Seeking Help with Fruit Flies.

We found a solution on the web that worked for us: mix red wine vinegar, water and dishwashing liquid in an open jar and you'll find lots of dead little flies at the bottom of the jar within a day or two.

Dear V.,
Oh my gosh, almost the same thing happened to me.
Well, we went off on vacation and although I thought I had taken all the fruit with us, I don't know how, but there were some plums left behind in a plastic bag on the kitchen counter. It's been quite hot and those plums were a liquid mess. We were hit with the fruit flies the minute we got home. They were even in my bathroom window. TONS of them!
I have a kid, a bird, a cat and an angora mini lop bunny that live in the house, so I didn't dare spray.
I went to the grocery store and found a 5-pack of those sticky fly-strip ribbon things for like $1.49. I hung one in the bathroom window, one in the kitchen window, one from one of the kitchen cabinet knobs, and one upstairs. They really work! Best buck and a half I ever spent. They are extremely sticky, so you want to be careful not to get that stuff on your hands or accidentally get it stuck to something you don't want it stuck to. I will admit they aren't the most attractive things, but they really catch the flies. Of all sizes.
There are two other things you can try that work pretty well also. One is vinegar and the other is cheap wine. The cheaper, the better. I have some old fashioned Coca-Cola bottles and poured a little wine in the bottom and left them on the kitchen counter. For some reason, those little fruit flies love their wine! Once they get down inside the bottle, they can't get out. I've used vinegar also, but I have found that cheap wine works the best. And there is certainly no guilt involved with just pouring it down the sink and putting some more in your bottle.
Your son is certainly old enough not to worry about him grabbing a fly strip or trying to drink anything you have in a bottle to catch flies.
My son was like...."Mom....you bought wine?" I said, "Honey, it's not for me, it's for the fruit flies."
He got the biggest kick out of that.
Where there is fruit, there are flies. So, especially this time of year, it doesn't hurt to have a bottle of some kind with some wine in the bottom on your counter near where you keep your fruit. I like my coke bottles because no one thinks anything of it.

Best of wishes!

leave out a dish of red wine- the vapors attact/kill them and if the partake, they get drunk and drown:)

You've got to catch them!! Make a paper funnel, and place it in a cup with vinegar in the bottom. They fly in, drown and die, and can't get out. You just have to make sure that the only opening is the funnel hole so that they get trapped. If you don't have any vinegar, any sweet liquid will suffice.

I'm with the ladies who say red wine. We have a pear tree in our backyard and we CONSTANTLY get fruit flies. We will leave a glass of red wine where they congregate and sure enough, that worked. (We also used to be wine drinkers and would always find fruit flies landing in our wine - gross! But that's how we discovered the trick!)

Hi V.,

If you want something natural, try this recipe:

1/2 tsp eucalyptus essential oil
1/4 tsp peppermint essential oil
1/4 tsp lemon essential oil
1/4 tsp clove essential oil
4 ozs. vinegar

Make a spray in a glass bottle (not plastic) and shake, then spray daily (in pantry, window trays/around windows, corners and nook and crannies). Totally non-toxic, but will repel pests and possibly neutralize reproduction spaces. Shake each time before spraying. Just be cautious if you have indoor birds - put them in an area not being sprayed.

Blessings,

B. C., CR, CCI, BCRS, EFT-CC

I have dealt with this a few times. The best thing to do is just make sure that all food is put away at night, close any drains and wipe everything dry (they will die off if they have no food or moisture). I have not found any bug spray that works. Be patient and keep everything clear so there is nothing to live on. Best of luck!

Hi,
They live in wet places like trash cans and drains. Clean out sinks, put lemon or vinegar in drains and keep sinks dry, empty, clean and dry out trash bins.

Good luck!

Saw this somewhere awhile ago and it worked for me. Put out one or two dishes of 1 part water, 2 parts red wine vinegar (maybe any kind of vinegar?) - the flies will be attracted to it and drown themselves in a few hours

Try some fly strips. One female can lay thousands of eggs a day. They are pretty hard to get rid of.

Keep your kitchen sink clean too so they don't start breeding in the drain.

I had fruit flies from leaving bananas out when we went on a brief vacation. We returned to swarms of fruit flies.After cleaning thoroughly to get rid of eggs,
I had pretty good luck with leaving out a glass of red wine (not white) close to the source of the infestation. They get drunk from the fumes and drown. Must be a red wine glass with the top edge turning in. Probably a brandy snifter would be even better(I did'nt have one,so had to make do.) Good luck.

I know this was already posted but I wanted to give a second confirmation to red wine. It really does work. I had fruit flies and was annoyed by them. By accident I left an open bottle of red wine on the counter. It attracted the fruit flies and they were gone. It was a quick, easy remedy.

Hi,
I know how you feel! We have used apple vinegar and a couple of drops of dish soap (put it in a cup and leave it out for a few hours). I read it somewhere... It doesn't catch them all, but you will see a bunch! If you get any good suggestions I would love to hear them.

Good luck,
J.