Little flies

[Entropy]

I'm about to go nuts. My house has been inundated with little flies. Much like fruit flies but more annoying. We have no rotting fruit out, the litter box, guinea pig enclosure, hamster cage and rat cages are cleaned regularly as are the snake tubs (though I have two girls that gleefully dump their water to make a swamp daily).
The dirty dishes get either cleaned or put in the dishwasher... could it be the garbage disposal?
What are these things?!!! And more so, how do I get rid of them? As I write I see them buzzing in front of my computer screen and landing on the walls and such.
We keep a clean house, but these things make me feel so incredibly... icky.

[JLC]

I've been having the SAME problem!! I don't see lots of them...but it seems like wherever I am, there is one buzzing around! I've looked high and low for a source and can't find anything amiss. We may be a bit untidy, but we're not dirty. No rotting food or dirty animal cages. I'm mystified and have no idea how to get rid of them. Every time I kill one, a new one buzzes right on in.

[Entropy]

Last night I was at work and my husband was home with Hudson. He called me to say that he turned off all the lights except for the tv and they started showing up on there. He'd quish about thirty of them at a time. AAAAAAAH. I want them to stop! If it werent for the snakes I'd open all the windows and let the little buggers freeze to death. MWAHAHA

[frankykeno]

Are they really incredibly tiny, tiny little flying things? I've got them too and I cannot for the life of me think where they are coming from either. They remind me of very tiny fruit flies but I've no fresh fruit out to have them around and I can't figure out why the show up, suddenly disappear and weeks later...show up again!

Have we all been attacked by the Teeny Weeny Bugs from Hades?

[JLC]

The ones I'm seeing are REALLY small...but large enough to tell they are flies. They're bigger than gnats...but not by much.

Teeny Weeny Bugs from Hades..... ....I can see that.

[Kristy]

Here is your solution: or a couple anyway lol


RED WINE

If you have some, put a glass out on the counter. They are drawn to it. They will dive in for a sip and can't get out. Not sure if its because they are drunk or not so don't ask lol

Distilled white vinegar works wonders too, same thing. Leave some in a bowl.

Apple cider vinger will also work.

I have them here too, I left the vinegar out and they were all dead within 24 hours.

Also if you have house plants check them, I am suming it up to weird weather, but I think thats where mine are coming from.

[PythonWallace]

Put 1/2" of cider vinegar in a few cups with 5 drops of dish soap in them. If they are fruit flies these cups catch most of them in a couple of days. If they are fungus gnats, spray down the soil of any house plants you have with pyretherin (sp) or a soil drench. These work great for me when I get gnats or flies.

Edit: Kristy beat me to the vinegar. See, it works.

[Kristy]

Put 1/2" of cider vinegar in a few cups with 5 drops of dish soap in them. If they are fruit flies these cups catch most of them in a couple of days. If they are fungus gnats, spray down the soil of any house plants you have with pyretherin (sp) or a soil drench. These work great for me when I get gnats or flies.

Thank you,

Is there any way to tell the difference between the two?

I will try that stuff out on my house plants. I know when I get them I will leave my plants in my garage for 24 hours and it usally kills the gnats without killing my plants.

[JLC]

I don't have any houseplants. (My animal husbandry is MUCH better than my plant husbandry! LOL) I'll try the vinegar trick! Can't get much simpler than that! Thanks!!

[PythonWallace]

Kristy, I don't know. If you are seeing them around plants or soil, they are probably gnats. They lay eggs in the soil and the larva eat new roots, and can do serious damage to some plants. A good soil drench or beneficial nematodes kill the larva instead of just the adults, but a pyretherin foliar spray helps kill both stages.