How To Kill Fruit Flies Fast

How to kill fruit flies effectively has long been a discussion in many households around the globe and may wonder how to do it. These pests can be a real irritation in your home (or office) and many wonder how to remove fruit flies fast or even perhaps what causes fruit flies. Although they spread very fast, you can get them under control and then killing fruit flies is fairly easily. The good news is that it’s a fairly inexpensive process and can be done yourself very quickly. Its just about knowing what to do first and learning how to keep them away permanently. In this article I plan to show you exactly how to do this so you can learn how what kills flies as fast as possible.

How To Kill Fruit Flies – The  Mindset

Before you even start trying to get rid of fruit flies naturally, you need to understand a few things about them. They breed extremely fast and within 60 hours, the females are able to hatch, begin the mating process, lay a couple hundred eggs with still enough time for those to hatch into fully functional fruit flies, with the potential of them breeding as well. With that in mind, this process cannot be half done. If you are dedicated to freeing yourself from your fruit fly infestation, you need to cover all your bases. The good news is we are about to learn how to get rid of fruit flies and the bug squad has your back on this so its very important that you follow all the instructions in this article. We also suggest you check out our other articles on the same subject to gain even further understanding. Alright, enough chit chat, lets get to business and learn how to get rid of fruit flies flies naturally in your house.

How To Kill Fruit Flies In Your Drains And Showers.

I have found that the best way to get rid of these pests in these areas is to pour drain cleaner down the pipes. If possible, try and remove the covering (usually just a few screws) as this will allow the liquid to cover all the areas inside of the drain or shower.The powerful chemicals will not only kill any lingering fruit flies and their larva but will also kill any bacteria. My friend who currently studies at the University of Chicago has confirmed this method fairly recently. Therefore, its actually suggested that you do this from time to time, even if you do not have a fruit fly problem. If you do not have any drain cleaner, household bleach usually does the same thing so follow the same steps and you will see the same results. Another area that people often overlook is making sure that their wet clothes get dried as quick as possible. After taking a swim or coming inside when its been raining, the first place people put their wet things is in the bathroom. Although there is nothing wrong with that for a couple hours, if left for days it can actually start to stick. That is because bacteria has started to accumulate on the clothing/wet towels and you would want to avoid this at any cost.

How To Kill House Flies In The Kitchen.

Picture of a fruit fly on fruit

How To Kill Fruit Flies Before They Spread Everywhere!

The kitchen can be a major breeding ground for these insects and it can it can be hard to kill fruit flies in this area without having a plan of attack. In order to effectively fight the fruit fly infestation, its always a good idea to eliminate their source first before trying to kill the ones flying around. When people ask me how to get rid of fruit flies naturally, I usually break the steps that need to be taken into the following three sections. Please note that its very important to follow each step very carefully to ensure that the removal process works and you do not have another infestation again.
#1 – How To Kill House Flies At Their Source

  1. Throw away any old food and get in the habit of doing so every single day. I understand that life is busy and often its all too easy to leave a plate dirty in the sink before returning to watch your favorite TV show. However, you need to remember that leaving old food around for an extended period of time attracts fruit flies and other harmful bacteria and if its done on a continuous basis, you can start seeing the negative results (such as a fruit fly infestation) after a couple weeks.
  2. Scraping your plates into the rubbish bin is how to eliminate fruit flies from infesting your home right? Wrong! If you put your old (or rotten) food into the trash and then only take it outside to be disposed of one a week, that gives plenty time for bacteria to find your food and fruit flies to lay their eggs. If you just do not have the time to take your trash out at least 3-4 times a week, put all your old food (that you want to throw away) into a smaller plastic bag and put it in the freezer. Any non bio-degradable products can go straight into your trash can but the rest should go into your “freezer bag”. Bacteria cannot breed in the cold and if you are also having an issue with your rubbish bin stinking out your kitchen, this is a very good solution to that problem as well.
  3. Keep your fruit covered or put them in the fridge. This does not have to be an elaborate setup. Just a simple, cost effective netting that can be placed over your fruit bowl can do the trick. I even found a method on digg the other day that involves placing a household fan near your fruit bowl to blow the fruit flies away but I personally feel that’s a bit unnecessary. Remember that fruit flies get their name for a reason; they love fruit (or to lay their eggs in fruit to be more scientifically accurate) so a major step in how to eliminate fruit flies is to keep them away from their favorite destination in your lovely, clean kitchen.
Picture of a fruit fly trap

