Is this a gnat?


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Old 08-27-22, 10:38 AM
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Is this a gnat?

These little things have been hanging around for a few weeks now. Strange thing, I only see one at a time. They're so teeny, they're hard to catch, so I get one every couple of days. The next day, I see another one. Always only one at a time.

I finally got a pretty decent pic of one (the best I could do). It's next to a dime so you can see how teeny they are.





 
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Old 08-27-22, 10:40 AM
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Not the pro, but looks like a drain (phorid) fly to me.
 
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Old 08-27-22, 10:53 AM
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Well yuk. I only see them in the kitchen, and my sink has a garbage disposal (fairly new). My next door neighbor's drain in the back of their house, near my kitchen, has been backing up for months now. I wonder if that has anything to do with it?
 
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Old 08-27-22, 10:57 AM
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In reading about them just now, I did read this: You’ll notice that they make large hops from place to place instead of buzzing around your home like other pests.
These things are flying around or scooting quickly up windows, not hopping, if that makes a difference.
 
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Old 08-27-22, 11:32 AM
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Put some scotch tape or packing tape over the sink drain.
If they're in the drain they will stick to the tape.
 
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Old 08-27-22, 01:08 PM
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Thanks Pete, I'll try that.
I was just talking to my neighbor on the other side of me and he has them, too.
 
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Old 08-27-22, 02:25 PM
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Yes, phorid flies. They can breed in large quantities in outdoor areas that are conducive to them and they find their way in. Sometimes secondary infestations happen inside, because the infiltrators will find a slow drain or similar that otherwise would not cause an infestation. Where ever the density is the greatest, you are close to the source.
The neighbors drain problems and the time frame would be a serious candidate for being the initial issue.
 
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Old 08-27-22, 02:56 PM
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Okay, thanks. I'll have to have a talk with my neighbors about getting their drain taken care of. It's so bad it looks like a weed garden growing around the drain and then there's the sewage smell.
 
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Old 08-28-22, 08:01 AM
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Agree on the phorid fly ID.

In reading about them just now, I did read this: You’ll notice that they make large hops from place to place instead of buzzing around your home like other pests.
If the writer was describing phorid flies, it's a misleading description.

These things are flying around or scooting quickly up windows, not hopping, if that makes a difference.
That description is more like a phorid fly. They zip along the surface of the windows like they're super hyper and they seldom sit still. They remind me of fruit flies on way too much caffeine.

And yes, I often see them only one at a time.
 
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Old 08-28-22, 08:07 AM
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Okay thanks. So I put tape over my sink drain for 12 hours and nothing, but maybe it needs more time.
Altho I think they're getting in to my small kitchen window near that drain, altho I've also got a basement window almost next to it. I've always taken care of a backed up drain the next day. My neighbor's drain has been backing up for months. Who does that?
 
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Old 08-28-22, 08:14 AM
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I put tape over my sink drain for 12 hours and nothing. Altho I think they're getting in to my small kitchen window near that drain.
I don't know for sure, but I've been under the impression (in my case) that they're getting in from outside and not from the drains inside the house.

My neighbor's drain has been backing up for months. Who does that?
Sounds like my neighbor
 
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Old 08-28-22, 08:25 AM
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At least I'm not the only one, lol. Altho not really funny. They also let their dog crap all over the front lawn (near my front door) and don't pick it up. So this is what I have to deal with.
 
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Old 08-28-22, 10:45 AM
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They also let their dog crap all over the front lawn (near my front door) and don't pick it up.
We had problems with the neighbors cats until they were finding crap all over their lawn.
I have no idea how it got back over there.
 
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Old 08-28-22, 10:57 AM
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I have no idea how it got back over there
Ha, ha. Unfortunately, it's on their lawn, just near my door. I live in a twin so we're attached to each other.
 
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Old 09-01-22, 01:59 PM
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So my neighbors have someone coming next week to snake their drain and hopefully these things will go away. In the meantime, I'm able to squash most of them, however, there's a couple that I can't seem to catch. Is there any other way to catch or kill them? They're in the kitchen so I don't want to spray bug spray.
 
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Old 09-01-22, 02:54 PM
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When I worked at the high school many eons ago, we used cherry insecticide about once a week, which is approved for use in food areas (water soluable, so soap and water will clean it up), to kill flies in the school and cafeteria areas. The janitors sprayed it before we left each night. Then first thing in the morning, swept all the floors. There was always quite a pile of dead flies, moths, etc.
 
