flies

2

Comments

  • Hobbes
    Hobbes Pacific Northwest Posts: 6,438
    Had an ant problem a few weeks ago. I put down lemon juice where they were coming in. Didn't kill them, but it kept them from coming back. Basically anything with a strong odor will disrupt the ants pheromone trail, thus disorienting them. Peppermint, vinegar, even coffee grounds.

    For fruit flies, I use apple cider vinegar. Put a dish out filled to the brim. Drowns 'em.

    I usually have a rosemary plant right outside my screen door. Keeps away the flees.
  • Leezestarr313
    Leezestarr313 Temple of the cat Posts: 14,444
    We have used DE before too! Should get another bag. Thanks for the reminder!
    Please, Pearl Jam, consider a Benaroya Hall vinyl reissue! http://community.pearljam.com/discussion/148993/please-pearl-jam-consider-a-vinyl-benaroya-hall-re-issue


  • PJ_Soul
    PJ_Soul Vancouver, BC Posts: 50,675
    edited June 2015
    Leezestarr313 said:

    Gah. The big shithouse flies make me gag, I don't want them to touch me. Sometimes when you smash them, blood comes out. Yuck. We had some in the basement the other day. They were lethargic and huge. We killed a lot and diminished the rest with fly paper strips, now they are gone. For fruit flies, when a problem arises, I set out traps made of plastic bottles with a weird, devilish mix of vinegar, sugar, water and soap. Works nicely. Ants... I think we have several kinds around here, we're in the sticks. Tiny reddish ones, medium / normal sized blackish ones and I've seen carpenter ants too. We sprayed a barrier around the house and porch, set out the stuff they take to their nest and kill "manually" on occasion and sight. In the garden, a wonderful Northern Flicker takes care of them on a regular basis. And one day I saw a toad sitting in the sunroom. It was too lazy to move, just sat by the crack on the floor and ate them when they came out there :lol:

    I have tried to kill the fruit flies using an apple cider vinegar and dish soap mixture, and it didn't really work. It got a few, but not nearly enough.... Whoever told me about doing that forgot to mention that it needed something sweet though. Next time the fruit flies invade I'll add some sugar and see how that works! :)
    With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be careful. Strive to be happy. ~ Desiderata
  • Leezestarr313
    Leezestarr313 Temple of the cat Posts: 14,444
    I even put a piece of apple in there and let it rot away. I cut a large bottle in half and then put the top back in upside down. So they have a narrow entrance that they don't find out of. This way you cannot really smell the rot in there either.
    Please, Pearl Jam, consider a Benaroya Hall vinyl reissue! http://community.pearljam.com/discussion/148993/please-pearl-jam-consider-a-vinyl-benaroya-hall-re-issue


  • rollings
    rollings unknown Posts: 7,127
    I have punched a fly or two

    It's not as satisfying as it may sound though.
    It just moves them through the air a little.
  • oftenreading
    oftenreading Victoria, BC Posts: 12,856
    PJ_Soul said:

    Leezestarr313 said:

    Gah. The big shithouse flies make me gag, I don't want them to touch me. Sometimes when you smash them, blood comes out. Yuck. We had some in the basement the other day. They were lethargic and huge. We killed a lot and diminished the rest with fly paper strips, now they are gone. For fruit flies, when a problem arises, I set out traps made of plastic bottles with a weird, devilish mix of vinegar, sugar, water and soap. Works nicely. Ants... I think we have several kinds around here, we're in the sticks. Tiny reddish ones, medium / normal sized blackish ones and I've seen carpenter ants too. We sprayed a barrier around the house and porch, set out the stuff they take to their nest and kill "manually" on occasion and sight. In the garden, a wonderful Northern Flicker takes care of them on a regular basis. And one day I saw a toad sitting in the sunroom. It was too lazy to move, just sat by the crack on the floor and ate them when they came out there :lol:

    I have tried to kill the fruit flies using an apple cider vinegar and dish soap mixture, and it didn't really work. It got a few, but not nearly enough.... Whoever told me about doing that forgot to mention that it needed something sweet though. Next time the fruit flies invade I'll add some sugar and see how that works! :)
    Balsamic vinegar works great! A little left over red wine works, too, but for that you have to be prepared not to drink all the wine, and who wants that? Leeze is correct that a chunk of fruit, like a peach, is a good attractant.

