Insects anywhere in the house are a sign of trouble. We do understand that where there are insects, there are chances of multiplying.
You do not want infestation growing in your house. Especially those pesky little fruit flies and gnats.
However, there is nothing to worry about as fruit flies mean no harm but are a nuisance. They carry germs wherever they go.
Also, they have a high rate of multiplying through reproduction. Thus, if you see a few, there are chances that they will be hundreds of them in days.
Why Do Flies Come In The Bathrooms?
Every solution to the problem comes with the questions of why and how?
It is mandatory to determine the cause of fruit flies being found in the bathrooms to eradicate the problem.
Generally, flies like moist and warm places. Still, you might want to look for other attractions like food debris in the trash or behind the vanity.
There are also considerable chances that the flies are attracted to the debris latched inside the sink drain or shower drain.
How To Get Rid Of Fruit Flies?
The best way to get rid of fruit flies is by making the bathrooms a very less hospitable place for them. Considering the attractions, remove any moist or warm towel from the bathrooms.
Also, it is advised to clean the drains of any debris. You can also try cleaning out the trash more often.
These are some of the generic ways of taking care of the pesky fly problem. However, do you think it is going to be that easy?
I assure you it will be if you follow these simple DIY methods with proper steps and techniques to get rid of the flies in your bathrooms.
Make Your Own Fly – Trap
The fly problem can be taken care of by simple store-bought supplies. You just have to see what works best for you. Let us start with the simple method of using apple cider vinegar.
You must be thinking, how can citrus help in getting the flies out of your bathrooms. Believe me, it does. This is how you will do it:
- Take three tablespoons full of Apple cider vinegar and add a little amount of dishwashing liquid.
- Try using a disposable cup as you will not be needing the solution again.
- Cover the cup with plastic wrap tightly and secure it using rubber bands.
- Poke some holes on the plastic wrap using toothpicks and let it sit in the bathroom.
- This smell of vinegar will attract the flies. This will let them pass through the holes.
- However, the dishwashing liquid will sink them instead of making them land safely on to vinegar.
- Voila! Pesky little flies are gone.
Cayenne Pepper And Water
I wouldn’t personally use this solution, but it has been said to do wonders for many people. Although this would be problematic for people who are sensitive to spices.
- Mix a little amount of cayenne pepper in water in a spray bottle. Spray it all over the bathroom.
- This smell of spice will avert the flies from the place.
Get A New Plant
If you are a plant person and into botanical gardens, you could also try getting a Venus flytrap.
They are scary, but yes, they will keep your bathrooms a clean, free space from house flies or fruit flies.
Natural Ingredient For Attracting Flies
Flies are naturally attracted to ingredients that are high in sugars or spicy scents. By intense, I do not refer to strangely off scents. Rather I am referring to scents of wine.
However, the only way to get hold of the flies is by luring them into a trap by using any of these mentioned organic ingredients as baits.
- Meat
- Molasses
- Syrups
- Fruits
- Wines
What If The Flies Are Coming Out From The Drain?
If your bathroom has considerably heavier fly traffic around the drain area, it means that the drain has debris built up inside.
To deal with such a problem, these methods are most approved:
DIY Homemade Drain Cleaner
For making your homemade drain cleaner, you would need a binger and a lot of boiling water.
Boiling water has tons of benefits, out of which one is killing any infestation growing in a place.
If your drain has debris built up, you should pour concentrated vinegar and let it sit in the drain for a while. The vinegar will wash away any debris layering on the pipes and will easily come off.
Now take a bucket of boiled water and pour it over the drain. The hot boiling water will kill all the larvae growth inside.
You can use snake drainer cleaner to scrape off any debris, but it will help the existing flies from the bathroom to escape.
More Rigid Way
Another way of doing it is using the drain cleaning bleach. The bleach has a higher concentration of chlorine, and chlorine helps in disinfecting the surfaces as well.
It is best to use it with a combination of drain cleaning salt. The salt and bleach reach and create a chain reaction and targets the debris. The bleach and salt break off the debris and help in cleaning the drains.
You can use a drain plunger to push the bleach and salt deeper into the drain. Pour lukewarm water over the drain to help pass the mixture through the drain system. This will automatically eradicate the flies.
Baking Soda Miracle
Last but not least using baking soda, vinegar, and salt altogether. Pour baking soda, salt over the drain. Let it sit for a few minutes.
The moisture in the drain will cause the baking soda and salt to dissolve. Pour white vinegar over the drain and wait for the baking soda and salt to bubble up.
Taking a nylon bending brush, scrub off the surface with the debris. Open clean running water on the drain to wash away the mixture.
The mixture will kill all the larvae being produced in the drain and cut off the flies.
Pesticides And Insecticides
If you feel that none of these methods have worked out for you, you can use the traditional method of insecticides. You can use it in the form of powder and liquid sprays as well.
Pouring insecticide powder or spraying over the drain can reduce the fly problem to a considerable percentage.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is there a need to clean the debris off the drain pipes?
Getting the debris off the drain is essentially the most important task. As debris are the house of fruit flies.
Flies lay hundreds of eggs at one time, and these eggs are hatched with 72 hours. This means more flies to deal with at the end of the day.
To save from this problem, it is advised to clean the debris off the drainage pipes to escape the fly problem in your house.
How can you get rid of the debris?
There are many ways by which the debris can be removed from the drainage pipes. Most of these methods require household supplies like bleach, salt, baking powder/soda, vinegar.
Using the combination of mentioned items can help get the debris off the drainage pipes.
In severe cases, you might want to use the actual supplies available in the market to address the problem of debris built up, e.g. ‘Bio clean.’
You can also use nylon brushes to help scrape off the excess debris.
How can flies be dealt with in the bathroom?
If you see flies in the bathrooms, chances are you have something in the bathroom’s trash that attracts them.
In other cases, it can be the debris that attracts them as the drainage pipes give them the moist, damp medium to reproduce.
Dealing with such a fly problem addresses the root causes that attract the flies in the particular vicinity.
Which organic ingredients can be used as bait for the flies?
Flies are most attracted to ingredients with relatively higher fructose concentrations or strongly pungent scents in other cases.
Wine and vinegar (apple cider) can be sued to attract flies into a trap. However, an ingredient like meat, fruits, vegetables, molasses, and sugary syrup can also attract flies.
Conclusion
Flies are harmless creatures and do not do much with their existence. However, their presence at times can be gruesome, especially in the bathrooms.
Therefore, it is necessary to eradicate the fly problem in the house, may it be anywhere. Flies reproduce, by laying 100 eggs at one time, which takes around 72 hours to hatch.
This is why you need to deal with the fly problem as soon as possible.
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