How To Get Rid Of Fruit Flies In 2022

There is no circumstance in which having bugs in your home is something you would ever want. And among all the unwelcome house guests, fruit flies are among the worst offenders. You can make an effort to drive them away, but if you want to get rid of fruit flies for good, you’ll need a solution that’s both clever and long-term. In many respects, getting rid of fruit flies is not all that dissimilar from getting rid of other annoying pests like ants, gnats, or other insects. (However, if you believe that you can simply catch them by setting out the most effective indoor mosquito traps, you are mistaken.) Even so, these teeny-tiny flies are more than a match for them!

First things first, you’re going to want to get started with a thorough cleaning the old-fashioned way. It’s a well-known fact that fruit flies avoid clean surfaces. But if you’ve scrubbed the countertops and every other surface, and you’re still seeing fruit flies, we’ve researched several effective ways to get rid of fruit flies in a hurry. These methods range from all-natural remedies that use vinegar and other common household items to chemical sprays that will get rid of them for good.

What causes fruit flies?

Tomatoes, melons, squash, grapes, and other perishable items brought in from the garden are often the causes of a fruit fly infestation developing indoors. Fruit flies are drawn to spoiled bananas, potatoes, onions, and other types of produce that have not been refrigerated that were purchased from a grocery store. To get to the bottom of the problem, you need to first identify the reason(s) for the fruit fly infestation in your house in the first place. These annoying little insects will most likely hitch a ride into your home on fruits and vegetables that you have recently purchased from a supermarket or farmers market. There is no foolproof method for determining whether or not flies have already laid eggs in your food, although properly washing your vegetables can assist get rid of adult flies. And if they discover a sufficient food source in your kitchen, they will not hesitate to set up a camp.

Once they have entered your home, fruit flies will immediately begin searching for ripe fruit and vegetables, in addition to any decaying matter, such as trash, in which they can lay their eggs. Fruit fly eggs normally hatch within a day or two, and the larvae spend the following week consuming ripe fruits as their primary food source. In around a week’s time, they will have matured into adult fruit flies, at which point they will begin to lay their eggs. Because of their fast reproduction rate, getting rid of fruit flies can be a challenging task.

Where do fruit flies come from?

Fruit flies typically enter a home through crevices in the walls or through pieces of fruit from the grocery store that already contain eggs that have been laid by the flies. The extremely tiny fruit fly eggs are often laid inside of fruits or vegetables by adult fruit flies.

How to get rid of fruit flies

#1. Clean all surfaces

The first step, which is also the simplest step, in getting rid of fruit flies is really straightforward: Completely wipe off each and every countertop. To the best of your ability, keep the drains in the sinks clear of food particles and residue. If you don’t, these areas will turn into the ideal environment for the reproduction of fruit flies.

#2. Throw out overripe or rotting produce

Make sure that none of the fruits and vegetables have any signs of rot, deterioration, or overripeness. Throw away any suspicious pieces in order to prevent female fruit flies from laying their eggs on these surfaces.

#3a. Trap flies with apple cider vinegar

Fill a bowl or glass with apple cider vinegar, cover it with plastic wrap, seal the edges with a rubber band, and poke small holes in the top. The vinegar will lure the fruit flies, and once they’ve entered the container, they won’t be able to fly out due to the barrier created by the plastic wrap. After only a few hours, you will already start to see results. When the solution appears to have reached its maximum capacity of dead flies, discard it and start over.

b. Mix apple cider vinegar and dish soap

Fill a bowl with vinegar, then add a drop of dish soap and mix thoroughly. Flies are attracted to the stale sweetness of the apple cider vinegar, and the dish soap acts to reduce the surface tension of the liquid. This causes the flies to become submerged as soon as they investigate the solution, and they are unable to escape from it.

#4. Try beer or wine

Place an old bottle of wine or beer close to the area where fruit flies were sighted. They will be drawn in by the stale beverage, but the bottle’s narrow neck will serve as a natural barrier, preventing them from escaping once they are inside.

#5. Try a chemical fruit-fly spray

If cleaning and other common household remedies are not successful in getting rid of fruit flies, you may want to try using a chemical spray designed specifically for this purpose.

How do you get rid of fruit flies in 5 minutes?

It would be wonderful if you could get rid of fruit flies in a matter of minutes, but the reality is that it will take more time than that in order to completely eradicate an infestation. You have the option of physically killing the flies you can see by using a fly swatter that has a fine-mesh surface or chemically killing them by spraying them with isopropyl alcohol. However, if you want to get rid of the problem for good, you should also clean your kitchen and get rid of any vegetables or fruits that have gone bad because that gives the insects a place to lay their eggs.

What’s the difference between fruit flies and gnats?

When you see what appear to be little black bugs flying around, the first thing you should do is ascertain what kind of bug it is. Fruit flies and fungus gnats are frequently mistaken for one another because of their striking similarity. Fruit flies can range in color from light tan to reddish-orange and brown, whereas gnats are often gray or black in color. Fruit flies have a preference for overly ripe fruit and other types of produce, and they thrive on high-fructose substances. On the other hand, fungus gnats are only found in soils and on plants; therefore, if you think you’re seeing those, the problem could not be in your fruit bowl at all.