How to Get Rid of Flies in the House?
By: John Garcia | Date Posted: November 18, 2022
Table of Contents
Houseflies, also known as nuisance flies, are well-known pests in homes worldwide. Several methods can help get rid of houseflies.
The common housefly, known scientifically as Musca domestica, is a nonbiting fly. However, each one may carry more than 1 million bacteria from Trusted Sources that can transfer to food and surfaces.
Several methods can help deal with houseflies, including drain treatments and insect sprays.
In this article, we explore how to get rid of houseflies. We also look at whether they are a health hazard.
4 Ways to Get Rid of Houseflies
There are a variety of techniques to eliminate houseflies. Four of the most effective methods include:
Cleaning the house
Water is necessary for flies to breed. It is an essential part of their diet, as flies cannot live more than 48 hoursTrusted Source without access to water.
Many house fly infestations are due to excess moisture and debris accumulating around the house. Water can often build up in wet or moist areas such as sinks or drains.
A person should check and clean places that include:
- floors, removing food or food residue
- sinks and bath or shower drains
- drains
- dirty mops
- inside garbage containers
- under appliances, such as refrigerators
- cracks in floor or wall tiles where bacteria might grow
- Houseflies typically enter from the outside but will sometimes breed indoors. Breeding sites inside are more common in buildings with interior garbage rooms and compactors.
Keeping sites where house flies tend to breed clean will help prevent future infestations. A person should pay particular attention to:
- areas with standing water, such as gutters
- keeping doors or other points of entry shut
- cleaning up after pets
- keeping trash cans and nearby areas clean
- clearing decaying food, such as fallen apples from a tree
- regularly cleaning kitchen and bathroom surfaces
Using drain treatments
The constant moisture in drains provides a suitable environment for flies to breed. Sometimes, they may rest on walls surrounding a sink or shower.
To check for flies in a drain:
- Place some clear tape over the drain entrance.
- Make sure the sticky side faces down.
- Leave a small gap to allow some airflow into the drain to encourage the flies.
- A person should check for flies sticking to the tape periodically. The number of flies that stick will indicate the size of the infestation.
Cleaning the drain should destroy the breeding site and stop the infestation. There are several options to clean them.Ā
Use a pipe cleaning brush to scrub the sides: The brush should be abrasive, such as a metal brush. Use several pots of boiling water to wash away debris after scrubbing.
- Combine baking soda, salt, and vinegar into a solution: Pour the solution down the drain and leave it overnight. Then return in the morning to pour boiling water down the drain to wash away any debris.
- Use antibacterial drain treatments: However, these can take several weeks to work.
Setting up flytraps
There are many types of flytraps available, which could help remove fly infestations. These devices include:
- Light traps use ultraviolet light to attract flies and a glue board to trap them. They are most effective against larger flies.
- Traps that use a low voltage electrical current to zap flies.
- Traps that use bait to attract flies, such as honey or other sweet scents.
- Devices that use pheromones to draw flies. These flytraps are useful for identifying an infestation, but they rarely get rid of the problem.
- Natural options, such as a Venus flytrap, which is a plant that traps and digests flies.
Try fly sprays or insecticides
Several sprays and insecticides can help deal with flies. While they can eliminate individual flies, there are more efficient ways to remove an infestation.
Pyrethrin, a pesticide that is toxic to insects, can be bought as a spray to deal with adult flies. These sprays provide a temporary solution that could be useful in combination with other techniques.
People using fly sprays or insecticides must take care to prevent direct contact with the skin or eyes and avoid inhaling them. Pyrethrin has low toxicity but can irritate the skin or trigger other mild symptoms.
Health risks of houseflies
Flies are not generally harmful, but they can be nuisance pests. A person may find a variety of them in the home, including houseflies or fruitflies.
