Last week I received a call from a very nice lady who said she was having problems with little flies.

I asked her if she had a fruit bowl filled with fruit sitting on the counter in her kitchen. She replied that she did. I asked her if the concentration of flies were in her kitchen, she said yes. I advised her that she probably had fruit flies.

Because most of us love to eat fruit all year around, fruit flies can be a problem.

Below are some baseline facts on fruit flies that may assist you in eliminating these little pests:

Facts:

• The life cycle of fruit flies is about 10 calendar days.If there is food for them to consume they will continually breed all year regardless of the weather conditions primarily because they are in a warm and comfortable environment.Fruit flies thrive on rotting and over ripe fruit.
• Fruit flies will breed in the bottom of trash cans, in the bottom of storage bowls or in anything where fruit juices will collect.

Cure:

• Eliminate all exposed fruit.
• Clean the trash can thoroughly.
• Thoroughly clean storage bowls.
• Once the area has been thoroughly cleaned, use a wet vacuum to suck the the little tikes out of the air as they buzz around. This may take some time but it works well.
• Keep fruit refrigerated if possible, if it not possible; seal all fruit in its contained.
• Keep crumbs and juices cleaned up.
• Clean under and around the refrigerator. Make sure you check the door seal; otherwise they will migrate into the refrigerator.
• Make sure your exterior doors and screen doors seal properly which will help keep them out.
• Scum will collect in the drain of your sink. Flush the drain with drain cleaners. If that doesn’t work, disconnect the pea trap at the bottom of the sink and use a bottle brush to clean it.
• If you have a counter full of flies, spray the mass with Windex, it will terminate them quick.

When cleaning with any cleaning product, always wear eye protection and rubber gloves to protect your hands.

Always check the chemical makeup of a product to make sure you will not have an allergic reaction to the product.

If you would like to share a cleaning idea or concept with the reading audience, call Ed at NWES (255-2266), e-mail them to nwees@hughes.net or send them to Bonner County Daily Bee, 310 Church St., Sandpoint, ID 83864, Attn: What Would Ed do?

For more information about Ed, go online to www.nwees.com.

Copy written by Edmond E. Madan, certified indoor environmental professional, forensic, fire, flood, mold Inspection and remediation/restoration contractor. Ed is the president of Northwest Environmental Services, Inc.