How do you get rid of gnats in your house?
UGH! I've had it with all these pesky gnats flying around my home and I don't want to deal with them anymore. I feel like as soon as I squash one, I find a few more around the house and on my plants. Is there any way to get rid of them once and for all? I'd love to stick to easy natural methods, but I'm not afraid to try stronger chemicals if I have to.
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First off, what people call “gnats” are often made up of three different species: the drain fly, a fruit fly, and a fungus gnat. They all have different sources and treatments, but the first step is to find out where they're coming from and treat that area.
But the main things to do, you can actually really easily DIY them. Professional service can help and be quicker, but uh, we sort of like, we don't even have it as a covered pest because they're annoying and people see one and be like, oh, I got them again. It's like, okay.
1. If you have drain flies, the main treatment is treating your drains. There are some products like Invade Biodrain that can help make sure your drain is clean. In general, we recommend that our customers put about a cup of vinegar down your drain and leave it alone or about an hour every month or so. The vinegar is so acidic that it will kill the eggs and also start like removing some of that gunk. You can also put boiling water down your sink to loosen the gunk and then do the vinegar.
2. For fruit flies, remove fruit, crumbs, and anything else on the counter. Also keep an eye on the trash. You can use a Terro trap or DIY a fly trap with apple cider vinegar and a cut piece of fruit.
3. Finally, for fungus gnats, you can get pretty cheap mosquito bits from Amazon, and then just follow the instructions on the label.
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But the main things to do, you can actually really easily DIY them. Professional service can help and be quicker, but uh, we sort of like, we don't even have it as a covered pest because they're annoying and people see one and be like, oh, I got them again. It's like, okay.
1. If you have drain flies, the main treatment is treating your drains. There are some products like Invade Biodrain that can help make sure your drain is clean. In general, we recommend that our customers put about a cup of vinegar down your drain and leave it alone or about an hour every month or so. The vinegar is so acidic that it will kill the eggs and also start like removing some of that gunk. You can also put boiling water down your sink to loosen the gunk and then do the vinegar.
2. For fruit flies, remove fruit, crumbs, and anything else on the counter. Also keep an eye on the trash. You can use a Terro trap or DIY a fly trap with apple cider vinegar and a cut piece of fruit.
3. Finally, for fungus gnats, you can get pretty cheap mosquito bits from Amazon, and then just follow the instructions on the label.
Hello! I have a few suggestions for you in addition to what has already been said. Reducing moisture is great for the long term. In the short term, I fully recommend the use of Steinernema feltiae, a beneficial nematode you can apply to your potted plants and outside in the areas you notice them coming from.
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Just to add to the vinegar traps - I put cling wrap over the dish and just poke some small holes in it. It helps stop the whole room smelling like vinegar!
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I'll second the vinegar traps. That was the solution that worked for me! I was amazed by how many gnats were caught with that simple combo of apple cider vinegar and dish soap.
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Regular coffee. Gnats just seem to love a nice cup of coffee! I found this out by accident when I left half a cup of coffee on the table in the room where I had gnats. A few hours later the surface of the coffee was covered with dead gnats, and some had drawn to the bottom! I use sugar in the raw in my coffee and I don't know if whether or not it makes a difference. Well, anyway, containers with this solution and others with water have helped me to get rid of these annoying insects.
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Any chance you're overwatering your plants or they don't have proper drainage? Excess moisture in your plants could be attracting the gnats so you want to make sure your plants are not too wet.
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If you notice that your plants are too wet, you can help to remedy it by removing your plant from the water it's sitting in. You can also help increase airflow to the plant by (carefully) drilling more holes into the bottom of the plant's pot (use thoughtful judgement when deciding if the pot is made out of a material that makes sense to drill through).
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I've had to deal with gnats more than a few times so let me share some of the things that have worked well in my home.
• Vinegar traps! Fill a small dish with some apple cider vinegar and a few drops of dish soap and leave it in a problem area. The gnats will be attracted to the vinegar and get caught in the solution. Just be sure to check and change them every few days.
• Take out your trash regularly because gnats may be attracted to food scraps or anything else you've thrown away.
• Pour boiling water down your drains to flush out the gunk inside and to get rid of those pesky drain flies.
• Hit them with a swatter or one of those electric tennis racket bug killers to kill them in the air.
• Put out a few commercial sticky traps or flypaper to catch the gnats.
Hoping these help!
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• Vinegar traps! Fill a small dish with some apple cider vinegar and a few drops of dish soap and leave it in a problem area. The gnats will be attracted to the vinegar and get caught in the solution. Just be sure to check and change them every few days.
• Take out your trash regularly because gnats may be attracted to food scraps or anything else you've thrown away.
• Pour boiling water down your drains to flush out the gunk inside and to get rid of those pesky drain flies.
• Hit them with a swatter or one of those electric tennis racket bug killers to kill them in the air.
• Put out a few commercial sticky traps or flypaper to catch the gnats.
Hoping these help!
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