02/07/2026
✨ We're all familiar with those teeny tiny gnats that love to constantly get in your face and bonk against any screen they see. There are a few different types and in the average home it can be tricky to tell which you're dealing with and where they're coming from, so use a multi-faceted approach for the best results:
1. The Vinegar Trap
Fill a small dish with Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) and a couple drops of liquid dish soap. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and poke small holes with a toothpick. The ACV mimics the smell of overripe fruit, drawing them in. Usually, flies can land on liquids due to surface tension. The dish soap reduces that tension so the moment they touch the surface, they sink and cannot escape.
2. Sticky Traps
Sticky traps are a tried and true method for all types of irritating bugs, big or small, and are a very affordable solution. Hang a couple ribbon traps near windows or stake some of the bright yellow sticky traps into your houseplant soil. That's it! Now all you have to do is wait and change them out when they start to get gross.
3. Diatomaceous Earth 🪴
If you have fungus gnats living in your houseplants, you have to treat the soil. Wait for the top layer of soil to dry, then sprinkle a layer of Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth over the surface. To us, diatomaceous earth feels like flour; to an insect, it’s like walking over shards of glass. It pierces their exoskeleton, causing them to dehydrate and die. You don't want to breathe the dust, but once it's settled it's perfectly safe for use around children and pets. It only works as long as it's dry, so you may need to reapply after watering your plants if they're still buzzing around.
4. Drain Flush
Drain flies live in the gunk that coats the inside of pipes. Scrub the inside of the drain with a stiff brush (if you can) and flush with very hot (not boiling) water or an enzyme-based cleaner. You aren't just trying to "drown" them or wash them away; you're trying to remove the gunk where they lay their eggs. Without that slime, they have nowhere to reproduce.
5. Bait Trap 🍎
Leave a sacrificial piece of fruit on the counter for a day or two until you see eggs appear. Then, simply toss that fruit in the outdoor bin and start the process over again. Flies prefer to lay eggs on organic matter - by providing a "perfect" spot and then removing it quickly, you're removing hundreds of eggs from the house before they ever have a chance to hatch.
Of course, these tricks are supplementary to the basics - if you do these but your kitchen garbage has food scraps in it or you have dirty dishes sitting around, you won't notice much (if any) difference! You have to make sure you're removing as many food sources and breeding spots as you possibly can, or these stubborn little flies will just keep on coming. 🪰
