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Fruit fly infestation - help!

S

slackerinabox

Lifer
We're not especially dirty people yet we've been hit by an infestation of fruit flies. I'm thinking it's from our neighbors (apartment dweller) because we just don't leave food out at all. In fact, the bugs seem to be hoovering over non food items, swarming over paper towel rolls, clothes in our closet, etc. In other words, there simply is no food out that could be attracting them, yet they won't leave! I now clean twice a day to be damn sure that not even a spec of food is out, but not a dent in their population.

I've tried the following:
1. Biologic drain cleaner - seemed to make a difference for a day then, boom, they're all back
2. Bug zapper (electronic) - nada, 3 or 4 an hour..We're talking about hundreds of bugs though.
3. Candles, etc (lavender is supposed to help) - just moves the population from one room to another
4. Vinegar traps - they work kinda but they're not room clearing, and most of the time the bugs seem to ignore the traps

I have a toddler and a baby in the house so I'm wary of chemicals, but these buggers need to leave the house because I feel like we're living in a 3rd world nation!
 
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I've had success putting cheap wine/beer in a cup, covering the cup with saran wrap, and poking a few fruit fly-sized holes in the wrap. They crawl in and can't get back out.

I've also tried a dish detergent/water solution with good results, but wine/beer is usually my go-to.
 
Get a few decent sized bowls, fill with a mixture of Apple cider vinegar and sugar. Cover the bowls with saran wrap and poke small holes in the plastic wrap with a pen or something. Make sure the holes are not just pin sized, but a bit bigger.

Leave the bowls around where the fruit flies are most busy and they will be drawn to it, go in the holes and get stuck inside the bowls and die.
 
I've been in a city where turning on the light at night is enough to get swarmed by midges.
I think it's because there's a nearby park with lots of humid places.
I could see them swarming to reproduce there.

So really, it might not be about your neighbour but rather still water outside, or green areas, or trash.

Be happy they're not mosquitoes.

Get mosquito nets maybe?

And don't turn on the lights with the windows open.

My trick in hotel-like rooms is to turn on the light in the bathroom of the room to draw them away and then close it and trap all the insects in there.
 
Grooveriding said:
Get a few decent sized bowls, fill with a mixture of Apple cider vinegar and sugar. Cover the bowls with saran wrap and poke small holes in the plastic wrap with a pen or something. Make sure the holes are not just pin sized, but a bit bigger.

Leave the bowls around where the fruit flies are most busy and they will be drawn to it, go in the holes and get stuck inside the bowls and die.
Click to expand...
:thumbsup:
One drop of dish soap in each will act as a surfactant or water wetter, and seal their fate. They go right in the solution.
 
Phorrid flies.

I also live in an apartment. I deal with population explosions all the time. I don't leave food out. Dishes get rinsed immediately. Nothing nasty goes in the trash (it gets tied-up and immediately taken out). Nothing works.

They don't seem particularly interested in the sink disposal, but they settle everywhere. They seem to be attracted to white surfaces like my cabinets. They occasionally get attracted to my iPad screen and computer screen. I have killed thousands over the years.

I think those little orange ball traps have been keeping them in check so far this year, but it's still too early to say.

The only time I've noticed them clustered over anything was the piles of cat barf I sometimes come home to, which I immediately put into double grocery bags and tie up. I spray the area with disinfectant and wipe it thoroughly.
 
Grooveriding said:
Get a few decent sized bowls, fill with a mixture of Apple cider vinegar and sugar. Cover the bowls with saran wrap and poke small holes in the plastic wrap with a pen or something. Make sure the holes are not just pin sized, but a bit bigger.

Leave the bowls around where the fruit flies are most busy and they will be drawn to it, go in the holes and get stuck inside the bowls and die.
Click to expand...

This gets a few of them, but overall is completely ineffective.

I probably caught millions of them with a dozen yeast funnel traps last year and they were still overwhelming. I was having to rotate the traps constantly between the freezer (to kill them) and the counter tops.
 
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Oh yeah: The transparent window stickers might be helping to keep them in check. They seem attracted to the window (probably the solar energy that's allowing them to thrive). After applying the window stickers, the dead ones accumulate below the window like you wouldn't believe. It was too late last year to stop them, but I think extra stickers this year in conjunction with the orange ball traps has delayed the population explosion. Still, they definitely *are* back again and they are increasing in number right now. 🙁
 
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chubbyfatazn said:
I've had success putting cheap wine/beer in a cup, covering the cup with saran wrap, and poking a few fruit fly-sized holes in the wrap. They crawl in and can't get back out.

I've also tried a dish detergent/water solution with good results, but wine/beer is usually my go-to.
Click to expand...

i have tried dozens of things. The best is beer. I discovered that when I didn't drink all of a glass of oberon's. I came back in the morning and it had a bunch in it.

So now when we get fruit flies (wich we do. with kids and tons of fruit in the house) i put some in a container. I cover that with plastic wrap and poke some holes in it. leave that up for a day or so and it kills them.

It's the best thing i have tried. even out of expensive shit.
 
