Having wasps invade your backyard is one issue, but dealing with flies, including fruit flies and gnats, inside your home is another challenge. Once these pests find their way in, they seem impossible to get rid of, buzzing around trash and attempting to indulge in sugary treats throughout your home. While store-bought traps or bug repellents are an option, a homemade fly trap is cost-effective and equally effective.
You can easily attract and eliminate flies using bait and a simple container, such as a soda bottle or mason jar. Start by choosing the best bait for your trap, whether it’s apple cider vinegar, old fruit, sugar water, old wine, bread yeast, honey, or syrup—anything sweet works. Then, create a DIY solution with dish soap to trap and drown the flies. Once you follow our steps, your home should be bug-free, and for long-term prevention, we’ve included tips to keep flies away.
What is the Best Bait for my Homemade Fly Trap?
The most effective homemade fly trap attracts both house flies and fruit flies. For outdoor use, mix scraps of rotting meat with sugar or honey. Indoors, old fruit or honey works best.
Homemade Fly Trap Bait Options
a. Sugar water
b. Honey
c. Apple cider vinegar
d. Rotten or overripe fruit
e. Rotting meat
f. Syrup
See also: How To Get Rid Of Fruit Flies
How to Make a DIY Fly Trap From an Empty Soda Bottle
Luring flies into the trap is the trickiest part, but they are attracted to anything sweet. The Country Chic Cottage recommends honey as bait in their fly trap, but old fruit, syrup, and simple syrup also work.
Ingredients
a. Empty water or soda bottle
b. Vinegar
c. Dish soap
d. Optional: Hole punch
e. Wire or string
f. Bait
Step-by-Step Instructions
1. Cut a water or soda bottle, making the bottom half slightly taller than the top. Remove the bottle cap.
2. Fill the bottom with water, adding a splash of vinegar to deter bees. The dish soap breaks the liquid’s surface tension, making it easier for flies to fall in.
3. Invert the top half into the bottom, resembling a funnel. Apply honey, syrup, or sugar water around the bottle’s mouth or fill it with decomposing fruit.
4. Punch two holes at the top for hanging. Thread wire or string through the holes, attach the ends and hang it wherever needed.
5. Regularly empty out dead flies and add fresh bait as long as the issue persists.
This trap also works for wasps, attracted to sweet baits, or, as a last resort, swap sweet bait for rotting meat or animal droppings.
See also: 10 Health Benefits of Cucumbers
Why are Flies Attracted to my Home?
Flies are drawn to the warmth of homes, as well as light, garbage, and damaged food. Regular garbage removal, drain cleaning, and avoiding overflowing trash bins are recommended. Flies dislike cinnamon, lavender, and lemongrass scents, so use candles with these fragrances to deter them.
What if I Don’t Have Apple Cider Vinegar to Make a Fly Trap?
An effective alternative is to add a piece of apple to a cup of water and dish soap, creating the same reduced surface tension to trap flies. Other bait ideas include sugar water, honey, or syrup.
What Does Liquid Dish Soap do to my Trap’s Mixture?
Liquid dish soap is crucial for drowning flies. While sugar and vinegar attract them, the soap breaks the liquid’s surface tension, ensuring flies are trapped instead of sitting on the surface.
Originally posted on January 25, 2024 @ 12:31 pm