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Old 09-01-22, 03:22 PM
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Thanks Brant. I'll have to see if I can find that or similar in a store.
 
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Old 09-02-22, 05:23 AM
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You may have a "secondary" infestation. Refer to my earlier comment. If they've found a source inside, then you've got to deal with that in a more mechanical way. Spraying into the air will kill adults, but not stop the secondary source from breeding more. What room are you seeing the most activity in, or is it more general throughout? If kitchen, I'd focus on garbage disposal if there is one. They can collect enough debris/slime on the underside of the rubber flange and inside the unit that otherwise won't get clean in normal cleaning operation. Does dishwasher get used at least 2 or 3 times a month? If not, there can be stagnant water inside. Sump pump pit in basement/crawl? If so, inspect that carefully for stagnant water. Condensation pump for A/C unit should be inspected/cleaned. Ours is fairly new, and I add small amounts of bleach to it periodically. Even in the winter I'll add bleach and several days later I'll pour water in until pump runs to get the treated water throughout. I don't like the idea of stagnant water in there for months.

If they are found in various rooms with no higher density from one room to the next, then it is likely that they are from the exterior drainfield issues. Even if this is the case, I'd clean all drains, disposals, hardly used sinks, sump pump pits, so that a secondary infestation doesn't start. Keep us posted.
 
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Old 09-02-22, 05:59 AM
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That's what I'm worried about, a secondary infestation.
Up until now, I've only seen them in the kitchen and a couple nights a week, (I sit on the couch watching TV but have my laptop on my lap) I've seen one flying in front of my laptop. This morning I was cleaning the upstairs bathroom, and there was one in there.
I use my dishwasher once or twice a week, on average, in the summer. I don't have a sump pump, since I live in the highest point of the city and don't get flooding.
So far, I haven't seen more than three in a day.
How do I clean a drain? I'm a fairly clean person and clean all sinks at least once a week, but can't say I've ever cleaned a drain. Have never had to do that before.
 
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Old 09-09-22, 01:46 PM
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Update, the guy that was supposed to snake the drain, never showed up and they haven't said a word to me about it yet. I set out a glass with apple cider vinegar covered with a plastic wrap with holes, and I've caught a few that way. They cleared the "jungle" growing around the drain, but here's a few pics of what I'm dealing with (dried sludge or sewage or whatever). There's two drains next to each other, but only one is backing up. Looks pretty awful.






 
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Old 01-10-23, 03:45 PM
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Another update. So they finally had their drain taken care of shortly after my last post and when fall got here, I stopped seeing them.
A few weeks ago, I thought I saw one fly by me in the kitchen, then not again. About a week and a half later, I found a dead one on my bathroom floor. Last Friday I was cleaning the bathroom and a little one was flying around in the tub area. Didn't see it again but tonight, there was one sitting in my hallway, right outside the bathroom, which I managed to kill.
I don't know why I'm seeing them again or where they're coming from. I don't have any drains backing up but don't know about my neighbor.
Would pouring some bleach down my drains help? I notice they sell liquid fruit/drain fly killer that you pour down the drain. Is that safe for drains?
 
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Old 01-11-23, 05:18 AM
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Treating the drains will only help if they are coming from the drains. Never a bad idea though, but what could be more effective is rigging up a water hose so that you can flush the drains/traps.
What is the active ingredient in the chemical for the drain?
What's underneath that bathroom? Basement, crawl, slab?

Pardon the short response, for now.

 
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Old 01-11-23, 08:34 AM
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Thanks Terry, your post made me put on my thinking cap and I think I figured out where they're coming from. My bathroom is half over my living and dining rooms, with only the space between the floor and ceiling. My kitchen sink is over my basement, which is out of the ground on the back side of the house, nearest my neighbor's drain. So I went down to that area, where I have a couple of windows, and there they were. A bunch of dead ones (along with some other flying insects) inside the window on the sill (which is closest to the neighbor's problem drain).
I guess I need to get the windows caulked or sealed or something. My neighbor has no windows there so I guess that's why they're coming in my house.
btw, the drain stuff I was looking at (on Amazon) was a natural one with Citronella Oil and Sodium Laurel Sulfate as the main ingredients.
 
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