If you happen to be sharing your home with drain flies these days, you are probably wondering how to get rid of them. There are several available options to do so, and most internet sites suggest the use of spray products, among many others. But is drain flies spray really effective? Here is all you need to know about such option.
Before we begin, let us cover the basics first. Drain flies are, at the end of the day, just flies. This means that they can obviously be killed by almost any kind of insecticide spray. However, such insecticides can often be harmful for people if not applied correctly. This means that the spaces where you can apply such spray are quite limiting, and generally does not include kitchens or any other area which you do not plan to leave empty for a while.
On the other side, there are several combinations of bio sprays available. Some of them can be mixed by yourself, from the comfort of your home and with products which you probably already have there.
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What Spray Kills Drain Flies?
As just mentioned above, there are several options available here.
The first and probably most common spray that one can think of is the classic insecticide spray. This can be easily found in almost any store or you can order it online. Depending on the brand, there are so many different solutions available- from strictly chemical ones to modern ones which use natural ingredients. However, whichever of the insecticide sprays you decide to apply to your home, there is a universal rule for all of them. And it says that the areas need to be properly ventilated after the spraying process.
This can bring to several discomfort for some families, especially those with small kids or house pets, as they would need to avoid such areas for several hours. Also, it means that such spray products must not get in contact with any food, drinks, or kitchen utensils, which ultimately adds to the discomfort, as all such items need to be removed or properly covered before the spraying process begins.
Another popular commercial type of spray which many homes use to get rid of sewer gnats is the insect growth regulator. As opposed to the insecticide sprays which need to be applied directly to the flies, this version is effective on the areas where flies live.
It is great for crack openings but can also be applied on some pipe areas. It is limited however to those surfaces that can easily be reached. The purpose of such product is to disable the flies of breeding and laying eggs, so that their life cycle gets disrupted and they eventually leave in the search of a new home. Very similar to other commercial sprays, this too can be toxic if not handled properly. And all surfaces need to be thoroughly cleaned after the use of such spray.
Finally, here is an example of a simple yet quite effective spray solution, which can easily be prepared from the comfort of your home. Simply find a spray bottle, pour some dish soap and warm water in it, and you got yourself a home-made insecticide spray.
With less chemicals, obviously. Six to seven drops of dish soap combined with two cups of warm water will do the trick. Dish soap contains borax, a substance with insecticidal features, so flies will die instantly when sprayed with such solution.
Will Fly Spray Kill Drain Flies?
The answer is quite simple here: yes, fly spray will kill drain flies. Drain flies are peculiar because they tend to live into our pipes and sewers but, when all is put together, they are just flies. These tiny and fuzzy creatures are just as fragile as any other type of fly, with the exception that they are not even such good fliers. So yes, it is quite simple to kill them with spray.
With that said, here comes the other side of the story. Spray can only kill those flies which you are able to see and apply the product on them. However, most of their tiny fuzzy friends will, at the time of spraying, be safe and protected from the comfort of your pipes and drains. Indeed, these are the places where they spend most of their time.
Gnats feed on bacteria, mold, and all scum they can find across pipes, vent holes, sewers, and so on. Also, these are the areas where they breed and lay eggs. Eventually, they will come out every now and then, and spraying those few visible flies cannot even nearly solve the problem. As with any other kind of infestation, it needs to be fixed from the root. That is why an effective pipe cleaning is needed, too.
To conclude, we can state that spray products are absolutely effective on killing those flies which are directly affected by the spray, but they make just a superficial and cosmetic fix to the real problem. Most of the flies, along with their eggs and the food they need to survive, are located inside the pipes and they will keep breeding in there until such comfortable places are destroyed for them.
How to Get Rid of Drain Flies?
Now that we are completely aware of what area needs to be covered in order for the whole issue to be resolved, we can suggest so many ways to do.
There are helpful home remedies which you can prepare yourself, but there are also several commercial pipe cleaning products which are not that dangerous or harmful. Completely bio-friendly gels, for example, are one of the spectacular contributions in the drain purification process. They are safe for your home environment and the people who live in it (and pets, too), but also super effective in attacking the very root of the issue.
To get more information on that, as well as on ten different homemade solutions, please have a read of our complete guide on how to get rid of drain flies.