These natural insect repellent ideas are a great way to keep your fruit and vegetables safe and free of pesky insects causing bug bites (mostly mosquito bites) hovering nearby so use Natural Insect Repellent for Fruit Flies, Drain Flies and other Insects.
Since, at my house, we love fruit – in particular bananas and strawberries – this is something we really need a lot!
Last summer it was really HOT and the fruit was spoiling much faster than it used too.
I decided to not only use some great natural bug spray in my home but to share with you so your fruit cold be safe!
Table of Contents
Natural Insect Repellent for Fruit Flies, Drain Flies and Other Insects
I needed a way to get rid of the fruit flies that would be safe if one of our pets or our daughter got into it, going with a natural insect repellent was the best option for our family.
Backstory
Last summer we had a huge drain fly problem — I swear our house is clean but it’s like the freaking apocalypse with all the crazy weather we have been getting at home lately.
I thought maybe the solution I used last year to get rid of the drain flies would work for the fruit flies.
It worked! It is a simple natural insect repellent too so that makes it even better!
Supplies Needed
- Apple cider vinegar (balsamic vinegar should work)
- Water
- A bowl
- Cling Wrap
- Sharp knife
What To Do
- Pour a few tablespoons of apple cider vinegar in your bowl.
- Add enough water so the bowl is about halfway full.
- Cover the bowl tightly with cling wrap. You should not have any creases in the wrap.
- With a sharp knife poke a few small holes into the cling wrap.
- Put the bowl near where you have your fly problem and you are done!
- The flies will be attracted to the apple cider vinegar and will find their way through the holes. They will be trapped under the cling wrap unable to escape.
These natural alternatives work best for fruit flies, drain flies and gnats and is a safe substitute for commercial insect repellents.
It can also keep away some spiders, ants and other pesky bugs.
The vinegar is appealing to them, but also deadly.
While this may seem a bit cruel, it is a great option that is completely safe, and very inexpensive.
That’s a great benefit considering how expensive pest control can be.
As well as how dangerous most chemicals are for not only you and your family but your pets.
Please keep this natural insect repellent solution away from children and pets.
Yes, it is all natural but will be very, very gross if they drink it.
It’s a smart move to keep it in a safe place so they don’t get into it or spill it.
For many kitchens, a small bowl with apple cider vinegar like this is the perfect solution for those little annoying insects that tend to be common during warmer months.
If you are storing your fruit outside of your refrigerator (as is best with many fruit options), this is an ideal natural insect repellent option that is simple, inexpensive and useful.
Here are some All-Natural Bug Spray Repellents:
Fastest Essential Oil Insect Spray
It’s really simple as mixing these ingredients for natural solutions and adding to a spray bottle:
- 1/2 cup water (or vinegar)
- 1/2 cup natural witch hazel
- 1 tablespoon vodka or rubbing alcohol
- 10 drops rosemary essential oil
- 20 drops lavender essential oil
- 20 drops lemon eucalyptus essential oil
- 30 drops citronella essential oil
- 30 drops geranium essential oil
- Optional: 1 teaspoon vegetable glycerin
Note: I am not a Doctor but we recommend caution when using any of these repellents on young children. Always do a small patch test to look for an allergic reaction.
Citronella Oil Insect Spray
All natural Citronella oil has been used for many years as a common insect repellent.
Lavender oil is often added to improve the odor.
The only downside we can find is that, as compared to DEET, Citronella oil evaporates quickly.
And in high concentrations can irritate skin (just like DEET).
Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus or OLE Insect Repellent
Consumer reports reports that “Two of the three active ingredients that have regularly earned recommended status in our organic insect repellent ratings—picaridin and lemon eucalyptus oil, or OLE—are derived from plants. But several other plant-based chemicals, including lemon grass, neem oil and soybean oil, typically end up at the very bottom of our ratings”
Peppermint Oil – Bug and Rodent Repellent
An effective repellent for more than just pesky mosquitos is Peppermint Oil though while it works well – it only lasts about 45 minutes after it’s applied but it is still a natural product – make sure you keep your pump spray nearby..
Coconut oil is often used to dilute mixtures instead of water that may be too strong for a user.
Baby friendly Deet-free Repellent
This mixture by babyganics uses Soybean Oil as a carrier oil (occasionally Thyme oil is used) as 95.25% volume plus Rosemary Oil, Citronella Oil, Geranium Oil, Cedarwood Oil, Peppermint Oil and lemongrass oil.
Why should I use Natural Mosquito Repellent?
The number one reason I search for a repellent of creepy critters that may cause Tick Bites (causes Lyme disease) is to keep my whole family comfortable and safe.
The most common effective repellents (e.g. Avon Skin-So-Soft) contains an active ingredient called DEET and picaridin which is recommended by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency).
The worst side effect we can find is that Deet may cause skin irritation.
Check out these other great topics for around the house!
Proper Hand Washing Techniques
How To Keep Your Floors Cleaner – Longer
Want to Go Green? Tips to Get you Started
Very helpful!! We have a horrible fruit fly problem this year, will try this for sure! Thanks for sharing.
