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How to Get Rid of Fruit Flies
I can’t even tell you how much I hate fruit flies. They are super annoying, and can make an otherwise clean kitchen feel like you have lost control!
The worst part is how quickly they can multiply, and before you know it you have a swarm of them buzzing about like they own the place.
This was the case at our house, and it is no surprise really since fresh fruit and vegetables are a big staple in our household. We often times keep fresh produce on the counter, and this is like laying out an all you can eat buffet for fruit flies.
I finally had enough and decided it was time to start fighting back. I took a couple of measures in an attempt to catch these guys, starting with this DIY fruit fly trap.
What gets rid of fruit flies?
Before I began, I took a few basic steps to cut back on the fruit fly invasion we were experiencing.
I made sure all of the produce we left on the counter was fresh with thick, undamaged skin. Thin skinned produce items were moved to the fridge where they would be better protected.
I also made sure that our disposal was clean, as disposals can be a breeding ground for fruit flies. Food often gets caught up in disposals and believe me, these critters will find it.
You can clean your disposal well by adding a generous amount of dish soap, a sprinkle of baking soda, then allow it to sit for 10 minutes before rinsing with hot water. Once you take these steps, you are ready to make your DIY fruit fly trap.
How to Make a Trap for Fruit Flies
Supplies needed:
– glass jar
– piece of paper
– tape
– scissors
– apple cider vinegar
– apple slice
– dish soap
See, you really don’t need anything fancy. I used stuff we already had on hand including a spaghetti sauce jar and some old junk mail. Please note you will need apple cider vinegar for this project, as white vinegar will not work.
Directions:
1. Start by rolling your paper into a cone. Just roll and secure your paper cone with a piece or two of tape. Make sure it is secure and the cone will not become unwrapped.
2. Add 1 cup of apple cider vinegar and 1 teaspoon of dish soap to the jar. Gently mix. Optional: drop a few pieces of chopped apple into the mixture.
3. Slowly lower the cone into the jar (pointy end first) and see if the point is going to touch the liquid when resting.
YOU DON’T want the cone resting in the liquid. The idea is for the end of the cone to rest about 1/2 an inch above the liquid. Eye how much of the point you need to cut off so it rests without touching.
Related: How to Kill Fruit Flies
4. Allow the cone to rest in the jar. Make sure there is as little space as possible between the cone and the mouth of the jar. You don’t want to create any space there for the fruit flies to get out.
5. Place the fruit fly trap in an area where fruit flies seem to be an issue. This can be anywhere on your counter, under a sink, anywhere! Make sure it is in an area where it won’t be knocked over or disturbed.
Here is what ours looked like when it was all finished.
Please note this is prior to placing the apple chunks in the jar. I did decide to add them to give our fruit fly trap a little more power. I then placed the fruit fly trap on our kitchen counter.
The Best Way to Get Rid of Fruit Flies
Now let’s see the results! It only took about 15 minutes for my DIY fruit fly trap to start working!
The smell of the apples and apple cider vinegar draws them in, while the dish soap helps keep them in. Once they fly in they are unable to find their way back out of the cone, and they are history.
Within 24 hours, the trap had caught dozens of fruit flies! At this time I emptied the trap into the grass, rinsed the jar, and created a new trap. It is not pretty to look at, and I imagine fresh apples and cider vinegar is best, so cleaning the trap every 24 hours is advised.
Just look at all of those fruit flies! This picture only shows the ones that sunk to the bottom of the jar, when it fact there were plenty on top of the liquid as well.
As you can see, this DIY fruit fly trap is a great answer to the question, how do I get rid of fruit flies?
If fruit flies are a problem in your kitchen, give this DIY fruit fly trap a try! It is one of the easiest ways to catch fruit flies so you don’t need to deal with them anymore!
It can be used anytime of year, and as you can see it uses minimal, inexpensive supplies.
Say goodbye to fruit flies when you give this trap a try! If pests are a problem in other areas of your home, be sure to check out the other projects I have been working on.
– How to Repel Garden Pests with Irish Spring Soap
– Easy Homemade Bug Spray Recipe