How to Get Rid of Fruit Flies in the Bathroom

While you might expect fruit flies to be in the kitchen, closer to where you keep your fruit, they tend to show up in washrooms too. If you’ve seen these flies buzzing around while you brush your teeth, it’s pretty annoying. Thankfully, we have tips that can help.

Though they don’t bite or sting, slow-moving little pests are a nuisance — populations can quickly escalate out of control if nothing is done to stop them. Read on to get rid of fruit flies in your bathroom and keep them away.

Why Are Fruit Flies in My Bathroom?

If fruit flies are in your bathroom, the first thing to consider is a potential attractant. Fruit flies love fruit and specifically the sugar in them. A piece of rotting fruit in the trash, sink or elsewhere tempts these bugs to stick around in your washroom. If this proves to be the cause, removing the attractant and spraying bug spray over any notable breeding areas should solve the issue.

Additionally, fruit flies love dark, damp spaces. Bathrooms tend to fit both of these criteria. Make sure you keep your bathroom as dry as possible (run vent fans and open doors/windows when showering) in order to minimize how humid it gets. This will also help you avoid mold issues in the long run.

How to Get Rid of Fruit Flies

The best way to get rid of fruit flies is to turn your bathroom into a place they don’t like. Get rid of moist towels and other things they love, fix leaks, and clean up standing water. Make sure to run your vent fans frequently as well and clear out your washroom trash bin frequently. While this may not rid you of flies altogether, over time it will prevent the arrival of new ones.

Homemade Fruit Fly Trap

Once you’ve removed any temptation for the flies, you need to remove the existing ones. There are several DIY and store-bought options. If you want to make your own trap, you can do so with 45 mL each of apple cider vinegar and water with a few drops of dish soap in a disposable cup. Cover the cup with plastic wrap secured with a rubber band, and poke a few holes in the plastic cover with a toothpick.

Store-bought options are inexpensive and effective as well if you don’t want to make your own trap.

Homemade Drain Cleaner

Clean out your drains with boiling water or boiling distilled white vinegar to kill sewer gnats or fruit flies breeding in your drains. This should kill any larvae inside the pipes and destroy the type of habitat the flies like.

You can also mechanically clean the pipes with a drain snake to remove any debris that may attract flies. Afterward, cover the drain with duct tape for 24 hours – the remaining flies that try to escape should stick to the tape.

Professional Drain Cleaner

If you need to have your drains professionally cleaned to remove all traces of fruit or sewer flies and their habitat, just call Mr. Rooter. Our plumbing experts hate those pesky flies just as much as you do, and we have the right equipment to thoroughly clean your pipes. While we’re there we can inspect your plumbing for any leaks or other issues that may be causing the fly problem in the first place. Just call us or request a job estimate.