A single winged invader in your home is already annoying enough. However, once that single invader flocks to your house with its friends in large numbers, it means that you have a full-blown fly infestation in your hands. This problem is enough to give you nightmares.
Good thing there are some evident warning signs you can watch out for to know if you are dealing with an infestation. There are also a few fly control tips to help you keep these pesky winged invaders safely away from your home or business.
Inspection Tips for Flies
To identify the breeding sites and habitat of flies and how they even managed to get inside your house, remember these tips:
- Keep an eye on the flies. Identify where they rest or land. Know what attracts them in the first place.
- Determine the type of fly species you are dealing with. Knowing whether you have a house fly problem, cluster flies, blowflies, or other types of large flies will help you identify the right form of fly management required.
- If you are dealing with lots of flies, your property, or the neighbouring one probably has a breeding site. You have to search for fly breeding sites, too. If the main source is not within your property, continue to look for it and ask the person or business responsible to solve the issue.
In case you cannot obtain the cooperation of the business or person questioned, you can call your state or municipal health department to request for assistance. Even though killing adult flies will temporarily reduce their population, you cannot really be in full control if you cannot locate and get rid of the source.
After you are finished with the inspection and you have identified the location of the flies and what attracts them to the site, you can proceed with the process of controlling the infestation.
Tips for Controlling an Infestation
To control infestation of flies, finding the problem’s primary source is the first step. Most of the time, the site is where you will find fly larvae or fly eggs, or also called maggots. The appearance of larvae resembles that of small pale worms.
- Maggots in waste areas and damp environments thrive because of the proximity to the food source. You can also find these in places such as broken drainpipes or compost piles.
- Check anywhere that water pools including in guttering as well. After you located the larvae, you can kill them by pouring a half-cup of bleach dissolved in boiling hot water.
If there are no larvae found, there are some other pest control measures you can do to get rid of flies.
- Sanitation should be your focus before anything else. Make sure you clean and clear areas and deteriorating food, including spills below the fridge and leaky pipes.
- Waterlogged pot plants may also attract flies. Throw away the garbage before the trash inside start to decompose.
You also have to take necessary measures to seal areas such as windows, cracks, and screen doors to make sure that flies outside won’t have access indoors. It has been discovered that citronella candles are perfect for keeping flies away and even candles with lavender scent.
You can purchase sticky flytraps at the local hardware store to serve as an effective tool to kill flies that already found their way indoors. If the problem still continues, you might want to hire an exterminator. These professionals may use fly baits, fly repellants, or chemical control to solve the issue permanently.
Other Important Tips for Fly Prevention
There are many sizes and shapes of flies, including the common house fly, to the smaller fruit flies, and even the biting flies like horse and deer flies. Most fruit flies and biting flies are difficult to control because they thrive outdoors with abundant vegetation and water.
But, the precautions for preventing house, garden, and fruit flies may also come in handy to prevent the rest of the species if your area is prone to them.
- Remove garbage regularly and place them in covered containers at a safe distance from your house.
- Keep your house and yard free of animal excrement. Make it a habit to clean litter trays and discard, remove pet excrement, and other organic matter where they can feed and breed.
- Replace or repair torn window and door screens.
- Don’t overwater plants, as it will only create overly moist soil and areas with standing water both indoors and outdoors.
- Remove rotting food in the garbage and keep it clean.
- Cover and store food properly.
- Cut the grass and clear away debris and leaves.
- Clean spills right away.
It is important to exert efforts in preventing these pests from entering your property and avoid putting everyone’s health at risk. Yes, it will take time to keep them from coming back, but it will provide a fly-free property in the long run.
Whether you’re dealing with fungus gnats or a drain fly infestation, identifying the flies plays an important role on how you can further prevent them from multiplying. This will give you an idea about their life cycle, where the flies rest and how you can achieve complete infestation control.
