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Fruit flies are the small, gnatlike nuisances that buzz around the fruit bowl. They belong to the family of insects called Drosophilidae. Once they are spotted in your kitchen, a sense of doom may set in. "Unless breeding sites are cleaned or removed, the problem will continue," says Dr. Linda Mason, professor of food pest management at Purdue University. Here is her recommended plan of attack.
SEARCH
• Find where the flies are breeding. "They only need a bit of moisture and organic matter to develop," says Mason. While it's true they're especially attracted to ripening fruits and vegetables, they will also breed in drains, the garbage disposal, recycling bins, the trash, the compost bucket, and even mops, sponges, and any other spots where water is caught or leaking.
• If the suspected breeding ground is hard to inspect, like a drain, tape a clear plastic bag over it and leave it overnight. "If flies are breeding there, the adults will emerge and be caught in the bag," she says.
DESTROY
• Remove any potential breeding sites such as rotting fruit entirely. Clean out sites such as a recycling bin with soapy water.
• If the flies are in your drain, clean with a stiff brush, then pour boiling water down along the sides of the drain to kill the eggs. Follow with a bacterial drain cleaner.
• Finally, set up a simple trap to catch the adult flies. Roll a sheet of paper into a cone and put it in a jar with a little apple cider vinegar at the bottom to attract the flies. Once they're in, they won't be able to get out. Even better, says Barb Ogg of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln Lancaster County Extension, is baiting a trap with yeast, a little sugar, and water, because the flies are attracted to the carbon dioxide that is produced during fermentation. A dish filled with soapy alcohol will also do the trick. Mason says not to bother spraying insecticide around, since "eliminating the source and trapping is probably more effective, safer, and less work."
The best bet is to keep the pests out of the house in the first place. Mason suggests being sure windows have 16-mesh screens, particularly if you have fruit trees, as well as cutting any damaged spots out of fruit and vegetables you bring into your kitchen and tossing them outside, as they might be harboring eggs. Finally, try to keep the kitchen particularly clean during late summer and early fall when it's prime fruit season. "A single rotting piece of fruit or spill in a recycling bin can breed thousands of fruit flies," says Mason.
I have to say, I have has a hard hard time getting rid of fruit flies and no matter what I've done, they always come back. We cook quite a bit here so once I finally got them to leave (after cleaning and ditching all fruits and veggies from the counter for a good 2 weeks), I bought a Full Circle Composter. Let me say, this has been THE BEST kitchen purchase I've ever made. I have to buy those...+READ
I have to say, I have has a hard hard time getting rid of fruit flies and no matter what I've done, they always come back. We cook quite a bit here so once I finally got them to leave (after cleaning and ditching all fruits and veggies from the counter for a good 2 weeks), I bought a Full Circle Composter. Let me say, this has been THE BEST kitchen purchase I've ever made. I have to buy those little compostable bags (which are reasonably priced at Costco), but in the 6 months I've had it, I've seen ONE single fruit fly. And that was when we were being bad and let it fill all the way up and didn't empty it for 5 or 6 days. Often times, we still have a ton of scraps in there and guess what? No smell, no flies! Seriously, it is a revelation. I bought mine on Open Sky (online discount daily-deal retailer), but they should be available on The Full Circle website. I have also seen them at Whole Foods. Other than that, I just have to keep an eye on my fruit on the counter, but overall I'm fly free!-COLLAPSE
For the life of me I couldn't figure out why the infestation of fruit flies in the evening were completely gone by the morning. Then I realized that the bats which were plaguing my kitchen in the middle of the night, were enjoying a hearty meal of the flies. Not a solution I recommend though.
In the event you don't have leftover wine (I mean, really, who would?) Spaceechik's method -- dishwashing fluid plus water plus whatever it takes to attract the little buggers -- also works with vinegar.
I like this because there's no rigging up a contraction, they just happily drown themselves.
Buy a 1.5 l bottle of Concha Y Toro Cabernet/Merlot blend (it'll set you back about ten dollars). Use most of it for David Rocco's Drunken Spaghetti Recipe. Leave two to three inches of wine in the bottle and set it on the floor...
Another good bait for fruit flies is a little water and leftover wine (right, like that ever happens! -- but the little monsters love it), a drop of dish washing liquid (to break the surface tension of the water/wine, to drown the flies), placed in an open beverage bottle left where you see the most flies -- in the morning, you'll just cap the bottle and toss.
Cleared a very bad situation for me...+READ
Another good bait for fruit flies is a little water and leftover wine (right, like that ever happens! -- but the little monsters love it), a drop of dish washing liquid (to break the surface tension of the water/wine, to drown the flies), placed in an open beverage bottle left where you see the most flies -- in the morning, you'll just cap the bottle and toss.
