Subject: Re: mysterious insect invading house

From: [email-masked] (Mike Hennessy)
Date: 4 Mar 1995 12:00:16 -0500

Bernadette Bosky ([email-masked]) wrote:
> In article <[email-masked]>,
> John Gillenwater <[email-masked]> wrote:
> >  we live in a rural area and are on septic.  since christmas, we've been noticing these
> >small, very black flies in our house.  the exterminators said they've never seen them
> >and neither have i.  someone suggested they were like a fruit fly and they could be
> >coming from our septic.  they advised us to pour lysol down the drains and that's helped
> >it seems, but they don't go away and our sinuses are killing us. when you smash one,
> >they are like powder, like a moth.  also, they don't seem to live long.
> >
> 	Unless I'm mistaken, you have what are called "trap flies."  We
> had a couple of *major* infestations--as you say, they are as small as
> fruit-flies, and they are easy to kill, but they are multitudinous!  At

We ge 'em too. They seem to live/breed in the basement floor drain trap. 
I believe they thrive there because it doesn't see much use. We keep the 
problem under control by dumping a cup or two of bleach down the drain 
every few weeks. I've often thought automotive antifreeze might do the 
trick too - it doesn't evaporate and it is pretty poisonous to living things.

Mike Hennessy
Pittsburgh, PA
[email-masked]

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From: [email-masked] (Bernadette Bosky)
Date: 1 Mar 1995 01:27:58 -0500

Unless I'm mistaken, you have what are called "trap flies."  We
had a couple of *major* infestations--as you say, they are as small as
fruit-flies, and they are easy to kill, but they are multitudinous!  At
first, I thought they *were* fruit-flies, but there was no stuff around
that they could be breeding in.  We almost began to wonder if our house
was possessed by a very, very minor demon-- But no, they are just flies
that live in sink traps, toilet pipes, etc.  Ours tend to come back when
the weather gets colder.  (One way to test to see if they are trap flies 
is to put a clear drinking glass, upside-down, over every sink drain 
overnight & see if you have caught any by morning.)
	So you know what they are (probably).  Sorry to say, we proved 
totally unable to get rid of them on our own, despite ammonia down the 
drains (what our exterminator recommended), air-spraying them, etc.  Our 
Orkin man did get rid of them, by spraying very serious, oily stuff down 
all the sinks, tubs, & toilets; they also set out trays of a dry poison 
bait that seems to help.
	Oddly, no one we knew had ever heard of these beasties either.  I 
wonder if they are that rare (& we just got lucky!) or what.
	Good luck!

Bernadette Bosky

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From: [email-masked] (RSherry271)
Date: 4 Mar 1995 21:46:35 -0500

I'm horrified to hear that people are pouring extremely toxic stuff down
their drains. Untimately it all goes to the groundwater that feeds your
drinking water well or into sewer drains that may end up in rivers. Try
something a bit more harmless to the overall environment like vinegar and
keep the drains clear of food scraps. Put them in the compost bin.
Rosanne Sherry

"Dogs come when called, cats take a message and get back to you".

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From: [email-masked] (DTDerekson)
Date: 5 Mar 1995 20:36:41 -0500

I had to chuckle that one of these posts is from the 'Burgh, too! Anyway,
the critters sound like moth flies and they do indeed breed in the drain.
Try vinegar and baking soda and see if it helps. It's also an old
plumber's trick to keeping drains flowing, so the worst that happens is
that your drains work great.  But that should help get at what they eat
down there. They are seasonal, but I never paid much attention to what
their cycles are.  I only get a few every once in a while and they are
harmless -- unless you have flat paint on your walls in which case don't
ever dare squish one unless you have that new washable kind of flat paint.
Such a smudge the goomers make!

DT in Pittsburgh...(bug hunter extrordinaire -- serving house, yard or
computer software!)

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From: [email-masked] (Bernadette Bosky)
Date: 1 Mar 1995 01:27:58 -0500

Bernadette Bosky

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From: [email-masked] (RSherry271)
Date: 4 Mar 1995 21:46:35 -0500

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From: [email-masked] (DTDerekson)
Date: 5 Mar 1995 20:36:41 -0500