Houseflies always seem to buzz around your face when you try to relax. Getting rid of houseflies helps you enjoy the peace in your home and keeps you safe from the diseases they might spread.
The best method to get rid of houseflies is to eliminate their suitable habitats. Keep your home and yard clean and dry so houseflies don’t have a place to lay their eggs. Planting herbs and flowers around your home repels houseflies also. If you have an infestation in your home, you can make a baited trap to capture houseflies or take other measures to kill them. Also, several commercial products can help you eliminate houseflies.
Houseflies are annoying to have around the home, but you can get rid of them on your own. Read this article to learn exactly how you can get rid of houseflies.
You might also be interested in reading these two related articles “How To Get Rid Of Fruit Flies” and “How To Get Rid Of Gnats“.
How To Prevent A Housefly Infestation
Understanding the lifecycle of houseflies and eliminating the things they need to survive are the best ways to get rid of houseflies permanently. When you see many houseflies around, they probably already laid eggs. If you kill them, their offspring will soon return to bother you.
Prevention ensures houseflies won’t come back to haunt you. Removing food sources and areas to lay eggs makes it so that houseflies won’t bother you. You can take a few measures to prevent houseflies, such as:
- Seal your windows, doors and house vents with screens, weatherstripping and door sweeps.
- Use garbage cans with tight-fitting lids.
- Store food in airtight containers.
- Clean up after meals and don’t leave dirty dishes sitting out.
- Keep compost piles away from your house, and don’t let piles of grass clipping or leaves decay in your yard.
- Turn off outdoor lights at night.
- Don’t kill rats with rat poison because if you don’t find their carcass it will attract flies.
- Clean up after your pets often.
- Keep your home as clean as possible.
What Attracts Houseflies To My Home?
Houseflies seek material in which they can lay their eggs. They need a warm, wet environment with some rotting organic matter to lay their eggs.
Some common things that attract flies to homes include:
- Food Left Out
- Animal Feces
- Manure
- Garbage
- Spilled Soda
- Open Alchohol Containers
- Scum Inside Drains
- Bright Lights At Night
Flowers and Herbs
Planting certain herbs and flowers around your home could help keep houseflies away. Some of the best plants for deterring houseflies include:
- Basil
- Marigold
- Lavender
- Bay Leaves
- Catnip
- Eucalyptus
- Rosemary
Having these plants growing around your home makes it less likely that houseflies will come in. You can also pick bunches from these plants to make bouquets to ward off houseflies indoors.
Many of these plants do well in small pots, so you can keep them around no matter how much space you have. These plants will look beautiful, could be used in cooking and help you get rid of houseflies.
Natural Methods For Getting Rid Of Houseflies
If you want to eliminate the houseflies that are in your home, some household items and plants can help to get rid of houseflies. These natural methods are safe, easy and effective.
Two-Liter Bottle Bait Trap For Houseflies
Lure houseflies into a two-liter bottle trap with some food or drinks that they can’t resist. To make a bait trap, follow these easy steps:
- Cut off the top third of a two-liter bottle.
- Place bait in the bottom two-thirds of the bottle. You can use food scraps, sugar water or apple cider vinegar.
- Turn the top of the bottle upside down and place it into the baited bottom of the bottle.
- Tape the two pieces of the bottle together.
- Place the bottle where you have seen houseflies.
This trap works because houseflies go in the bottle to get the bait. But, when they try to fly out, they always go to the highest point of the bottle, which is sealed by the tape.
Some of the flies might be able to escape the trap, but most of them will die inside. When you throw the bottle away, put it in a plastic bag and tie it shut to ensure no flies escape.
Dish Soap and Vinegar
You can make a fly trap with a dish soap and vinegar mixture. Take a few simple steps to make this trap, including:
- Add a quarter cup of vinegar and a few drops of dish soap to a glass or jar.
- Cover the top with plastic wrap and secure it with a rubber band.
- Poke small holes in the top with a pen or fork.
- Leave the container where you often see houseflies.
Flies are attracted to vinegar because it smells like rotting fruit that is a suitable place to lay their eggs. They can fit into the small holes, but it will be harder for them to get out.
The flies inevitably fly into the vinegar and dish soap, where their wings get coated in soap. Lastly, they won’t be able to fly out and will tie in the trap. Deploy multiple traps to catch more flies.
Spray Essential Oils
Mix your favorite smelling essential oil with water to create a housefly repelling spray. Some of the best oils and herbs you can use against houseflies are:
- Cayenne Pepper
- Peppermint
- Pine
- Clove
- Thyme
- Citrus
Add ten drops of essential oil to one cup of water in a spray bottle. Shake up the bottle and spray all around the places where you have fly problems.
Flies will likely leave as soon as they smell the oils, but they wear off quickly, and you will need to spray again. This essential oil spray method is perfect for getting rid of houseflies and making your house smell good.
Fly Swatters
The classic method of getting rid of house flies is to whack at them with a swatter. You can use a commercial fly swatter, or in a pinch, a rolled-up magazine or even a towel works.
The best way of fly-swatting is to wait for the fly to land on a hard surface, then hit it fast and hard. Afterward, clean up the fly carcass with some disinfecting wipes.
Skilled fly swatters can hit flies out of the air. Sometimes they are only stunned by an air shot, and you must squish them against the floor to kill them.
Sticky Honey Trap
Honey’s sweet, sticky nature makes it a perfect trap for houseflies. All you have to do is put a quarter-inch layer of honey on a plate or shallow bowl.
Flies will land on your honey trap to eat it. Then they will be stuck to it and will die. The only drawback to this trap is that you waste some delicious honey.
Commercial sticky traps work with the same concept as honey traps. Moreover, they look like pieces of tape that you can hang in places where you see houseflies.
Chemical Insecticides and Commercial Products
If natural remedies aren’t doing the trick or creating homemade housefly traps isn’t something you want to try, you can employ stronger solutions. Many commercial products available at home improvement or grocery stores can help you get rid of houseflies.
Pyrethrin-Based Insecticides
Pyrethrins are a group of insecticidal chemicals that occur naturally in some chrysanthemum flowers. Many products that eliminate houseflies contain pyrethrin. Pyrethrins are one of the safest insecticides available.
Many pyrethrin-based housefly insecticides are foggers. Consequently, you spray them inside your house while no one is inside and wait several hours for the chemicals to dissipate. Be careful to allow the amount of time to pass instructed on the fogger canister to re-enter your house.
Insecticides are good options if you want to clear your house of flies in the short term, but they aren’t a long-term solution. Houseflies have a short lifespan and develop resistance to insecticides within a few generations.
Light Trap For Houseflies
Houseflies are attracted to light, and a light trap uses that against them. These traps have a light inside them that entices houseflies to enter.
Light traps can either kill the flies with an electric shock or simply trap them so you can release them away from your home. You shouldn’t put light traps where they are visible from outside, because they could attract more flies into your home.
Repel Houseflies From Your Porch
If you have problems with flies bothering you on your porch, there are some measures you can take to keep them away. Keeping your yard clean near your home or deck is one of the best solutions. Don’t keep compost piles or rollers near the places you want to sit and relax.
Eliminating sources of water also helps eliminate houseflies. Check your garden hoses and drain lines to see if you have wet spots. If your yard has poor drainage, finding a solution to eliminating standing water could help also.
Outdoors you can consider using a stronger and longer-lasting insecticide. As always, follow the instruction on an outdoor insecticide and keep it away from children and pets.