Traps For Flies And Midges: DIY Homemade Bait For The Kitchen, Australian Mosquito Trap And Sticky Tape, Outdoor, Light And Others

2024 Author: Beatrice Philips | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 05:33

Flies and midges are not only annoying with their constant buzzing and whirling, but they are also carriers of dangerous diseases. Fighting them can be very quick and effective if you choose the right traps from the beginning.

Damage from flies and midges

In human habitats, flies and midges often accumulate. Their main harm lies in the ability to transport disease-causing bacteria and helminth eggs inside their body, mainly in the intestines. As a result, the causative agents of typhoid fever, cholera, tuberculosis and other diseases get on dishes, furniture and even food.

Indoor pests are especially harmful to food, not only contaminating them, but also laying eggs on them. Unattended fruits, vegetables and meats often form larvae.

Varieties of traps

All existing traps for midges and flies can be classified depending on the principle of action.

Duct tape

Glue traps are the most famous and perhaps the most common. The popularity of this type is due to its ease of use and low cost. You can choose between glue "houses" and simple Velcro tapes that cling to any surface . Hanging adhesive tapes are still considered the most effective for flying pests. By placing them at home in the kitchen next to fruits or vegetables, it will be possible to collect all fruit flies - small fruit flies, also called wine flies.

Light lamp

A fairly effective anti-gnat light lamp works in a similar way to an ultraviolet lamp. Its significant advantage is that it is suitable for street use. A conventional LED light bulb is housed inside a plastic housing that is protected from splashing water . Here, behind a plastic grill, a pair of metal grilles is mounted, to which a voltage of about 2000 volts is supplied. The device can work only as a fumigator or as a fumigator and at the same time a lighting device. Insects that fly into the structure die from the current discharge. It is worth clarifying that when the main light is off, midges fly in complete darkness towards a weak violet glow.

The only drawback of such a device is the need to clean it by blowing it with a compressor.

Bait trap

A purchased bait trap is initially poisoned with insecticides. The insect, attracted by the sweet smell, begins to taste the food, which immediately causes poisoning and subsequent death. Despite the fact that such devices are most often used to control cockroaches and ants, they can also be used, for example, to remove fruit small gnats.

Australian

The Australian flycatcher is commonly used outdoors. For instance, it can be placed in the country near fruit trees to get rid of cherry flies . The essence of the trap is that, getting inside a dry structure of boards and mesh, insects die from dehydration. It looks like a small wooden bedside table. The cube must be transparent to sunlight, so both the walls and the lid are made of fine mesh. The bottom of the trap is made in the form of a pyramid that rises inside the structure.

A smelling bait is located directly under the trap, and the pests, having tasted it, are forced to use only a small hole in the top of the pyramid to escape . Thus, they find themselves inside the cube. For the manufacture of models, as a rule, high-quality wood and stainless steel mesh are used. The effectiveness of the Australian trap is very high - in 7 days of constant use, it will be possible to collect about a thousand insects.

UV lamps

Modern UV lamps kill most flying insects, including midges and flies, mosquitoes, moths and the like. Lamps can be installed not only in residential premises, but also in factories, warehouses and farms. Pests, unlike humans, perceive the ultraviolet glow of the trap as ordinary light, and therefore fly straight into an ambush. The body of the structure, in which the light bulb is located, is equipped with a thin energized mesh inside.

It turns out that the fly, attracted by the glow, flies up to the lamp, dies from an electric shock and falls directly onto the removable tray. It is important to clarify that such ultraviolet lamps are absolutely safe for humans. The net is reliably protected by the body, and it is impossible to stick even a finger in where the midges fly. The air is not ozonized, and the mucous membranes are not irritated.

Pheromone

The action of pheromone traps, as the name suggests, is based on pheromones - biologically active substances secreted by insects to attract individuals of their own species. These substances are synthesized by specialists in laboratories and are used to impregnate an adhesive surface placed in a cardboard house. Pests, lured by the scent, fly into the structure and stick to it . Such traps are non-toxic and absolutely safe for the environment.

