Flies:nothing worse to disturb your peace at home!
Flies are particularly well suited to thrive in damp places in your home:garbage cans, sinks, and food.
Fortunately, there are simple, ecological and economical solutions to put an end to this problem.
So how do you catch flies?
Here are 4 homemade traps to permanently get rid of flies at home:
Invasion of flies at home?
Do not panic, here is a simple homemade natural trap made from apple cider vinegar.
Flies can't resist the smell of fermentation.
However, this vinegar is a product made from fermented apples. Therefore, flies cannot resist it.
This trap is even more effective if you heat the vinegar a little beforehand. Why ? Because heat gives off the aroma of vinegar.
The material
To craft this trap, you will need:
- 1 jar (or similar container)
- 1 piece of paper rolled into a funnel
- cider vinegar (about 12 cl)
- 1 or 2 drop(s) of washing-up liquid
- 1 piece of ripe or overripe fruit (optional)
Preparation
1. Heat the apple cider vinegar and pour it into the jar (there should be enough vinegar for a fly to drown in).
2. Then, add 1 to 2 drop(s) of washing-up liquid.
This step is important! Indeed, the washing-up liquid will reduce the surface tension of the vinegar.
If you don't put dishwashing liquid, flies can land on the vinegar and fly away!
3. Next, roll a piece of paper into a funnel shape (see photo).
4. Finally, insert your funnel into the jar. Leave a small hole in the bottom of the funnel for the flies to enter.
Attracted by the smell of vinegar, the flies will enter the jar, but they will not be able to get out and they will drown.
To make the trap even more effective, add a piece of fruit to act as bait. Over time it will break down and make the trap even more attractive.
If the flies are trapped in the jar but do not drown, you can put the jar in the freezer for 20 min.
One last thing:in theory, you can reuse the mixture from this trap. But in practice, you'll probably prefer to change it quite frequently.
Indeed, this trap is effective, but the spectacle of drowned flies is not very pleasant.
How to make a fly trap? Flies love fruit. So, nothing better than a fruit to catch them!
Material
To craft this trap, you will need:
- 1 jar
- stretch film
- 1 toothpick
- ripe (or even overripe) fruit
- soapy water
Preparation
1. Insert several pieces of ripe fruit in the bottom of the jar.
2. Then close the jar with stretch film.
If you have trouble getting it in place, use a rubber band — it's easier and works well.
3. Then poke a few holes in the stretch film using the toothpick.
4. Finally, choose a strategic place to place the jar.
A little advice:it is better to prepare several jars.
Place jars where flies enter your home (for example, outside near the front door).
Then place more jars where the flies seem to congregate.
The flies will be able to enter this trap through the small holes, but they will no longer be able to get out.
Once there are enough flies inside the jar, immerse it in a container of warm soapy water for 10 min.
Finally, rinse the jar and prepare another trap.
This natural flytrap has another advantage:it is a good way to get rid of fruit that has been left to rot inadvertently.
A drunk fly? This may sound strange.
But, just like humans, flies too get drunk if they drink alcohol.
Wondering how to attract flies? Be aware that flies are particularly attracted to red wine.
If there is a small bottom left in your bottle, the flies will quickly congregate there.
Afterwards, they will probably drown in wine.
Otherwise, you can use the techniques of the previous traps:either put the bottle in the freezer or immerse the bottle in soapy water.
Material
This trap requires little equipment:all you need is the bottom of a bottle of red wine.
You can also replace the red wine with red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar.
Preparation
Just put the open bottle with the bottom of red wine where the flies are.
Flies will naturally congregate in the bottle.
Then, it is in a state of intoxication that they will drown at the bottom of the bottle!
Another method is to place the wine in a container. Then cover the jar with stretch wrap and punch holes.
Here is a recipe that comes from an almanac dating from 1850.
We do not know who invented it - but the main thing is that it is particularly effective! That's why our grandmothers used it.
Material
- 50 cl of milk
- 100 g cane sugar (brown sugar type)
- 50g ground black pepper
Preparation
1. Pour the milk, cane sugar and ground pepper into a saucepan.
2. Simmer for 10 min.
3. Pour this mixture into soup plates.
4. Distribute the plates throughout your accommodation.
Flies love this grandmother's recipe. They are attracted to this mixture and quickly drown in it.
In case the flies manage to extricate themselves from the surface, add 1 to 2 drop(s) of washing up liquid to the mixture.
Here's a tip that doesn't kill flies, but will help repel them:lemongrass essential oil.
In addition, this formula repels several other species of insects.
Material
- 10 drops of lemongrass essential oil,
- a clean vaporizer
- 6 cl of hot water.
Preparation
1. Add the water and lemongrass essential oil to the spray bottle.
2. Then shake the bottle vigorously.
3. Finally, apply this solution on the edges of your windows, doors or directly on the flies.
It will repel flies, and the smell is pleasant and refreshing.
Lemongrass essential oil is easily found in organic stores.
To buy now, we recommend this organic citronella oil.
As you can see, it is simple and economical to prepare your own traps.
It's true that it's unsavory to have to clear some of these pitfalls.
But these homemade traps are much more natural than using fly bombs which contain harmful chemicals.
Here are 3 little things you can do to stop attracting flies (also called fruit flies) to your home:
1. Do you know that flies breed in drains?
To solve this problem, it must be attacked at the source.
Try pouring a mixture of white vinegar and hot water down your sink daily.
Also, keep the area around your sink as dry as possible.
2. Keep all your food products away from flies (flies are particularly attracted to fruit).
3. Prefer trash cans that have a lid so that the smell does not attract them.