    I put the mix in a glass jar and cover the top with plastic wrap, then poke a few little holes in it. They can crawl in but never manage to find the holes to crawl out. Their own little Hotel California.
    my small self... like a book amongst the many on a shelf
  • Hobbes
    Hobbes Pacific Northwest Posts: 6,438
    rollings said:

    I have punched a fly or two

    It's not as satisfying as it may sound though.
    It just moves them through the air a little.

    Damn fly. Hiya!
    image

    Maybe you should try this method, Rollingson....
    image
  • ldent42
    ldent42 NYC Posts: 7,859
    oftenreading said:

    PJ_Soul said:

    Leezestarr313 said:

    Gah. The big shithouse flies make me gag, I don't want them to touch me. Sometimes when you smash them, blood comes out. Yuck. We had some in the basement the other day. They were lethargic and huge. We killed a lot and diminished the rest with fly paper strips, now they are gone. For fruit flies, when a problem arises, I set out traps made of plastic bottles with a weird, devilish mix of vinegar, sugar, water and soap. Works nicely. Ants... I think we have several kinds around here, we're in the sticks. Tiny reddish ones, medium / normal sized blackish ones and I've seen carpenter ants too. We sprayed a barrier around the house and porch, set out the stuff they take to their nest and kill "manually" on occasion and sight. In the garden, a wonderful Northern Flicker takes care of them on a regular basis. And one day I saw a toad sitting in the sunroom. It was too lazy to move, just sat by the crack on the floor and ate them when they came out there :lol:

    I have tried to kill the fruit flies using an apple cider vinegar and dish soap mixture, and it didn't really work. It got a few, but not nearly enough.... Whoever told me about doing that forgot to mention that it needed something sweet though. Next time the fruit flies invade I'll add some sugar and see how that works! :)
    Balsamic vinegar works great! A little left over red wine works, too, but for that you have to be prepared not to drink all the wine, and who wants that? Leeze is correct that a chunk of fruit, like a peach, is a good attractant.

    I put the mix in a glass jar and cover the top with plastic wrap, then poke a few little holes in it. They can crawl in but never manage to find the holes to crawl out. Their own little Hotel California.
    I did the same thing. I think I used soda and bits of a random fruit in an old tupperware, plastic wrap over the top, poke hhole with a fork, a few hours later bunch of bugs stuck in there, put the lid over the plastic wrap give it a good shake and dump it down the toilet.
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  • rollings
    rollings unknown Posts: 7,127
    Hobbes said:

    rollings said:

    I have punched a fly or two

    It's not as satisfying as it may sound though.
    It just moves them through the air a little.

    Damn fly. Hiya!
    image

    Maybe you should try this method, Rollingson....
    image
    ah yes, hobbelson...."there's a fly in my soup" aka chopstick fly soup

  • Malroth
    Malroth broken down chevrolet Posts: 2,557
    Leezestarr313 said:

    Gah. The big shithouse flies make me gag, I don't want them to touch me. Sometimes when you smash them, blood comes out. Yuck. We had some in the basement the other day. They were lethargic and huge. We killed a lot and diminished the rest with fly paper strips, now they are gone. For fruit flies, when a problem arises, I set out traps made of plastic bottles with a weird, devilish mix of vinegar, sugar, water and soap. Works nicely. Ants... I think we have several kinds around here, we're in the sticks. Tiny reddish ones, medium / normal sized blackish ones and I've seen carpenter ants too. We sprayed a barrier around the house and porch, set out the stuff they take to their nest and kill "manually" on occasion and sight. In the garden, a wonderful Northern Flicker takes care of them on a regular basis. And one day I saw a toad sitting in the sunroom. It was too lazy to move, just sat by the crack on the floor and ate them when they came out there :lol:

