How to Get Rid of Houseflies (and Keep Them Out)
Houseflies getting too comfortable in your home? Here's how to prevent and get rid of them, fast!
Houseflies are common household pests that can be a nuisance. While they don't bite, they can transmit diseases. They carry harmful pathogens on their feet from their dirty feeding and breeding grounds. Those pathogens can cause food poisoning, cholera, E. coli, typhoid fever, dysentery, and tuberculosis. Aside from flies being an annoyance, these illnesses are why you should get rid of houseflies as soon as you spot them. Here's how to do it effectively.
Getty Images / Jenny Dettrick
Where Houseflies Come From
Houseflies access your home through open windows and doors. If you don't have screens, they are likely to follow scents straight to food sources in your house. They are primarily attracted to decaying organic matter, namely rotting food. While you may initially tolerate one or two flies, you should remember that houseflies reproduce quickly and in large numbers. An infestation can be challenging to get rid of. Stop their breeding early using several effective methods: natural or DIY insecticides, spray repellants, electric zappers outside doors and windows, and screens or other barriers.
Prevention Tactics
Prevention is better than a cure. To avoid houseflies in your home, control their access. Keep all the windows and doors closed or install screens. Seal any cracks and crevices, patch or replace torn or damaged window screens, and re-caulk any openings to the exterior.
The best way to prevent flies from making your home theirs is to eliminate their feeding and breeding grounds. Flies are attracted to rotting fruits, food, uncovered drinks, feces, and garbage cans. So, the first step to eliminating flies is to maintain general cleanliness.
Tips
Don't forget to clean up after your pets. Don't leave their half-empty food bowls uncovered. Keep the cat litter box, hamster cages, and other pet dwellings clean.
It can be a lot to keep track of, so here's a brief checklist to remember:
Clean and dry countertops in the bathroom and kitchen.
Dispose of any rotten or decaying food.
Empty garbage bins regularly; close the bag if it's only partially full.
Flush toilets and throw away dirty diapers quickly.
Keep pet's skin, fur, food, and bedding clean.
Store leftover food in sealed containers.
Use screens over any open doors or windows.
Wash dishes promptly.
Natural Methods for Getting Rid of Houseflies
If your home is generally clean and houseflies keep appearing, it's time to consider other methods. To get rid of a few occasional houseflies in your home, try natural or DIY methods:
Essential oils: If you don't have a garden or green thumb, try essential oils in a diffuser. Lavender, basil, lemongrass, peppermint, and eucalyptus are excellent fly repellants. You can use them to make a spray. Fill a spray bottle with water and add just enough essential oil to smell the scent in the air. Then, spray it generously around kitchen doorways and windowsills.
Related: The 11 Best Essential Oil Diffusers of 2023 for Every Space
Flowers and herbs: Plants like mint, lavender, lemongrass, and basil are natural fly repellants. Place them in a jar or plant them in an outside garden. Cayenne pepper, lemons, and cloves can also repel flies. True plant lovers can also plant a Venus flytrap, a carnivorous plant that feeds on flies and insects.
Homemade funnel fly traps: Make a trap using a jar or empty plastic bottle, sugary substances (such as ripe fruit or sugar water), and a paper cone. Cut the plastic bottle in half, fill the bottom with sugar water, and cover that portion with the inverted top piece. This funnel will lure flies in and trap them there. If you use a jar, fill it with the sugary substance and place a paper cone on top to create a funnel. The sugar will attract the flies into the container, and the paper cone will prevent them from escaping.
Vinegar traps: Mix a few ounces of apple cider vinegar, a tablespoon of sugar, and just a few drops of dishwashing soap in a bowl. Cover the bowl with a plastic wrap and poke small, fly-sized holes at the top. The vinegar attracts the pesky flies, while the soap affects the vinegar's surface tension. When flies land in the bowl, they are stuck and drown.
Purchased Products That Get Rid of Houseflies
It might not be easy to eliminate all flies using natural or DIY methods. Female flies can lay five to six batches of 100 eggs in their lifetime, and they hatch in 12 to 24 hours. If you are already dealing with an infestation, you might need to resort to store-bought insecticides or repellants. Baits, dusting powders, sprays, fogs, aerosol mists, and electronic fly killers or zappers are handy. They include:
Candles and coils: Citronella candles and mosquito coils produce a scent, flame, and smoke that act as repellants. These work against all bugs but are especially effective for flies.
Diatomaceous earth: This non-toxic insecticide dust kills flies on contact by damaging their exoskeletons. Use a pesticide duster to puff the dust onto surfaces commonly frequented by houseflies. Doing this every one to two weeks should get rid of any infestation.
Although food-grade products with low toxicity levels are available, avoid applying them onto surfaces used for food preparation or close to pets and kids.
Electric bug zappers: Although they make a lot of noise, at least you know the job is done. Place electric bug zappers on the exterior of your home, outside of doorways, porches, or terraces, to kill any bugs waiting for their chance to enter your house.
Related: The 9 Best Bug Zappers of 2023 to Eliminate Buzzing Pests
Fly swatters: It may seem old school, but swatters are handy for killing the occasional fly lingering too long on a table or wall.
Insecticides and repellants: Products containing pyrethrin are some of the most effective for fly control. For indoor use, shop around for safe, non-toxic varieties. Treat the doorways and windows with residual pyrethroid spray.
Light traps: Flies are attracted to light, so if you place light traps around your home, flies will be killed or trapped inside.
Sticky traps: Store-bought flypaper is also an excellent way to trap houseflies.
Tips
If any store-bought products cause allergic reactions in any member of your household (including pets), check with a pro to determine which methods will work best for your family.
When to Bring in a Pro
When you have repeated housefly infestations, hire a professional to help you determine why they keep coming back. Pest control professionals have the knowledge and capacity to deal safely and effectively with any bug or pest infestation. Most follow the ERDM approach: exclusion, restriction, destruction, and monitoring. They can help you identify and seal all entry points, advise on good housekeeping practices, use the correct fly control treatment for your specific situation, and schedule regular inspection visits to ensure no recurrence.
For more Better Homes & Gardens news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!
Read the original article on Better Homes & Gardens.
