There are several ways of killing both houseflies as well as fruit flies, but if you wish to rid yourself of these pests using non-toxic methods, you're in luck. There are several homeopathic ways to get rid of these flies while keeping your home perfectly safe for family and pets.
Vinegar
Mix a few drops of liquid dish soap as well as a stick of cinnamon into a spray bottle filled with common household vinegar and shake well. Flies and fruit flies are repelled by the vinegar and cinnamon -- and the soap helps the other ingredients stick to the bodies of the flies and the fruit flies. This concoction may not kill the little pests, but it will stop them from flying and allow you to easily dispose of them.
Lemongrass Oil
Mix 1 tbsp. lemongrass oil with 16 oz. water in a spray bottle, shake and then spray directly on the flies and the areas where they congregate. Again, this homeopathic solution may not kill the flies directly, but it will prevent them from being able to fly and allow you to deal with them more easily.
Crush Basil Leaves
Flies and fruit flies do not like the aroma of basil. Crush a few basil leaves into a bowl where you keep fruit, into trash containers, and in garbage disposals where flies and fruit flies linger. Placing cedar strips in fruit bowls and around garbage containers can also discourage fruit flies and houseflies.
Keep the House Airy
Open screened windows and remove any old fruit, allowing fresh, cool air to circulate in your kitchen. Fruit flies do not like cool, circulating air and if their source of nourishment --old, overripe fruit -- is removed, they are likely to leave and look for easier pickings elsewhere.
Make a Fly Trap
Put a small piece of banana in the bottom of a clean jar and insert a funnel made of paper into the jar with the pointed end of the funnel inside the jar, near the banana. The flies and fruit flies will go down the funnel to the banana and not be able to fly out of the funnel. When the jar is full, cover it and dispose of it or release the flies away from your home.
The Drip Cap
- Fruit flies are a type of tiny housefly that hover around overripe fruit.
- Again, this homeopathic solution may not kill the flies directly, but it will prevent them from being able to fly and allow you to deal with them more easily.
- Placing cedar strips in fruit bowls and around garbage containers can also discourage fruit flies and houseflies.
- When the jar is full, cover it and dispose of it or release the flies away from your home.