Fruit Flies

I've seen a couple fruit flies around my batch today. I wanted to make sure a coffee filter held on with a rubber band will be enough to keep them out. Does anyone know of anything that will work better or keep them away completely? I don't keep my batch near food so I was surprised to see them.

Coffee filters with a rubber band should be sufficient.


BTW, Flies and Yeast evolved together since Yeast can't move around to find food sources.

https://www.wired.com/2014/10/beer-yeast-attracts-fruit-flies/

That is the best way to do it. They congregate all over the top of mine.

Last time I made a yeast starter for beer, I found 2 fruit flies in the starter. Had to strain them out. I didn't tell anyone. Shhh.

Also of interest - I bought some "fruit fly traps" at Home Depot. They are a little cup with a cone that allows the flies in but harder to get out. The bait inside is apple cider vinegar - smells like booch. The flies go in, drink themselves to death. I won't buy these again, just refill with vinegar or booch. It's like MAYBE a tablespoon of liquid.

The fly trap I've been using is just an old jar, splash of sweet wine, splash of vinegar, drop of dish soap, and saran wrap with some holes in it. Fruit flies go in and don't come out. I usually only need to clean out and refill every couple of months. I rarely see fruit flies anywhere except inside the trap.

theDREWery said:

The fly trap I've been using is just an old jar, splash of sweet wine, splash of vinegar, drop of dish soap, and saran wrap with some holes in it. Fruit flies go in and don't come out. I usually only need to clean out and refill every couple of months. I rarely see fruit flies anywhere except inside the trap.

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I cut a water bottle about 1/3 the way up, fill the bottom half with beer, vinegar, and dish soap. Then place the top portion upside down, like a funnel.

I coat the funnel with soap as well, just in case the flies decide not to go all the way in, they get stuck to the funnel.

Look at all these home made fly trap ideas!

If your using a airlock put some wine in it and they will die

I had a wicked flea infestation this year and nothing seeded to control them. After multiple spraying of permethrin they kept coming back. I grow lots of veggies and fruit so the flies are always thick along with sewer flies. I used beer in a plastic cup to catch the flies. They could not find the straw hole to get out. It only took a couple days for peticle to start forming and I would catch problably 50 every few days.


I ordered some Martins IG Regular which is a growth regulator designed to break the egg cycle and sprayed all the floors and perimeter of house. It virtually wiped out all the fruit flies and now there may be 1 or 2 a week in my traps. I never figured spraying the floors for fleas would effect fruit flies because the flies lay their eggs on fruit and not the floors.

I raise bees and try to avoid chemicals and damaging the beneficial bugs so it was a nervous risky move....but fleas suck!

Fleas are hard to get rid of. Best way is to prevent an infestation to begin with.

One year, we bombed the house two or three times before we got rid of them.

I think fermenting kombucha produces most of the compounds that fruit flies find irresistible. I ferment mine in a closed plastic bottle. When the batch begins to effervesce rapidly, it's time to put it in the fridge.

I solved my fruit fly problem with traps using cider vinegar, and a hand-vac.

GregP507 said:

I think fermenting kombucha produces most of the compounds that fruit flies find irresistible. I ferment mine in a closed plastic bottle. When the batch begins to effervesce rapidly, it's time to put it in the fridge.

I solved my fruit fly problem with traps using cider vinegar, and a hand-vac.

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I think that there the little bandable cloth is supposed to keep fruit flies from coming to it.. Breathable cloth on Amazon in starter kits are described to prevent fruit flies...So maybe get a piece and cut and rubberband it to top of your bottles?

stacF said:

I think that there the little bandable cloth is supposed to keep fruit flies from coming to it.. Breathable cloth on Amazon in starter kits are described to prevent fruit flies...So maybe get a piece and cut and rubberband it to top of your bottles?

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That keeps them from getting into it, but they try.

I thought you'd need more air to ferment properly. But if a closed bottle is working, sounds like a solution!

stacF said:

I think that there the little bandable cloth is supposed to keep fruit flies from coming to it.. Breathable cloth on Amazon in starter kits are described to prevent fruit flies...So maybe get a piece and cut and rubberband it to top of your bottles?

Click to expand...

I love the effervescence in my kombucha that comes from fermenting it in a bottle. With a bit of practice, the lid can work as a relief valve if you set it just right.
At room temperature, it takes about 18 hours to ferment a 2 liter bottle of kombucha. I simply add a few ounces of my previously-fermented batch as a starter for each new batch. This is far easier than going the scoby route, with all the unnecessary steps.
Some are skeptical that what I make isn't kombucha, but there's no doubt at all, it's excellent kombucha.