Killing Fruit Flies In The House

#2 – How To Kill Fruit Flies In The House (Home Remedies for Fruit Flies)

Once the potential fruit fly sources have been taken care of, just make yourself a fruit fly trap or purchase one from your local convenience store. If you do not want to spend any money and you have time on your hands, I highly recommend you make what’s known as a vinegar fruit fly trap. All that you need to create it yourself is a glass, a bottle of Apple Cider Vinegar, a clear plastic packet and some dish washing liquid. Even if it’s the first time you are making one, it shouldn’t take you longer then 20 minutes. I have personally found it is one of the best ways how to eliminate fruit flies once they have become a serious problem in the house.

#3 – Fruit Fly Extermination And Maintenance (To Keep Them Away)

If soldiers have fought long and hard to gain a stronghold or position on the battlefield, they then make the necessarily preparations to ensure that it remains in their control or all of their effort would have only been short term. You need to adopt the same mindset when it comes to many things in life. Short term success cannot be compared to long term gain and when it comes to your health and quality of life. This is the same mindset that you need when working on killing these gnats in your home. Therefore I urge you to keep on making sure that no food is left lying around, that dishes are washed regularly and trash is taken out as soon as possible. Also remember to keep your clothes dry and do not leave towels crumpled in the corner of your room otherwise this will make fruit fly extermination very hard. Learn about the fruit fly life cycle here.

Picture of a small fly

Kill Fruit Fly

I am sure that you have learnt some valuable facts on getting rid of fruit flies. Although you may have a pretty bad infestation, do not feel alone, they are thousands around the world that are suffering with the same problem. If you feel that this article has helped you understand how to eliminate fruit flies, we invite you to tell your friends and family so that they can also benefit from the information and also go about killing fruit flies in their home. Alternatively, perhaps share it with your friends on social media platforms such as twitter and Facebook using the buttons on the left of this page. I would like to personally thank you for reading this and wish you the best of luck in solving your infestation and hope that you have successfully learnt how to kill fruit flies.

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You Saved Me Money!

May 07, 2012 by Ashleigh N

Hi there Natasha. Just wanted to let you know that your article not only helped me to eliminate my fruit fly issue but it also helped me to do it by myself (with the co-operation of the family of course) which saved us alot of money so thank you so much for your time and effort, keep it up!

Response: I am glad to hear it. You got rid of your fruit fly problem and saved money, really a win/win solution then!


All My Fruit Flies Are Gone!

Apr 27, 2012 by Antoine

I just wanted to come back and let everyone know that this article helped me to completely eliminate all the fruit flies in my kitchen. Highly recommended!

Response: Good stuff, glad to hear it Antoine, please tell all your friends as I am sure they will also benefit from this information at this time of year.


The Bug Squad 42 Fraser Road Assagay KZN, 3610 SA 5.0 5.0 2 2 Hi there Natasha. Just wanted to let you know that your article not only helped me to eliminate my fruit fly issue but it also helped me to do it by myself (with the co-operation o




  • Maman

    I discovered a similar fly trap by accident when I noticed that when a cup of tea was left out with a small amount left in the bottom of the mug you would find the flies had gravitated there and drowned after a short time- I take sugar so it seems to appeal to the flies sweet tooth..

    • thebugsquad

      Yeah they do. Thanks for sharing your personal experience Maman!

    • http://www.thebugsquad.com Natasha Anderson

      Yeah they do, thanks for your personal experience Maman!

  • Mary

    Cant I just swat them lol?

    • http://www.thebugsquad.com Natasha Anderson

      If you only have a couple flying around, by all means. But the females lay a couple hundred eggs in under 3 weeks and chances are that some of them have started breeding already so its wise to address the cause, not just the symptoms :) Plus I am sure that you have better things to do then run around your house with a swatter ;-)

  • Alexis

    Damn, these are some good ideas.

    • http://www.thebugsquad.com Natasha Anderson

      Hehe, then start putting them to use and they will be more then just ideas for you ;-)