Indoor Fly Repellent

In many cases, housefly infestations are often just a nuisance. However, houseflies can also carry viruses and bacteria that can spread when they bite. Diseases house flies might carry include:

• food poisoning
• cholera
• E. coli
• typhoid fever
• dysentery
• tuberculosis
• eye infections
• tropical infection called yaws

It’s possible, and often even preferable, to get rid of houseflies naturally, without pesticides. Potential methods include:

Herbs and flowers

Herbs and flowers can be planted both in your garden and outside to keep flies away from your house. Herbs and flowers that can repel flies include:

• basil
• marigold
• lavender
• bay leaves
• catnip

As a bonus, some can be used for cooking as well.

Vinegar and dish soap

A mixture of vinegar and dish soap can help you trap flies. To use this method, mix about an inch of apple cider vinegar and a few drops of dish soap in a tall glass. Cover the glass with plastic wrap. Secure the plastic wrap with a rubber band and poke small holes in the top.

Flies will be attracted to the vinegar in the glass and will fly through the holes. However, the dish soap causes the flies to sink instead of being able to land on the vinegar.

Cayenne pepper and water

Cayenne pepper can help repel houseflies. Mix it with water and spray around the house to deter flies from coming in.

Venus flytrap

Venus flytraps are carnivorous plants that eat insects. If you plant them outside, they’ll naturally eat flies. Inside, you might need to feed the plant flies.

When a fly gets in the plant’s trap, it closes around the fly. It then secretes digestive fluid to dissolve the insect’s soft insides. It breaks down the insect over 5 to 12 days, then spits out the exoskeleton.

Natural trap bait

You can also use foods or drinks to which flies are attracted in order to entice them into traps. These include:

• sugar (honey or molasses)
• wine
• fruit
• meat

In addition to natural ways to get rid of houseflies, you can use insecticides and traps to kill or remove the flies.

Pyrethrin-based insecticide

When you have a large housefly infestation, insecticides can be effective because they work quickly. However, they’re not effective in the long term, because flies have short life cycles and will develop resistance. Additionally, the effect of the insecticide goes away quickly.

If you do need or want to use insecticide, pyrethrin-based insecticides are most common for indoor fly infestations. Be sure that you buy an insecticide specifically for indoor use, ventilate the area well, and follow the directions exactly.

Light trap

Light traps are boxes with a light in the back that attracts flies. When the flies try to get to the light, they’ll either be killed with an electric zap or trapped, depending on what kind of light trap you choose.

Be sure to mount light traps away from entrances and windows, so they can’t be seen from the outside. They should also be mounted within 5 feet of the floor.

Sticky traps

Sticky traps are strips of sticky paper that can be hung or laid down throughout your house. They’re not as effective as other traps, but can be added to help remove infestations.