Fruit flies are the worst. One day, you have a perfectly lovely banana sitting on your counter, and the next, you’re hosting a bed and breakfast for a colony of vermin, and they are overstaying their welcome.
Fruit flies can pop up at any time of year, but they are especially common in the summer months when there are generally more fruits and vegetables ripening. They lay eggs on rotting or fermenting food, which hatch into hundreds of larvae. Then those larvae lay eggs, and then those larvae lay eggs, and before you know it you have to move and surrender your home over to the flies.
Luckily, before you give up your keys, there are a few things you can do to get rid of the little suckers. If you follow these steps, you’ll significantly reduce the numbers of these little tyrants and take back your kitchen.
Prevention
It’s much easier to stop the fruit flies from settling down in your space if your kitchen is clean and tidy. Start by cleaning up any areas where food might collect and break down. That means keeping your garbage outside or in a container with a well-fitting lid. Throw your food scraps in a compost bag and keep that in the freezer, rather than letting it sit out at room temperature. Flush out the drains of your sink in case old food has collected there.
If you normally keep fruits and veggies on the counter, try moving them to cooler spots or covering them, especially fruits with a high sugar content that ripen quickly. Try keeping your bananas and tomatoes in a cool drawer or under a dome. Yes, tomato drawers are a thing.
Photo by Catherine Powell/Shutterstock
How to Trap Fruit Flies
If fruit flies do make your kitchen their hangout spot, there are ways to trap them. They like fermented fruit, so mix a bit of dish soap with old beer, wine or apple cider vinegar. Pour water into the mixture until it bubbles, and leave the glass or bowl on the counter where you spot the flies. They’ll come to the glass because of the fruit sugar, but get trapped in the soap bubbles. You can also fit plastic wrap over the top of a beer bottle or glass of vinegar, and poke a few holes in it. Fruit flies can get in, but they can’t fly out.
If you’re looking for a solution with alcohol, there are commercial traps available, or you can make your own spray by mixing isopropyl alcohol and water. That should kill the flies on contact.
If All Else Fails…
Wait them out. Fruit flies only live for about two weeks, and when temperatures get cooler, they don’t survive long. You can have the sweet satisfaction of watching them drop off as summer turns to fall. Sip your pumpkin spice latte and grin, knowing you’ve outlasted the beasts for another season. Who’s in charge now, fly?
The gross reality is that fruit flies are mostly just annoying, but they do pose slight health risks. They can transport bacteria or germs as they land on food and surfaces in your home, which can occasionally lead to health issues. If you clean up an area with a lot of flies, you should wash your hands well afterwards, and wash any fruits and vegetables that are still on your counters before eating them.
FAQs
How to Trap Fruit Flies. If fruit flies do make your kitchen their hangout spot, there are ways to trap them. They like fermented fruit, so mix a bit of dish soap with old beer, wine or apple cider vinegar. Pour water into the mixture until it bubbles, and leave the glass or bowl on the counter where you spot the flies ...
How do farmers get rid of fruit flies? ›
A MAT trap combines a fruit fly male attractant with an insecticide. The mixture lures and kills the invasive flies without attracting beneficial insects. This eco-friendly technique is also more cost-effective than using traditional insecticides.
How do I get rid of fruit flies 100%? ›
Make a trap with vinegar, sugar and dish soap to get rid of fruit flies in the house. Some Tips on Using the Trap: Let the solution sit out for up to 14 days, adding water as needed to replace any that evaporates. Place it near ripening fruit on the kitchen counter.
How do exterminators get rid of fruit flies? ›
Insect Light Traps: Many flies are attracted to certain wavelengths of UV light. This makes insect light traps very effective in attracting and capturing flies once they enter a building. Liquid Residual Insecticides: There are insecticides that work great at eliminating adult flies and larvae.
