If you've just returned from vacation to a home filled with tiny flying pests, you may need to figure out how to get rid of drain flies. Also known as drain moths or sewer flies, these harmless but irritating insects breed in stagnant rainwater inside buckets, puddles and garbage cans. Drain flies, however, can also breed in standing water within your home. For example, an underused toilet or a leaky bathtub faucet can quickly become a haven for the pests. This guide will help you rid your home of drain flies and take preventative measures to avoid their pesky return.
To get rid of drain flies you will need:
- Drain cleaner
- Insecticide (specifically, the kind used to kill houseflies)
- Grout (optional)
- Spray your infested drains with insecticide. Any aerosol-based insecticide that specializes in eliminating houseflies should be sufficient to destroy the drain flies and any eggs nesting within your drains. Since drain flies do not navigate the complex system of your house's piping, you only need to focus on areas and rooms that are clearly a source of the drain fly problem.
- Clean your kitchen sink drains thoroughly. If found in your kitchen, the drain flies are likely feeding on decaying food particles left behind in the residue within the drains of your kitchen sink. Use a strong drain cleaner to eliminate these food particles along with any eggs residing in your pipes.
- Grout your bathroom tiles. This step may seem like overkill in the initial removal of the infestation, but eliminating accumulated moisture in between your tiles will help prevent further appearances of drain flies.
- Scrub your toilet. Use another strong drain cleaner in the toilet to destroy the insect eggs. Bleach is not an insecticide, and will not eliminate your drain fly problem.
- Regularly clean gutters, air conditioner drains, and the area beneath your washing machine (if it becomes damp when in use). These further preventative measures will help to ensure that you do not have a return infestation after eliminating the initial problem.
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