How to Deal With Green Flies in the House
What draws green flies into houses, and how can one effectively get rid of them? These tiny pests often enter through open windows or doors, attracted to food sources like leftover fruit or garbage.
Keeping a clean home and sealing entry points are key to preventing infestations. Read on for more practical solutions for dealing with these pesky pests.
Key Takeaways
- Fly traps, including sticky tapes and homemade options, can catch and reduce green flies.
- Commercial sprays and products kill adult flies and target their larvae and breeding spots.
- Natural repellents using essential oils like lavender and eucalyptus can deter green flies from entering your home.
- Removing breeding sources, cleaning up areas, and sealing cracks help prevent future infestations.
- Professional pest control services can get rid of green flies and prevent them from coming back.
How to Get Rid of Green Flies
Here are several practical steps to manage and reduce green fly infestations in your home. Whether you prefer commercial solutions or natural alternatives, the following methods can help you deal with these pests:
Use Fly Traps
Fly traps can manage green flies like the metallic green bottle fly. These devices attract and capture large numbers of flies. Commercial options are diverse, with UV and sticky tapes being popular. Homemade traps can be just as effective. A mixture of apple cider vinegar and a few drops of dish soap in a jar creates an enticing concoction.
Apply Commercial Products
Commercial products can be a swift solution for addressing blowfly infestations. Aerosol sprays target adult flies, while insect growth regulators can handle maggots and pupae in breeding sites. Applying these products in areas where flies are known to lay eggs helps reduce the population.
For quick relief, using a fly swatter alongside commercial products can help manage adult flies.
Apply Natural Repellents
Creating a hostile environment for flies with natural repellents is a great way to deter them. Essential oils such as lavender, eucalyptus, and peppermint have strong scents that green flies dislike.
Mixing them with water and using a spray bottle is an easy way to apply these natural solutions around the home.
Remove the Breeding Source
Identifying and removing breeding sources is important to succeed. Flies often lay eggs in decomposing organic matter, such as dead animals, spoiled food, or animal feces.
Locating and disposing of these materials can halt the fly life cycle. Doing so can also reduce infestations of other fly species, such as blue bottle flies.
Take Away Attractants
Taking away things that appeal to green flies is another layer of defense. Flies flock to sources like dead mice, animal carcasses, and other organic matter.
Regularly check basements, attics, or garages for dead mice or animal carcasses. Using airtight trash cans and compost bins to dispose of spoiled food can reduce fly attractants.
How to Keep Green Flies Away
To effectively keep green fly infestations away from your home, it's important to take a proactive approach. As homeowners, you can follow several key steps to prevent them from returning.
Clean and Disinfect Areas with Fly Activity
Green flies, much like house flies and fruit flies, are common pests attracted to decaying matter.
Regularly cleaning areas like garbage cans and kitchen counters can go a long way in deterring them. Remember to clean wall voids and crawl spaces, as these can harbor flies without you even realizing it.
Seal Entry Points
Green flies can enter homes through the tiniest of cracks or open windows. Look for gaps or openings where flies might slip in. Paying attention to lesser-considered spots like chimney flues could make a major difference.
Simple fixes, like installing window screens, weather stripping, caulking, or mesh screens, can block these entry points.
When to Call a Pest Control Professional
Persistent green fly activity around the house can become a nuisance. If you notice persistent fly activity near windows, trash bins, or outdoor areas, even after cleaning, it’s a good time to call in professional fly control.
Professional pest control companies (like us at Native Pest Management) can offer targeted solutions to get rid of green flies at the source. We can access specialized treatments to ensure all green flies and their larvae are effectively removed.