How to Get Rid of Fruit Flies [Guide]

Fruit flies are a common annoyance for homeowners. It can often be complicated to get rid of fruit flies as they are so easy to find everywhere, especially where food is stored or kept. As the name suggests, they are usually found infesting fruit. However, fruit flies are capable of breeding in decaying meat, trash bins, and even a massive spill of alcohol or soda.

Maintaining the tidiness and hygiene of your home is the first and foremost factor.

In the below guide, we will be provide recommendations for removing fruit flies using common household items and providing preventative measures to make sure fruit flies never come back.

The 2020 Guide on Getting Rid of Fruit Flies

Common House Hold Items to Trap and Kill Fruit Flies

Make a vinegar trap

Add some apple cider vinegar in a bottle or bowl and place where there are most of the flies buzzing. You can also use red wine and balsamic instead. Next, cover the top with a plastic sheet tightly with a rubber band so that you can ensure that the plastic covering stays in place. Poke some holes in the plastic covering. The flies will find a way inside the holes and will be attracted to the vinegar scent. But they will be captured inside the jar and won’t be able to come out of it. This way, you can intelligently capture most of the flies bothering you by flying here and there and contaminating your food.

It is a full-time trap for the flies, and you can avail of it by putting it anywhere and then catching the flies till you get rid of them from your house.

Make a Banana Trap

You can make a similar trap with the help of a ripened fruit, especially overripe banana and the rest mechanism of catching the flies will be the same.

Make a Soap Trap

On a similar note, you can make a soap trap by mixing soap water with a few drops of cider vinegar. Consequently, the flies will get captured and drown in the soap water. You can also use the method of using funnel and jar to repeat the same process.

Try a carnivorous Plant

You can consider getting a carnivorous sundew plant. The leaf of this plant consists of a sticky substance that attaches and catches the fireflies and eats them. Thus you get rid of their annoying behavior forever.

Wash the damp cloths

You can avoid the breeding of fireflies by regularly washing any wet towels in the kitchen. Thus maintaining the kitchen hygiene and tidiness continuously and adequately is important.

Keep your counter free from ripe fruit

Never leave any ripe fruit on the shelf of your kitchen; otherwise, it will attract a vast number of flies. Either put them in the refrigerator or plastic or paper bags. Be cautious of your daily kitchen habits, and half of the stress will be gone, induced by fireflies.

Keep up on the dishes

It is a significant way to eradicate the presence of fruit flies is to regularly and instantly wash your dishes. Never leave them unattended for a long time. Also, keep the fan of the kitchen on to let the counters dry and stay full of air and ventilation.

Clean out the drain

It is often the place where rotten fruit and vegetables linger for a long time, so you need to clean out your drain regularly by drain tablets or apple cider vinegar. Also, use products that are antiseptic and anti-bacterial in nature.

Do a Rotten Produce check

You need to check and take care of the rotten onions and tomatoes in the pantry. Any unpleasant parts shall be cut from the entire fruit body since such places are susceptible to the breeding of flies’ eggs. The rotten parts should be immediately cut off, and special care should be taken as no rotten fruit or vegetable should be left in the kitchen. It must be removed and dispersed from the kitchen.

Try Essential Oils

Most of the researches say that the basil plant repels fruit flies. Sturdy and heavy scents are a bug repellent for flies, so try soaking your counter with lavender oil drops or placing cedar balls near your fruit counter.

Mint Leaves added to water

Since the strong odors do not appeal to the flies, so considering this fact, you can take some mint leaves from your garden and put them in a bowl of water. The minty scent will repel the flies.

Using a strong detergent

Also, cleaning the floors and tables with a strong soap will help you get rid of the flies as they do not like the smell of it.

Wash everything

You must wash any grocery items you bring from the departmental store or fruit corner. Before introducing anything to your kitchen’s premises, you must clean it and remove it by immersing it into a bucket of water. Water will wash away the dirt, germs, and possible eggs of flies.

Watch out for crumbs and old pieces of bread

You should not shame yourself if the fruit flies appear rather than you can fight against their existence by taking care of old bits and old slices of food.

Using Bleach

Fruit flies hate the pungent smell of bleach as it destroys their eggs and stops their infesting. So the recommended approach is to pour some bleach into the drain or your washing sinks (bathroom and kitchen). This way, you can eradicate their hidden growth and existence in the dark and damp place of drain pipes.

Using Red Wine

Put some leftover red wine into the jar, they will be attracted to the liquid, and hence you can capture them and further release them outdoors.

Preventative Actions to Avoid Fruit FliesShutting the Windows and Doors

As a precaution, don’t open the windows and doors. Don’t rely on the screens as the flies can fit through the mesh.

Using Air Conditioners

Use the air conditioner as it functions to keep your fruit fresh and not allowing any suitable conditions for these flies to breed.

Kitchen Cleanliness

Wash kitchen sponges and mop refills quickly.

Frequent Disposal of Garbage

Make it a habit to dispose of your garbage twice a day.

Oscillating Fan

Place an oscillating fan near your fruit to discourage their landing on fruit as they bring lots of germs from the drain.

