topic Re: DRAIN FLIES in Home

DRAIN FLIES

pdlinda — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 03:33:12 GMT

I'm in my apartment over 21 years and recently have developed these pesky little drain flies that the pest control guy who is available to me says he can do nothing to eliminate. He put some foam in all my 4 drains (double kitchen sink and bathroom sink and shower) that eliminated them for awhile but they came back.

I won't use toxic chemicals so I bought this expensive gel product from Amazon. Used as directed I already used up 2 gallon jugs and, although the product works, as soon as I stop using it, the flies re-appear.

There are SO MANY choices and varieties of products (Amazon) and so many articles (google) regarding elimination (and maintenance) of the situation, I don't know what to select as the best regimen.

Any advice from people who have conquered this nasty problem would be greatly appreciated!!

Re: DRAIN FLIES

ValuSkr — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 03:45:08 GMT

It helps to clean out the drain thoroughly with boiling water, baking soda, vinegar, and boiling water again. Boiling water should kill them and the baking soda / vinegar combo should get rid of the organic matter they breed in. Do it as many times as necessary.

Re: DRAIN FLIES

ALRATIBA — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 04:09:20 GMT

I think they come from washing fruits and vegetables. Every time I've had that issue - it was after I washed some produce from the "green market" or the gourmet grocer. I think it's from insect eggs.

Baking soda and vinegar treatment for a few days usually solves theproblem.

A friend came back from "apple picking" last Fall and gave me a few apples - I had flies for days!

Re: DRAIN FLIES

January121 — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 04:34:22 GMT

When I spend the entire summer at my summer home & then return to my NY home I find “drain flies” on the shower floor & in the toilet bowl .... I was told because I didn’t use the shower or flush the toilet for weeks that the water drains out of the pipes & the flies can come up through the empty pipes .... this never happens when I’m home & use the shower & flush the toilet ... just a suggestion that you should run the water a few times a day to keep he pipes full of water so the flies can’t get through 🙃

Re: DRAIN FLIES

CelticCrafter — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 12:06:48 GMT

We had them, really bad.

It was because a pipe had broken and the water was draining under the bath tub.

Once we figured out why we had them and fixed the problem, we called an exterminator and they never came back.

They eat the crud that builds up in the pipes and they are not the same as fruit flies.

Re: DRAIN FLIES

HLP — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 12:45:23 GMT

@ValuSkr wrote:
It helps to clean out the drain thoroughly with boiling water, baking soda, vinegar, and boiling water again. Boiling water should kill them and the baking soda / vinegar combo should get rid of the organic matter they breed in. Do it as many times as necessary.

I had them for about a year, just drove me crasy. We put fly catchers up in the basement, the sticky kind, then put heavy tape over all the drain pipes in the basement. That seem to get rid of them. I blamed it on my neighbors who just bathed out of the bowl, and probably didn't flush every time. After they left, I haven't had them since.

Re: DRAIN FLIES

czecheredpast — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 12:53:44 GMT

We call them fruit flies in Texas.

I've always used apple cider vinegar to kill them. It's easy.

Pour a couple of inches of apple cider vinegar into a glass or small bowl.

Add a about a half ½ teaspoon of dish soap, be careful not to go over a teaspoon because you do not want to mask the cider scent.

Then cover it up with saran wrap. Poke small holes in it with the tip of a knife.

Place it near your sink. They will come. LOL The fermenting fruit scent attracts them but the dish soap weighs them down and they can't fly out.

Usually takes a day or two for results.

Re: DRAIN FLIES

jlkz — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 13:48:16 GMT

@January121

We snowbird in FL and have a Home Watch person check the condo every two weeks. We leave jugs of water by every drain so he can keep water in the drain pipes. He runs the water in the sinks and flushed the toilets.

No pesky drain flies.

Re: DRAIN FLIES

webbgarner1 — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 14:11:05 GMT

@czecheredpast I have done the apple cidar vinegar and dish soap in a container, works great

Re: DRAIN FLIES

webbgarner1 — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 14:16:01 GMT

@pdlinda I cna say I have also done what poster @czereredpast said in her post about using a mixture of apple cidar vinegar and dish soap in a bowl to create your own fruit fly trap, it works great. They land in the solution then drown.Look it up on you tube for examples. Good luck.

Re: DRAIN FLIES

geegerbee — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 16:17:13 GMT

The OP is talking about drain flies, NOT fruit flies. They are different. Drain flies like the gunk accumulated in the drains from soap, hair, etc. Fruit flies like the fruit scent from decaying fruit. So the posters who said to block up the unusued drains and/or using the vinegar and baking soda method is the one to kill the flies in the drain. The dishes of sugar water and soap won't help drain flies.

Re: DRAIN FLIES

RedTop — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 17:31:14 GMT

I keep drain flies away by pouring salt in the kitchen drains at night.

We pour peroxide on our toothbrushes after we brush, and pour more in the bathroom sink drains, which takes care of the problems there.

Re: DRAIN FLIES

Fressa — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 18:47:01 GMT

Here's the tip the plumber gave me---pour a few drops of (blue) Dawn dish detergent in a bucket and fill with hot tap water. Pour it down the drain. Repeat two times.

This can be done weekly or monthly or as needed.

Works for me on the laundry drain.

Re: DRAIN FLIES

pdlinda — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 21:45:41 GMT

@RedTop That's something I never heard of but will definitely try.

I also rinse my toothbrush with peroxide 2X/day after brushing. Any "eyeball" amt you use down the drain?

Also, any "eyeball" amt of salt you use? Many thanks!!

Re: DRAIN FLIES

pdlinda — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 21:46:40 GMT

@Fressa Thank you. I will try that. I put Dawn on my shopping list this week!!

Re: DRAIN FLIES

pdlinda — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 21:48:42 GMT

@ValuSkr Thanks so much! I'm doing that right now!!

Re: DRAIN FLIES

RedTop — Tue, 30 Mar 2021 17:07:24 GMT

@pdlinda
I pour 1/4 cup salt in both sides of my kitchen sink. Probably close to the same amount of peroxide down the bathroom drain. The key is to keep the water and soap scum in the trap from stagnating and providing the environment drain flies like. Same issue with our washer drains.