A super simple fix is to pour boiling water down the drain to eliminate drain flies. Boil a medium-size pot of water once or twice per week, and pour down and around the drain. Another easy option uses baking soda: Combine 1/2 cup salt with 1/2 cup baking soda and 1 cup of vinegar, and pour down the drain.
Mix ½ cup of baking soda with ½ cup of salt, and pour it down the drain. Follow that up with one cup of vinegar. Allow everything to sit overnight.
Pour Boiling Water Down the Drain- Fruit flies can usually survive typical water flow down the drain, but boiling some hot water and pouring it down can kill flies and their eggs. Peptanks points out that this may be done a few times a week for a couple of weeks to make sure you kill any future generations of flies.
The most effective way how to get rid of drain flies to expose them to hot, but not boiling water. You don't want to cause the surface materials to crack! Pour an about one-half gallon of lukewarm fluid through the drain first. If it disappears quickly, you know that it is functioning correctly.
Drain flies, which are often called moth flies because they have a moth-like appearance, are common flies in kitchen areas and can appear in large numbers, like fungus gnats. If you look at a fungus fly on your wall, it will have a pill shape. Drain flies will be a heart shape.
Bleach will absolutely kill drain flies. However, using bleach comes with certain risks. It's better to try other methods first and use bleach as a last resort.
If gnats are in the drain, they will exit the sink drain and come out into view when disturbed by air movement. Sometimes running the garbage disposal will result in gnats being disturbed and flying out of the disposal drain.
Drain flies, also known as sewer flies, filter flies, moth flies or sink flies, look similar to the average house fly as they are very small – about an eighth of an inch – and black/brown. They also have a unique vein pattern in their wings, which are covered in tiny hairs. They leave a powdery smudge when crushed.
Attracted to damp soil, fungus gnats usually get into homes by flying inside or from infested houseplants brought inside the house. Fungus gnats infest soil and feed upon decaying or damaged plant roots as well as fungi found in the soil.
Essential Oils
Lavender, eucalyptus, peppermint, lemongrass, and citronella are just a few of the scents that insects despise (with lavender probably being the most effective).
They lay their eggs in moist soil or decaying fruit which the larva eats before hatching. Gnats can lay 100's of eggs so your infestation problem will get worse unless it's handled quickly.
Mix together 1/2 cup of salt, 1/2 cup baking soda and 1 cup of vinegar. Pour the mixture down the drain. Let sit overnight, then flush the drain with hot water in the morning. This should kill all flies and the organic material they've been feeding on.
Majority of the time you see black flies in your bathroom, it is because they found a home in a nearby drain. In bathrooms, this commonly occurs when drain flow is poor, unused or has stagnant water. To get rid of them, first remove their prime breeding ground.
That is, some dryer sheets do have characteristics that repel some insects. The bugs that are theoretically most likely to shy away from the dryer sheets are certain mites, food-infesting beetles, and weevils, German cockroaches, and, according to one study, fungus gnats.
Combine equal parts vinegar and soap and then add a few tablespoons of sugar – once you mix it all together you can place the bowl wherever the gnats have been gathering. They will be attracted to the sugar and vinegar and drown in the mixture.
Gnats: Gnats breed in all the sources listed above: drains, rotting fruits and vegetables,and trash cans. Fungus gnats are often spotted around potted plants or windows. They like to breed in very moist soil. These gnats are tiny flies with long legs and long thin wings.
Do not use bleach. Since bleach does not coat the pipes, it will not kill the flies. Also, undiluted bleach is not good for your pipes and is not eco-friendly. Instead, try picking up a drain-friendly cleaner from your local supermarket that will remove all sludge, grime and bio-buildup.
If water and organic matter collect inside a drain, drain flies will feed on it and multiply quickly. You will most commonly see these gnats in bathrooms and near kitchen sinks.
Baking Soda, Boiling Water & Vinegar
The pour half a cup of bicarb soda down the sink as well, followed by a half cup of white vinegar. Let it settle for a few minutes then poor some more boiling water down the drain. Follows these steps every few days until the drain flies have completely disappeared.
Vinegar itself does not get rid of gnats, but it is a good luring tactic to attract gnats into a trap. Vinegar smells sweet, so gnats will fly into a trap to get a drink. Using another substance like liquid dish soap helps to trap the gnats, that way they end up dying in the vinegar mixture.
Pour diluted bleach down the sink or tub drain, if you find gnats hovering near plumbing fixtures. Mash rotten bananas into a bowl, stretch plastic wrap over the top, and poke holes in the plastic. Kill individual gnats by employing a spray bottle filled with water, vinegar, and dish soap.
Hydrogen peroxide is an easy solution when it comes to eliminating fungus gnats. It is safe to use around plants and animals and won't damage the environment. The peroxide reacts with the organic matter in the soil and increase the acidity levels, making it difficult for the fungus gnats to survive.
Drain flies and fruit flies are often confused for one another, says Craig Sansig, a service director at Viking Pest Control, but there are a few key differences between the two. Fruit flies stick to decaying or fermenting fruits and vegetables. Drain flies stay around drains, leaky pipes, or sewers.