Cleared a very bad situation for me (think vacation, forgotten lime on counter...) in less than 12 hours.-COLLAPSE
I bought a gadget (I love gadgets!!) that vaccuums the fruit flies right out of the air and sucks them down to an interior spot that kills them. It is so satisfying to suck them up and know they are going to their maker. I also clean any spot of fruit off of all the counters. I believe I got this vaccuum from Hammecher Sclemmer (I know the spelling's wrong but you know what I mean.)
I have fruit flies in my master bathroom. I can't figure it out I get them sometimes in the kitchen but I mainly find them in our master bath...do fruit flies nest and breed?! can you kill them out entirely or spray for them?! I keep all my fruit in the fridge and I'm pretty much and OCD clean freak so my house never has dirty stuff in it...I just can't figure out why they are in my...+READ
I have fruit flies in my master bathroom. I can't figure it out I get them sometimes in the kitchen but I mainly find them in our master bath...do fruit flies nest and breed?! can you kill them out entirely or spray for them?! I keep all my fruit in the fridge and I'm pretty much and OCD clean freak so my house never has dirty stuff in it...I just can't figure out why they are in my bathroom..we've lived in this apartment for three years and this has always been an issue. I just didn't know if you can spray for them like you can ants or something?! help please!!!-COLLAPSE
I have always done the paper cone type trap, baited with a little wine. Then after a couple of days I put it in the sink, put a couple drops of dish soap on the cone, and run hot water in till it's full. That kills all the ones who haven't drowned in the wine. Gotta use the soap, though, or they may escape.
I had to deal with these elusive pests last summer and a vinegar (or red wine)/dish soap mix worked well. It takes a couple of rounds but it does the trick. Make sure to change the trap regularly and keep everything around the sink area dry -- especially the drains! My infestation persisted after 3-5 trials, and at that point I realized they were nesting in the garbage disposal drain. To prevent...+READ
I had to deal with these elusive pests last summer and a vinegar (or red wine)/dish soap mix worked well. It takes a couple of rounds but it does the trick. Make sure to change the trap regularly and keep everything around the sink area dry -- especially the drains! My infestation persisted after 3-5 trials, and at that point I realized they were nesting in the garbage disposal drain. To prevent this, pour a very small amount of veg oil down the drain to prevent eggs from hatching.-COLLAPSE
I put up a tiny bowl with vinegar and dish soap in it. Worked great!
I had a bowl with water and dish soap and part of a banana in it. It attracted and killed a crazy amount of fruit flies. Looks gross but works like a charm.
I had an infestation two summers ago for no apparent reason. I filled a small bowl with some cheap red wine, put plastic wrap over it, and poked holes in it with a toothpick. They'd get in and not be able to get back out. It took maybe 2-3 rounds to get rid of them all, but it worked like a charm.
"time flies like an arrow,
fruit flies like bananas"
I have a compost container. I keep it in the freezer. I cover that container with plastic wrap and poke small holes in it. The fruit flies get trapped inside. I just take them out with the compost. The compost container I use for food scraps gets hot enough to kill the eggs.
How do you get rid of fruit flies? Take out the trash and clean the kitchen. If that doesn't work, it's time to move.
A small bowl with apple cider vinegar and some liquid lemon dish detergent...works great!
I agree using cider vinegar and detergent works. Try it in a plastic bottle..really traps them. Also, if you have a huge problem, get out the vacuum and vacuum up a bunch of the little buggers. They can't breed and lay more eggs if they are not there!
i don't know why it has to be one or the other; i put some slightly watered down cider vinegar with half a drop of soap in a wide-mouthed mason jar, cover it with tight plastic wrap, and poke a couple largish hole in the top. this trap kills flies mercilessly.
Seconding the lifehacker trick. Cider vinegar in a ramekin with a squirt of detergent is all it takes.
http://lifehacker.com/5635971/lifehacker-labs-capture-fruit-flies-with-a-cup-and-apple-cider-vinegar
Lifehacker recently did an article on this, and their experiment showed that the "cider vinegar in a cup with a little soap" was more effective than the more common "cover the cup with plastic wrap with holes" trap.
somervilleoldtimer beat me to it. this works very well. also, i've started rinsing fruits and vegs in water and white vinegar (3:1), then rinsing and drying well. that is adding days to their life and i'm guessing it also knocks out flying critters.
I mix two teaspoons sugar and 1 teaspoon cider vinegar in 1 pint hot water, and add 2 drops of dish detergent. Leave it in an open jar and voila, soon you'll have marinated fruitflies!