Flies buzzing around in your home will certainly be annoying. You don’t want to have to put up with pesky flies all the time.
There are various methods for getting rid of flies. Most of them involve killing the flies outright.
If you don’t like the idea of killing flies, will there be an alternative method of getting rid of them? Can you catch flies without killing them?
Read on to learn how to catch flies without hurting them. This will give you the option of capturing the flies alive and relocating them instead of just ending their lives.
1 – Make a Homemade Humane Fly Trap
Many fly traps are designed to kill flies. There are also humane fly traps designs that are meant to simply trap the flies, so you can release them outdoors.
You can make your own homemade humane fly trap so long as you have a 2-liter bottle. An old soda 2-liter bottle will work perfectly for this DIY fly trap.
Grab your bottle and cut the top off of it. You want to cut the top off of the bottle just above where the label starts.
Put something that will attract flies in the bottle. Popular choices include fruit and meat scraps.
Now, you need to place the top of the bottle upside down in the other half of the bottle. Tape it so that it will stay in place.
Put the humane fly trap somewhere near where the flies are buzzing around. They’ll be attracted to the bottle, and they’ll get trapped inside.
Once you’ve caught several flies, you can take the bottle outside and set them free. To set the flies free, remove the tape and remove the bottle top again.
2 – Try Chasing the Flies Away
Have you thought about chasing the flies out of the house? Sometimes, this is going to be the easiest option.
You can open a window and see if you can get the fly to go outside on its own. The fly might very well choose to go outside if you open a nearby window.
Otherwise, you could try to “shoo” the fly away. Chase it and try to get it to go toward an open window or door.
Once the fly is out of the door or window, you’ll want to shut things up. Shut the door or the window to prevent the fly from getting back in.
It’s a simple idea, but it’s one of the best ways to get rid of flies without killing them. Sadly, it will take a bit of effort on your part to chase the flies out of the house.
3 – Fans Might Help
Fans can actually help to make things a bit easier. You could try to use fans to blow the flies out of the house.
Flies aren’t very strong and they will have trouble flying if a fan is blowing air nearby. You can potentially blow the flies out of the house if you use fans properly.
You could also try to prevent flies from getting into your home by using fans. Put strong fans by your doors and windows to keep flies from being able to enter properly.
Box fans do a great job of keeping flies from wanting to come around. These fans will be handy during the summer months when you’re trying to cool things down as well.
4 – Try Turning the Lights Off
Flies are attracted to lights. You can use this knowledge to your advantage.
The flies that are in your house now might have come in due to the presence of light. It’s possible that the flies noticed the lights coming from your TV or your lamps.
You could try turning the lights off in your house to get the flies to follow the light back outside. This is an idea that could easily work if you have an outdoor light that you can turn on.
For example, you might have a light on your garage that will attract the flies away from your home. It’s an idea that’s certainly worth trying.
5 – Scare the Flies Away with Herbs
The power of herbs can help you to get flies out of your house. You might not know this, but herbs have strong smells that flies won’t appreciate.
There are various types of herbs that can work as effective fly deterrents. Keeping a small herb garden in your home can help to prevent flies from going into your house.
Some of the best herbs to keep in your home when you want to scare flies away include lavender, citrus, cloves, pine, and basil. Cayenne pepper will also work well if you happen to be interested in that.
You can even use fruit peels to make a type of natural fly repellent. Simply poke twenty holes into the skin of an orange and then hang it up somewhere in your home.
The flies won’t want to get close to the area where the orange is located. You can hang these oranges in multiple locations to keep flies at bay.
If you just want to deter flies from coming around in a more normal way, try planting various herbs around the perimeter of your home. You could create a lavender barrier around your home that will repel various pests.
Are Flies Dangerous?
Should you really be concerned about flies in your home? Or are they simply annoying but not that harmful?
Honestly, flies have the potential to be quite dangerous. Even if they aren’t going to attack you, you should know that flies can carry various diseases.
Flies might be carrying diseases that will be harmful to you or your pets. They often pick up bacteria and will spread it around your house.
When you see flies in your home, it’s not going to be wise to leave them be. You could wind up getting sick if you have a serious issue with flies in your house.
Prevent Flies From Getting Inside
Ideally, you should try to prevent flies from getting inside the house. The flies are getting in somehow, and that might mean that you have cracks or tears in your window screens.
Often, flies get in when people open their windows. Even if you have a screen for your window, the flies might be able to slip in through small tears.
Look for any tears in your window or door screens. Repair them so that flies won’t be able to get in any longer.
This won’t be too hard and it’ll help you to keep issues with flies to a minimum. It’s also smart to keep your home clean so that the flies won’t be attracted to things such as trash.
Don’t keep your windows or doors open for too long either. If you stand there with the door open for long periods of time, it’s more likely that bugs will fly inside.
Be mindful of this, and you’ll avoid many frustrations with having to try to shoo flies out of your home. Keep your doors and windows closed and try to fix small spots where flies or other bugs might be slipping in.
Final Thoughts
You’ve been given many ways to get rid of flies without killing them. It’s possible to catch flies and then release them outside by making humane fly traps.
It’s also easy enough to try to shoo the flies back outside. You can keep them at bay with herbs that they don’t like, too.
I have a bachelor’s degree in Film/Video/Media Studies, as well as an associates degree in Communications. I began producing videos and musical recordings nearly 15 years ago. I am a guitarist and bassist in Southwest MI and have been in a few different bands since 2009, and in 2012 I began building custom guitars and basses in my home workshop as well. When I’m home, I love spending time with my three pets (a dog, cat, and snake) and gardening in my backyard.