Fruit flies... again!

Contrary to what my mom believed, you do not get fruit flies from the food that you bring into your house. Fruit flies have an uncanny ability to smell ripening fruit from a great distance and enter through the screens and open doors of your house. (I noticed during the last hot spell, when my house was closed up and air conditioned, fruit flies were non-existent. But once it cooled off and I opened up again... they're back!) 

So what's a 2nd Best Job in the World guy to do?


      Well, the passive approach would be to:
 

1. Pour cider vinegar into a shallow bowl.

2. Add a small drop of dish soap. (So they'll sink 

and  drown once they touch the cider vinegar, 

rather than floating around having a pool party)

3. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap.

4. Poke lots of small holes in the 
plastic wrap with a fork or a knife.

5. Set the trap out where you've seen
 the fruit flies. (Notice the little guys 
are already interested.)

6. In just a couple of hours - look what

I caught! Just peel off the plastic and

pour vinegar and all down the drain.

Easy breezy.

 

BUT...

          -  if you are of the more adventurous ilk, 

          -  if you prefer to take matters into your own hands,

           - if you'd prefer to use this for yellow jackets:

 

                      rather than this:

                 Well then, it's time to take an active roll in battling your fruit fly invasion.

 

1.  Place some of the fruit that has been attracting

   them into your kitchen sink stopper, but

  be sure to leave it drainable, not stoppered.

2.  Position the faucet (preferably in spray mode)

above your fruit fly ambush.

3.  Go do something else as you patiently wait.   

 

  4.  Sneak [insert Mission Impossible theme here]           

  back into the kitchen to find the tiny invaders, 

concentrating on their new fruity find.

 Be careful not to cast a shadow over them

 as they will fly away.

 

 

5.  Quickly turn on the water and flush those friggin'

 flies down the drain. The fruit will not wash 

down, but will remain in the stopper.

 

 6.  Reset and repeat as needed.  Now wasn't that

a lot more challenging, fun, and rewarding

than the previous method? 

I agree.