Best Fruit Fly Traps – Compare Both Homemade and Store-Bought

Last Updated on: January 28th, 2020 at 8:51 pm

Fruit flies are annoying and seem to come from nowhere, are hard to kill, and once they appear they seem to stick around forever!

Well, nobody cares where they come from, just as long as they leave! Traditional methods like swatting them, spraying them with insecticide often prove futile.

Because, you can never swat them all or, who wants to spray insecticide over food?

So, what is the solution?

Trapping them!

Yes, trapping fruit flies is an amazingly effective way to get rid of fruit flies. Today in this article, I am going to show you different types of fruit fly traps, their construction, effectiveness, and working.

In addition to this, we will also see different types of homemade and store-bought traps/lures and see their effectiveness.

fruit-fy-trap

Fruit Fly Traps Categorized Based On Construction

There are three major types of fruit fly traps based on construction. In this section, we will see what all things you need to get to make these traps.

In the very next section, we will see a classification of fruit fly traps based on the lures that can be used with these traps.

Bottle Trap:

Soda Bottle trap is an easy to make, yet an amazingly effective DIY trap. First, let’s have a look at the items that we are going  to need to make this trap.

  • A pair of scissors
  • A clean plastic water bottle
  • Cellophane Scotch Tape

After collecting all the items, take the plastic bottle and cut the upper half of the bottle with a pair of scissors as shown.

cut-soda-bottle-fly-trap

Next, take the cap of the plastic bottle and drill a ½ cm hole into it (big enough to let the fruit flies in). Then put the attractant\lure in the lower half of the bottle and place the upper part upside down as shown.

soda-botte-trap

For final touches, apply cellophane scotch tape on the edges of the bottle to seal it tightly.

Paper Cone Trap:

Paper cone trap is yet another simple and inexpensive trap for fruit flies. To make a paper cone trap you will need following items.

  • A clean wide mouth jar
  • Lure
  • Paper Cone

First, take a paper cone and cut a small hole of around 0.5 cm diameter at the apex of the paper cone.

Paper Cone

Next, take the jar and pour the attractant in the jar. Then place the cone in the jar upside down as shown in the below image. Ensure that the cone does not come in direct contact with the lure.

paper-cone-trap

Additionally, you can also apply some cellophane scotch tape on the sides of the jar, so that it can hold the cone firmly.

Tumbler Trap:

The third type of trap that we are going to see here is Tumbler trap. Tumbler trap is a very simple yet effective trap against fruit flies. It can be used with solid, semi-solid and liquid attractants. Below is a list of items that you need to make a tumbler trap:

  • A tumbler
  • Lure
  • A thin plastic sheet
  • A rubber band

Tumbler with Plastic Cover

First, take the tumbler and put the lure inside it. Cover the tumbler with the thin plastic sheet and fasten a rubber band to prevent the plastic sheet from coming off.

Finally, poke some holes into the plastic sheet and the trap is ready to be placed in the infested area.

Traps Categorized Based on the Attractants:

The attractant used in the fruit fly traps plays a vital role. Scientists have found that fruit flies use their olfactory system (sense of smell) to find an overripe fruit or vegetable.

Actually, they are sensing things like acetic acid, which is present in overripe or rotting fruits. The attractants like apple cider vinegar, wine, or tequila contain acetic acid molecules and hence the fruit flies are attracted to them.

Apple Cider Vinegar Fruit Fly Trap:

I can bet, you will hear the name of apple cider vinegar trap every time, someone talks about fruit fly traps.

Apple cider vinegar is one of the most popular attractants used in fruit fly traps. Fruit flies have a great affinity towards apple cider vinegar. To use it as a lure in fly traps – Mix a cup of apple cider vinegar with 3 – 5 drops of dish soap.

Dish soap breaks the surface tension of the attractant and causes the trapped flies to sink as soon as they come in contact with the lure.

apple-cider-vinegar-trap-for-fruit-flies

Another important tip is that – Heating the apple cider vinegar in the microwave for about 10 – 15 seconds before using it, makes it more effective. Household vinegar is composed of diluted acetic acid with water.

When the vinegar is heated, the water molecules evaporate, thereby increasing the concentration of acetic acid in the mixture. Doing this releases more of the vinegar’s fragrance and hence attracts more fruit flies.

Apple cider vinegar can be used with any of the three traps mentioned here.

