DIY Fruit Fly Trap in 4 Easy Steps
Are you having trouble with fruit flies in your kitchen, garbage, compost bin, or elsewhere in your home? I know it’s a problem for me from time to time, especially in my grow room. Well luckily, it’s SUPER easy to build an effective DIY fruit fly trap with just a couple of household supplies. Learn more about how to build your own fruit fly trap below!
But first…
What are Fruit Flies Attracted to?
Fruit flies love to eat fermenting fruit. As fruit and other organic materials begin to get over-ripe and break down, they start to ferment and produce alcohols and vinegar. Fruit flies are attracted to the sweet aroma of these byproducts, and these moist environments are also ideal places for them to lay their eggs.
Now, onto the important stuff. How to build your own DIY fruit fly trap!
Supplies Needed for a DIY Fruit Fly Trap
You only need a couple of supplies to build your own DIY fruit fly trap and I bet you have some, if not all, of these items lying around your house!
Supplies include:
Empty water bottle (size doesn’t really matter, but I used a 1.5 liter bottle)
Plastic wrap
Rubber band
Apple cider vinegar
Dish soap
Scissors or box cutter
How to Build a DIY Fruit Fly Trap in 4 Steps
Step 1:
Carefully cut your water bottle in half with your scissors or box cutter. You will only need about 4-5 inches of the bottom half of the bottle.
If you want to use a cup or a mason jar instead, you can skip this step.
Step 2:
Time to mix up your trap bait. For this, pour about half an inch of apple cider vinegar into your remaining bottle, cup, or jar.
You should use apple cider vinegar for this because it has a sweet aroma that will attract fruit flies. There are other types of traps where white vinegar can be used, but for this method, stick to apple cider vinegar.
Step 3:
Now, add a couple teaspoons of dish soap, it doesn’t have to be precise. The purpose of the dish soap is to break the surface tension of the vinegar so the flies can’t land on top of it. Without it, the fruit flies would be able to land right on top of the vinegar and fly away again.
Step 4:
Finally, take a small piece of plastic wrap or press n’ seal, and pull it tight over the open mouth of the trap.
Secure the plastic wrap in place with a rubber band, ensuring the surface remains taught.
Lastly, poke a few holes into the plastic wrap, just large enough for the fruit flies to get in. This will allow them to get in, but makes it more difficult for them to escape.
Time to Set Your Trap
Congratulations, your DIY fruit fly trap is complete! Now, just set it near the area of your fruit fly problem and give it a few days to work.
As I previously mentioned, my grow room had a few annoying fruit flies hanging around so I set my trap right on the shelf between my tomato seedlings.
1 Week Update
I set my trap out a week ago and I’m already seeing great results! There are about half a dozen flies floating around in my trap and there’s definitely a decrease in the number of flies hanging around my plants.
Conclusion
If fruit flies are giving you a problem, they are really easy to control with this DIY fruit fly trap. As you can see, it is quick and simple to build, and is basically free. The other bonus to this method is you can recycle some plastic bottles instead of sending them to the landfill.
I’d love to hear your thoughts and ideas about how to build a DIY fruit fly trap, so please reach out and comment below! Also, if you enjoyed this article and would like more weekly content, make sure to subscribe to our blog!
Happy Fruit Fly Hunting!
Cody
Thistle Downs Farm
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