What Katy Property Owners Need To Know About Fruit Flies
What is something that drives you crazy more than anything else? Someone chewing with their mouth open? People not using their blinkers to single their turns? What about when someone doesn’t flush the toilet after they finish? Everyone has pet peeves, the question is, do you also have pest peeves? Wanting to pull your hair out when fruit flies invade your home is an excellent example of a pest peeve that many residents here in Katy suffer with. To keep these annoying invaders out of your home, here are a few things you should know.
How To Identify Fruit Flies
Fruit flies are about as small as flies come and only grow to be ⅛” max. These tiny tan bugs have black abdomens and grey underbellies, though you won’t see these features unless you put them under a magnifying glass.
The best way to identify a fruit fly infestation is not by what the flies look like but rather where they are residing. If they congregate around left out fruit and vegetables, they are probably fruit flies. If they gather around moist areas such as sinks and bathrooms, they are probably drain flies. If they are larger and land on your food while you are trying to eat, they are probably house flies. Although fruit flies most commonly lay their eggs and live around rotting or decaying fruits and vegetables, they are capable of breeding and developing around garbage disposals, trash cans, and mop buckets.
What Attracts Fruit Flies?
Fruit flies love rotting or decaying organic matter, especially over-ripened fruits and vegetables. Often fruit flies will infest foods at local supermarkets and farms. It is not until you bring the infested food home with you that the problems arise. Less commonly, fruit flies will enter into homes through gaps and cracks and lay eggs on over-ripe fruits and vegetables left out on counters and tabletops. Sweating foods and beverages also attract fruit flies to properties and into homes.
Are Fruit Flies Dangerous?
Fruit flies are as dangerous as the rotting matter they were born from. If you didn’t know, when things rot, they often pick up dangerous bacteria. As fruit flies breed around decaying organic matter, they risk picking up diseases like E. coli, salmonella, and listeria. If your home is infested by fruit flies, be careful what you eat and where you leave leftover foods.
Prevention Tips For Fruit Flies
Fruit flies are not complicated pests. Besides, their life span is only 50 days maximum. In this time, all they are concerned about is finding a place to breed and filling their bellies as much as they can. Prevent fruit flies around your home, by limiting where they are able to breed and by making it difficult for them to invade. To do this, use these simple tips and tricks:
- Use a caulking gun to seal holes, cracks, and gaps around your home’s exterior
- Make sure your window and door screens are in good working order
- Avoid buying over-ripened fruits and vegetables
- Invest in tight insect-proof lids for your trash cans
- Keep your pantries, cabinets, and food storage areas clean
- Store fruit in the fridge rather than out on countertops
How To Get Rid Of Fruit Flies
If you are having trouble with fruit flies around your Katy home, there is only one solution guaranteed to solve your problem, and that is professional pest control. To eliminate fruit flies and take back your sanity, let the experts at Modern Pest Control help. We have the advanced solutions your home needs to combat pest problems of all shapes and sizes. Give us a call today at Modern Pest Control to find out more about our services or to schedule a visit for your Katy home and property.