Ultrasonic

Ultrasonic repellents do not kill insects, but they force them to leave the room. The formation of ultrasound of a certain frequency leads to the appearance of severe discomfort for flies and midges, because of which they fly away. This device is suitable for use in various kinds of premises. This device is easy to use and absolutely safe for people and pets . It also does not affect the functioning of other electrical appliances.

However, the results of using the repeller appear only after a week of its continuous operation. The device operates from a standard 220 volt outlet. Its area of action is approximately 30-40 square meters.

Manufacturers overview

There are a large number of quality fly and midge traps on the market today. Products of the German brand Aeroxon are distinguished by their high quality . For example, a set of four rolls of tape with a sticky base, the price of which does not exceed 100 rubles, is an effective but environmentally friendly product. The adhesive tapes of the Help brand are highly valued . These elements are designed to be fixed on windows, therefore they are unobtrusive. Moreover, pests fall on them almost immediately.

Of course, Raptor products are among the best Russian-made traps . Alternatively, at the summer cottage it makes sense to place a special jar, inside which the bait is located. Attracted by the sweet smell, insects fly in, but they can no longer get out. You can fight several types of insects with the help of the domestic unit "SKAT 23 ". Inside the structure there are special light bulbs, flying up to which, insects die from the current discharge.

The Fly Trap from the Swssinno brand looks very unusual . The contents of the bag with the bait are poured into a special transparent jar and half a glass of warm water is topped up. The bait begins to release substances that attract most flies, which, once inside, cannot escape. The flycatcher can be left on the ground or suspended from a tree. Similarly, the Bad TED trap package works.

How to do it yourself?

The simplest traps for flies and midges can be made with your own hands at home. In fact, all such products can be divided into three groups. The first are a kind of enclosed space in which you must first put an edible bait . Once inside, the insect does not die, but it loses the opportunity to get out. The second type is "complete" poisonous bait , having eaten which the fly dies. Finally, the third type combines sticky flycatchers … Stuck in a sticky substance, the pest corny dies of hunger.

It is very easy to make a fly trap out of a regular plastic bottle with an attractive-smelling bait inside . The container is cut in half so that the upper half, when turned upside down, is a funnel. The individual parts are fixed to each other with a stapler or adhesive tape. At the bottom of the bottle is a "tasty" for the pest. The ratio of the height of the bottom to the top should be 2 to 1.

The funnel should not reach the bait so that the insect has an incentive to crawl through the narrow neck and find itself inside the container . Flies and midges will definitely react to sugar syrup, honey, Coca-Cola or jam. They may also like beer and wine, or the fermented liquid obtained by adding a small amount of dry yeast to the sweet filler. By adding black ground pepper or an insecticide in granules to the sweet liquid, it will be possible to ensure the rapid death of the pest. It is better to put such a plastic bait in a place that will interest the insect: on the windowsill, kitchen table, next to the trash can or toilet.

A regular glass jar can also make a good trap . Its bottom is covered with pieces of sweet overripe fruits such as apples, bananas and apricots. Ideally, they should already be slightly rotting and fermenting. Juice in an amount corresponding to a third of the volume of the jar is also suitable. Instead of a lid, an inverted funnel is used, which must be secured in such a way as to leave no gaps.

To do this, the junction of the can and the funnel is processed with tape or tape. In the absence of a funnel, you can make a paper cone, the diameter of the smaller hole of which will not exceed 5-8 millimeters. It's even easier to create a homemade plastic box trap. Having filled the container with a bait attractive to the pest, it will have to be tightened with cling film, in which 2-3 medium-sized holes will be cut.

Handy people will be able to design the adhesive tape on their own. To create it, you will need 2 parts of rosin melted on a burner or water bath, part of castor oil or linseed oil, as well as a small amount of honey or sugar syrup. The resulting adhesive is applied to strips 5-8 centimeters wide, cut from craft paper, oilcloth or parchment. The main advantages of such homemade products are cheapness, environmental friendliness and affordability . Their construction does not present any difficulties, and flies with midges really fall for the bait. However, homemade traps do not give a 100% result.

It is worth mentioning that some DIYers prefer to use water bags as pest repellents . A whole plastic bag is filled with clean water, into which shiny new coins are thrown. The finished structure should be hung near a balcony or window. But, judging by the numerous reviews, such a remedy will not be particularly effective.