What is the home made fruit fly trap?

[Renthead Mommy]

I remember it is something like plastic wrap over a glass. What are you supposed to put in the glass? How much? And what do you do to the plastic wrap? 1 hole? more?

Thanks.

[Cathy in IL]

Apple cider vinegar with a few drops of dish soap works well. I put double sided tape over the top with a few inhes open in the center. They stick to the tape and they drown in the vinegar.

[Kate in Arabia]

I did something different.

Put a small amount of orange juice in a glass (I used an old glass that I threw away at the end). Make a cone (like a funnel) out of a piece of paper and put the narrower end in the glass (don't let the paper cone touch the juice). Put tape around the outside of the cone, taping it to the glass -- no gaps.

It took a day or two and the glass filled up with fruit flies.

But, actually, the plastic wrap sounds like it may be easier, lol...

Kate

[Pencil Pusher]

Yuck! We've got them here on a fresh batch of fruit! I've got vinegar, but it's not apple cider--does that matter? Does anything else work?

[Joanne]

I tried the homemade approaches last year. We caught bunches; it was gross!

Our infestation was so bad that the only thing the worked was bombs and moving the kicthen garbage to the garage.

[OrganicAnn]

Put a piece of ripe fruit in the vinegar and it will work fine. Bananas are particularly affective.

[Tutor]

I did something different.

Put a small amount of orange juice in a glass (I used an old glass that I threw away at the end). Make a cone (like a funnel) out of a piece of paper and put the narrower end in the glass (don't let the paper cone touch the juice). Put tape around the outside of the cone, taping it to the glass -- no gaps.

This is the type of trap we made when I worked in the genetics lab in college and we needed to catch the "escapees" - thousands of them. (Fruit flies were our medium.) We used a little molasses and a chunk of banana for our bait, though. Worked great!

[Pencil Pusher]

Put a piece of ripe fruit in the vinegar and it will work fine. Bananas are particularly affective.

Thanks! Dh has taken to simply swatting them when they land on a piece of fruit he has relegated to "bait." It's driving me crazy! :lol:

[susie in tx]

I just take some apple cider vinegar and put it into a small cup or bowl. They come, they feast, they drown.

[SherrieSisk]

I just take some apple cider vinegar and put it into a small cup or bowl. They come, they feast, they drown.

LOL - SO glad I'm not the only one dealing with this. It's disgusting. But DD loves counting the victims as they sink to the bottom.

Sigh. I worry about that kid a little.

FWIW, we use apple cider vinegar, two to four drops of full strength dishwashing detergent -- but I'm gonna have to try that double-sided tape thing next time, too!

[wildflower]

a saucer with a bit of red wine and pouring boiling water down the kitchen sink (or bathroom) drain for a few days (2 or 3) to kill the eggs. vinegar and baking soda makes their life uneasy in the drain also.

[Sharon H in IL]

We have a trap set on our kitchen counter all summer.

I've found a cone made of the slick material I originally bought as a non-stick liner for my baking pans works wonderfully well. A little apple cider vinegar at the bottom. I'm going to try the trick of taping the cone to the top of the glass to prevent any tiny gaps.

My friend alerted me to a better success rate at smacking them if your hands are wet first. Sure enough, wet hands meant a better kill rate. :D

[KatieinMich]

I simply took an old jar..pickle, or whatever..poked some holes into the metal lid with a nail..put some plain old white vinegar into the jar and let it sit for a few days. Worked like a charm.

[alpidarkomama]

Vinegar! Great idea. We've always just used banana, then you get hundreds of little fruit fly maggots in the banana soup. Kind of interesting, mostly gross. :) I'm going to add vinegar next time.

[Pencil Pusher]

AAAHHH!!! I just woke up to a cup of vinegar w/ old fruit...NOT. COVERED. WITH. ANYTHING.

So apparently now we're just feeding them. :glare: And...blech...I think...I've got one...up...my nose. ILCK>

[prairiegirl]

I just read about this homemade trap last week. I put cider vinegar in a bowl with plastic wrap and poked about 5 holes. Wow! It really works! We have been suffering with summer fruit flies for a few years now. I am so happy to have a 'fix' for this problem.