See your house the way a fly sees it. Dirty dishes in the sink, unlidded trash cans and compost bins, and half-empty pet food bowls are all inviting sources of food for flies. Go through your house room by room, and do what you need to do to shut down the buffet. And, don’t do just do it once in a while. To keep your home fly-free, get into the habit of doing a weekly) fly check.
Of course, having flies buzzing around isn’t just irritating. They fly and crawl on almost anything and whatever they land on they pick up and carry on their legs opening up chances of spreading disease and infections. In addition they lay eggs often and pretty much defecate on anything they touch which is why it’s important to not have them flying around your home.
There are many effective ways to get rid of flies in the house using home remedies. You can use repellents to deter them or construct traps to attract. Either way, getting rid of flies is the ultimate aim and here are some ways to help you do that.
Despite seemingly wanting to land on anything going, flies are quite fussy when it comes to certain smells and flavours.
There are some strong-smelling plants the flies just do not like. The most common one is basil which is good news for us as not only is it easy to get hold of in shops, it also has anti-bacterial and ant-viral properties creating a healthy environment for your home. Just place your basil plant anywhere in the house, preferably near any open window to deter the flies.
This is a clever trick to repel those pesky flies. Hanging a bag full of water outside windows and open doors can deter flies away because of the way a fly sees it. Since a fly has a remarkable amount of lenses in each eye, this gives them the ability to detect light patterns and movement. A bag of water is reflecting light all over the place therefore confusing the flies and causing them to stay away.
Orange peel is a wonderfully cheap way to get rid of flies as well as encouraging us to eat more oranges. Citrus extracts are actually used in a lot of commercial bug repellents due to its ability to deter insects.
Vinegar attracts flies so it is a great way of luring them in and away from the rest of the house. To make vinegar trap all you need is some apple cider vinegar or malt vinegar, a glass, a plastic bag and a rubber band.
Honey is notoriously good for trapping flies with its sweet aroma and sticky consistency and if you don’t have honey to hand then jam can work equally as well.
Not so much a trap, but if you want to be proactive and not leave it up to traps to catch the flies, then you can make your own fly spray. The sprays we buy in the shops are full of chemicals and generally should be used in a well-ventilated room. But you can make your own effective spray that will zone in on irritating flies with the help of your washing up liquid. Washing up liquid acts as a poison without any harsh chemicals that can affect us.
- Get an empty spray bottle and put in around 10 drops of washing up liquid.
- Add two cups of warm water, screw on the top and gently shake.
- Spray directly onto the flies if you can get to them fast enough!
