The two-step fix
- Trap the adults with a simple vinegar trap (below).
- Remove where they breed. This is the step people skip, and why the flies keep coming back.
Do both at the same time, and keep going for about a week. Fruit flies can go from egg to adult in roughly a week to ten days at room temperature, so a few more will hatch even after you clean up.
Make a fruit fly trap
You need apple cider vinegar, a drop of washing-up liquid and a small jar or glass.
- Pour about 2 cm of apple cider vinegar into the jar. Wine, beer or a piece of overripe fruit also work.
- Add one drop of washing-up liquid. This breaks the surface tension, so flies sink instead of landing and leaving.
- Cover with cling film, secure it with a rubber band, and poke a few small holes with a toothpick. Or roll a paper cone and put it in the jar opening, narrow end down.
- Place it where you see the most flies: by the fruit bowl, bin or sink.
- Refresh every few days.
Set out two or three traps if you have a lot of flies. Shop-bought traps and sticky strips work on the same principle.
Find and remove the breeding sources
Check every one of these:
- Fruit and vegetables: throw out anything overripe, bruised or leaking. Check the bottom of fruit bowls and potato and onion bags, where a single rotten item often hides.
- Bins and recycling: empty them, wash the bin and lid, and rinse bottles, cans and jars before recycling. Sticky drink residue is a magnet.
- Compost caddies: empty often and keep the lid closed.
- Drains: the film inside sink drains and garbage disposals is an ideal breeding ground (see below).
- Spills: check under the fridge, behind the bin, and under appliances for spilled juice, wine or food.
- Dishcloths, sponges and mops: wash or replace them. Damp, food-soiled cloths attract flies.
- Pet food bowls and anything fermenting, such as kombucha, home brews or vinegar.
Clean the drains
If flies hover around the sink, the drain may be the source.
- Pour boiling water (or very hot water for plastic pipes) slowly down the drain.
- Scrub inside the drain with a long, narrow brush to remove the slimy film.
- Use an enzyme drain cleaner, which breaks down the organic build-up, following the label.
- Repeat for a few days.
To test whether a drain is the source, tape a piece of clear tape loosely over it overnight. If flies are stuck to the underside in the morning, they are coming from the drain.
Fruit flies, drain flies or fungus gnats?
| Fruit flies | Drain flies | Fungus gnats | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Look | Tan body, often red eyes, about 3 mm | Fuzzy, moth-like, grey wings | Thin, dark, long-legged, like tiny mosquitoes |
| Found | Around fruit, bins, drinks | Around sinks, showers, drains | Around houseplants and windows |
| Breeds in | Fermenting food | Drain slime | Damp potting soil |
| Fix | Remove fruit, clean bins, traps | Clean drains thoroughly | Let soil dry out between waterings, use yellow sticky traps |
Getting the identification right saves effort: vinegar traps do little for fungus gnats, and cleaning the fruit bowl will not fix drain flies.
Keep them away
- Store ripe fruit in the fridge, particularly in warm months.
- Wash fruit when you bring it home, which can remove eggs.
- Empty bins regularly and keep lids closed.
- Rinse recycling before it goes in the bin.
- Wipe up spills straight away, especially sugary drinks.
- Clean drains weekly with hot water.
- Fit or repair window screens.
If storage is part of the problem, our home organisation guide has ideas, and our fridge storage chart shows how long food lasts. For slow sink drains that may be harbouring flies, see how to unclog a drain.
When to call pest control
Fruit flies are almost always solvable at home. Call a professional if numbers stay high after two weeks of traps and cleaning, which may mean a hidden source such as a broken pipe, a dead animal in a wall cavity or rotting food in a hard-to-reach space.
Key takeaways
- A vinegar trap with a drop of washing-up liquid catches the adults.
- Removing breeding sources is what actually stops them.
- Check fruit, bins, recycling, drains, spills and cloths.
- Keep going for a week to ten days to break the breeding cycle.