5 Ways to Get Rid of Fruit Flies

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The summer has been warm this year, and unfortunately, that usually means that the fruit flies have come out to play along with everyone else. Fruit flies are an annoying summer pest, but many people are also understandably reluctant to use a lot of harsh chemicals in their kitchens to drive them out again. However, the methods below are natural ways in which you can deal with this household problem with high costs, harsh chemicals or having to call a professional exterminator.

Empty Your Compost Bin Daily

If you are like most people who compost kitchen scraps – which is a great thing to do for your garden as well as the environment – then just be sure to empty these bins out in your compost pile daily. If you leave them hanging around too long, the vegetable and fruit peels and other kitchen detritus will quickly become a beacon for a swarm of fruit flies. Make sure to wipe the area down as well, because moisture is a big attraction for fruit flies, too.

Clean Kitchen Thoroughly

If fruit flies are a problem, giving the kitchen (and any other room where food is served) a good scrub-down will also help. Fruit flies can be attracted to even small scraps of food, so make sure that you clean off all surfaces as well as giving the floors, baseboards and other areas a good going-over. Also, if you keep fruit out in the basket, give that a check while you are cleaning to make sure that all of it is fresh – mushy or overripe fruit will have the fruit flies swarming in.

Vinegar Trap

Once you have thoroughly scrubbed out the kitchen and made it as clean as possible, try adding this trap to see if you can reign in the remaining fruit flies. Pour about an inch of apple cider vinegar into a Mason jar or something similar, then cover its tops tightly with plastic wrap and secure this with a rubber band. Then poke a couple of holes through the plastic. Fruit flies will be attracted to the smell of the vinegar but once they crawl in they will not be able to crawl out.

Fruit Fly Trap: Variation I

If you do not want to use plastic wrap, it is also ok to use a cone-shaped paper lid on top of your trap; this, too, will allow the fruit flies to enter but not to leave.

Fruit Fly Trap: Variation II

For a no-kill fruit fly trap, simply add cut fruit to the bottom of a lidded container. When the fruit flies come in to investigate the fruit, you can put the lid down on the container, then take it outside for a sort of catch-and-release program.

This does involve more elbow grease than traditional methods. However, it also enables you to keep your home free of the kind of chemicals that are employed for pest removal and is less expensive as well.

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Samriti
Samriti has written a number of articles and blog posts for websites and print in the health industry. The majority of this writing was related to cancer information, blood pressure and healthy living.