I thought I had an over abundance of fruit flys but after catching one, this is no fruit fly. They're small and fast, and they bite if trapped, otherwise they just are a pain in the butt. I have found most of them in the kitchen and/or bathroom. I even find them coming out of my coffee maker when I open the lid to pour the water in. They are not interested in the fruit juice I put in a jar. They seem to hang out in the kitchen sink inside coffee cups that are waiting to go into the dishwasher.

Any suggestions on what I have and how to get rid of them?

-- connie from Pgh, PA (connie.bamont@blackbox.com), October 19, 2001

Answers

I had some kind of little flying insects this past summer, hanging around in the kitchen as you described. They never bit me, and I dont know what they were. But I found out they were living in the soil of a house plant. I dumped the soil out, but it took many weeks to finally get rid of the little buggers left flying around. You might try putting a fly strip near a light at night, and have all other lights off. Good luck!

-- Phyllis from Tx Panhandle (tmblweed@wtrt.net), October 19, 2001.

This solution, offered by non other than Countryside magazine might work for you.

Get a large clear jar, coat interior of it with honey. Paint neck and top part of jar so that light will not transmit through. Place a food item on a paper plate. Invert jar over plate, so that neck of jar is OVER food, and has at least an inch of clear space. Flies (or other insects) will be attracted to food, than fly up into jar where they stick fast to honey covered sides of jar.

Hope this works for you . . . it does wonders on yellow jackets.

-- j.r. guerra (jrguerra@boultinghousesimpson.com), October 19, 2001.

take any dish that is at least 2 or more inches deep. put in oil, olive, corn or whatever .they will get in and can't get out. set where you have the most problem. I put mine in window sill. Lexi

-- Lexi Green (whitestone11@hotmail.com), October 19, 2001.

I have the same problem what you should do is get like a newspaper and do it the old fasioned way.

-- Noel (wazzupsplat@aol.com), April 13, 2002.

eww, noseeums. Nasty little things, they are very aggressive...buzz around right in your face. We killed ours off in Mexico by hanging a milk bottle with honey painted on the inside walls. We stuck a part of a banana peel in there to "catch their attention". gl

-- Najia (najia274@yahoo.com), April 13, 2002.