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 see a small creature shoot up out of the drain. Is that a gnat? Then you see more of them flying around the kitchen. These aggravating little guys are actually fruit flies. And if you’re asking 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 grow 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.” Because they’re drawn to moisture and decomposing food, they’ll frequently appear in your trash can, your overripe fruit and the kitchen drain, which is full of moisture and little pieces of food. Occasionally you’ll watch them appear up out of the drain. This can be especially bad if you have a partially clogged sink or disposal that drains slowly. This retains more moisture and food particles that attracts these insects and allows them to thrive and reproduce. 

How Bad Are They? 

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

What Can I Do About Them? 

Because of this bacterial exposure, keep your surfaces clean at all times. Use a kitchen surface cleaner that kills bacteria. Don’t reuse sponges that can attract, retain and exchange germs. It’s cleaner to use paper towels and throw them out. 

Bug sprays can kill off the adult fruit flies but won’t kill the eggs. And you likely don’t want to apply insecticide all throughout your kitchen. Instead, put boiling water down your drain. Before bed, close up your drains with clear packing tape. Every morning, you can see some fruit flies attached to it. 

Here are other ideas you can also try, all with a jar: 

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

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

To prevent attracting fruit flies: 

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

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

If the listed methods haven’t eliminated your fruit fly problem, there may be an issue with your p-trap. That’s the area of your drain pipe bent in a u shape to capture water and keep foul air from wafting up into your home. It also stops flies from hiding in your pipes and flying up out of the drain. If your pipe has a leak and lacks a water seal, this can create a fruit fly problem. Run the water and check below for a leak. If you notice one, get it fixed right away. Leaky pipes can encourage mold and structural damage to your home. 

You should also call 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 completely clog and become unusable. The Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing plumbing team has the equipment, experience and know-how to determine the problem and fix it quickly. We use a video drain inspector to plainly see what’s occurring inside the pipes, and a number of methods to clean them, depending on the type and extent of the blockage. If the problem is the garbage disposal, we can repair or replace it at a price you can afford. We also resolve leaky pipes. 

If you need any sort of plumbing service at all, contact 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 comfortable. 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.