I have had fruit flies before and have cleared them by bleaching sinks and removing fruit, but I've done all of that again, and they are still here. The pantry is clean, no potatoes, no bananas, and the counters and sinks are clean. Any advice?
A little leftover wine and a piece of an orange in a container/cup with plastic wrap pulled taught with a rubber band. Poke a few holes and they'll fly in but very hard for them to get out. I'd use a container you don't care about so you just toss the whole thing out.
If you set out a glass filled with apple cider vinegar and a little citrus dish washing soap, it attracts them and they drown. It may take a couple of days. This trick works, but I have also found by accident that a glass with a little wine or beer in it seems to do the same only a little faster.
Be sure to stay away from the fruit scented cleaners until they are gone. A friend of mine used orange scented chlorox wipes to clean her toilet. Apparently it made the bathroom like an outhouse for a few days. There were fruit flies galore.
Ha! My son and I have an ongoing experiment (past few years) here are our results:
- Honey : Barely any if at all
- Vinegar : Barely any if at all
- Wine : Tons
We've left glasses out and about the kitchen. The flies head straight for the wine. Often within the hour half are gone, and by morning most. Another day, another glass... flies totally gone. Ours seem to prefer red wine 2:1 over white wine.
It's gross, but the fly paper really works. Hang a strand in the kitchen and they should be gone within a day. Also, red wine works as well as balsamic vinegar.
I less nice way is to put a cut up apple in the oven, when the flys go in, close the door and heat to 350.
I found a fruit fly pest control option at Westlake Ace Hardware. It's a little plastic apple where you put the poison in the middle. It seems to work well. I keep one by my sink and one in a corner of the kitchen near the fruit.
I do the wine thing occasionally, but that doesn't eliminate the problem. The poison seems to affect their reproduction, which helps eliminate them.
Put an apple or two in a ziplock bag and close it. Leave a small opening, maybe an inch. They will fly in, but they can't get out. You can release them outside.
Cider vinegar (or wine, beer, juice) & dish soap, in a glass with saran wrap on top (elastic to hold it tight) pop a couple holes so the flies can get in but not out- they'll drown anyways, put the "traps" wherever they hang out. They will be gone in a couple days.
try vinegar in a container on your counter. hope that helps. good luck
I mix some honey and lemon dish soap in a big mixing bowl. I swish it around to create some bubbles to trap the flies. Seriously, by the end of the day, all of the flies have flown into the mixture, gotten trapped, and died.
We have had fruit fly problems in the past and this worked like a charm.
