What's new
TerraForums Venus Flytrap, Nepenthes, Drosera and more talk

Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

Zip lock bags - KEEP THOSE FLIES AWAY

jimscott

Tropical Fish Enthusiast
Zip lock bags - KEEP THOSE FLIES AWAY

We went with some out of town friends to Sweety Pies on Sunday for breakfast, and we sat in the enclosed patio section beside the house. We happened to notice a couple of
zip lock baggies pinned to a post and a wall. The bags were half filled with water, each contained 4 pennies, and they were zipped shut. Naturally we were curious! Ms Sweety told us that these baggies kept the flies away! So naturally we were even more curious! We actually watched some flies come in the open window, stand around on the window sill, and then fly out again. And there were no flies in the eating area! This morning I checked this out on Goggle. Below are comments on this fly control idea. I'm now a believer! More comments not included here were about pet dogs and fly problems.

Zip-lock water bags
Sue says:
Many people swear that a zip-lock bag filled half-way with water and attached over entry-ways will repel flies. No one yet knows how or why it works, but there is speculation that it has something to do with the way the moving water refracts light. If you have tried this please use the comments form at the bottom of the page to share your results with the rest of us.

Ann Says:
October 5th, 2008 at 5:51 pm
I did tried the ziplock bag and pennies this weekend. I have a horse trailer with full LQ. The flys were very bad this weekend while I was camping. I put the baggie with pennies above the door of the LQ. NOT ONE FLY came in the trailer. The horse trailer part had many. Not sure why it works but it does!!!!!!!

Danielle Martin Says:
September 20th, 2008 at 8:43 pm
Fill a ziplock bag with water and 5 or 6 pennies and hang it in the problem area. In my case it was a particular window in my home. It had a slight but significant passage way for insects.Every since I have done that, it has kept flies and wasps away. Some say, that wasps and flies mistake the bag for some sort of other insect nest and are threatened by this.

Maggie Says:
June 7th, 2009 at 11:40 am
I swear by the plastic bag of water trick I have them on side porch ( our house entry) and all around the basement door. We saw these in Northeast Mo at an Amish grocery store & have used them since. They say it works because a fly sees a reflection & won't come around.

Just DJ Says:
May 16th, 2009 at 7:25 pm
Regarding the science behind zip lock bags of water? My research found that each of the millions of molecules of water presents its own prism effect and given that flies have
a lot of eyes, to them it's like a zillion disco balls reflecting light, colors and movement in a dizzying manner. When you figure that flies are basically prey for many other bugs, animals, birds, etc., they simply won't take the risk of being around that much perceived action. I moved to a rural area and thought these "hillbillies" were just yanking my city boy chain but I tried it, worked immediately! We went from hundreds of flies to seeing the occasional one, but he didn't hang around long.
 
yep i did this two years ago when i was living in my Camper at a near by lake it was somewhat effective . . i wasnt a believer until i tried it the first time . but i did notice that after a few days i had to move the bags a few inches or so , if i didnt the flys would hang out . not quit sure why moving them helped .......... but it did .

Daren
 
I just grow Sarrs to take care of my fly problem lol

Pretty neat though, wonder why and how it works?
 
i think alot of it is the way their eyes are disgned an when the sun hit the water in the bags its like a crystal an sparkels alot
 
You think the dew on Drosera would have the same effect?
 
I was wondering if anyone thought that pests (like mealies) in a terrarium or grow rack would vacate the premises with this water and pennies trick?
 
I remember a long while back when putting jars or jugs of water on your lawn was supposed to keep dogs away so they wouldn't poop on the grass...
 
I tried this for bees yesterday but it didn't work, perhaps bees don't have compound/faceted eyes? I got a hummingbird feeder last week and the cats were loving watching the birds but now that the bees have found it the humming birds come, see the bees and fly away. :(
 
Back
Top