Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP back again...years later. Suddenly we have the issue again. We killed so many of them. Just had sump pumps cleaned/flushed Friday and the guy insisted on leaving the front door open to go to the hose easily. No fly issues this weekend, then BAM tonight it's fly central. They are slow and easy to kill, but my husband and I killed probably 20 this evening. We do have houseplants and I will buy insecticide soap in case they have laid eggs there. I suspect they are cluster flies.

It's so freaky.No dead animal smells.

Also, I have been airing out the house lately opening the windows, but not screens. I did it this morning so I'm thinking perhaps some came in then through cracks?

any fruit sitting on the counter?

OP here. No fruit sitting out.

They do look like cluster flies to me. Arg. I think when I first started this thread it was an issue for a week and slowly went away. I am thinking i need plug any gaps when i open the windows. Haven't had the flies in years. Stink bugs though come every year. Not looking forward to that.

Anyone else have a slow moving fly hotel in your home?

Anonymous wrote:OP back again...years later. Suddenly we have the issue again. We killed so many of them. Just had sump pumps cleaned/flushed Friday and the guy insisted on leaving the front door open to go to the hose easily. No fly issues this weekend, then BAM tonight it's fly central. They are slow and easy to kill, but my husband and I killed probably 20 this evening. We do have houseplants and I will buy insecticide soap in case they have laid eggs there. I suspect they are cluster flies.

It's so freaky.No dead animal smells.

Also, I have been airing out the house lately opening the windows, but not screens. I did it this morning so I'm thinking perhaps some came in then through cracks?

any fruit sitting on the counter?

OP back again...years later. Suddenly we have the issue again. We killed so many of them. Just had sump pumps cleaned/flushed Friday and the guy insisted on leaving the front door open to go to the hose easily. No fly issues this weekend, then BAM tonight it's fly central. They are slow and easy to kill, but my husband and I killed probably 20 this evening. We do have houseplants and I will buy insecticide soap in case they have laid eggs there. I suspect they are cluster flies.

It's so freaky.No dead animal smells.

Also, I have been airing out the house lately opening the windows, but not screens. I did it this morning so I'm thinking perhaps some came in then through cracks?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm bumping this thread and hope that someone can recommend a good pest control service that would be able to deal with cluster flies in the DC area? I thought my husband left the windows open and some flies got it, but after killing about 50 large, slow flies over the last couple of days it dawned on me that he probably wasn't to blame (this time

Any PPs deal with this successfully? Like other PPs I'm pretty sure there's no dead animal in our walls - we have a small house and I'm sure I'd smell something. The flies are all down in our basement near the washing machine.

Its the drain. If you have a floor drain, you need to clean it - scrub what you can with a brush and flush for a minute with running water and then pour either bleach or vinegar. Do a flush daily for a week or two or twice a day and keep adding vinegar or bleach (just a little). Its the stagnant water.

Thank you! I really appreciate the advice!

Anonymous wrote:I'm bumping this thread and hope that someone can recommend a good pest control service that would be able to deal with cluster flies in the DC area? I thought my husband left the windows open and some flies got it, but after killing about 50 large, slow flies over the last couple of days it dawned on me that he probably wasn't to blame (this time

Any PPs deal with this successfully? Like other PPs I'm pretty sure there's no dead animal in our walls - we have a small house and I'm sure I'd smell something. The flies are all down in our basement near the washing machine.

Its the drain. If you have a floor drain, you need to clean it - scrub what you can with a brush and flush for a minute with running water and then pour either bleach or vinegar. Do a flush daily for a week or two or twice a day and keep adding vinegar or bleach (just a little). Its the stagnant water.

I'm bumping this thread and hope that someone can recommend a good pest control service that would be able to deal with cluster flies in the DC area? I thought my husband left the windows open and some flies got it, but after killing about 50 large, slow flies over the last couple of days it dawned on me that he probably wasn't to blame (this time

Any PPs deal with this successfully? Like other PPs I'm pretty sure there's no dead animal in our walls - we have a small house and I'm sure I'd smell something. The flies are all down in our basement near the washing machine.

"What you have seen may be cluster flies, but without a specimen I’m not sure. These flies are sometimes mistaken for house flies because they look similar to the common house fly. Cluster flies have a completely different life cycle. These flies are common inside houses in fall and winter.

The life cycle of the cluster fly begins in the spring when they leave the overwintering sites and lay their eggs in the soil. The larval or maggot stages of this fly attack and eat earthworms. There are several generations of cluster flies during the summer, and each time the female returns to lay eggs in the soil. The flies of the last generation (late August) will spend the winter in a protected location, and start the life cycle over again the following spring.

Cluster flies spend the winter relatively inactive in attics and wall voids. They begin searching for a place to spend the winter during the last month of summer, usually in late August and early September. They seek out the sides of houses that are warmed by the afternoon sun. They collect there by the hundreds or thousands." - Orkin Website.

I have them too. its the worst. no easy or cheap solution. doesnt have to mean you have dead animals. if you have an attic make sure there are no birds or bats up there. the flyes can find the soil in the feces.

Anonymous wrote:I live in an apt bldg. No foul smells. Had 2 large, easy to kill/catch this year and 2 this year so far. Wonder if they are suffering from whatever has been killing off bees? Over last few years have seen no bees, butterflies, moths ..etc.. anyone else?

Uhmmm.... no? this has nothing to do with 'whatever has been killing our bees'. I recall seeing these slow moving, low flying, ginormous flies when I was a kid. They come out every Spring. I think they hatch in vents etc., then come out when it warms up.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Drain flies! You can google to see for sure if those match what you are seeing, but we have them periodically and it sounds like what you describe.

So, not dead animal although still a little ick.

Ours come out of two places, a basement shower drain and a basement floor drain. When I notice any flies I just pour straight bleach down the drains. Problem solved usually for a few months at least.

This. They are drain flies, no question.

Lol. With as many people here who said "we had a dead animal in the wall that resulted in a fly bloom" I think it's not a given that OP's problem was drain flies.

Anonymous wrote:Drain flies! You can google to see for sure if those match what you are seeing, but we have them periodically and it sounds like what you describe.

So, not dead animal although still a little ick.

Ours come out of two places, a basement shower drain and a basement floor drain. When I notice any flies I just pour straight bleach down the drains. Problem solved usually for a few months at least.

This. They are drain flies, no question.

I live in an apt bldg. No foul smells. Had 2 large, easy to kill/catch this year and 2 this year so far. Wonder if they are suffering from whatever has been killing off bees? Over last few years have seen no bees, butterflies, moths ..etc.. anyone else?

NP here; just want to say that every time I see this post title (and it seems to never get off "Recent Topics" it makes me laugh. I'm sorry OP for your situation but really, it's a funny post title.

Now that I've clicked on it and read enough to discover they are not fruit flies, I'm a little queasy. Which makes me chuckle a little more.

I am new to the area and now I know what to do if I see a slow-moving fly in my house.

Drain flies! You can google to see for sure if those match what you are seeing, but we have them periodically and it sounds like what you describe.

So, not dead animal although still a little ick.

Ours come out of two places, a basement shower drain and a basement floor drain. When I notice any flies I just pour straight bleach down the drains. Problem solved usually for a few months at least.

Dead mouse under dryer was cause of mine. Produced at least 100+ fat, slow flies in small enclosed laundry room over the course of a week.

these type of flies are definitely not related to a dead animal those are green bottle flies that lay their eggs in dead and decaying flesh they have a bright green Sheen to them they are easily recognizable