Fruit
How to Get Rid of Fruit Flies Before They Take Over Your Kitchen
Rid your kitchen of these annoying little pests ASAP.
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51 Comments
Stefanie S.
July 26, 2018
We use the plastic wrap method, but with a little bit of wine instead of vinegar. Works like a charm!!
Donna P.
May 27, 2016
Get a Venus flytrap plant. It attracts the fruit flies and feeds the plant at the same time plus it makes an attractive plant for your counter.
John C.
January 13, 2016
From the above article: “Fruit flies breed in drains.”
They can breed in drains…. but they much prefer ripened fruits and vegetables…. both as a source of food and breeding ground.
All that is needed for development is a moist film of fermenting material. Infestations can originate from over-ripened fruits or vegetables that were previously infested and brought into the home.
They can breed in drains…. but they much prefer ripened fruits and vegetables…. both as a source of food and breeding ground.
All that is needed for development is a moist film of fermenting material. Infestations can originate from over-ripened fruits or vegetables that were previously infested and brought into the home.
Arlene D.
September 28, 2015
I've tried the vinegar trick with and without the funnel. Absolutely not one fly took the bait. This time I will warm it first. I'll also try the honey on a plate hint.
john C.
September 28, 2015
I never suggested using a funnel (too big), I use perforated canning jar lids. I
always have a 5 gal carboy of wine vinegar working in my cellar, but any vinegar will work. This has worked for 3 generations of Italians who would never buy a "bait", use what attracts them. The suggestion to put the compost out on the deck works, but not here as the bears are a lot bigger that the fruit flies.
always have a 5 gal carboy of wine vinegar working in my cellar, but any vinegar will work. This has worked for 3 generations of Italians who would never buy a "bait", use what attracts them. The suggestion to put the compost out on the deck works, but not here as the bears are a lot bigger that the fruit flies.
Arlene D.
October 1, 2015
I'm talking about a paper funnel someone else suggested. But the vinegar does not work, I found a mess of eggs today. I threw them in my trash can which has a tight lid. Later when I went outside I found a lot of flies on my house. I sprayed them with an insect spray as they landed. Could they have come from my trash can?
john C.
August 11, 2015
I have used the vinegar as bait for years, but put it in a small glass canning jar that I have perforated the insert in the top with many small holes (either an ice pick or small nail works well). Just uncap & wash out periodically. The vinegar will cause the underside of the lid to corrode in time which a piece of sandpaper will fix, or get replacement lids (sold with canning supplies). very effective & inexpensive.
JB
August 10, 2015
In addition to a trap, set up a box fan to blow over where they're congregating. Just make sure the trap is out of the breeze.
Kathy S.
July 26, 2015
Is there an ant thread? Because, we have ants.
Jim
July 27, 2015
There is a product called Orange Guard. My hummingbird feeder was overrun by black ants. I sprayed this around the base and on the pole. No more problem.
Gina M.
August 12, 2015
Try equal parts bicarb soda, icing sugar and a little water and mix to a paste. Put this where they are travelling and they will eat it and take it back to nests and explode!
Alice E.
August 16, 2015
dermiticus earth food grade will get rid of anything with a exoskeleton including ants, fleas, ticks, cockroaches, I love the stuff
Priscilla U.
July 25, 2015
Thanks for the tips! Always at war with the nasty little critters around my sourdough starters and ferments...
Marty H.
July 24, 2015
I just fill a jar halfway full with apple cider vinegar, a couple of drops of dishwashing liquid and a day later, there's corpses galore! I don't bother with the plastic wrap. But you half to put your fruit away so they go to this to feed: and FYI, we found a rotting onion in our pantry that was overrun with them so they will go for more than just fruit! Happy hunting!
emcsull
January 6, 2016
same here. Vinegar and dish detergent, no plastic, works like a charm. so many you can't count 'em in no time.
Julia
July 24, 2015
Great DIY tips, thanks! If your fruit fly problem is at your bar, here are some tips for prevention and (to put it gently) "Getting rid" of the adult flies. http://www.abarabove.com/fruit-flies/
Adam W.
July 24, 2015
For the record everyone...Hot Shot and other wafer like hanging products contain DDVP, a World War 2 nerve agent! Not necessary.
Adam W.
July 24, 2015
Drink the wine! Use your vinegar for cooking!
Just buy some FlyPunch!, which is 544% more effective than other non-toxic products. It saves you time and money. Check it out here: www.auntfanniesco.com.
Just buy some FlyPunch!, which is 544% more effective than other non-toxic products. It saves you time and money. Check it out here: www.auntfanniesco.com.
nancy E.
July 24, 2015
For the first year EVER, I have no fruit flies. I put my compost bucket out on the deck and all the fruit is in the fridge. NOT ONE!
dora
July 24, 2015
I have a kikkoman soy sauce bottle sitting on the table and if you leave some soy sauce in the bottom the flies go in the cap holes and can't get out!! Just make sure you label the bottle and don't use it!! It's hard to see them in the soy sauce!!