Some flies carry germs, such as bacteria and other infectious agents, which spread when they make contact with people or food. These germs may cause diseases and symptoms, such as:
- dysentery
- diarrhea
- typhoid fever
- cholera
- trachoma
- epidemic conjunctivitis
- skin infections
Housefly infestations are rarely harmful. People can try various techniques to deal with indoor flies. Keeping the house and outside areas clean is important to treat and prevent issues that they may present. Several products can help deal with houseflies, including traps and sprays. A person should take care when using insecticide sprays, which can cause mild skin irritation.
5 Products To Get Rid of Flies in the House
Katchy Indoor Insect Trap ā Catcher & Killer for Mosquito
Specification
- Brand: KATCHY
- Color: Black
- Style: Manual
Triple trapping power, first, the UV light attracts the bug, then the fan sucks it in, and the sticky glue boards trap it. No Zapper. Subtle and stylish fruit fly, gnat, and mosquito killer, no more ugly traps, easily place in your home, kitchen, or office as a decorative, stylish piece.
Conclusion
Trap indoors, close to insect-ridden fruit, plants, or trash bin, and turn off lights for best results. Not effective on house flies. Easy to use, choose between standard or low-speed setting and leave it to work its magic, EPA Est. Numb.:93372-CHN-1
- Triple trapping power: a UV light, powerful fan, and sticky glue board combines to be an effective way for how to get rid of fruit flies, gnats, and other small...
- Use the fruit fly trap for indoors close to insect-ridden fruit, plants or trash bin. Turn off the lights for best results.
- No more ugly traps! Subtle and stylish; easily place in your home, kitchen, or office as a decorative piece. No zapper needed.
- Not effective on house flies. Is effective in killing fruit flies, gnats, and mosquitos.
Pros
- I have to deal with fruit flies and mosquitos in our house a lot. We keep the house pretty dark too.
- Ā I no longer wake up w/ welts on my forehead from disrespectful mosquitoes. One of the best purchases.
Cons
- This product does not kill or trap any gnats or fruit flies.Ā
Kensizer 20-Pack Fly Paper Trap
Specification
- Brand: Kensizer
- Material:Ā Paper
The glue amount of surface is double than others and applied evenly on the fly paper, flies canāt escape once they stick to it. With a sticker, you can fix it on the window, floor, table, or other places, the wind wonāt blow it away, and no trace will be left after tearing it off. Refuse inferior material, adopt premium thick paper board, and no scraps of paper fall off.
Conclusion
Adopting pure physical ingredients, care for your familyās health, and no harm to children and pets. Widely Used in restaurants, kitchens, trash cans, livestock farms, food workshops, and vegetable markets.
- Strong viscosity - The glue amount of surface is double than others and applies evenly on the fly paper, flies canāt escape once they stick to it.
- Traceless Round Sticker - With sticker, you can fix it on window, floor, table or other places, wind won't blow it away, and no trace left after tearing it off.
- Upgraded thick paper board - Refuse inferior material, adopt premium thick paper board, no scraps of paper fall off.
- Scentless and Odorless - Adopting pure physical ingredients, care for your family's health, no harm to children and pets.
Pros
- These seemed to dramatically reduce our fly population better than any other product.
- I took one point off the easy-to-use rating.
Cons
- Did not capture 1 fly.
FVOAI Fly Trap Indoor
Specification
- Brand: FVOAI
- Color: Blue
- Material: Metal
An indoor fly trap is equipped with 20 UV lights that emit 365-395NM wavelength light, which is strongly attractive to insects. The light of the gnat trap is used to attract the flying insects with the sticky glue board so that they cannot escape
Fruit fly trap adopts physical mosquito control, safe and noiseless, and are suitable for various places, such as the kitchen, living room, bedroom, etc. Put the fly traps indoors in a dark place for the best trapping of mosquitoes.
Conclusion
Place insect traps near fruits, plants, or garbage cans and turn off lights for the best effect. The mosquito trap is easy to clean, remove the tray for cleaning and replace it with a new sticky board. Easy to operate, plug in the USB cable, and press the bug zapper indoor on/off button to work. 6/12 hours timing function, more convenient to use.
