What is the best way to get rid of houseflies?

Question

This summer has been crazy with houseflies... what is the best way to get rid of them? I've been chasing them around with a swatter, but there has to be a better way... help!

Joel Barron · Answer

Hey Joel I've had pretty good luck swatting them with a newspaper.

Shari · Answer

I know about flies. We own a horse farm. We have plans to install a fly system but in the meantime we're using the Starbar QuickStrike Fly Abatement Strips in our barns. http://www.starbarproducts.com/sub_page.php?id=2 They aren't cheap but they work amazingly well. We have to lay them in a small cardboard box because they attract enough flies to fill the box up. (It's actually pretty disgusting how many flies they attract and kill.) That might be overkill for your situation but Starbar has other fly trap products to chose from. We usually buy ours through the farm feed store but my husband recently found some on eBay for a little cheaper. Since you probably don't have any farm feed stores in Brooklyn, I know Amazon.com carries Starbar fly products (and of course, eBay). The link above also has a 'where to buy' link listed for each product.

Becky P · Answer

@Shari, when I go to my sister's house, who has horses, I keep the windows rolled up, or else I would be bringing them home with me!

Nancy G · Answer

Borrow my cats? lol

Shari · Answer

@ Yep, I know what you mean. We don't dare leave doors open for too long and make it a practice to scoot in and out of the house as quickly as possible. As if the horses don't generate enough flies on their own, our problem is compounded by a large strawberry field/farm that butts up to the entire west side of our property. The end of strawberry season here is around late March so from that point on, they don't pick the late blooming berries anymore and they just lay in the field rotting until the farmers plow the fields sometime during the summer, before they plant again in late September or early October. We did get a little reprieve this year because they lost their strawberry crop to a fungus so they plowed right away and planted watermelons instead. The flies have been better, but that's still not saying much. They drive me crazy. Ahhhh...the joys of country life!

Z · Answer

Though their not very pretty, we've used the sticky tape things in the past. Since we use the garage door for entering our home we hung one close to that door in the garage. Not sure why we don't have too many flies the last few years as we still live in the same place in the country, but I keep the strips on hand just incase.

Kimberlee · Answer

has anyone tried the trick that was posted on Pinterest? My girlfriend swears by it! http://pinterest.com/pin/139048707216833380/ we're trying it tonight!

Z · Answer

I've heard of this, but why they water with a penny it and not just a mirror?

Lori J · Answer

The penny trick does not work in dappled light or shade, based on my experience.

Jayme · Answer

I have recently heard of the 'penny in a bag of water' solution....I live across from a cattle farm and for the last 2 years I have used the Rescue Fly Trap.  I hang them in some of the trees around my yard in the Spring as soon as I see the first fly.  You don't want to hang these right next to the house because they have an odor of decaying animal....but boy do they work!!!  When the bag is full, you just push the top back down and dispose of the whole thing.  In a Michigan summer I might use 4 of them for the whole summer.

Z · Answer

I think I'm going to change to a fly trap since those strips are gross. Thanks to Shari and Jayme for sharig them.

Jim Ginas · Answer

What I did LAST summer for about a week when we had crazy flies in the house. Not sure if a dead animal under the house or WHY, BUT what I did was spray this Orange natural bug spray into a Dustbuster and then I SUCK up the flies with the Dustbuster! (get them against a door / window / wall.) No FLY splatter, etc.

Tracy Frerichs · Answer

I'm willing to try this: Keeping flies out! Hang a bag of pennies in water over your doors. Who would have thought! Pennies in water fly repellent! Apparently the millions of molecules of water presents its own prism effect and given that flies have a lot of eyes, to them it's like a zillion disco balls reflecting light, colors and movement in a dizzying manner. http://pinterest.com/pin/245798092135553723/

Tami @ Curb Alert! · Answer

That Rescue Fly Trap sure works well but OH BOY you are right, IT STINKS BAD!

Anna · Answer

I am using the bag of water w/ 4 pennies on my back patio, and yes it is amazing! No more flies! One of my friends was telling me her mom has done it for years. She says it works really well, then for some reason it just stopped working. They moved the bags around and viola! they worked again. I Haven't had flies in the house either. Don't know if the bags are doing double duty, or if I am just lucky so far!

KMS Woodworks · Answer

we do not have too many flies here in the high Mountains of Colorado...but if we did I would be tempted to get something like this. http://www.amazon.com/SKELL-INC-Original-Salt-Gun-BS61/dp/B00AB88UDA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1374243355&sr=8-1&keywords=bug+a+salt I'm a bit skeptical on the water / bag / penny thing. The Scientific base is just not there. http://www.snopes.com/critters/wild/flies.asp

Joel Barron · Answer

I like the old fashioned swatter method.

Judy · Answer

Flies were driving me crazy in my living room last year so I thought 'What the heck have I got to lose?' & hung a pint storage baggie about 1/2 full of water near my chair. I only saw 2 flies in the whole house the rest of the summer. penny is not needed.

Redcatcec · Answer

The swatter method works most of the time, but picking them up after is gross.

Chas' Crazy Creations · Answer

Here's a post that might help - https://chascrazycreations.com/keep-pests-out-of-your-garden/

Mogie · Answer

If you want to be fancy get an electric fly swatter some of them even keep score on the number of flies killed.

What is the best way to get rid of houseflies?

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What is the best way to get rid of houseflies?

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