Picture of the fruit flies? Or, are you 100% certain they're actually fruit flies?

I'm not sure why people are covering their traps - simply put out a cup of beer, and mix in a couple drops of soap. They'll land on it, and sink to the bottom.
 
Ichinisan said:
Phorrid flies.

I also live in an apartment. I deal with population explosions all the time. I don't leave food out. Dishes get rinsed immediately. Nothing nasty goes in the trash (it gets tied-up and immediately taken out). Nothing works.

They don't seem particularly interested in the sink disposal, but they settle everywhere. They seem to be attracted to white surfaces like my cabinets. They occasionally get attracted to my iPad screen and computer screen. I have killed thousands over the years.

I think those little orange ball traps have been keeping them in check so far this year, but it's still too early to say.

The only time I've noticed them clustered over anything was the piles of cat barf I sometimes come home to, which I immediately put into double grocery bags and tie up. I spray the area with disinfectant and wipe it thoroughly.
Click to expand...

This might be it! They have a weird tendency to flock to white surfaces, I wondered why they were always hanging out on the toilet paper in the linen closet!

The vinegar trick only got like 10 or so bugs last time I tried it, maybe they're not fruit flies after all. Thanks for the lead.
 
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Ichinisan said:
Pretty much exactly like mine. Maybe a little bit darker than mine, but that's probably just due to regional genetic differences.
Click to expand...

Eeek, this sucks - harder to get rid of fruit flies, right?

Heading to Home Depot and will get drain cleaner plus the hardcore shit, there are literally a few hundred flies buzzing around and we simply can't have people over. Hell, we need an AC installed and it's too embarassing to have even paid service providers over!

Anyone recommend an insecticide for flies that won't give my toddlers flippers or schizophrenia?
 
Grooveriding said:
Get a few decent sized bowls, fill with a mixture of Apple cider vinegar and sugar. Cover the bowls with saran wrap and poke small holes in the plastic wrap with a pen or something. Make sure the holes are not just pin sized, but a bit bigger.

Leave the bowls around where the fruit flies are most busy and they will be drawn to it, go in the holes and get stuck inside the bowls and die.
Click to expand...

This is what we did a while back when we had the fruit fly problem (left some bananas out too long on the counter). It took about a week to get them all... but we got um all...
 
Ok guys, quick turn around of events. We headed right to home depot and spent $40 on some products, ranging from "organic" and hippy kid/animal safe products, drain cleaners, and finally some hard core flying insecticide if I feel like getting the kids and cat out and just bombing the place is worth it. $40 is much cheaper than if I ordered the stuff from amazon- for example, one product was $7 at home depot but $13.50 for a larger than necessary pack on amazon. So far so amazingly good - I used the organic stuff and it killed on contact and left a minty smell to keep them away, and the drain cleaners are at work as we speak. I'd say we're down from hundreds to a few dozen, progress for sure.

Thanks for leading me away from fruit flies to phorid flies - none of the fruit fly remedies (vinegar traps, uv light, sticky traps) were working. Drain cleaner and hippy bug spray, not rocket science but hope round 2 is less brutal.
 
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Ichinisan said:
Oh yeah: The transparent window stickers might be helping to keep them in check. They seem attracted to the window (probably the solar energy that's allowing them to thrive). After applying the window stickers, the dead ones accumulate below the window like you wouldn't believe. It was too late last year to stop them, but I think extra stickers this year in conjunction with the orange ball traps has delayed the population explosion. Still, they definitely *are* back again and they are increasing in number right now. 🙁
Click to expand...

Whats do you mean by window sticker?

And ordinary soap kills all kinds of insects incl roaches/flies on contact so instead of using a drain cleaner, you could just use ordinary washing powder+water and pour it down the drain. Or use it in a spray bottle to kill on contact.
 
bononos said:
Whats do you mean by window sticker?

And ordinary soap kills all kinds of insects incl roaches/flies on contact so instead of using a drain cleaner, you could just use ordinary washing powder+water and pour it down the drain. Or use it in a spray bottle to kill on contact.
Click to expand...

It's a poison clear sticker that kills flies and goes on the window. Lowe's has them but they were very hard to find the last time I was in the store.

ORTHO Home Defense Fly Bait Decal
Item #: 549165 | Model #: 0491010
 
bononos said:
Whats do you mean by window sticker?

And ordinary soap kills all kinds of insects incl roaches/flies on contact so instead of using a drain cleaner, you could just use ordinary washing powder+water and pour it down the drain. Or use it in a spray bottle to kill on contact.
Click to expand...

Think tide would work? It would be a nice buffer over the caustic stuff. So day 1 industrial drain cleaner, day 2 tide, and back and forth for about a week (then upkeep every 2 weeks with bleach as suggested)
 
slackerinabox said:
Think tide would work? It would be a nice buffer over the caustic stuff. So day 1 industrial drain cleaner, day 2 tide, and back and forth for about a week (then upkeep every 2 weeks with bleach as suggested)
Click to expand...

It should work very well, make it foamy. Its cheaper and safer than other stuff so you might want to see if soapy water works on its own.
 
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