How To Get Rid Of Drain Flies
Learn how to control pesky drain flies that come out of your drain.
Drain flies are a pesky problem that you can get rid of and eliminate with proper identification. They breed in drains and live off the slimy debris in the drains. We have tips for inspection to determine if they are drain flies. Finally, we cover proper drain fly control treatment plans that you can do yourself.
“Drain Flies” is not a specific species of fly but rather a term for several different types of small flies and gnats including moth flies, phorid flies, sphaerocerid flies, and sometimes fungus gnats,that are frequently found in drains and anywhere else they can find wet slimy substances in which to lay their eggs. A lot of people think they have fruit flies but fruit flies will usually be found infesting decaying fruits and vegetables and not as frequently in drains. Also, fruit flies will usually have red eyes which is a way to quickly distinguish them from drain flies.
Get Rid of Drain Flies |Drain Fly Control Tips
- Step 1: Drain Fly -Identify
- Step 2: Drain Fly -Inspect and Clean
- Step 3: Get Rid Of Drain Flies
If you see a small fly or gnat type insect flying around in the kitchen, do not assume it is coming from the drains. Check all possible breeding sources (small puddles, grease, rotting organic material, etc.) to help identify the fly. Using a sanitation drain product like Invade Bio Drain will help destroy the breeding area if breeding in the drains.
It is necessary to inspect for breeding sites and remove them. Many potential areas serve as breeding sites for the flies. Removing the breeding site is an essential part of a drain fly control program.
Regularly clean any floor drains. Use Invade Bioproducts to eat the organic matter where the flies breed.
Detect the Breeding Source
Understanding the different breeding sources for the flies will help you identify and manage the infestations.
Breeding Sources of Drain Flies, Fruit Flies, Phorid Flies, and Sphaerocerid Flies
- Drain flies: Drain Flies breed in drains, sewers, septic tanks, and soil that has been contaminated with sewage.
- Fruit flies: Fruit Flies can be spotted around fresh fruits/vegetables, rotting fruits and vegetables, drains, garbage, and damp organic materials.
- Phorid Flies: Phorid Flies are found in sewage-contaminated soil, garbage, drains, human corpses, rotting vegetables, and fruit, garbage as well as damp organic materials.
- Sphaerocerid Flies: These flies may be found in manure, damp organic material, drains, rotting fruits and vegetables, and garbage
Drain Fly Identification and Inspection
Drain Fly Identification
- Drain Flies have a pair of wings and antennae with six legs.
- Adults are about 1/16th inch long.
- Body colors vary from a tan to a light gray color. Both body and wings are densely covered with long hairs that give the body a fuzzy appearance.
- The wings fold over the body and held roof-like over the body when at rest.
- The wings of a drain or moth flies will become fine dust when they are swatted or mashed.
- They will hop or fly short distances if they are disturbed.
- The drain fly larvae are about 3/8 " long, wormlike, and without legs. The larvae are gray, with darker colors on the ends.
Inspection-Drain Fly Breeding Sites
Check for Larvae Around Drain Openings and Placing Tape Over Drain
- Drain Flies typically breed in drains, hence the common name of drain flies. These drains are an excellent place to begin the inspection. They often lay eggs at the drain openings. They live off debris in the form of a sticky, humid film on the drain sides and the drain trap. If you use something like a knife to scrape the sides, you can examine the sludge for live larvae. The larvae looks like slime. If you don't locate any of these tube-like drain fly larvae, the eggs may be deeper in the pipes.
- Place some tape (duct or clear tape) over the top of the drain, with some holes in it for airflow. Leave overnight. If the drain flies get stuck on the tape as they exit the drain, you know you have drain flies. You may need to repeat the next night as well to get a full scope of your infestation.
More Drain Fly Inspection Tips
- Drain flies typically breed in drains, hence the common name of drain flies. These drains are an excellent place to begin the inspection. They live off debris in the form of a sticky, humid film on the drain sides and the drain trap. If you use something like a knife to scrape the sides, you can examine the sludge for live larvae.
- Place some tape over the top of the drain, with some holes in it for airflow. If the drain flies get stuck on the tape as they exit the drain, you know you have drain flies.
- Sometimes, drain flies (moth flies) can come from under slab floors from a broken drainpipe. They would breed in the organic debris under the slab. Adult flies then enter the living space above the slab through cracks in the slab and back through the drain pipe. To determine if they are coming up through the slab, place the masking tape over the crack as described above.
- Inspect condensation pipes for air conditioners and icemakers
- Inspect loose ceramic floor tiles where water may collect
- If you think drain flies are breeding under a slab, a hole must be broken through the slab to see if a pipe has broken and flies are breeding there. After a hole is broken through the slab, dig in the soil under the slab, and inspect. The organic debris and moist soil may be several inches under the surface. The presence of fly larvae and adults confirms the site as a breeding source.
- Sump pump pits and sewers are usually found in a basement area and prime breeding sites for drain flies (moth flies), particularly in commercial buildings. The sewers and pump pits need to be checked for activity even if it is not close to where the moth flies have been seen flying. Also, inspect the pits of elevators in commercial buildings for excess water or moisture.
- In homes, drain flies are generally found breeding in bathroom drains, particularly those in showers. Shower pans are prone to leaking, and the area under the shower pan becomes a prime moth fly breeding source.
- Remove all organic debris trapped in small cracks and crevices under the legs and bottom edges of kitchen equipment. The debris needs to be removed, thoroughly dried, and a long-lasting caulk applied to seal the crack.
- If you believe that the shower is a source, it may be necessary to drill a hole into the area under the shower pan or the wall behind the shower. In most cases where moth flies are breeding in this area, adult flies will begin emerging from the hole within minutes. Drain flies are strongly attracted to light and will fly to the hole drilled through the wall.
