought one trap for $10.99 (US dollar). Now that I've seen how easy they are to make, I feel silly but that's ok, I'm still going to make more.
3. I'll do the tape-on-the-drain trick tonight. If it looks like they are breeding down there, I've found a place to order something online.

I have 3 questions, if you would be so kind:
1--What should I do about my houseplants? Is there something to wipe them down with? Is Bti only good if they have laid eggs in the soil?
2--Are clean, wet dishes a breeding ground for fruit flies? We usually wash our dishes in one side of the sink and pile them to dry in the other. When I went to put the dishes away last night, a bunch of fruit flies swarmed out at me. I'll do the tape-over-the-drain trick tonight, but in the meantime should we get a dish-drying rack? My fiance doesn't want to b/c our apartment is small and cluddered-enough already, but he'll go along with it if it will help.
3--If they are coming from the drain trap, does anyone know of something I could get from a local hardware store to pour down there, rather than ordering by mail and paying shipping? I don't want to just trap them forever, and I do like to let my fruit ripen outside of the fridge.

Thanks in advance for any help!

PS- Ada, if you're still reading, I cracked up about you not sharing your merlot with fruit flies; I wouldn't share either! Luckily, I have some old red zinfandel that isn't good for drinking, but I have been saving (tightly closed) for cooking.

dear CHARMAGNE your problem was exactly the same as mine . closing all windows at night and waking up the next morning with big fat lazy bluebottles on the kitchen WINDOW (very easy to kill) they actually spin on there backs before dying , LIKE BREAKDANCING ! RECENTLY I BLOCKED UP MY CHIMNEY IN THE SITTINGROOM . 4 weeks ago i heard scratching noise comimg from it, i knew it was a bird trapped but i could'nt do anything about ! To cut along story short, it rotted at the bottom of my chimney and maggots formed to bluebottles. i only found them tonight. maybe in other cases it might be dead mice, bird etc.......! thanks for your comment ,i thought it was only happening to me. CHECK EVERYWHERE BECAUSE EVERYTHING YOU SAID HAPPENED TO ME

all you need is water, dish soap and spray bottle. and about 10min.

Well I've been fighting fruit flies for about 3weeks now. I've spent over 30.00 on things to kill them with. And I found an easy and cheap way. Oh and safe way for your kitchen. All you have to use is dish soap and water. You will get your walls wet and floors wet but it works and they die. Yes you will have to invest about 10min-20min of your time but its worth it. I promise ya. Have fun

What poison did you use and where can it be purchased? I have cage traps but want the critters dead as there are too many of them. But I don't want them to suffer too much, just die quickly. What do you suggest? Thank you!

HOW do you get rid of Knats ????
PLEASE HELP. They are everywhere!!!

First, you need to make sure that what you have are gnats and not fruit flies, drain flies or midges. Then you need to look for the place they are breeding or feeding and try to eliminate the problem.

Here are some places to look:

Identifying Insect Pests

Fungus Gnats

Getting Rid of Gnats

Natural Pest Controls

I stop gnats breeding in my potted plants by using Gnatrol, a form of Bt

Get a cereal bowl and place about 1 1/2 inches of wine in the bowl. Cover the top with plastic wrap. Take a toothpick and make holes slightly larger than the circumference of the toothpick and leave it.

Fruit flies will get in, but not out. Put bowls in kitchen and bathrooms. It takes a few days.

DONT CRITICIZE NOAH !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WHY DID NOAH BRING YOU TO THE ARK!!

DONT CRITICIZE NOAH !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WHY DID NOAH BRING YOU TO THE ARK!!

YOU KILL THE POOR BUG !!! THEY HAVE FEELINGS!

what kind of a sick place do you live in
with groundhogs and gophers in yer house sickk
disapointed in you people get a better house and making them live in yer house is suffer enough

Having a problem with unwanted visitors and looking for any help you can offer:)

Here's the background:

Picture this an immaculate home, I mean seriously I am too clean for my own good. Fruit NEVER stays out of the fridge, dishes get done before they hit the sink, trash and garbage are in airtight containers and taken out daily, toilet lid stays down and drains get cleaned all the time with bleach. We insulated all the windows for winter. We don't have any pets.

