How to get rid of flies...

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I've got an open shop that's in the shade and has a cool concrete floor through most of the morning and early afternoon. It seems to attract flies so I thought I'd ask about getting rid of them. I'd go with flypaper but I'm guessing someone has a better idea along the lines of using apple cider vinegar in a jar covered with an inverted funnel for fruit flies, but for house flies. Any ideas?
 
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howsitwork

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Electric fly killer so you get that satisfying PING when they are electrocuted , making up for irritation they've caused you all day
 

mnerland

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How Did I Get House Flies? House flies are one of the most common insects on the planet. They breed and feed in filth, including garbage, feces, and rotting or spoiled food. Poor sanitation and ripped screens and unsealed cracks in windows and doors can lead to house fly infestations.

So, that was an internet search. Maybe find their food source? I grew up on a cattle farm and live next to one now. I'm not so squeemish but they are a pain. I do have my yard sprayed for bugs that really drive me nuts with the lights in my garage/shop. Not flies.
 

mark james

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Bats...

Seriously, I do use one of these for my garage when I'm using my band saw a lot: Garage Screen, double width.

Not sure if several of these would help, but it is great for me. I attached a slightly weighted metal rod to the bottom, attached the top to the bottom of the garage door. I can simply attach it, raise the door until the heigth is just at ground level, and even have the split opening to walk in/out. I waited and bought with a coupon, so it was much cheaper. Maybe 40% less.
 

penicillin

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Last edited:

PreacherJon

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Allow spiders in your shop.

Just thinking outside the box.... You can always get the 'manure' of an animal and place it away from your shop... Flys are always attracted to that stuff. You can get more flies with sugar than you can with vinegar.... but they will always go for the pile of manure.
 
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Keep a fly swatter in the shop... every time I pick mine up the flies all leave... never get to swatch one.

I actually have more trouble with carpenter bees buzzing around... even though my neighbor has a cow pasture just across the driveway, fortunately right now he only has 3 horses in the pasture. When he does have cattle in the pasture we do get flies.
 
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Thanks for all the good ideas. Actually there's nothing in the shop that would attract flies. I've noticed flies being attracted to cooler outdoor places, specifically floors similar to mine so I'm assuming that's what's attracting them now. I have plenty of bats around too so you would think that would help.

As for my trolling friend penicillin... You have now made your opinion known more than once in my threads. I'm sorry I'm using a board which YOU did not create in a way that YOU do not approve of. Apparently I have crossed some of YOUR personal boundaries and I've alarmed YOU for some reason; sorry YOU'RE so easily unbalanced. But since I'm getting plenty of good conversation from other people in my threads this seems to be a problem limited to YOU. So now that YOU'VE made your case why don't YOU leave it at that?...because NOTHING is going to change here on my end, you hear?
 

BarryE

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Get an A-Salt weapon. Leave some little fly bodies as a warning

1622238114419.png
 

BarryE

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I have one! They are quite fun. Will only knock a wood bee out of the air though, those suckers are little tanks. Flys… not a chance. Now where did I put it?
Just got mine, works great on flies. Got a wasp with it, took a few pumps
 

penicillin

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As for my trolling friend penicillin... You have now made your opinion known more than once in my threads. I'm sorry I'm using a board which YOU did not create in a way that YOU do not approve of. Apparently I have crossed some of YOUR personal boundaries and I've alarmed YOU for some reason; sorry YOU'RE so easily unbalanced. But since I'm getting plenty of good conversation from other people in my threads this seems to be a problem limited to YOU. So now that YOU'VE made your case why don't YOU leave it at that?...because NOTHING is going to change here on my end, you hear?
Yes. I hear. Please take the time to read my statements below with care.

Your statements are neither rational nor correct, but I do appreciate and understand the sentiment and frustration behind them. At least you called me "friend." I have nothing against you as a person, only your actions here and in other forums. I have not called you names. I am not the only person here and elsewhere whose boundaries your actions have crossed. To assuage your concerns, I have no immediate intent to follow or respond to your every thread. In fairness to myself and others, I will not commit to avoid you forever, because it is apparent that my points are not sinking in. I reserve the right to warn others in the future about your behavior if I believe it is warranted.

With sincerity, here is what I recommend:

First, become an active, contributing member of the community.
This is a pen making community. Make some pens, ask pen making questions as you learn the craft, and help others by sharing your newly acquired pen making knowledge, successes, and failures. Pen making is what everyone here loves to do, and the off-topic forum is intended for pen makers who want to share other aspects of their lives with their pen making friends. Be a member, make pens, make friends, and then start using the off-topic forums as they were intended. (The same holds true for the woodworking forums. Start making some woodworking projects. Learn the craft.)
-> I am not an owner or moderator of Penturners.org, but I doubt that they created the off-topic section to serve as an "instant answer for any topic" source or an ad-hoc social club for people without a demonstrated interest in pen making.

Start a thread in one website forum only. Allow it the time it needs to nurture and develop.
Choose the forum carefully and start your thread there. Let it blossom and grow. Help it stay on track and see what happens. If it fails, dies, or runs into the weeds where you can't get the answers you need, then it is time to consider your options, which may include a new thread elsewhere.
-> Blasting the same thread simultaneously in many forums is considered impatient, rude behavior. It is the very essence of spamming those forums. It is made worse because the spammer is not an integrated, active member of those communities, just someone who wants instant gratification, but is unwilling to invest the effort to (a) find the appropriate community and (b) invest their time to contribute to it. Furthermore, it creates confusion for those who belong to multiple related communities, such as Pentuners and other woodworking sites.

When you start a thread, monitor its progress and help your new friends to help you.
All too often, we see a thread started, and then abandoned for long periods, leaving many questions unanswered. Generous, helpful people try to follow up and answer those "one and gone" threads, or where the posters disappear for weeks.
-> Recently, Bradley has shown considerable improvement in responding to others in his threads, at least on the forums where I belong.

So now that YOU'VE made your case why don't YOU leave it at that?...because NOTHING is going to change here on my end, you hear?

To my friends at Penturners.org:
I have planted the seeds and done all I can. I have been reasonable and fair. There is nothing more to do but watch and wait.
-> The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior.
 

sbwertz

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You say open air, but is it at least partially enclosed? If so, one of these might work...we use them in barns and horse pens. They are safe to use inside, and are used in restaurants. I have a couple in the house and buy the spray by the case. Use the drop down menu to see all the different options.. The kit is about 40 dollars for the sprayer and one can of spray, and the refills are eight dollars or so.

 

sbwertz

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I used to have an electric tennis racquet kind of thing that electrocuted flies and mosquitos. Worked great. At night about a bazillion mosquitos would collect on the ceiling of my motor home and I would take that racket and wipe them all out with half a dozen swipes across the ceiling. VERY satisfying. Like this one:

Harbor freight sells these too; we bought one but haven't used it yet. We have more wasps than flies and I'm scared to try it (in case what doesn't kill it makes it stronger 😬🤦🏻‍♀️)
 

Canoeroller

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Dec 23, 2019
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Lake Oswego, Oregon
I've got an open shop that's in the shade and has a cool concrete floor through most of the morning and early afternoon. It seems to attract flies so I thought I'd ask about getting rid of them. I'd go with flypaper but I'm guessing someone has a better idea along the lines of using apple cider vinegar in a jar covered with an inverted funnel for fruit flies, but for house flies. Any ideas?
I used to work in a place that was overwhelmed by flies every summer. The entire crew became skilled at using squirt guns filled with rubbing alcohol to blast the little monsters into the great beyond.
 
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