They might not top most people’s lists of insects to worry about but ask anyone who has had them in their home, and they will tell you: an infestation of flies is nothing to take lightly. They can be annoying, sure, but more than that they are incredibly hard to eradicate, and one fly soon leads to dozens more if you’re not careful.
As with any infestation, the best way to get rid of flies is not to attract them in the first place. Flies are attracted to many different things, so knowing this can help you learn what to avoid in the future.
Uncovered Trash
In general, flies are attracted to old, decaying, organic matter. As gross as that sounds, there’s usually a good bit of it lying around the average household in various forms. One of the most obvious is in the trash. When you go several days without emptying your trash can, whatever is in there has nothing to do but decay, attracting flies from all around.
Animal Droppings
Another common form of decaying organic matter comes from feces. If you have a dog, there’s a good chance there’s poo in your yard that you haven’t cleaned up. Even if you’re diligent about this, pieces get missed. Flies love feces, unfortunately, so this is a prime method of attracting flies. However, it doesn’t have to stop with pets. Critters and rodents who live around and inside your house can also contribute to this problem.
Old Fruit
Often when we shop, our eyes are bigger than our stomachs. We end up buying food we never get to – and there might be no better example of this than fruit. When fruit stays uneaten for too long, it gets overripe and starts to decay. This is like sending out a beacon to all the flies in the area, and they will definitely answer the call. What’s even worse, though, is when the fruit attracts not only the common housefly (which is bad enough), but also its smaller, more annoying cousin, the fruit fly. These little guys swarm quick, and once they’re in, they are almost impossible to get rid of.
If you are dealing with a fly infestation, or if you have other concerns, it might be time to call in professional help. Please contact Ideal Pest Control today to set up an appointment and see how we can help.