We have one house plant that was over-watered by a plan sitter when we were away for a week back in September. That is when my GNAT problem started. We let the plant dry out completely, which took a month. Since then we have been back to our regular watering cycle. I sprayed and have continued to spray a garden safe insect spray on the plant. Mind you I have never seen so much as one gnat crawling on or around this plant. I have no idea where they are coming from. But they are coming I see about 50 a day.

I have been all over our apartment with a fine tooth comb. Vacuuming, moving things, looking behind things to try to find some other food source for these pests. It's been 4 months and I am at the end of my rope. Guests come for dinner and see these things flying around and it makes us look dirty, even though our home is anything but.

I heard to put up fly strips, but that is not an option as it would lead to me throwing-up. Does anyone else have any other suggestions to get rid of them and keep them gone for good?

Thanks,

Theresa

I can't tell, but we only have bananas out (and eat them before they are ripe). My boyfriend eats a LOT of eggwhites, we dump the yolk down the drain -- could they be drain flies? I tried the bleach down the drain. I tried the orange juice in a cup. It is really awful having them land on me, fly toward my face and know they are crawling on me when I sleep! I live in the desert, in Palm Springs. We got rid of our plants thinking this could be the problem when they started. Didn't help, as the problem is getting progressively worse. It has gotten to the point where I don't even want to come home anymore. I have read all 8 pages of posts, but nothing seems to be a remedy for getting rid of them for good -- or even for a season. Someone told me that if we had fans going on all the time they couldn't fly and would go away. Is that possibly the answer?

Any help would be appreciated. I'm going crazy!

Genevieve

I live in coastal Georgia and all spring and summer the area is plagued with these bugs. People call them gnats, sand-fleas, or noseeums.But I don't know which name (if any) is actually correct.
They make people itch. Some say they bite like mosquitos, others claim there is a chemical or someting on the bug that makes you itch if it lands on you.
The weather is so nice here, but because of the bugs, we can't enjoy being outside.I get swarmed just walking to the mailbox.
Some of the commercial bug sprays work to keep the bugs off, but they can't work on what you can't spray.If I use the spray, they just go after my face and head.The absolute worst is when they get in your hair.
Does anyone have any ideas to get these bugs to stay away?A plant or scent that repells them, maybe? Since we're talking outdoors, there is really no hope of killing ALL of them. I'd settle for just keeping them away.
Please help! I miss my patio!

I have struggled with fruit flies for YEARS and this year I just had enough. I've tried different kinds of vinegars, juice, etc. in bowls with funnels, holes cut in tops of jars, etc. Nothing ever worked.

So I decided to get crafty. I opened two bottles of wine - one Charles Shaw (Two Buck Chuck from Trader Joes) Cab and the other a little more expensive cab that I didn't really like. After noticing that the little buggers were extremely attracted to my nightly glass of wine... VOILA! Next to the two open bottles I put a bowl of apple cider vinegar with holes in the top of a plastic top. Guess which one attracted ALL of the flies in my house? They did not like the other wine, nor the vinegar.

The cool thing about the wine bottle is you can just leave it open in your kitchen and I think that the top acts as a funnel to trap them - must be hard to get out. I have not had a SINGLE fruit fly since having the open bottle in my kitchen.

Utterly amazing.

Hello, Just wanted to say thanks about those pesky fruit flies, Weve had them at work for about 4 months and they are a pain - silent but annoying. The orange juice in a cup has just about eliminated the little blighters.

they are going to drive me crazy. I'm going to try the homemade traps. I bought a glass jar type trap for hornets. It's pretty. I wonder if this will work in the kitchen using the vinegar solution???