Cleaning Routine

Keeping a good cleaning routine and execute it daily to ensure the maximum level of cleanliness.

Wash incoming fruit or vegetables meticulously

You can unwillingly bring these irritating insects from your grocery store to your home in the form of adults or eggs on the fruit. Thoroughly washing the fruit and vegetable must be the first step as you bring them home. Washing will ensure no more residual eggs on the surface of fruit or vegetables.

Cleaning of Counters

While making a meal on the counter, clean any mess from time to time regularly, and instantly.

Cleaning of Empty Soda cans

The soda cans or bottles of wine should be adequately cleaned before disposing of them; otherwise, your garbage will be infested with flies.

Outdoor Fruit flies prevention

Even if you have eradicated them from your kitchen, the problem persists as the flies may be coming from outdoors, and you cannot prevent it every time you open a door. There is an additional list to check and inspect:

Fruit Trees

Hence, there are many fruit trees in the proximity. You can check on to them which fruit has fallen or beginning to rot. It is a sure precaution of letting the fruit flies spread outdoors in your yard or garden. 

Drains

All the outdoor pipes must be adequately covered or designed under the ground so that they may not attract the fruit flies to live there.

Trash Areas

Just like indoor trash needs to be disposed of, similar is the case with outdoor trash. Especially the lids must be tightly closed to ensure no invasion of flies.

Fertilizers

The manure used to fertilize plants are a great source of attraction for flies as well.

Dog feces

All types of animal feces are a welcoming resource for fruit flies, so don’t let your pet dog or cat create trouble for you by inviting these harmful flies in the outdoor vicinity of your home.

Flowers with Sweet Nectar

The sweetness of nectar is a big attraction for these tiny annoying insects. To grow these conspicuously inviting flowers away from your kitchen windows as they may also attract other insects like honey bees.

Get Rid of Those Flies and Keep Them From Coming Back

Keeping your home “fruit fly” clean is not a one-day effort but a continuous adaptation of a lifestyle full of clean. You cannot bear the presence of fruit flies as they carry harmful germs and bacteria attached to their legs and antennae. They are a source of many dangerous diseases. They bring bacteria, and their growth can cause infections. So though not directly linked, but indirectly they are a source of many diseases that happen due to contamination of food. A pyrethrum-based, aerosol type of insecticide can be used to kill any remaining flies in the area.

Follow the tips above and start enjoying your home! If you’d like to bring in a professional, feel free to fill out our contact form here to get a quote from 3-4 pest removal companies in your neighbourhood.

Frequently Asked Questions About Fruit Flies

What attracts fruit flies?

The scent of ripening fruit and vegetables is the primary source of attraction for fruit flies. Both of these items are found in your kitchen, making your kitchen the most vulnerable place for fruit flies to attack. Also, hungry fruit flies are attracted to sugary foods and sodas, as well as alcoholic products.

Do the fruit flies live in the drain?

Yes! Flies survive in the drain; the moist air suits their breeding environment, and hence, can live long in the drain pipes and emerge anytime into the kitchen.

How to fight against fruit flies?

Fighting against fruit flies can be quite challenging, however, there are many natural remedies that we’ll discuss in the article below.

How to detect the fruit flies?

If you find tiny little insects bussing around your kitchen, there’s a great chance they are fruit flies. These annoying and irritating bugs may be a source of severe teasing, especially in the summer and fall months. The reason behind this is they adore ripened fruit and vegetables, which are often let out on the counter. When you bring fresh fruit and vegetables from your yard or garden after plucking them, you can easily detect the presence of fruit flies along with them. If you forgetfully leave any overripe fruit in your pantry, there are chances of attracting more fruit flies.

What is the Lifecycle of a fruit fly?

As per the research made by the University of Kentucky Entomology, adults are only one-eighth of one inch, and the female adult can lay up to 500 eggs in a short period of their life cycle. They can invade your peace at home anytime by creating a messy and annoying feeling to your home.

Why are they hard to kill?

It sounds like they have magical powers as they disappear quickly. Once they arrive, it is so hard to get rid of them. Any particular fruit fly can smell a piece of meat from a few kilometers away, which is due to the functioning of antennae on their heads. These antennae are sensitive to the scent of any kind. Whether appealing or unappealing, these scents help the tiny creatures to find their food and build their homes with hundreds of eggs.

Meanwhile, they were also hunting the source of the bad stuff and attracted to it. As per research, a single female adult fly can lay up to 100 eggs, and they hatch within 24 hours so you can well imagine the fast rate of their life cycle.

Killing them is extremely difficult as they can change direction in one-hundredth of a second and by flapping their wings 200 times per second. Such a speedy tiny creature finds its ways of existence by overcoming the challenges of its survival. So it is tough to kill it. Even if you trap the last fly, they will continue to come back, provided that there is food for them. They love rotten fruit or wine-like fermented liquids, which are full of microbes they adore. Not only this, but they also love the kitchen slimes that build up in your kitchen sink. So, the only primary remedy is to clean up with scrupulous eyes.