How To Get Rid Of Biting Gnats In The House

Out of all the flying insects that can make their way into your home, gnats may top the listing as the nigh frustrating. After all, they're tiny and have no result flight upwards your nose, into your food, or pretty much any other place you don't desire them to be.

If gnats have invaded your space, yous can spend a lot of time trying to take them out, one past one. For what it's worth, they won't harm yous—but they are a huge nuisance. Want to take them out one time and for all? Check out our guide on how to get rid of gnats beneath, with good insight from entomologists and pest management pros.

What are gnats, exactly? Are they like to fruit flies?

"Gnats are small, archaic flies that kind of look like mosquitoes," says Howard Russell, M.D., an entomologist at Michigan State Academy. (They belong to the issues family Chironomidae, if you desire to get specific.)

"Depending on species, gnats tin can exist biting or non-bitter and will feed on plants, other insects, or blood," says board-certified entomologist Glen Ramsey, senior technical services manager at Orkin. But, he adds, mucus gnats are the most popular. These are modest flies that tend to be found in the soil of potted plants. "They can also be found in wall voids, especially after new structure or when at that place is a moisture issue in the void," Ramsey says.

While they accept similar habits, gnats are actually different from fruit flies, which "are a higher lodge of fly," Russell says. Fruit fly larvae develop in decomposable fruit, fruit juice, fermenting liquid, while gnats develop in watery or semi-watery areas like moist soil and puddles, he says.

Gnats also form those intense-looking swarms you lot tend to come across—or accidentally walk through—in the summer. They're actually "mating swarms," per Russell, and the females fly into them to reproduce.

How do gnats get into your business firm?

They're actually pretty skillful at working their fashion within. They can movement in through holes in window or door screens or hitch a ride on your clothes, Russell says. Gnats tin can also easily come in when yous open and close the door to your home.

They also like to travel indoors on firm plants or cut garden flowers, Ramsey says. "If the hitchhikers have made their mode into a domicile, the owners may soon be faced with a gnat population that's out of control," he says. "The pests tin can produce several generations each year and don't crave much time to mature. As a result, homeowners may come across gnats swarming around plants, windows, and light sources."

How to get rid of gnats

✔️Check your screens: "The best way to keep them out of your house is to brand sure everything is buttoned up," Russell says. That means fixing any screen door or window holes, so the gnats can't arrive. If you suspect your window is their signal of entry, you can try placing a articulate, sticky trap straight to the area to take hold of them as they fly in.

✔️Get rid of standing pools of water: Gnats like moisture, so putting away any possible sources of standing water, like kiddie pools and unused blossom pots, can assist keep them abroad, Russell says. The same goes for whatever expanse inside your home–especially your kitchen and bathroom. Keep counters and sinks dry.

✔️Use fly paper: This is a sticky ribbon of paper that y'all can hang from the ceiling, identify near plants, or apply anywhere you demand. When gnats (or other winged insects) cheque it out, they get stuck to the newspaper.

✔️Make a DIY trap: Mix apple cider vinegar in a minor basin with a tablespoon of saccharide and a little dish soap. The gnats volition be attracted to the sweet liquid, and the lather volition help trap them. Merely lay out your "trap" wherever yous detect gnats in your place.

If you rather not deal with the hassle, "there are several traps on the marketplace, nearly of which are vinegar-based," says board-certified entomologist Nancy Troyano, Ph.D., director of Operations Education and Training for Presto-X.

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✔️Try the candle pull a fast one on: We credit this tip to our friends over at Popular Mechanics. After information technology gets night, go out a candlestick and fix information technology in a shallow pan of water. One time yous light the candle and turn your lights off, the gnats will exist fatigued to the flame—and they'll either die by fire or drown in the water. Just brand sure you lot don't go out a called-for candle unattended and keep it away from your kids, pets, and combustible items like curtains.

✔️Toss infested plants: If you discover a agglomeration of gnats hanging around a plant, Ramsey says it's likely infested. If you don't desire to get rid of the establish, he recommends watching how much you water it, since gnats dear moist soil, to see if it tin assist curb the problem.

✔️Make a soap-water mist: If you've got a gnatty plant, Ramsey recommends mixing soap and water and spraying information technology on your constitute with a fine-mist spray bottle to take out gnats. If watering less or the soapy mist doesn't do much, you lot may demand to get rid of the plant.

✔️Simply swat them: "They're slow flying and are pretty easy to acceleration," Russell says. He recommends using a rolled upwards magazine to take them out if you only take a few hanging around.

When should I call a pro about my gnat trouble?

Near of these tricks only take out a few gnats at in one case. If you lot have a serious gnat problem going on and you suspect they might take ready camp backside your walls or under your floors, call a pest control professional to aid. "Don't wait to call a professional, as the state of affairs can get out of hand very quickly," Troyano says.

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Korin Miller is a freelance writer specializing in general wellness, sexual health and relationships, and lifestyle trends, with work appearing in Men's Wellness, Women's Health, Self, Glamour, and more. She has a principal's degree from American University, lives by the beach, and hopes to own a teacup sus scrofa and taco truck one day.