Chicago Home and Lifestyles – Get rid of those nasty flies!

We are now well into summer and much of the country is in the midst of a dry heat wave. These factors can lead to seeing more flies around than usual. There are ways to take care of these pests without toxic chemicals. 

While rare, flies can technically breed in your house. Keeping your home clean and patching any obvious entry ways for flies can server as a natural deterrent to this. However, files are most likely coming in from the outside. The best idea is to limit the areas where flies may breed. Flies essentially breed outside on decaying organic waste. Adult females can lay hundreds of eggs that develop into adults in just 7 days. Flies will breed in mulch piles; so keep them as far away from doors and windows as possible. Keep garbage cans well sealed and away from the house. Plants with strong scent will repel flies. Lavender, basil and mint can keep flies away. Most importantly, clean up regularly after your pets! Besides providing perfect breeding ground for flies, pet feces attract rats.

Keep screens in good repair and keep doors closed. Once of the best ways to avoid flies in the house, is preventing them from entering in the first place. There are a couple good ways to take care of those pesky flies that do get in. Combine equal parts cider vinegar and a fruity smelling dish soap in a small bowl. Add a pinch of sugar. The fermented smell from the vinegar attracts the flies but the soap kills them. It destroys their digestive tract. The old-fashioned fly paper strip is an oldie but a goodie. Flies are attracted to the strip and get stuck. When full simply throw away. A soda bottle trap is also effective. Cut off the top third of a two-liter plastic bottle. Put sugar water in the bottom third and replace the top of the bottle, turning it upside down so the narrow top is pointed down. Flies will enter looking for the sugar water and won’t able to get out.

While flies can be pesky, they are easily controlled. Just to recap: Keep trash cleaned up and sealed. Clean up pest waste. Keep decaying vegetation away from the house. Do you have any other ways to take care of flies?