My kids left a soft sided lunch box FILLED with food (from a plane trip) sitting, unpacked for almost 2 weeks. (They flew back ahead of me & my ex didn't check the bag.) Anyway, I started getting a few gnats & couldn't figure out why they were coming around. I finally found the source, cleaned out the lunch box & put it outside, then made sure all fresh fruit was in the fridge, but the gnats are still flying around, and they seem to be increasing in numbers!
How do I get rid of them? I tried opening the door, but they're still hanging out in the kitchen. I don't want to keep doing that because it's so hot outside. I tried burning a candle, but I guess the scent isn't strong enough.
Help! It's like I never got rid of the food source because they're all still flying around bringing in their long distance cousins for a family reunion!
The apple cider vinager isn't working. Two plates, a coffee cup and a wine glass have been near them for almost 6 hours now. Apparently they can sit ontop of it and fly off when they realize it's a liquid.
I tried vacuuming, but arent' they going to fly out of the bag?
Any ideas or advice you have will be appreciated, as these things are flying around while I'm typing on the computer. Every second counts here!
A SECOND UPDATE:
I typed the "So what happened" information below, but 24 hours later, there was another event regarding the fruit flies:
They were fruit flies, and what worked best (by accident) was a can of pineapple with one one slice left in it, and little to no juice. I took one slice out (leaving one slice in the can,) and put it on a plate per one of the suggestions. I covered the one leftover slice in the can and covered it by laying a tupperware lid ontop of it. It wasn't air tight, but enough to keep it from drying out.
Anyway, after 24 hours, only two fruit flies were attracted to the slice on the plate and died, so I threw that out. I went to throw out the can with the tupperware lid on it and there were TONS and TONS of fruit flies in the can that couldn't get out. I couldn't believe it. I don't know how they got in, and apparently they didn't know how to get out! That can went straight outside. Absolutely GROSS!
Apparently that was the answer though. WHO KNEW?!!! LOL!
Original "So what happened":
You're right! I think they are fruit flies rather than gnats. After trying the Apple Cider Vinegar in a plate, and vacuuming the little boogers to no avail, I looked over the rest of your suggestions. Last night I set out a glass with Apple Cider Vinegar with a banana peel in it, and tin foil with a few holes rubber banded on top. I also set out a champagne glass with the Apple Cider Vinegar and a plastic funnel, as well as a pineapple slice in a plate with the juice around it.
The results? This morning I have 3 gnats in the champagne glass, one on the pineapple plate, and about 18 in the glass with the banana peel and tin foil. Yea! I think I found my cure! The fruit flies are on their way to "Swimming in Cider!"
All of the food has been put away and I've also been pouring boiling water down the drain a couple of times a day. They look like they're going away, although I'm going to leave out the vinegar for another day. The trick to the vinegar (if it's not in an enclosed area,) is that it has to have the soapy suds. Otherwise they just land on the vinegar and fly off.
This is not a fast project, but at least there is a cure.
Thanks everyone! Now I can sleep without waking up thinking there are gnats landing on me. EWW! (They weren't, but I was dreaming they were.)
Jill-
The apple cider vinegar is the right trick, but...you have to put a few drops of liquid dish soap in it! Stir it up and they fall right in! It works like a charm. Good Luck!
Jill,
I think that you are supposed to put some drops of liquid soap in with the apple cider vinegar so that the gnats get stuck in it. Why not use some insect spray after you put the kids outside or get some one to take them somewhere. You won't have to use much spray. Then wash down whatever you sprayed.
Sounds like fruit flies and they multiply very quickly (they go from larva to fly in about a week to two). Bleach down the drain should help. They like sink drains because they are moist and there is good stuff to eat. I would do this at least once a day for the next week or so.
It might be fruit flies. They are attracted to fruit sitting on the counter and they multiply like crazy. If it is a fruit fly here is what someone once told me to do and they were gone in 24 hrs. I used an ice tea container, the kind that have a smaller opening on the top and a spout at the bottom. Put in some apple cider vinegar. Take a piece of printer paper and roll it into a cone shape where one end is smaller than the other (similar to a funnel) and put it in the top of the ice tea container with the skinnier end inside and the wider part coming out at the top. The fruit flies will find their way into the cider, but are unable to find their way out. The fruit flies in my house were brownish and flew slowly. I think knats fly more erratically so I'm not sure what you have. Hope that helps!
I had them too. Over the weekend I finally dumped the vinager and started to put a 1 peice of canned pineapple on a plate with a little bit of the juice. I wait for them to gather then spray them with Clorox Clean Up Spray which kills them. Then I throw the pineapple away, rince the dish off and repeat... They are pretty much gone now. However I still see one or two every now and then flying around mocking me LOL.
Those aren't gnats.........if the lunchbox was filled with fruit you have fruit flies. Put and keep ALL your fruit in the fridge for the next 4 days, and they will be gone. The lifecycle of the fruit fly is only a day or 2. Bananas are fine in the fridge, they do turn a brownish color but they will generally still be firm. Keeping any sugars, or fruits on the counter only gives the fruit flies somewhere to breed. any fruit that is currently on the counter that has soft spots should be thrown away or cut the soft spots out. Once the fruit flies can't lay their eggs, they will generally die off, but don't put your fruit back on the counter until 2 or 3 days after you've seen the LAST fruit fly.
Good Luck
The apple cider vinegar is a great suggestion. Also, you can take a tank vacuum and suck them up in that as well to get rid of them.
G/L!
