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Since a female fruit fly can lay hundreds of eggs at a time, a fruit fly infestation can happen quickly. If you have fruit flies in the kitchen, they can possibly contaminate food with bacteria. Getting rid of fruit flies can be done with a homemade fruit fly trap. These are usually very simple to make and require few supplies, like a soda bottle or a dish, bait, and some plastic wrap. Containers with some type of fruit fly bait at the bottom and a slightly obstructed opening can generally attract the pests to drown.
To build a homemade fruit fly trap, first a container is needed to trap the fruit flies and hold the bait. Some people use a soda bottle, and some people use a jar. Just about any type of container can be used, as long as it's clean.
Bait is the other essential component to a homemade fruit fly trap. Many types of liquid can be used for bait, including vinegar, orange juice, and apple juice. Some experts recommend using a mixture or brewers yeast, sugar, and water. This will go into the bottom of the trap. Many people opt to add a drop or two of dish detergent to the bait, which will make it easier for the fruit flies to drown.
The first type of homemade fruit fly trap utilizes a soda bottle. After it is rinsed out, the top portion of the bottle must be cut off. This should include the spout part as well as about an inch (2.5 centimeters) of the body of the bottle. About an inch (2.5 centimeters) of bait should be added to the bottom portion of the bottle, and the top portion should be turned upside down and pushed into it. Fruit flies will fly into the opening to feed on the bait, and while many of them will drown, those that don't will not usually fly out of the bottle.
A homemade fruit fly trap can also be made from a dish, glass, empty jar, or just about any other type of container. A small amount of fruit fly bait is added to the bottom of the container. The container is then covered in plastic wrap, which is secured with a rubber band. A few holes are then poked in the plastic wrap to enable the flies to get in. Like the previous trap, this trap will allow the flies to get in, but not out.
When the fruit fly traps are full, they should be discarded or emptied. Ideally, this should be done no less than every few days. If the containers are emptied, they can be cleaned and reused. It may take a couple of weeks of this treatment before the majority of the fruit flies are gone.
If there are garbage cans or a dumpster anywhere near the house, the garbage in those may provide a renewable source of fruit flies and other flies, small and large, so that trapping them or poisoning them in the house may not work.
Set aside a garden sprayer for use against insects and fill it with a 50/50 mixture of pine oil and water. Spray the inside of the garbage containers at least once per day, preferably until they reek of pine oil. The mixture kills flies on contact, and the smell should keep them from breeding in the garbage.
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