Never have to worry about the pesky, annoying flies in your garden or homestead. Here are some simple, cheap ways to make an effective homemade fly trap.
RELATED: 9 Natural Ways to Get Rid of Flies | Home Remedies
In this article:
How to Make a Homemade Fly Trap Using Common Household Items
The Ultimate Homemade Fly Trap
Living on a homestead or in an urban home with a big backyard is great. You’ll have a wide-open space where you can host yard parties, play family games, walk the dogs, and do gardening activities.
The downside is that plants also serve as a home to flies. Garden flies, fruit flies, and kitchen flies all come from plants, trees, shrubs, and flowers.
Not only are they annoying, but some of them also carry some serious diseases and illnesses. And with the COVID-19 pandemic, you wouldn’t want to get sick. Hospitals and clinics are jam-packed.
So how do you get rid of flies quickly and efficiently? By making a homemade fly trap!
What You’ll Need:
- Dishwashing soap
- Empty 2-liter plastic bottle
- Tap water
- Bait (options will be explained below)
Step 1: Prepare the Funnel
Grab the bottle and slice off the top part. You should leave about 3/4 of the plastic bottle.
Then, remove the cap, flip the top upside down, and place it inside the bottle. Note that it should form a funnel where the mouth is hanging above the bottle’s base.
Step 2: Make the Bait
Flies are generally attracted to sweet and foul odors, so the best options to add to your bait are:
- honey mixed with water
- raw meat such as steak trimmings or one teaspoon of ground meat
- rotten or overripe with a strong, sweet smell like strawberries and bananas
- animal manure
Feel free to either use one of these options to mix two of them together. You can also use all of the ingredients to create a disgusting bait that flies won’t be able to resist.
Pro Tip: Only add manure to the mixture if you’re going to use the trap outside. Using a manure-based fly trap indoors is just unhygienic and off-putting.
Step 3: Fill the Bottle With Bait
Next, it’s time to fill the bottle with water and bait. Make sure to leave a few centimeters of space between the mouth of the bottle and the bait-water mixture.
Step 4: Set the Bait
Leave your homemade fly trap in your kitchen, garden, attic, storage house, or anywhere there are flies.
Bonus: Homemade Fly Trap Explained
How does this trap work? The goal is to get flies to zoom down the funnel and into the disgusting bait. Once their wings get wet, they’ll be unable to fly and will eventually drown.
RELATED: Common Garden Pests and How to Manage Them [Infographic] | Homesteading
Other Ways to Get Rid of Flies
Do you feel like the original homemade fly trap is too messy? You can try out these other options:
1. Homemade Fly Paper
Looking for a quick, easy way to get rid of flies using only two ingredients? Try this homemade fly paper trap!
What You’ll Need:
- honey
- paper (any kind of used paper that’s thick and durable)
Instructions:
- Get a piece of paper and cut it to 8 x 13 inches. It should be as big as a regular-sized piece of bond paper.
- Then, spread the honey all over the paper. Make sure to apply the honey generously so the flies will stick to the trap right away.
- Once the fly paper is ready, you can hang it on your ledge, ceiling, deck, or garden pole.
Tip:
Interested in making your own honey? Here’s a comprehensive guide on how to start beekeeping.
2. DIY Fly Repellent
The first homemade fly traps are great, but they’re kind of an eyesore. Not every homeowner is okay with putting up a jar of manure, fruits, and water outside their garden. Luckily, there’s an alternative: the fly repellent.
What You’ll Need:
- dish soap
- vinegar
- water
- plastic spray bottle
Instructions:
- Mix all the ingredients in the clean plastic spray bottle.
- Shake well and then start spraying around your homestead.
- This might not kill flies, but they can certainly keep them at bay.
3. Air Freshener/Fly Repellent
Ditch the chemical-filled fly repellents and use this all-natural option instead. Every time you spray the repellent, it leaves a delicious trail of your favorite fruit and floral fragrances.
What You’ll Need:
- 5 kinds of essential oils
- plastic spray bottle
- water
Instructions:
- Prepare your essential oils. We suggest options with a strong fragrance such as peppermint, lavender, rosemary, lemon citronella, lemongrass, and rose, among others.
- Mix one part of each essential oil in a spray bottle then dilute it with some water.
- Spray all around the house.
Pro Tip:
Planning to host a backyard party? Don’t turn your guests off with random fly traps lying around your home. Control fly activity by using this aromatic, fragrant fly repellent instead.
4. Clove-Infused Fruit Slices
Flies hate cloves. They’re an all-natural repellent and will keep these pests away from your living space.
What You’ll Need:
- cloves
- fruit slices
Instructions:
- Jam the fruit slices with a bunch of cloves. Try making about five to six of these repellents.
- Scatter them all around your garden and indoor living space.
5. Build a Fly-Repellent Garden
Another solid way to keep flies away from your home without using a homemade fly trap is to build a natural fly-repelling garden. Plant them all around your yard and you’ll soon notice fewer flies coming to your home.
Some great options to add to your fly-repelling garden are herbs such as:
- basil
- mint
- tansy
- citronella
- rosemary
- lavender
- marigold
Check out this video by HOW TO DIY for a step-by-step video guide on how to make a simple homemade fly trap:
You can also use these herbs to mask the scent of your farmhouse. Dry a bunch of herbs and scatter them all around the areas where your livestock usually defecates.
These are just some of the possible ways to make a homemade fly trap. Feel free to create your own version. Overall, the goal would be to lure garden flies, kitchen flies, and fruit flies into a small container, trap them, and eventually leave them to die.
Just make sure to use all-natural ingredients. Skip the products with toxic chemicals that might be harmful to your kids, pets, or even garden crops.
Have you tried making your own homemade fly trap before? Did it work? Share your experience in the comments section below!
Fellow homesteaders, do you want to help others learn from your journey by becoming one of our original contributors? Write for us!
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