How to get rid of a plague of little flies

[wetotter]

I have an infestation. Just in one room (kitchen)

I've tried open windows and door in the hope they'll fly away to freedom.

I've tried fly paper, but very few have been dim enough to fly in to it.

I've tried Raid, but it doesn't seem up to the job - but perhaps that's how I've been using it - spraying a bit half-heatedly as I have a dog and didn't think it would be good for her.

Now I'd prefer it if the flies would just leave - they're only 'guilty' of being alive in an inconvenient place. But that's not looking likely. And the dog's away soon at the sitters for 48 hours because of Other Stuff going on.

So what's the best thing to do to rid myself of this problem? Spray? Which one? How extensively?

I can get to a good range of shops and have Amazon, so should be able to get my mitts on any mainstream product

If the flies are breeding in pot plant compost, spray the surface of the compost with RoseClear a few times over a month. It kills the larvae of the flies. To eliminate the flies themselves, I suck them up in the hoover attachment once a day. It soon makes a difference once the larvae are killed off.

OK, the cider/sugar mix did next to nothing last night.

Going to go the spray pesticide route whilst the dog is away - as that's now or not for ages - any recommendations for which ones are best?

Will also be continuing with the recommendations for eliminating source in parallel. They're all sitting on the ceiling the morning, so not sure if I can hoover them up!

Yeah, they weren't fruit flies so I'd have been surprised if you'd have caught any.

What shops do you have local to you and I can help with recommendations? I am an environmental advisor so I know what works best.

Really though, you're looking for anything wet and green... puddles, sewage, decaying wet plant matter, even garbage disposals. This is where these 'shore flies' are coming from.

I would try the spray again! Get your dog ready for a long walk, cover any food, utensils or anything you eat off, dog bowls etc - anything you wouldn't want fly spray on, even dog bedding into another room.

Spray liberally, shut the kitchen door and go out for a walk. Come home, open windows, doors etc and ventilate and your dog will be fine.

They look like cluster flies. They breed in my window casements and are a problem in Spring and Autumn. The only way I can deal with them is by using Raid. I hate the stuff so spray it liberally behind closed curtains before I go out for the day. Doing this a couple of times generally solves the problem for six months or so.

I had this the other week, there must have been eggs on a piece of fruit.

I washed all fruit, put fruit in the fridge and any fruit that couldn't go in the fridge I covered with t towels for about 10 days! Move any house plants outside for a day or so and thoroughly wipe down sides x

Are cluster flies very small, I thought our infestation was fruit flies, they are very small and not very fast e.g. I can often kill one flying past by catching it which I couldn't do with a house fly.

I use these sheets www.amazon.co.uk/ZOORE-Flycatcher-Yellow-Sticky-Multiple/dp/B07LBK1WHV/?encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=WxMVq&content-id=amzn1.sym.31c9090c-9b65-4f91-bf37-04dd92281172&pf_rd_p=31c9090c-9b65-4f91-bf37-04dd92281172&pf_rd_r=8JX5N9KK1KM5176GS38X&pd_rd_wg=LLNjf&pd_rd_r=7af8cfc4-c30c-4865-bbc6-d67dfeac029a&ref=pd_gw_ci_mcx_mi and catch hundreds of them but it doesn't seem to be slowing them down. I have two carnivorous plants and I've tried the vinegar. I've used Raid in the past but haven't tried it recently. I just can't get rid of them. I haven't got any rotting fruit, don't have a mop bucket. I just don't understand it.

I've now got Raid and a can of cockroach/ant killer.

I'm going to stick on a mask, spray surfaces where they settle with the cockroach one, and then spray the Raid everywhere, then shut the door and leave it undisturbed for a couple of hours.

Hope that's a sensible plan. Fingers crossed!

I emptied the fruit bowl, and all other food is in cupboards. Dog now at sitters so water bowl is away for a while.

Cluster flies

OK, I'll try again. I have a PhD in entomology... they're not cluster flies, or fruit flies, or fungus gnats, or drain flies...

They're 'shore flies'... note the orientation of the wings compared to the cluster flies people are suggesting.

Feel free to pm me. I do this for a living.

Raid will be a quick fix, don't use it around fish but other animals are reasonably safe. Typical Raid formulations are pyrethrin-based, but check... (you're looking for any ingredients ending in "-thrin".

Anyone else with bug-related queries, I'm all ears.

Oh thank you!

I used Raid liberally last night (not a bad way to do a fit test on an N95 mask!)

Not eradicated completely, but major reduction achieved thank goodness. Will repeat and hope that's the end of it.

(And I'll be keeping fly paper up)

I've never heard of shore flies before (and I'm not remotely coastal!) Is there anything they're particularly attracted to (so I know what to be most careful about - or conversely what to bait fly paper with)

Ah, shore flies is just a generic name. I believe its given to them because they're often near standing bodies of water. In commercial greenhouses you see these in swarms around the puddles underneath the plants where all the plant matter ends up and algae is growing. That's what you're looking for, anything wet and grimey.

Pyrethrins are what they call knockdown insecticides. In lower volumes the insect is basically stunned but can recover, so be sure to hoover or squish anything that falls, but they're great for flying insects as they're practically instantaneous.