I need help!!!! We are having so many problems with flies on our back porch around my dogs food bowls. We have tried everything it seems... We put cups with Vinagar around, we have fly traps, bug zappers, bags of tap water and even corn meal but they still seem to come around, 100 at a time... SOMEONE PLEASE HELP!!! Any suggestions??

Ok we have a whole mess of flies in our house I have no idea how they are getting in. I am getting rid of them. Here is what I have done. I bought a $1 bottle of Glass cleaner with Ammonia at the dollar store, this kills them usually in the first shot definitely the second. I would use caution using the Ammonia around animal feces or urine, or in animals that are being kept in the room I would remove them when spraying the flies. After you get done spraying I would make sure you clean with dish soap, DO NOT USE BLEACH or anything that has bleach in it that instant reaction between Ammonia and bleach will definitely make you drop dead. Feces and urine combined with Ammonia create a toxic gas that can make you sick if not fatal if you breathe it in so do not use directly where animals have used the bathroom, But this is fine to use, as long as you use it safely and clean where you sprayed. Ammonia itself is potent so be careful in breathing it in. Secondly I use the water bags over doors or midway nailed above the door with a penny, with a lil bit of vinegar. Hang them in the light, and above windows. I also use baited fly traps made out of a milk jug. Bait the inside of it with a little bit of honey,syrup,tuna or canned cat food, the stinker the better..... mixed with a small amount of Ammonia. Mixture should be not runny but more of a thick glaze. Pour that mixture in and make sure the jug is coated use knife or a puncture device and round the holes out You make holes in the gallon jug about the size of a nickel or dime. Make about 10 holes random on the jug so the flies can get in.. tie a piece of string around the top of the milk jug you can use fishing line or something that is sturdy and will hold it up there shouldn’t be that heavy, if you want to hang it up, i found it effective leaving it on the floor or on a table, of course if you have animals that get into trash I wouldnt do that. The files get in eat the stuff and die, and no clean up required just throw it in the trash. Make sure to wash your hands after doing anything with Ammonia and do not touch eyes , use rubber gloves if you want to.

hey i am the manager of a little coffee shop inside of a retail store, and we have a horrible time with flies, outdoor flies and fruit flies. we clean like mad people but cant seem to get rid of them. we have alot of syrups that are sweet and pastries that attract them. however we are limited by the health department with what we can use to get rid of them, (ie: traps). any ideas?

Fruit fly/Vinegar fly (Drosophila Melanogasta) are quite amazing creatures for one reason i know of. I had half a fruit crumble left and put it to cool, then covered it with a plate but forgot to put it in the fridge, so it stayed unnoticed for several days, then when I spotted it and lifted the plate, there were dozens of fruit flies in there. Not wanting to release them in the house, I put the casserole dish in the microwave thinking "a few seconds and zappo, gone", but after 10 seconds, nothing, no effect, after 30, still nothing, 1 minute, no, 2 and a half, Ah-ha, the heat in the container was killing them off, but nearly 5 minutes in a microwave did nothing to them. Unbelievable.

Anyway, Get a container/jar, put an an inch of stale beer, fruit juice or rotting fruit in it and add a couple of drops of vinegar if you have any, chop the corner off a plastic bag, big enough to easily cover the jar, fix it over the jar with an elastic band, pointing in to the jar and poke a small hole in the point of the plastic using two matches or something a similar size, after removing the matches, poke the plastic back into the jar and leave near fruit or a rubbish bin.

Sorry, that should read Drosophila Melanogaster

get rid of fruit flies

get a small plate and fill with apple cider vinegar - add a little water (more vinegar than water - till it comes to the edge of the plate - then add a few drops of dish washing liquid - it attracts the fruit flies - they dive right in to the death!!! let the plate sit over night - change it ever couple days - you dont want to llok at dead bugs floating! yuck!

Hi Ada,

I have the same issue of the kitchen flies .Does a normal vinegar work. They are always around food and driving me insane .Please suggest more on this issue.