    Those big green ones will get tangled up in my hair somehow. I'll just stand there hitting my head making grunting noises. :anguished:
    The worst of times..they don't phase me,
    even if I look and act really crazy.
  • whispering hands
    whispering hands Under your skin Posts: 13,527
    edited June 2015
    You guys want to hear a REALLY gross fly story, later after things settle down round here? ( my house not the boards)..That way too, everyone will have been able To eat, and we can avoid puking on keyboards etc..
    Post edited by whispering hands on
  • Malroth
    Malroth broken down chevrolet Posts: 2,557
    whispering hands said:

    You guys want to hear a REALLY gross fly story, later after things settle down round here? ( my house not the boards)..That way too, everyone will have been able To eat, and we can avoid puking on keyboards etc..

    yes please.
    The worst of times..they don't phase me,
    even if I look and act really crazy.
  • Malroth
    Malroth broken down chevrolet Posts: 2,557
    Malroth said:

    whispering hands said:

    You guys want to hear a REALLY gross fly story, later after things settle down round here? ( my house not the boards)..That way too, everyone will have been able To eat, and we can avoid puking on keyboards etc..

    yes please.
    1 yr anniversary of waiting.
    The worst of times..they don't phase me,
    even if I look and act really crazy.
  • markymark550
    markymark550 Columbia, SC Posts: 5,217
    Malroth said:

    Malroth said:

    whispering hands said:

    You guys want to hear a REALLY gross fly story, later after things settle down round here? ( my house not the boards)..That way too, everyone will have been able To eat, and we can avoid puking on keyboards etc..

    yes please.
    1 yr anniversary of waiting.
    Did it drive you mad?
  • Malroth
    Malroth broken down chevrolet Posts: 2,557
    markymark550 said:

    Malroth said:

    Malroth said:

    whispering hands said:

    You guys want to hear a REALLY gross fly story, later after things settle down round here? ( my house not the boards)..That way too, everyone will have been able To eat, and we can avoid puking on keyboards etc..

    yes please.
    1 yr anniversary of waiting.
    Did it drive you mad?
    It may. What could this story be?
    The worst of times..they don't phase me,
    even if I look and act really crazy.
  • Hobbes
    Hobbes Pacific Northwest Posts: 6,438
    Gross fly story > fixer story
  • Malroth
    Malroth broken down chevrolet Posts: 2,557
    I went to a family reunion in Florida awhile back. We had a cookout by some lake.
    The flies were so thick it was like a cloud of black about 30 feet long and 20 feet high.
    People were eating in this! I didn't eat a thing, and can barely stand cookouts to this day.
    The worst of times..they don't phase me,
    even if I look and act really crazy.
  • Malroth
    Malroth broken down chevrolet Posts: 2,557
    Malroth said:
    You guys want to hear a REALLY gross fly story, later after things settle down round here? ( my house not the boards)..That way too, everyone will have been able To eat, and we can avoid puking on keyboards etc..
    yes please.
    1 yr anniversary of waiting.
    2 YRS of waiting. I may have to make up my own story.

    The worst of times..they don't phase me,
    even if I look and act really crazy.
  • Malroth
    Malroth broken down chevrolet Posts: 2,557
    Sorry, I can't figure out how to erase that picture.
    but the flies are bad this year.
    Every year I am able to stand them less and less, and when they land on my nose (as the often do)
     I scream.
    The worst of times..they don't phase me,
    even if I look and act really crazy.
  • rgambs
    rgambs Posts: 13,576
    I have learned to live with flies and maggots.  Chickens, composting, preserving bushels of vegetables...none of those things mesh well with a procrastinator who hates flies...so I learned to live with them because I'll never stop procrastinating lol
    Monkey Driven, Call this Living?

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