Comment on How do I figure out where flies are entering my house?
Onomatopoeia@lemmy.cafe 10 hours ago
Need more info.
Do you live somewhere that has lots of bugs (Like a high humidity place, lots of plant life outside) or in a dry climate?
In an area with lots of bug life it’s hard to completely keep them out - your house is like a sieve and you have a high “bug load”. So investigate gaps in window frames, screens, etc.
In a place with few bugs (say US southwest), you’re just playing odds and aren’t likely to get many anyway.
Someone else mentioned they’re probably coming in with you through the open door - in my experience that’s the “big gap” (haha) that’s hard to reduce.
glimse@lemmy.world 10 hours ago
I’m in the Midwest US, though I don’t think it’s super relevant. I’m more wondering if there’s a way to identify gaps that I’m unaware of. My plan B is to have my friend bring his thermal camera to scan the walls
rhymeswithduck@sh.itjust.works 8 hours ago
Have you checked your attic? I was just reading about cluster flies, and… it looks disturbing but at least they don’t carry disease. They lay eggs in earthworms and sometimes adult flies congregate in attics.
glimse@lemmy.world 8 hours ago
Oh…no…no I have not checked my attic. God I hope it’s not the attic, it sucks up there lol
CentipedeFarrier@piefed.social 8 hours ago
Actually, depending what the flies actually do inside that might indeed be relevant.
I live in the Midwest and I get these flies called cluster flies. They usually only come in in the fall when looking for somewhere warm to overwinter, but I’ve had them other times as well.
They aren’t like houseflies in that they wont really reproduce inside the house, they mostly hang out near windows. I wait for a lot of them to build up on the screen, close the window most of the way, crack the screen open a bit (storm window) and go outside to open the rest of the way.
But once everything is closed up for the year, any left behind just die.
If those are what you’ve got, you probably wont be able to stop them getting in without completely ruining the insulation and humidity profile of your place, especially if its an older place which aren’t neatly as airtight as newer ones. They will get in through any ducts going outside, cracks under your siding that aren’t sealed, you name it.
Best you can do is get rid of them when you get them.