Why Are There Fruit Flies in My Kitchen Sink Drain?

Has this ever happened to you? You’re washing a dish in the kitchen sink and notice a tiny creature buzz up out of the drain. Is that a gnat? Then you see more of them buzzing around your kitchen. These aggravating little guys are actually fruit flies. And if you’re wondering how they got in there and what you can do about them, you’re in the right place. 

Why Are They Here? 

Fruit flies survive all over the U.S., and mate quickly. According to WebMD, “An adult female fruit fly can lay up to 2,000 eggs on the surface of anything that’s moist and rotting. Within 30 hours, tiny maggots hatch and start to eat the decayed food. Within two days, they’re all grown up and ready to mate.” Since they’re drawn to moisture and rotting food, they’ll head for your trash can, your rotten fruit and the kitchen drain, which is full of moisture and small chunks of food. Sometimes you’ll watch them fly up out of the drain. This can be notably frustrating if you have a partially clogged sink or disposal that drains slowly. This maintains more moisture and food debris that draws these insects and enables them to thrive and reproduce. 

How Bad Are They? 

When fruit flies move from a dirty surface to a clean one, they lug germs with them. This can include listeria, salmonella and even E. coli. All of these bacteria can result in serious cases of food poisoning. 

What Can I Do About Them? 

Due to this bacterial exposure, keep your home’s surfaces clean at all times. Use a kitchen surface cleaner that eliminates bacteria. Don’t reuse sponges that can soak up, retain and transfer germs. It’s best to use paper towels and throw them away. 

Bug sprays can kill the adult fruit flies but won’t get rid of the eggs. And you most likely don’t want to spray insecticide all over your kitchen. Instead, put boiling water down your drain. Before bed, close up your drains with clear packing tape. Each morning, you should see some fruit flies trapped to it. 

Here are other ideas you can also use, all utilizing a jar: 

• Wine—Add an ounce of wine into the jar. Make a hole in the lid so the fruit flies can get in. You can also utilize a funnel or paper cone rather than a lid. 

• Rotten fruit—Same as above, but using rotten fruit in place of wine. 
• Apple cider vinegar—Same as above but using apple cider vinegar. 
• Apple cider vinegar and dish soap—Same as above with dish liquid added, which makes it more difficult for flies to escape. 
• Yeast—Add two or three ounces of water, one packet of activated dry yeast as well as a teaspoon of sugar. 

To minimize bringing in fruit flies: 

• Rinse your produce as soon you bring it home. Occasionally they can possess fruit fly eggs or larvae. 
• Refrigerate as soon as you can. 
• Try not to keep overripe produce in your home. Buy only what you’re likely to eat. 
• Empty your kitchen trash often, and keep it closed. 
• Keep your surfaces clean and disinfected. 

• If you prefer to keep windows up, make sure they have well-fitted screens. 

If the above methods haven’t taken care of your fruit fly issue, there could also be something wrong with your p-trap. That’s the section of your drain pipe bent in a u shape to hold water and stop foul air from moving up into your home. It also keeps flies from surviving in your pipes and flying up from the drain. If your pipe has a leak and has no water seal, this can create a fruit fly problem. Run the water and look below for a leak. If you spot one, get it fixed quickly. Leaky pipes can cause mold and structural problems with your home. 

You should also hire a plumber if your kitchen sink or garbage disposal is draining more slowly than usual. This problem not only helps encourage fruit flies, but over time the sink drain can entirely clog and become unusable. The Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing plumbing team has the equipment, experience and knowledge to determine the problem and solve it quickly. We employ a video drain inspector to clearly see what’s occurring within the pipes, and a variety of methods to clean them, depending on the type and extent of the blockage. If the problem is your garbage disposal, we can repair or replace it at a price you can afford. We also resolve leaky pipes. 

If you are looking for any sort of plumbing service at all, get in touch with the professionals at Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing. Whether we’re warming, cooling or making the water run, we take great pride in keeping our customers satisfied. With more than 4,000 team members, we can deliver and innovate better than anyone. Our can-do family attitude helps us get the job done on time, and right—the first time.