- Indoor fly trap is equipped with 20 UV lights that emit 365-395NM wavelength light, which is strongly attractive to insects. The light of gnat trap is used to...
- Fruit fly trap adopts physical mosquito control, safe and noiseless, suitable for various places, such as kitchen, living room, bedroom, etc. Put the fly traps for...
- Place insect traps near fruits, plants or garbage cans and turn off lights for best effect. Not Intended for house flies.
- Mosquito trap is easy to clean, remove the tray for cleaning and replace it with new sticky board(include 10 pcs sticky boards).
Pros
- Awesome product, easy to set up, and very effective.
- The super product I like it a lot.
Cons
- This product is a bit bigger than I expected but it does what itās supposed to do
LiBa Electric Bug Zapper, Indoor Insect Killer
Specification
- Brand: LiBa
- Color: White
- Style: Bug Zapper + 2 Bulbs
- Material: Metal
This zapper attracts all kinds of flying nuisances and eliminates them from your home. The light naturally attracts and eliminates any other flying nuisances that bother you and your family. Two lightbulbs attract and instantly zap anything flying through it.Ā
The Liba zapper comes with a safety screen to prevent small fingers from getting inside the device. Two replacement bulbs are included with every zapper in case a replacement is needed. Each zapper has an easy on-and-off switch at the top right and a five-foot cord for convenience and distance.
Conclusion
Each zapper comes with a chain, so you can hang it anywhere on a hook or place it atop any countertop, table, or even the floor in problem areas. Typically, hang it high, as that is where the nuisances hang out. Safe and secure to use in hospitals, workplace areas, commercial spaces, restaurants, kitchens, warehouses, and retail stores. Definitely not for outdoor use. These zappers are not waterproof or water-resistant.
- INDOOR ZAPPER: This zapper attracts all kinds of flying nuisances and eliminates them from your home. The light naturally attracts, and eliminates any other flying...
- SAFETY: The Liba zapper comes with a safety screen to prevent from small fingers getting inside the device. Two replacement bulbs are included with every zapper in...
- NO CHEMICALS: This zapper contains no kinds of chemicals and simply functions from two lightbulbs designed to attract flying nuisances. Get rid of smelly, nasty...
- EASY SETUP: Each zapper comes with a chain so you can hang it anywhere on a hook or place it atop any countertop, table, or even the floor in problem areas....
Pros
- These are really great.
- Purchased this, and the first day/night, it killed 6 of them.
Cons
- Had the bug zapper for one year, and then the electrical grid failed.Ā
Bug Zapper Mosquito Killer Fly Trap Mosquito Attractant Trap with Camping Lamp
Specification
- Brand: GKCI
- Color: Black
- Material: Plastic
Advanced 2-in-1 bug zapper and attractive light to fly insects. Electric mosquito killer uses a 365 Nm wavelength UV light-emitting bulb that lures insects in and then immediately zaps them with a 500V electric shock. UV lamp features superior power supply technology and an effective multi-faceted protection circuit that helps save up to 20% of electricity. Compared to electric mosquito swatter and mosquito repellentļ¼ it is safer to use. Our UV light bug killer doesnāt release any odor, dangerous fumes, or lethal substances into your living environment. Wrapped in an ABS plastic shell, no need to worry about electric shock, and it is tough and durable.
Conclusion
Ultra-wide coverage and powerful mosquito control capability can be used in bedrooms, halls, hotels, offices, backyards, parks, and other places that need to kill mosquitoes. The top of the mosquito zapper adds three levels of led lights. It also can be used for lighting indoor and outdoor activities such as reading at home and camping.
Pros
- Unbelievable great. I got that bcs I was tortured by mosquitos in my house.Ā
- The lantern is overall pretty small but surprisingly pretty effective.
Cons
- Couldnāt rate it any lower. Waste of money. Doesnāt work.Ā
Thank you for reading!