- Inspect crawlspace areas; if the drainpipe is leaking there, a breeding source is found. Look for the presence of adult flies. Spiders may have dead moth flies in their webs.
- Don't stop looking when one breeding source has been found. In most cases, several breeding sources will be present.
- Drain flies, or moth flies, can be found in moist, highly organic debris areas such as sink drains, moist mops, sewage treatment facilities, storm drains, dung, and rotten vegetation.
- Re-grouting tiles to prevent water seepage into walls will stop breeding in those sites. If found in rotting vegetable matter, the source should be destroyed.
- Clean dirty garbage containers, wet lint under the washing machine, and even standing water in containers under houseplant pots. Outside the home, inspect air conditioners, birdbaths, shallow, stagnant pools of water, and sewage treatment facilities upwind as adult flies travel with the wind.
- Drain flies may also breed in moist, shady areas such as under potted plants, bird feeders, and baths in moss, clogged roof gutters, under air conditioners, and thick mulch or on wet ground areas.
- In natural settings, moth fly larvae feed on decaying plants and animals. Most moth flies are harmless to humans, though they may transmit bacteria and other microorganisms from their breeding sites to areas where people are. Moth flies do not bite. Adults live for about two weeks.
Drain Fly Treatment Tools : Sanitation Treatment Products, Pyrethrin Aerosols, and Fly Lights
Sanitation Treatments-Invade Bio Products
Use Invade Bio Products in the drains. Use of a drain treatment such as Invade Bio-Gel Treatment will remove the organic debris, improving sanitation.
Invade Hot Spot is a Microbial/Citrus Foam in an easy-to-use 16 oz aerosol. Hot Spot is an aerosol can that contains the same premium microbes and ingredients as InVade Bio Foam. The 360-degree valve allows for foam dispensing in any orientation to hit hard-to-reach areas easily.
Suppose the Phorid flies are breeding in the soil under a concrete slab. In that case, the only way to eliminate the infestation is to remove the contaminated soil by breaking through the slab and replacing the soil. Any broken pipes need repair. Although this is costly, drilling and treating the infested soil under the slab with residual insecticides does not work.
Remove all organic debris trapped in small cracks and crevices under the legs and bottom edges of kitchen equipment. The debris needs to removed, thoroughly dried, and a long-lasting caulk applied to seal the crack.
Invade Bio Foam is another type of Invade Bio product, particularly useful in commercial establishments. It is a concentrated bio liquid with the use of a foamer. Invade Bio Foam contains concentrated scum eating, odor-eliminating microbes, and foaming agent. Use this a part of an integrated pest management tool. Use 1 oz per quart, 4 oz per gallon. Apply using a B&G VersaFoamer HH or sprayer to cracks, crevices, and drains where small flies breed. The foam and citrus combination will digest the organic debris present as part of pest management. Ultra-concentrated Invade Bio Foam is mixed with water at a rate of 4 oz per gallon (1 oz per quart) and applied using Foam Sprayers.
Invade Bio Cleaner and Invade Mop Clean provide solutions for cleaning organic matter with microbes that significantly improves sanitation.
If adults do not disappear within a week further treatments or looking for other breeding sources is needed.
Drain Fly Biology and Habits
Moth flies (Drain Flies) develop by complete metamorphosis. The entire life cycle ranges from 8 to 24 days.
Moth flies (Drain Flies) lay eggs in a mass of 30 to 100 in a suitable medium. These eggs hatch in less than 48 hours. The eggs from the moth fly ( drain fly) are laid in irregular masses in such places as dirty garbage disposal units, water traps in plumbing fixtures, sewage plant filters, and almost anywhere decomposing organic materials are found.
The larvae and pupae of the moth fly live in the thin gelatinous film found in drains, septic tank field lines, or filter stones. The larvae feed on sediment, decaying vegetation, and microscopic plants and animals. The larval stage lasts from 9 to 15 days before pupating.
The pupal stage lasts from 20 to 40 hours. The newly emerged adult fly is sexually mature on the emergence and copulates within the first few hours of its life.
The moth fly (drain fly) is a poor flyer and may be commonly seen walking or running on walls and other resting surfaces. When they fly in short jerky lines, they fly for only a few feet.
During the day the moth fly (drain fly) adult rests in shaded areas or on walls near plumbing fixtures or on the sides of tubs and showers. Most of the activity of the moth fly (drain fly) occurs during the evening. They may be seen hovering around the sink areas in your home at this time.
Prevent Moth Flies
Moth fly larvae need moisture to survive, and they may be found anywhere that water accumulates. A fine slime layer can develop along the water surface in infrequently used toilet bowls and tanks. Fly larvae can often be found in these locations.
The larvae can also be found in sink or floor drains in basements and garages, even in condensation drip pans under refrigerators. Look for the small, gray larvae wiggling in the water. These areas need to be cleaned thoroughly with attention to removing the slimy surface film. Some sites may be easy to clean with traditional methods. Other places like drains can be harder to access and can be treated with a probiotic product like Invade Bio Drain.
It is sometimes difficult to find or recognize breeding sites because the fly larvae are tiny and easy to overlook. However, the adult flies can be detected by using a simple trap. Clear plastic cups with a very light coating of vegetable oil or petroleum jelly inside the cup can be inverted over drains for several days to catch emerging adults and identify breeding sites. Another method is to tape over the drain with clear tape and see if flies can be found stuck to the tape. If these inspection methods are not productive, then expand the search.
Key Takeaway
Pouring bleach down a drain will not remove the buildup that the flies lay eggs in and it might damage your plumbing.
Use Invade Bio Drain.
Written by our resident pest control expert Ken Martin.