We had a gnat problem last summer and did 2 different things to take care of them. We put regular vinegar in a mason jar, poked holes in the top and waited. The holes allow them to get in but they can't get back out. It did work, but it also does take patience. And despite the fact that the city says no, we poured cooking oil in our drain. Apparently, the gnats will start laying their eggs in your drain and that coats it so that the eggs go away and they cannot lay any more. Good luck! And remember to be patient because they will not go away over night!
Jill K.
Place a small flat container with sides and pour in apple cider vinegar. For some reason the gnats are attracted to it and will land in the apple cider vinegar and drown eventually.
If you have a lot then place a few around.
Hope it helps
E.
Try putting the applecider in a spray bottle and spraying it everywhere and on top of them. But if you have granite or ....counters dilute the vinegar. The idea is to drown them. If you get desperate, Clorox wipes remove sugar ant scent markers, thus the ants do not return if you wipe everything down....Might work.
R.
Call your county extension agent. That office has lots of information on how to get rid of pests without using harmful chemicals. You could try spraying fly spray. Good luck and keep us posted on how the problem was resolved. D.
Get a cheap bottle of red wine and pour it into a bowl. They will land in it drink it up and be to drunk to fly away. This should work overnight and when you get up in the morning you should have a a bowl full of dead gnats.
I like the apple cider vinegar thing- I have also heard just a bowl of soapy water works, like dishwashing liquid. Good luck. I know how annoying those little stinkers are!
I used Raid house fly spray. Yes, there is some problems with using it as far as animals and food stuffs especially if you have animals or fish, but I just cleaned good and aired out the house. Hope this helps.
Go to Home Depot and get an electronic pest deterent. They are anywhere from $15 to $25 but worth every penny. I hate spiders and got one for our house.
They are awesome, help with flies, spiders and almost any bug in the house. You plug it into your outlets and it sends of signals through your electrical system I guess that drive bugs crazy. Most flies in my house head for the door to escape if they get in or die very quickly, I have noticed spiders are not present much any more either. It may work for knats. Make sure you cover or throw away all fruit as that is what they come from mostly.
Look up on Ask.com for some other ideas too!! :) Good luck.
clean your house, leave no opened food out, make sure your fruit isn't old, and keep the dishes washed. They won't have any food to snack on and will leave or die
I just received this. Might try adding liquid soap to your apple cider vinegar.
Goodbye Fruit Flies
To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass, fill it 1/2' with Apple Cider Vinegar
and 2 drops of dish washing liquid; mix well. You will find those flies drawn to the
cup and gone forever!
You're on the right track with the apple cider vinegar. Put it in a jar, then make a paper funnel to fit into the jar. They can get in through the small opening but they can't get back out. Let it sit for a few days. It's pretty gross looking once they start to die in there but it works really well.
we had tons of them coming after our bannanas. What worked the best for us is put a bannana peel into a can with some vinegar and a drop or two of dish soap. put plastic wrap over the opening securing it with a rubber band. then poke a few holes in the plastic with a toothpick. they are apparently smart enough to crawl into it but not smart enough to crawl back out. then you simply toss it.
i think they are attracted to damp dark areas. try pouring boiling water down the sink for a few times a day for a few days. this has always worked for me.
Maybe you could hang the fly trap paper. The smell is often attractive to nats also. In a few days you should notice a huge diffence
You should try white vinegar in salt shakers. They go in and cannot get out. Plus, you should close off your drains when not in use. They like cool dark places and have been known to lay eggs in open drains. There are other remedies, but these 2 always work when they sneak inside the house. I also keep all trash cans in the garage or outside until they are gone.
About six months ago, I had a similar problem with fruit flies. I didnt even think this was a possiblity until I discovered where these little nasty bugs were living. We also had some rotton apples in our cupboard and thought we got rid of the source, but the bugs kept increasing even though there were no other food source available for them. Then I noticed their food source were our plants. There were thousands of these bugs around our plants. I think they were multipling in the dirt of our plants. We put our plants outside after changing the dirt. Two plants died as a result, but those plants werent the good plants we had, so we werent sad to see those plants go. Our other plants servived the ordeal and the bugs were finally gone. I hope this helps. M. sahm of 4 year old girl and 2 year old boy.
My husband has used the vacuum very successfully in the past to suck them up.
I had a problem like that and inadvertently trapped then in one of those kitchen oil bottles with the pour spout that had just regular vinager. With that said an idea comes to mind, try a cup with a lid, and straw that is cut just above the fluid level so they can fly in and not get back out. Try that if you don't have the bottle, but if you need to buy one they are very useful and quicker to use when adding small amounts of oil or vinager. I hope that helps and don't use a paper cup, after a day or two the vinager will eat trough the paper and leak all over. I hope the straw is small enough so the won't fly out. Let me know if that works.
I read recently that a good way to repel flies is to soak a sponge with lavendar, peppermint or clove oil. Just place in area to repel flies.
Hope that helps!
Hi Jill,
Get a venus fly trap. You can find them at most grocerie stores this time of year and they LOVE gnats! It's better than using chemicals with kids around!
If you can't find any at your local grocerie store, try a nearby nursery, they're sure to have them!
Good Luck!
T. B.
Team Leader
Bubble Goddess Bath Company
"Natural Bath Products For Your Inner Goddess"
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Well I don't know if this will work with nats but it works well with fly's and moth's...mix a pan of dish water and put it under the microwave light at night when the house is dark. Not sure if they are attracted to light as the above bugs but the dish soap will weigh down their wings so they can't fly away when they realize it is just a liquid.
N. - full time working mother of a 21/2 yo boy and a 16mo girl, with the best husband, father and LT. a women could want.