Andie P.
July 24, 2015
You don't have to make a paper funnel, surely you have inexpensive plastic funnels in your kitchen - the little ones that come in a set and don't seem to have any other use.. put them in a bottle, pour in some vinegar - if you don't have apple cider, just plain vinegar and put in a sliver of fruit which will float on the vinegar and exude scents that attract the little pests.
There is also the "honey trick" spread a very thin layer of honey on a paper plate - heat it in the microwave for 12 seconds and set it on the counter. They will land on it and stick to it. So will regular flies. When it is sufficiently occupied, toss in the trash.
There is also the "honey trick" spread a very thin layer of honey on a paper plate - heat it in the microwave for 12 seconds and set it on the counter. They will land on it and stick to it. So will regular flies. When it is sufficiently occupied, toss in the trash.
janeofmanytrade
July 27, 2013
i just leave an empty, or should i say almost empty, bottle of wine on the counter. with a tablespoon of wine in the bottom, the flies are lured in and can't find their way back out.
Liisa L.
July 24, 2013
The good old fashioned fly catcher paper is my best bet. Cheap, very effective,though sometimes you get sticky fingers when hanging it up!
Big R.
July 24, 2013
We picked up a green capensis plant at the farmers market. Eats the flys and feeds the plant which has beautiful flowers by the way.
rosalind5
July 24, 2013
Fun fact: Drosophila can also see UV light and are highly attracted towards it. So at the end of a hard day "pushing flies" (as fly geneticists call it), you turn on a big UV bug zapper on the wall, and any stray flies will be drawn inexorably towards it...
Sarah J.
July 24, 2013
It seems like some of the best tips for catching fruit flies come from the scientists who spend all day working with them!
Lynn C.
July 24, 2013
I use a jar with holes on top - like the plastic wrap idea but more sturdy: http://theactorsdiet.com/2012/06/26/flying-fruit/
Kathy S.
July 23, 2013
We cut the top off a larger single serving coke bottle (don't ask me why, we've tried water bottles and it doesn't work with them) . Cut the top off at about 1/3 of the way down and where the shape is at it's widest. Put a banana peel in the bottom of the bottle and invert the top into the bottle. Tape around the circumference where the 2 cuts meet. The fruit flies are attracted to the peel (we tried other bait, the banana peel was the most attractive to the flies) they fly down into the bottle, but can't seem to navigate back up and out. It has something to do with the need to fly backwards at take off.
Giggles
July 23, 2013
Given a choice between wine and cider vinegar, the fruit flies and I are on the same page! They seem to really love red wine. I compost with worms and ended up with a huge fruit fly problem! Vacuuming helps, and the wine with a little dish soap catches the strays (now I prevent the problem by freezing all my worm food first).
First W.
July 23, 2013
After trapping the existing flies, clean your trash cans and drains. Fruit flies love to breed in there! It took me forever to figure out why they were all hanging out in the powder room!
K. R.
July 23, 2013
Sweet Riesling in a glass: add a drop of dish soap and a dash of water to break up the surface tension and swirl or stir until combined. Leave it out on the counter overnight. Works like a charm!
Larrian G.
July 23, 2013
I actually find it rather zen...swaying to music which sucking the life out of those little buggers. Starts my day off quite nicely.
Olypeninah
July 23, 2013
I agree with Larrian - the vacuum cleaner method, in the morning when they're slow, is one of the unsung pleasures of summer.
Elizabeth B.
July 23, 2013
My grandma has long had a glass of apple cider vinegar sitting on her table for this reason so I often use the apple cider but add the modern dish soap addition. I have read that the vinegar entices them in and then the soap actually kills them. I am amazed at the amount I catch (we buy a ton of fresh fruit/veg so the summer is the worst!) I haven't tried the plastic wrap but that seems really smart to keep them in!
aobenour
July 23, 2013
I did the plastic wrap method last week. Vinegar alone wasn't very attractive to them, at least compared to my peaches and tomatoes, and neither was vinegar with a strip of orange peel. But when I put half squeezed lemon in there it worked like a charm. After one night I'd caught them all.
Sarah J.
July 23, 2013
It's so funny that you suggested that. I had a box of lemons that were a fruit fly magnet, but I hadn't come across any tips to use lemons as bait. I'll have to try it next time!
Susie R.
August 19, 2013
I think if you're going to use vinegar, you need to use the fancy-pants extra-fermented very apple-y vinegar. I had no love with vinegar, either, but they attacked some sweet wine I left out.
Larrian G.
July 23, 2013
I endorse the handvac method. Suck those little buggers up daily until gone.
Sarah J.
July 23, 2013
I like the way you think, Larrian! I've also heard you can kill them with a hair dryer! But then the problem is that you'll have dead fruit flies in your hair dryer and a whole other problem to tackle.
caroline.gillis1
July 23, 2013
KILL THEM ALL. My last apartment had fruit flies up the wazoo. My current one has ants.
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