<p>So, I moved to the south this year for grad school, and within the past month or so, my apartment appears to have become infested with gnats, especially around my kitchen sink (and by/on my toothbrush… major ick!) and my desk. I don’t keep any food out (I used to keep bananas on the counter but no longer do, thanks to this problem) or have any plants, so I’m thinking it may be the trash or garbage disposal…? I know they’re harmless, but it’s kind of gross and annoying. I put in a maintenance order with my apartment, but any tips for getting rid of these things otherwise?</p>
<p>You can get gnat traps, but I’m not sure where; probably Home Depot or Lowes. We had a terrible problem at work once and a bug guy brought traps.</p>
<p>I asked the bug guy and he told me how to make a trap at home: put a small amount of apple cider vinegar in a container. Cover the top with foil and poke a few small holes in the foil (an ice pick or a pencil will work for the holes). Set this in the rooms with gnats. Change the vinegar when it gets full of gnats. </p>
<p>Good luck. It wasn’t much fun but we finally got rid of them.</p>
<p>“You can also get rid of gnats by using products found around the home. Since they are attracted to the scent of vinegar, fill a jar with vinegar and poke holes in the lid. The gnats will climb into the jar, but they won’t be able to climb out. For those that remain in the house, try putting vegetable oil around your kitchen sink drain. Gnats finding themselves coated in the oil will be unable to breed. If you’re not interested in potentially clogging your drain with vegetable oil, pouring a cup of ammonia down your kitchen sink is said to get rid of any flies hovering around that area. Let it sit for a couple of hours before using the sink again.”</p>
<p>When you say Gnats, are you referring to rather large insects that look a bit like giant mosquitos with long thin appendages and large wings? Or are these garden variety Fruit flies?</p>
<p>The ones in our building at work came from food in a trash can that wasn’t emptied during a one week holiday period. It was on a different floor and not directly under my office, but that didn’t stop the little bugs from finding me. They may be coming from another apartment; hopefully the landlord can track down the problem.</p>
<p>Onward, maybe. Crane Flies? I live in the Northeast and we call those big things Gnats. We also have a lot of Midges around here because we are near the ocean and the swampy areas breed them. Then we have the classic Noseeums that are tiny, tiny flies that come out in the early summer and do bite but don’t leave a mark. Fruit flies hang out near fruit. open wine bottles, less than sterile drains.</p>
<p>No, gnats are tiny. Crane flies are big. Gnats tend to fly in a cloud of other gnats and annoy you by being in your face while crane flies are loners. Of course, this is the whole problem with using common names but I don’t know the scientific ones.</p>
<p>Hmmm. Well, then, Gnats and Fruit Flies are not the same thing, though. I do find that sometimes those tiny Gnats get into the house through little holes in the screens. They tend to cluster around the ceiling lights.</p>
<p>I hate the big Crane Flies (I’ll have to get used to calling them that). They are nasty looking.</p>