Fruit flies can appear everywhere, from households and supermarkets to restaurants. Practically, you can see them at any place where food is let to ferment or rot. These small flies and gnats are a year problem, especially during summer.
You can find fruit flies around vegetables and fruits, whereas gnats are mostly located around indoor plants as well as moist soil.
Besides rotten fruits and veggies, fruit flies are also attracted by garbage disposals, drains, empty bottles and cans, mops, trash containers, and cleaning rags.
So, not only that seeing them around your home is annoying and disgusting, they drastically reduce the life of the plants and foods they prey on.
What’s more, they reproduce quite rapidly, so you can soon see them take over your house.
The first thing that most people do to get rid of these insects is going to the closest store to buy some toxic insecticide which can be harmful to your health. But, there’s a safer and quicker way to eliminate them from your home, and all you need is a few natural ingredients.
The ingredients are simple, yet equally effective as the store-bought insecticides.
In fact, we present you not one but five home remedies that will trap the gnats and fruit flies in your home. Besides the solutions, you’ll need a jar or cup, and a plastic wrap to make the trap.
How to Make the Trap
The steps to make any of them include filling the jar with one of the listed liquids, and then covering it tightly with a plastic wrap. Next, you just have to poke a dozen of small holes into the plastic wrap.
Another option is to make a cone from paper to create a paper funnel trap. Put it into the mouth of the glass jar making sure it fits snuggly. Also, don’t forget to leave an inch-wide opening at the bottom of the funnel.
The tip, on the other hand, should be two inches away from the jar’s bottom. Choose a bait and put it into the jar. Now, see how the insects funnel in without having the option to go out.
Solutions for the Trap
1. Red Wine
Fruit flies and gnats are like us when it comes to red wine. Apparently, they are attracted by its smell so you can use it as bait to catch them. Pour half a cup of red wine in the trap and add 1 ½ cup of water.
Place the trap at a place you expect to see them and watch as they come and drown in the wine. Replace the solution when it gets filled with too many dead insects.
2. Apple Cider Vinegar
Another great fruit fly and gnat repellent is the common ingredient you probably have in your kitchen cabinet right now – it’s the apple cider vinegar. Heat half a cup of this vinegar and pour in a few drops of liquid soap. Stir well and add the solution in the jar.
Place the trap at a place these critters appear most, and see how the vinegar’s sweet smell attracts them. Once they enter into the jar, the liquid soap will kill them.
3. Rotten Food
A smart way to attract the annoying fruit flies and gnats would be to use the food they like. This would be any rotten or overripe fruit or veggie. Just put it inside the jar and wait. Once the bugs enter into the jar, submerge it under water to drown them.
4. Milk, Pepper, and Sugar
This option is for anyone who doesn’t have time to make the trap. Heat two cups of milk with four tablespoons of ground pepper and eight tablespoons of sugar. Simmer the solution for ten minutes. Pour it into a shallow dish and place it in the problem area.
The critters will soon notice the sweet smell of the milk and sugar. Once inside, they will eventually drown. Repeat as many times as needed.
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5. Lemon Scented Sprays
You can use the strong lemon scent to deter fruit flies and gnats from your home. Add around 15 drops of lemongrass oil into two cups of hot water and pour the solution into a spray bottle. Then, spray wherever these bugs usually appear, such as your kitchen surfaces.
Alternatively, you can add two tablespoons of liquid dish soap with lemon scent into four cups of water. Then, use a spray bottle to apply the solution on the plants infested with gnats.
Besides these trap solutions, you’ll need some patience to clean your home from these bugs thoroughly. It should probably take around a week to eliminate them completely.
We hope some of these home remedies will help you get rid of these critters once and for all. They multiply extremely quickly, so any solution will be good to start with.
Here’s a video that demonstrates how to make the trap for fruit flies and gnats with apple cider vinegar.
Source GH | Top 10 Home Remedies
