Table of Contents
Eliminate their Food Source
The most important thing when it comes to getting rid of flies is eliminating their food source. Keep in mind that house flies aren't picky eaters and can feed on virtually any organic food or waste. In addition to being able to catch a smell over a great distance, house flies can easily feed on any liquid food. They can as well feed on any solid food but they'll first use their saliva to soften it and turn it into liquid.
As such, the first step in getting rid of house flies is to ensure that there are no dirty dishes in the sink, no half-empty pet bowls, and all inviting food sources are eliminated. You should also make sure that there are no open trash cans and compost bins. In essence, the main priority when it comes to getting rid of flies is to ensure that every part of your home is always clean and devoid of anything that might be inviting to the flies. You can do this by cutting off houseflies' food supply, disposing of leftovers, and ensuring that all garbage cans and compost bins are emptied frequently.
Prevent them from Entering Your House
Believe it or not, it's probably possible to still find a housefly or two even in the cleanest of homes. Whether they're attracted to something inside the house or just by sheer luck, it's essential that you figure out how they're getting in and prevent them from entering your house.
While it may be normal for a fly or two to enter your house with the opening and closing of both windows and doors, you should be alarmed if you have even half an army of house flies invade your home. You can examine both your windows and doors for tears and patches and make sure that and damaged parts are repaired or replaced immediately. You can also assess the caulking around the doors and windows and make sure that any possible entry points are repaired.
Clean, Clean, and Clean
This may sound weird but it's the truth; house flies are naturally ready to breed just 2 or 3 days after their birth! They can lay about 150 eggs at a time and can lay up to 3,000 eggs during their incredibly short lifespan. Their alarming reproductive rate means that you could have a full army of houseflies in your home within a very short period, especially if they have a perfect breeding ground.
So what's the solution? The best solution is to ensure that houseflies do not turn your home in a breeding ground is cleaning, cleaning, and cleaning. The idea here is that routine housekeeping and ensuring that your home is clean and tidy at all times will remove any potential breeding areas.
Clean Up After Your Pets
Back to the housefly breeding thing: houseflies can lay up to 150 eggs a day and they prefer to lay the eggs on poop! And because it only takes a mere 24 hours for the eggs to hatch, your house will have a serious housefly problem for every cat or dogpile that you leave in your backyard. To put it into perspective, you could have another 150 houseflies in your home by tomorrow if you fail to scoop a dog pile today.
It's, therefore, critical that you scoop up after your pet every day and make sure that their cages are also clean at all times.
Use Fly Repellents
House flies may not be picky eaters and will want to land on anything. However, they can become very fussy to certain smells and flavors. Here's the thing; flies taste through the hairs on their legs and are very sensitive when it comes to their landing places. As such, they can be turned off and away when they land on any smell or things that they don't fancy. This is essentially why you should try these housefly repellents to deter and get rid of them.
Essential Oils - Like other pesky insects that are generally annoying to humans, houseflies hate the smells of essential oils such as lavender, camphor, and eucalyptus. You can buy such essential oils from the store and spray it around the house and the houseflies will stay away. You can also use plant herbs such as rosemary, mint, and basil as they're pleasant to humans but quite objectionable to flies.
Fresh Orange Peel - While it's very encouraging to eat oranges and keep healthy, orange peels are a very affordable way to keep houseflies at bay. The citrus extracts found in orange peels have a great fragrance to humans but can deter houseflies. All you have to do is place the orange peels in various areas within your home such as in windowsills or next to the doors and houseflies will not enter your home. Rub the skins of the peels every so often to release more of the fragrance and make sure that you replace the dried peels with fresh ones.
Cloves - Just like orange peels and citrus, houseflies can't stand the smell of cloves. You can, therefore, mix cloves and citrus fruit and hang them with a ribbon or string around windows and doors.
Darken Your Room
Flies have a natural attraction and instinct towards the light. Again, they cannot see in the dark and that's why they're more active during the day and rest at night. As such, they cannot see in a darkened room and this can be a great way of getting rid of houseflies. Instead of putting bright lights in your home, you can consider dimming your bulbs by lowering your wattage. This will not only help you in getting rid of the houseflies but will also lower your electricity bills.
Use Traps to Get Rid of Flies
Although trapping flies will not prevent them from entering your home, using fly traps will deter them from various places within your home. As such, fly traps can work perfectly work if combined with preventive measures. Here are some traps to get rid of flies.
Vinegar Traps - Vinegar is a great way to attract flies and lure them from other parts of the house. You can mix apple cider vinegar and malt vinegar in a glass or a plastic bag. Pour the vinegar in a glass, put the plastic bag over the glass and secure with the rubber band, cut a hole in the center of the bag big enough for the flies to enter. You can then place this trap at their entry point.
Venus Fly Trap - Venus is a fascinating plant that can be a great addition to your home besides being a unique way of trapping flies. You can buy it at a garden center and place them in various parts of the house.
Honey Trap - The sweet aroma and sticky consistency of honey are notoriously good for trapping flies. You can place the honey in a large plastic bottle, fill the plastic, turn the top half upside down, and create a funnel that makes it easy for the flies to enter but difficult to escape.
Wine Trap - Just like humans, houseflies also love to have a bit of wine. So if you place a bit of wine in a mixture of rubbish or rotten food, you can easily use it to trap houseflies. The best way to use wine is to put it in a cup, add some washing detergent (to act as poison), create a funnel to allow flies to enter but not escape. Place the container strategically where the flies will seek the mixture out.
Use Swat Flies with an Electronic Paddle Swatter
In addition to being fairly safe, electronic paddle swatter is a great way to kill the flies, as well as any small flies that may be lurking around. Keep in mind that they can deliver an uncomfortable shock so you should keep it away from children and pets.
Take Away
When it comes to dealing with the annoying houseflies or any other insect, for that matter, you should always prevent them from entering your house in the first place. In addition to being a complete nuisance, houseflies can be hazardous to your health and so it's best to get rid of them immediately.
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