What permanently kills fruit flies? ›
Another way to kill the flies is by drowning them. “Fill a small jar or cup with apple cider vinegar and a few drops of dish soap, and then cover the container with plastic wrap tightly,” Ludwiczak suggests. Don't forget to poke a few holes in the wrap and place the jar near the fruit fly infestation.
Why are fruit flies so hard to get rid of? ›
Fruit flies are hard to eliminate. They lay so many eggs, and their life cycle is so swift that new flies hatch before you can track down the source. You'll need to take multiple steps to get rid of them, and the project might take several weeks.
Will fruit flies completely go away? ›
If there is no food, and no place for them to lay their eggs, in which their descendants can feed, the population will either move on or die - or a little of both. The typical lifespan of a fruit fly is 10 days to 2 weeks, depending on the ambient temperature. Some species may lay up to thousands of eggs in that time.
How long does it take to completely get rid of fruit flies? ›
It can take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks to eliminate a fruit fly infestation, which is why experts recommend preventative measures. To keep the pests from reappearing, follow these tips: Keep food storage areas clean and dry. Throw out overripe fruit and produce.
What smell do fruit flies hate? ›
Fruit flies can't stand the smell of basil, peppermint, eucalyptus, lemongrass, lavender and clove. If you've had a fruit fly problem in the past, try placing these fragrant herbs in muslin sacks or tea bags and hanging them around the house. You could also buy them in essential oil form and use them in a diffuser.
How do I get rid of 1000 fruit flies? ›
How do you get rid of fruit flies?
- Wipe down surfaces that are potential breeding grounds. Wipe down all cabinet surfaces thoroughly. ...
- Clean the drains in your kitchen. ...
- Set traps. ...
- Monitor traps and drains. ...
- Regular maintenance to help keep fruit flies away.
To create a DIY fruit fly trap, mix a quarter cup of either apple cider vinegar or white vinegar with a few drops of dish soap. The idea is that the irresistible vinegar attracts the fruit flies, while the soap breaks the vinegar's surface tension and drowns them.
Can you bomb to get rid of fruit flies? ›
After you've managed to find and eliminate the source of breeding, you can use one of the commercial bug-bombs to get rid of any adult flies that are left. If you have some objection to using insecticides, you can try trapping the remaining flies. There are commercial fruit fly traps available.
Why is my apple cider vinegar fruit fly trap not working? ›
Why isn't my apple cider fruit fly trap working? If you can tell that the flies are attracted to the trap but aren't getting stuck inside, try adjusting the size of the cone. If the tip is too small they may not go all the way down inside. If the tip is too large, they can more easily escape.
What cleaners do fruit flies hate? ›
Fill a cup with apple cider vinegar or wine 🍷. Something sweet. You can also use a microwave-safe bowl and put it in, then microwave to really add to the aroma! 👃 Add a few drops of dish soap to the mix, Dish soap reduces surface tension so flies will land and sink!
How do you find a fruit fly nest? ›
Look for fruit fly sources in areas where fruits or veggies are stored outside refrigeration. Also, look for fruit fly sources in garbage cans, under appliances, and in recycling bins. Even a bit of spilled juice behind an appliance or in the garbage can contribute to their breeding.
How do farmers keep insects away? ›
The application of pesticides is widely used to limit herbivore damage to crops. Farmers have been using naturally occurring compounds—such as pyrethrins from Chrysanthemum flowers or nicotine from tobacco—for centuries to kill insects on crop plants, or even head lice on humans.
Are fruit flies harmful to crops? ›
They attack over 400 different types of plants, destroying entire crops, disrupting trade, and causing major financial losses for affected producers and industries. Fruit flies pose a significant threat to U.S. agricultural production and our economy if left unchecked and allowed to spread.
What is the best homemade fruit fly trap? ›
Place a few drops of apple cider vinegar or an old piece of apple or banana in the bottom of a jar. Then roll up a piece of notebook paper into a funnel, and fit it in the jar's opening. Why it works: Fruit flies will enter the funnel to get to the fruit or vinegar and won't be able to fly back out.
