With summer here, there’s nothing better than letting the fresh air in. Unfortunately, open windows and doors can lead to pesky, winged insects inside the home and around your outdoor lounging areas. Flies are not only a nuisance but can carry all sorts of bacteria on their legs. When they land on your food they can transmit that bacteria. Also, once flies are in your home, they begin to reproduce, meaning that you’ll have an abundance of flies that just don’t seem to disappear.
Once you get flies in your house or yard, it can seem like no matter how many you get rid of, there’s always another few buzzing around. While it may seem like a hopeless fight to keep winged insects away, there is a simple hack that can keep your home and yard fly-free year-round.
Airborne repellents can be expensive and there aren’t many people who like to use fly traps in their kitchens. Seeing dead flies can be less than appetizing.
The good news is, there is a way to repel flies, and you probably have all of the necessary components in your home. Homestead Off the Grid has tested an old method that is a very affordable and environmentally-friendly way to keep flies away from your home.
Use that Spare Change
If you’re like most people, you’ve got a few extra pennies in your wallet that you always seem to forget about when you’re at the grocery store. If you have four pennies, a Ziplock bag, and some water – you can repurpose those to keep flies away from areas where you encounter an excess of flies. Yes… it’s all you need!
The first step is to get a Ziploc or another clear bag. Using a cloudy grocery bag will not have the same effect that you are looking for. A clear bag gives the water the opportunity to catch and reflect the light.
Put four pennies into the bag and then fill it with water. When filling the bag, you want to make sure not to overfill it. Leave enough room at the top so that you can tie it off with string.
Once you make sure that the string is securely knotted, you can hang the bag. When looking for a spot to hang the bag, you want to put it near an area that will catch the light. This is essential to making sure that your house remains fly-free. This can be either natural or artificial light.
While it may seem like this would have no effect on flies, there is an interesting science behind this method of looking at how to keep flies away.
What’s the Science Behind Using Pennies in Water?
Not only do the makers of Homestead Off the Grid swear by this method, but there are also plenty of people who have seen the effectiveness of warding off flies this way.
Flies have what are referred to as compound eyes. They don’t see in the same way that we do. Instead, their eyes pick up on light reflections and capture multiple angles. With so many different angles, it takes them time for them to focus. Reflection from light is how flies are alerted to the presence of possible predators around them.
Putting pennies into a bag of water and reflecting the light has the same effect on the fly as seeing a predator. According to Homestead Off the Grid, flies interpret the shine of the pennies as the eyes of a spider. The bag, combined with the water, creates a magnified effect. This makes the pennies look like very large eyes, creating the impression of a big predator.
You can hang the bag with your porch lights or in areas where you get large amounts of natural light.
It isn’t only the light that makes this method effective. When flies land in water, it dampens their wings and prevents them from being able to escape. Seeing the reflection from the water in the bag gives the impression that there is not only a predator, but that it’s also inhabiting a body of water.
So Does it Work?
Using pennies in a bag of water is one of those repellent methods that people may be skeptical about. However, most – when placed in the right location – have seen flies repelled from their homes and yards. As a little to no-cost method of repelling flies, giving it a try can only benefit your enjoyment of your home during the warmer months.
Depending on where you hang your bag, make sure to check it every once and a while. When at high temperatures and direct light, the plastic in your bag can begin to melt and become flimsy.
Just make sure that you’ve tied the bag tight enough so no other pests can get inside. Insects like mosquitoes are attracted to warm standing water. This is where they lay their eggs, leading to a larger headache for you down the line with an infestation of mosquitoes along with your flies.
Other Things to Consider When Ridding Your Home From Flies
There are other ways to help rid your home and yard of flies. When keeping windows and doors open, having a clean house is important. Always put away food from open areas and wipe down counters. Flies are also attracted to the fruit you have sitting out in your fruit bowl. If you leave your fruit for too long, the sweet smell as it begins to rot will attract flies.
If you have bins that are located close to your doors or windows, you can either hang up one of the bags or move them further from your residence. Trash bins are hotbeds for flies, especially during the summer, because of the plastic, they provide the perfect environment for flies to reproduce.
When the sun goes down, if your bags are not hung under bright artificial lights, make sure to close windows and doors. The penny trick will only work when a light source leads to a reflection off of the pennies.
Saving money can be difficult, but using low-impact methods can make both your home and yard more enjoyable. So dig into your coin purse and put some of those extra pennies to be used.