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Rotten Fruit Trap

Rotten fruit trap is a simple fruit fly trap. You can use fresh or stale banana peels or a piece of rotten fruit as an attractant in this trap.

Though these traps are not great, still they do a steady job of trapping pesky flies.

To make this trap simply take few banana peels or rotten fruits and use them as a lure in the tumbler trap.

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Red Wine Fruit Fly Trap

Wine is another good lure for fruit flies, especially red wine. Although you could even use white wine as an attractant, red wine works the best as it is considered to be the most aromatic wine.

red-wine-fruit-fy-trap

To use it as a lure in fruit fly traps simply take ¼ cup of wine and add 2-3 drops of dish soap. You can use red wine with any of the three traps mentioned above.

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Yeast Trap for Fruit Flies

Fruit flies get attracted to fermented food products. And hence yeast trap works like a charm against fruit flies.

dry yeast

To make a yeast trap follow the below steps:

  • Take a glass jar and add 1 cup warm water to it.
  • Next, sprinkle some dry yeast over it.
  • Add a teaspoon of sugar, adding sugar makes the yeast bait more effective.
  • Finally, stir the mixture and use it with the tumbler trap.

Note: It is important in such traps to change the lure daily. Otherwise, it can become a potential breeding site for fruit flies if left for more than 24 hours.

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Milk and Ground Pepper Trap

Milk and Pepper traps have been used to attract fruit flies from ancient time. In terms of efficiency, they are not great. Though they can be helpful for a low-intensity fruit fly infestation (10 – 15 fruit flies).

Ground Pepper

To make a Milk and Ground Pepper trap, use a soda bottle trap. For attractant, take 1 cup milk, and add 3 – 4 tablespoons sugar to it and finally add 1 tablespoon ground pepper to the solution.

Heat the solution for 5 minutes on simmer and its ready to be used as a lure.

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Banana Bag Trap

Banana bag trap is a nice and frugal way to trap fruit flies. To make this trap you would require following items:

  • An empty bread bag or any other long and thin plastic bag
  • An overripe banana

Cut the overripe banana into slices and put a few slices into the bread bag. Set the trap in the fly infested area. Make sure the plastic bag is opened sufficiently for the fruit flies to fly in.

Let the trap sit overnight.

In the morning cautiously close the open end of the bag and twist it tight. Tie a knot, if required without disturbing the flies inside. While tying the knot, do not let the air out otherwise the flies may get a chance to escape.

Get more details about this trap here.

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Comparison of Store-Bought Fruit Fly Traps

Note: In the “Price” column ‘$’ means single-digit price [$1 to $9], while ‘$$’ means double-digit price [$10 to $99].

Product ImageProduct DescriptionEfficiencyCost
BEAPCO Fruit Fly Trap
Check at Amazon
BEAPCO Fruit Fly Trap - These traps super easy to use! You can leave this trap for up to 30 days, and watch as the dead flies collect in the trap.starstarstarstarstar$$
TERRO Fruit Fly Trap
Check at Amazon
TERRO Fruit Fly Trap - TERRO fruit fly traps lure adult fruit flies into the trap using a non-toxic, food-based liquid lure. Once the flies enter the trap, they cannot escape the trap.starstarstarstar$$
RESCUE Fruit Fly Trap
Check at Amazon
RESCUE Non-Toxic Reusable Fruit Fly Trap - The RESCUE! Non-Toxic FFTR2 Reusable Fruit Fly Trap, starts catching fruit flies within minutes using a food based lure and color proven attractive to fruit flies.starstarstar$
Aunt Fannie's FlyPunch
Check at Amazon
Aunt Fannie's FlyPunch! Fruit Fly Trap - Aunt Fannie's FlyPunch! is a powerful, easy to use product that gets rid of fruit flies naturally. Safe near people and food, the product is completely non-toxic.starstarstarstarstar$
Raid Apple Fruit Fly Trap
Check at Amazon
Raid Apple Fruit Fly Trap - This fruit fly trap is discreet while attracting and then killing fruit flies without insecticides by using a food lure. It's safe to use around the kitchen and lasts up to 30 days.starstarstar$

So, this was all about fruit fly traps; hope you would have liked this article. Please let us know if you have any other nice fruit fly trap ideas, suggestions etc.

Peace.

About Ankit Zadi

My name is Ankit Zadi, and I can call myself a 'Fly Expert'. My adventures with flies began when we shifted to our new house seven years back. My goal on this website is to share everything that I know about flies. Check out my full story here.