Cleaning
Help! Why Are There So Many Flies In My House?
It’s the time of the year that leaves us wondering, “Why have I got so many flies in my house?”
In the summer, we get inundated with house flies. As soon as the warm weather appears, so do the houseflies.
I’m a Buddhist, and I love all living creatures, except flies. I absolutely hate them. Open a window or door, and within seconds there will be a housefly landing on your food.
House flies come in different shapes and sizes and are ready to start breeding inside a bin or drain near you!
- Bluebottle
- Fruit flies
- Mosquito
- Cluster flies
Why are there so many flies in my house?
If you have a fly problem, you firstly need to determine the source of the problem. It could be:
- A dead animal or bird nearby
- Rotten food left to fester
- Poor hygiene in the home
- inadequet rubbish disposal
Dead animal or bird nearby
If you suddenly have lots of flies covering your windows, you may have a dead bird stuck in your gutter or even the chimney. This happened to my mum, and she discovered a dead pigeon in the gutter just above her bedroom window, so it is worth checking.
It is wise to check lofts and crawl space to ensure no dead birds or rodents need attending to.
Rodents and birds can also find their way into the wall cavity and may die, so beware that this may be causing an infestation of flies in the house.
Rotten food
Rotting food is probably one of the most common causes of lots of flies in the house.
Once food starts to go rotten, flies will immediately land and lay eggs. It is always best to make sure food is covered and kept inside a cupboard or the fridge to prevent any contamination from flies in the home. I use elasticated plate covers like these ones which come in different sizes and are great for leftovers.
Poor hygiene in the home
Keeping your home spotlessly clean will help to prevent a house fly infestation.
Make sure:
- All food is put away properly
- Pet mess is dealt with immediately
- Pets food bowls are washed immediately after use
- Bins are kept spotlessly clean
- Food preparation areas are wiped clean after cooking or baking.
- Dirty dishes are cleaned immediately after each meal
- Sinks are kept free from food after dishwashing
- Empty cans and drinks bottles are removed and disposed of straight after use.
Poor rubbish disposal
Flies love bins, it’s one of their favorite breeding grounds. Poor rubbish disposal is a sure-fire way to get a fly-infested house! Do these things regularly to prevent fly infestations.
- Empty garbage cans daily in the summer
- Dispose of cans and bottles immediately
- Clean the bin regularly
- Do not leave bags of rubbish inside the house. Take them out immediately
- Do not leave banana skins and old food in the house.
- Keep wheelie bins clean. Read how to clean your wheelie bin properly, in this post
- To read how to get rid of maggots in the bin, read this post.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Fly types
Bluebottles
The Bluebottle or blowfly is a large buzzing fly. It has a shiny, metallic blue body but can often look black, it can be anywhere between 6-12mm long.
One Bluebottle can lay up to 600 eggs, which hatch in under 48 hours and produce maggots, these maggots become fully developed in a week. Maggots burrow into rotten food and meat then they pupate for about ten days before emerging as adult flies to start the cycle all over again.
Bluebottles carry bacteria on their legs, feet, and bodies. To read more about the life cycle of a fly, read this post.
To help get rid of bluebottles in the house you could try using:
Fruit flies
A question I get asked all the time is: “why are there so many fruit flies in my house?”
Fruit flies are tiny little flies that like to sit on rotten fruit, especially in the summer. They like bananas or any other fruit that is going slightly soft. These little pests like to get into your garbage can and lay their eggs, which then hatch into lots and lots of other little fruit flies. One pair of fruit flies can produce up to a hundred offspring! Before you know it, you can have a fruit fly infestation.
One huge problem is that fruit flies like to start breed in your plughole or drain and it can be almost impossible to get rid of them.
To get rid of fruit flies,
- Spray your bin with fly spray
- Spray the fruit flies with a fly spray
- Spray the plug holes and drains with fly spray then put the plug back in.
- Place some Apple Cider Vinegar in a bowl with some cling film over the top. Pierce small holes in the cling film to create a fly trap or fly bait. The fruit flies will go into the hole but will not be able to get back out, so they will eventually drown.
- Use fly control sticky strips like these ones to catch the fruit flies as they fly around.
- Citronella wick
Mosquitos
Mosquitos are little pests like to feed on human blood rather than rubbish, they can give you a nasty bite, which in some cases can cause malaria. They may be more interested in eating you than your food, and they do like to breed in stagnant water. so the best way to keep mosquitos away from your home is to clear any pots, tubs, and old ponds that may have stagnant water in them and burn a Citronella candle or wick like this one. or use a bug killer like this one
Cluster flies
Cluster flies are approximately 8mm long, dark grey, with long wings and gold hair on their back. You might find cluster flies in the house all of a sudden in the summer. They will start laying eggs outside as soon as the warmer weather comes. Cluster flies will hibernate in your home when the weather starts to turn colder. Cluster flies prefer to eat tree sap and plant nectar rather than dead animals or rotten food. So they are probably in your home to hibernate and will move outside when the weather gets warmer.
Various methods can help to get rid of cluster flies:
- Insect spray
- Citronella candles or wick
- Foggers, contact the pest control or use one like this one
- Smoker by pest control services or use one at home like this one
- Electric fly killers
- Fly boxes or fly traps
- Bug killer
So now you know what type of infestation you might have and how to deal with it. Remember keeping things clean and tidy go a huge way towards keeping houseflies of any description at bay!