To cut off fruit flies from their food source and prevent them from entering your home, take these preventive measures to avoid a future fruit fly infestation:

Start by deep cleaning your kitchen and throwing out any rotten food. For those bugs, check out our guides on how to get rid of gnats and how to make a homemade fly trap. Double-check that your pests in question aren't drain flies, which lurk around drains or garbage disposals, or fungus gnats, which prefer overwatered houseplants. Fruit flies usually appear light or dark brown in color with red eyes. If you see little black bugs flying around your kitchen, you first want to make sure you identify the critters correctly. And, unfortunately, considering their reproductive prowess, two tiny fruit flies will quickly multiply into an infestation that can feel almost impossible to control. They also like to buzz around trash cans and garbage disposals if enough food is present.

What causes fruit fly infestations in the house?įruit flies are attracted to ripe, rotting or decayed fruit and produce, as well as fermented goods like beer, liquor and wine, say the pros at Orkin. All it takes to stop these irksome insects in their tracks is some strategic cleaning and a few household supplies. Within about a week those larvae become sexually active and not more than two days later, start the cycle over again - leaving you with way too many fruit flies to stomach.įortunately, there are simple and effective ways to get rid of fruit flies indoors fast - maybe not in under five minutes, but certainly in overnight - using fruit fly traps that you can DIY at home. Then, within 24 to 30 hours, those eggs hatch into larvae, or maggots, that feed on the food source on which they were laid. The pesky pests are the last thing you want buzzing in front of your face - especially when you're prepping dinner or having friends around for a weekend soiree.įruit flies reproduce at an astonishing rate: According to pest control company Orkin, female fruit flies lay hundreds of eggs in a very short time, commonly on moist foods like overripe fruit and vegetables. Summer means ripe tomatoes, tall glasses of lemonade and, yes, fruit flies.

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