Fruit Fly Infestation E-mail
My neighbors for-sure think that I have taken up Flamenco dancing. In fact, if any of them happen to glance in the direction of my kitchen window they can often see me clapping away. So, have I really taken up this form of dance? Not at all. It’s just that my house has been invaded by fruit flies and I am constantly clapping my hands together trying to destroy those pesky little beings.

It’s always at this time of year, too. If we go outside we are running from irate wasps or swatting potential West-Nile Virus mosquitoes. Then we run for cover inside our homes and we encounter the dreaded fruit flies. Yuck! They’re everywhere! Last week I had a gathering at my house and by the end of the evening there were more fruit flies than guests. I was mortified. I guess my clapping was doing little more than entertaining the neighbors. So, I decided to seek professional help—not for my dancing skills but for a proper way to rid my home of fruit flies.

First, I called Anderson Pest Solutions in Wheeling. “Fruit flies in the home setting shouldn’t be a big problem to take care of,” says Neil Krummel, Regional Manager. “They are attracted to fruits and fermenting wines and vinegars and you obviously don’t have too much of that in a home. If you have fruits that are spoiling, the first thing to do is to dispose of them. Clean the recycling cans and bins and get them out of the home as soon as possible.”

“Be sure that water actively runs through drains,” adds Krummel. “If you do get build-up of food debris you could clean the drain with a small scrub brush to make sure you get the inside clean so the fruit flies don’t have an area to breed. The female lays her eggs on decaying/fermenting items where there is moisture. They won’t go on rotting meat but they will go on vegetables and fruits because those things ferment. Most of the problem is identifying what fruits or vegetables you brought the fruit flies in on and getting rid of that item.”

“Normally fruit flies hover around their food source so where you see them flying is probably where the moisture and fermenting fruit is,” says Neil. “You can bring them home from the store, but during the summer they can be an outside insect and can come in that way, too. Basically, you must find the source of the problem and get it clean and dry. That’s the key to fruit-fly control.”

Next, I thought a local restaurant could give me some pointers on getting rid of fruit flies. “Sanitize and don’t keep bananas around the house—that’s the worst thing,” says Pete Panayiotou, Owner of Continental Restaurant in Buffalo Grove. “We use a special sanitizer in the drain and anything with bananas or apples needs to be cleared away. Of course, restaurants use services so they take care of everything.”

“The health department regulates what we do at the restaurant and basically we call Anderson Pest Control,” says Sonda Gontner, Manager at Gridley’s Bar and Grille in Long Grove. “They have a solution they put in the drains that kills the nesting areas for the fruit flies and they will spray in the areas they can. We get rid of all the boxes of fruits and vegetables right away and we cover all fruits and vegetables. We cover all drains and pour bleach in the drains. Everything needs to be extremely clean. Fruit flies are attracted to sugar and that’s how they feed themselves. The key to no fruit flies at a restaurant is to keep everything sanitized and clean and constantly call the pest control before it becomes a big problem.”

The last expert I spoke with was Roger Coffman, Food Program Specialist with the Lake County Health Department. He told me a list of things to do to get rid of fruit flies:

1. Clean any sticky surfaces with soap and water.

2. Use a bleach solution to sanitize the surface—1 capful of bleach per gallon of water— 100 parts per million of chlorine. (Whatever that means, I have no idea!)

3. Remove the trash as much as you can. Fruit Flies lay eggs in garbage cans and get into the food in there.

Coffman also told me that fruit flies come in with produce from the store or gardens. I knew that already and always shake out my produce before I buy it to make sure nothing “extra” comes home with me. The part that took me by surprise was when Coffman said, “Fruit flies hatch in the stems of the bananas.” A light bulb went off in my head because now I had found my source. I never knew there were eggs from fruit flies on the stems of bananas; I just knew they liked bananas.

Finally, I asked some friends what they do at home for the big fruit fly dilemma. Although one friend, Betty, had the nerve to pretend she didn’t have any fruit flies in her house, everybody else I spoke with was definitely having fruit fly issues. Here is what they said:

“If you leave an open bottle of wine, red wine vinegar or apple vinegar, fruit flies are attracted to the sugar and then drown themselves at the bottom.”

“Just spray some Raid on them.”

“Run scalding hot water in all the drains for a few minutes every night.”

“Take a plastic cup and put a piece of cantaloupe in the bottom, put a piece of plastic wrap on the top of the cup and poke little holes in the plastic wrap. The flies come in but they usually can’t get out.”

Well, since my clapping method wasn’t working, I will definitely use these handy tips for any future fruit fly problem. Hopefully, an upcoming overnight frost will get rid of them until next year. Do you have any suggestions for future topics? If so, please email me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .



© 2007 Susan Dubin, Buffalo Grove, Illinois