This is great! For some reason it never dawned on my to put cling wrap on the bowl. We have a bit of a fruit fly issue every summer where I live, so this will definitely come in handy for next year {or this year if the lil buggers decide to make a comeback}
Awesome!! I do the same thing, but instead of the cling wrap I squeeze some dish soap in the apple cider vinegar and leave it out- the dish soap breaks the Hydrogen bonds in the vinegar so the flies get into the vinegar but get stuck b/c they don’t float on top of it like normal (nerd alert); instead they sink in! I love the cling wrap idea, too! 🙂
I have used this before and it works 100%. I just set it out the fruit flies are at the top of the cup floating!
SORRY, this DID NOT work at all, plastic wrap or not !!!!
Sorry to hear that. I have always had success with it. I have heard some people add a drop of dish soap to the water to help trap the bugs. I find I need to make super tiny holes (just the very top of a sharp knife) or they will fly out. Hopefully these tips help as having bugs in the house is not very fun.
I have always read this advice but it never worked for me. I stumbled upon a great trap though with the same Saran Wrap and bowl technique using a small slice of ripe tomato. This caught far more fruit flies & I also sprayed the inside of the wrap w/ cooking oil so they would stick to that if trying to escape back out the top! Now this hasn’t helped me with my current issue of gnats that came in on my potted plants that were out all summer. I can’t seem to trap those with anything and they are so pesky!
That all sounds great , but what about the eggs they lay in the drain ? ?? They are almost impossible to get rid of . What do you do about them ? Someone please help ! !!!!!
That is a great idea! I will have to try it! We had a horrible problem with fruit flies before, although not right now, so I’ll keep this in mind.
Thank you for this hot tip – I think we could all use this! Flies are gross.
Nice tip! I pinned this and will be using in my home. Thanks for sharing it at Wonderful Wednesday!
Thanks for sharing! I always love a good natural recipe to take care of the home. Drain flies are a problem here too no matter how much I clean.
Great tip! I am definitely planning to try this next time I see these little suckers!
Visiting from Idea Box
xoxo
Lisa
This idea sounds so easy; I’ll be trying it later today! Pinning.
Thank you for this! I haaaaate bugs!
Sounds so simple that I definitely need to try this because those dang bugs drive me CRAZY! Thanks for sharing Katrina. Pinned!
I’m not sure why some years we get them and some we don’t. This sounds like a very helpful way to get rid of the fruit flies. Thanks for sharing a the #HomeMattersParty
Finally! An answer of how to get rid of the bane of my existence!
Can’t thank you enough!
Here from Inspire Me Monday.
What a great solution! I love it that you don’t have to buy anything special to solve the problem. I just started on the Weight Watches Diet and am eating a lot more fruit that I used to. Already have some of those pesky little buggers in my kitchen. I am so going to try this!!!
Pinning 🙂
I so need to try this! Pinning and sharing!
Done. Now let’s see if I can get rid of those little pests.
HI Katrina!
Thank you for this awesome post! I have been struggling with this exact problem for weeks and it is driving me crazy! I’m going to try your apple cider vinegar method this afternoon! I have recently started hosting a new link party with Refresh Living and Vintage Refined and we would love to have you come link some of your awesome posts with us. The party starts every Tuesday at 7pm CST.
I hope to see you there!
Cat
Hi Cat,
Let me know how it works. It works really well for us – good luck 🙂
Vinegar is amazing–so many uses! Thanks for sharing at the #HomeMattersParty – we love partying with you! Hope to see you next Friday. 🙂
~Lorelai
Life With Lorelai
I’ve been noticing a ton of fruit flies in our kitchen lately so I’ll have to try this! Thanks for the tips 🙂
Thank you for this great tip. Will definitely try it.
Also thanks very much for all the wonderful Receipes, Information on various subjects.
I have a horrible problem with drain flies, my home is spotless, there are no fruit left out, I have tried every trick and remedy to get rid of these things. Pest control hasn’t even worked!! Help me please, I’m desperate. Been in this house 5 years, first time I have had this problem, started 3-4 months ago.
Did you try the apple cider vinegar in a bowl method as put in the post? If you do not have apple cider vinegar you can put some white vinegar and vanilla extract and mix with water.
Great advice! Thanks for sharing at Idea Box Link Party this week. I’ve featured this goodie on my blog this week.
xo, clem
I discovered vinegar’s great use by accident when I put a bowl of white vinegar on the counter to clean the air of the cooked food smell. By the end of the day, the bowl was full of gnats. Haven’t tried the plastic wrap yet.
This is great information that we all need.
Thank you for joining us and sharing at Thoughts of Home.
We are so glad you are here!
Laura
White Spray Paint
That is such a great tip! I will have to try it and pass it on to my girls too.We had a horrible problem with fruit flies last year, although not right now, so I’ll keep this in mind.
Thank you for sharing this post with us at TOHOT!
Jemma
Love finding natural remedies for troublesome things. Will share this with our daughter. Will warn her not to leave where her Beagle dog can get into it. Thx for warning about that. Have wonderful fun week
Thanks for this article. So in my case i just use the fruit traps to get rid of drain flies! Helpes good for me.
Instead of a bowl, I use a jar. I put a rubber band around the plastic wrap to keep it in place. I use an ice pick or awl to poke the holes.