Looking for a few tried, true and effective ways to keep flies out of your house for good?
There is nothing more annoying than having flies invade your home. We’ve all been there – you are trying to bake in the kitchen, enjoy an evening meal with family at the dinner table – or simply sitting down in the living room to watch your favorite show – and they start buzzing and landing about. Everywhere!
Although flies can be an issue almost anytime of the year, they can be especially bad in the fall. The cool weather sends them scurrying for warmer pastures. Unfortunately, as it turns out, the inside of your home becomes an ideal place for them to overwinter. And if conditions are right – multiply.
Besides the constant and irritating landings on your food, skin and nearby surfaces, flies also bring the threat of disease. In fact, the common household fly is known to spread in excess of 50+ diseases. That can be an unsettling thought when they land on your food!
The Life Cycle Of A Housefly – How To Keep Flies Out Of Your House
One of the reasons flies are so difficult to control is how quickly they can multiply. A fly only lives about a month on average outdoors. But indoors, they can double or even triple their life expectancy with little to no worry from predators.
Making matters worse, as long as they have a food source and enough heat, female flies will lay eggs to produce even more flies. And do they ever lay a lot of eggs. In fact, a highly productive female fly can lay as many as 150 eggs at a time!
What really compounds the issue is that female flies can begin to lay as soon as two to three days after they become an adult. And when you consider they can become an adult in as little as one week, that can mean a lot of new flies hovering about.
But here is some good news – it is possible to stop them. Not just from breeding and multiplying, but from even coming inside in the first place. And even better, you can do so without having to resort to harsh chemicals or sprays.
With a fly free home in mind – here is a look at a few simple ways to keep those annoying flying pests out of your home this year – and for good!
How To Keep Flies Out Of Your House
Defending Your Home Against Flies
First and foremost, the best defense against houseflies is making sure they don’t have an easy path indoors.
Torn screens, uncovered vents and windows and doors left open are an open invitation for flies to enter and stay. Especially in the early autumn months when they begin to search for a warmer environment.
Beyond flies, repairing screens and screening off vents and other open entry points can reduce stink bugs, spiders and nearly all insects from entering your home as well. That is why in the fall, it’s even more important to take time to walk around your entire house and seal off any open access points.
In addition, installing screen doors and only opening up windows and doors with screen protection in place is a must. While you are at it, keep garage doors closed when not in use. When open, flies find a warmer spot and then head right inside when they get the opportunity. These simple steps alone will do wonders for reducing flies – right from the start!
Eliminate Food Sources – How To Keep Flies Out Of Your House
Flies don’t come inside just for warmer surroundings, they come in for food sources. And by keeping those food sources out of open air space, the attraction for them to come indoors is far less.
Flies are attracted to vegetable, meat, juice and any food residue. Even more so when it is rotten, aged or past it’s prime. They also use these foods and food residues to lay their eggs. So if you eliminate them, you can eliminate most of your problems quickly!
One of the biggest culprits of all are countertops and drains where food residue remains. By simply wiping down countertops after cutting or chopping food and other vegetables, and regularly rinsing out drains with hot water to flush out food particles, you will instantly reduce the fly population indoors.
Pay special attention to regularly cleaning out your garbage disposal. The food particles in a garbage disposal are a favorite of flies. To clean, crush ice cubes through it and then spray with lemon juice or vinegar to sanitize.
Next up is trash receptacles. Try to avoid placing fruit and meat scraps or packages in any trash can inside. They are a magnet for fly activity and breeding. And while you are at it, keep fruit off of kitchen countertops. Even fruit that is not rotting attracts flies looking for sugary reside on the peels or skins.
Getting Rid Of The Flies Already In Your House – How To Keep Flies Out Of Your House
Now that we have covered keeping flies out in the first place – how do you safely get rid of the flies already inside? Of course nothing can take out flies like a good old-fashioned fly swatter, but let’s face it, that can be quite annoying and messy.
In its place, one of the newest and most effective methods is to use a chemical-free indoor fly and insect trap. No, these are not the nasty fly tapes or rolls we remember from our childhood. Instead, these traps plug in and use a UV light to attract any flies (and many other flying insects as well) to the unit. Affiliate Product Link : Safer Indoor Fly Trap
Quick & Easy Fly Control!
Instead of having to see the flies, inside of the unit there is a sticky glue card that captures the flies out of view. The good news is that it starts working as soon as you plug it in. And all you need to do is remove the sticky cards and replace the traps – all without touching a fly.
These traps are especially good in the kitchen where most flies like to congregate. Even better, they are completely safe for children and pets and are chemical free!
Here is to finally winning the war against flies – and keeping flies out of your house for good this fall and all year around! – Jim and Mary
Jim and Mary Competti have been writing gardening, DIY and recipe articles and books for over 15 years from their 46 acre Ohio farm. The two are frequent speakers on all things gardening and love to travel in their spare time.
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