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What Is Fungus Gnats?

Typical Definition:
Fungus Gnat is a small, delicate fly whose larvae feed chiefly on fungi.
Through their possession of antifreeze proteins they can tolerate winter weather. Typically, overwintering organisms can either avoid freezing or tolerate freezing.

The Origin:
of the families Sciaridae, Diadocidiidae, Ditomyiidae, Keroplatidae, Bolitophilidae, and Mycetophilidae; they comprise six of the seven families placed in the superfamily Sciaroidea

Causes:
They are particularly attracted to damp soil that is rich in organic matter. they can be a problem for houseplants and greenhouse plants. Plants damaged by fungus gnats may show signs of wilting and be more susceptible to root rot.

Sources:
Fungus Gnats Biology and Habits: Gnats reproduce in decaying organic matter that is moist and shaded, Because the larvae feed on fungus growing in the soil and moist organic matter. 

Life Span:
The adults live about a week, but during that time they lay hundreds of eggs in the soil of your potted plants.

Fungus Gnat Bites On Humans
Fungus gnats do not bite, sting or transmit diseases to humans,
however the larvae can damage houseplants and seedlings as they feed on the roots. Occasionally, some may burrow into stems and leaves.

Fungus Gnats Looking:
The adults are 2–8 millimetres (0.079–0.315 in) long, and are occasionally pollinators of plants and carriers of mushroom spores.[citation needed] They also may carry diseases such as pythium (which causes "damping-off" to kill seedlings) on their feet
 fungus gnat vs fruit fly
Fungus Gnats are weak fliers, which means that gnats may be quite annoying to humans by flying into their faces, eyes, and noses, both indoors and outdoors. These flies are sometimes confused with drain flies.
Fungus Gnats eat fungi, decaying plant material, or plant roots, helping in the decomposition of organic matter. However some species are predatory, including those in the genus Arachnocampa of family Keroplatidae - the "glowworms" of New Zealand and Australia.

Fungus Gnat Control:
The pests control is sometimes managed by:

  1. placing a layer of sand or indoor mulch on top of the soil around plants; \
  2. by introducing Hypoaspis miles mites 
  3. or applying the biological larvicide Bacillus thuringiensis (var. israelensis) to kill gnat larvae; 
  4. by drenching the soil annually in an insecticidal soap. 
  5. Hydrogen peroxide to kill fungus gnats: Hydrogen peroxide can be mixed with water and used to kill fungus gnat larvae in infected soil with a mixture of one part 3% hydrogen peroxide mixed with four parts water, then applied to the soil
  6. Adults can be trapped with yellow sticky traps made of yellow card stock or heavy paper coated in an adhesive since the adults are attracted to the color yellow.
  7. Since the gnats are weak fliers, fan-based traps as well as other fly-killing devices may be used to help control free-flying gnats, especially indoors.
  8. There are a number of toxic and non-toxic methods of controlling sciarids and their larvae, including nematodes, diatomaceous earth, or powdered cinnamon.
Commercial greenhouses typically employ the insect growth regulator diflubenzuron for control of fungus gnats and their larvae. It is applied to infected soil and will kill fungus gnat larvae for 30-60 days from a single application. Its mechanism of action is to interfere with chitin production and deposition and it also triggers insect larvae to molt early without a properly formed exoskeleton, resulting in the death of the larvae. Although it is targeted at fungus gnat larvae, care should be taken in applying it as it is highly toxic to aquatic invertebrates. Diflubenzuron typically has no toxic effect on adults; only the larvae are affected.

5 Steps Mason Jar Gnat Trap

First one is going to be on how to get rid of gnats in your house
  1. What you do is you take a mason jar,
  2. Punch some holes in the top I think
  3. I used a Phillips head screwdriver and you put some apple cider vinegar in the bottom and they will get in there and can't get out
  4. If you can see that there's several dead that's in there
  5. we didn't have that many in the house this particular time but we did have enough to get on our nerves
  6. so I filled a couple of these up
  7. and two days later I think it they're gone 

A lot of application can be applied in yard and kitchen> how to get rid of kitchen gnats

So I have found that if you add some orange juice or some kind of juice to the apple cider vinegar that it will increase its efficiency or effectiveness but the apple cider vinegar alone will work so good little trick there to get them I can see one still kicking around there but yeah that's what you do.

Why Do Gnats Bite Certain People? 10 Biting Factors

Blood type, metabolism, exercise, shirt color and even drinking beer can make individuals especially delicious to Gnats

Why Do Gnats Bite Some People More Than Others?

about 85 percent of people secrete a chemical signal through their skin that indicates which blood type they have, while 15 percent do not, What blood type do Gnats like the most?
One study found that in a controlled setting, Gnats landed on people with Type O blood nearly twice as often as those with Type A. People with Type B blood fell somewhere in the middle of this itchy spectrum.

Gnats can detect carbon dioxide from as far as 164 feet away, This is one of the reasons why children get bit less often than adults, on the whole.

Are Gnats attracted to perfume?
Fragrances are known to attract Gnats . Avoid perfume, cologne, perfumed shampoos, hand creams, soaps, fabric softeners, detergent, etc. Switch to as many unscented products as you can during the summer to avoid the Gnats bite. ... Carbon Dioxide (from your exhaled breath) will attract Gnats 
How to Kill Kitchen Gnats

genetic factors influence the amount of uric acid and other substances naturally emitted by each person, making some people more easily found by Gnats than others.

why Gnats are especially prone to biting our ankles and feet? they naturally have more robust bacteria colonies.

drinking increases the amount of ethanol excreted in sweat, or because it increases body temperature, neither of these factors were found to correlate with Gnats landings, making their affinity for drinkers something of a mystery.

the abdomens of pregnant women were 1.26°F hotter, adding to the Gnats-like-warm-bodies component.


Do Gnats love you? Have you found good ways to keep them away?
Which type of gnat do bite me?

Why do Gnats bite me and not others?
“Some people produce more of certain chemicals in their skin,” he explains. “And a few of those chemicals, like lactic acid, attract Gnats.” There's also evidence that one blood type (O) attracts Gnats more than others (A or B). ... Gnats use CO2 as their primary means of identifying bite targets,

Gnats are actually tiny flies and are sometimes called blackflies or midges. ... Some species of gnats need the blood of warm-blooded animals to survive. Unlike mosquitoes, gnats usually don't bite through clothing. But they can crawl into hair or under clothing to get at places such as ankles and belt lines.

What color are Gnats attracted to most?
Try to wear long sleeves in a light fabric at those times. When dressing for a hot summer night, get out your white, khaki, olive and beige clothes. Gnats are least attracted to those colors, but sporting an outfit in red, black, or a bright floral will lead to a Gnats attack.

Can Gnats see you?
Many insects, Gnats included, are attracted by the odor of the carbon dioxide (CO2) gas that humans and other animals naturally exhale. However, Gnats can also pick up other cues that signal a human is nearby.
They use their vision to spot a host and thermal sensory information to detect body heat.

10 Steps How To Get Rid Of Gnats In The Kitchen? Kill Gnats in Kitchen

How do you get rid of gnats in the kitchen at home and in home sink drains or commercial kitchens.
Many people ask me about gnats in the kitchen and tell I have gnats infestation in my kitchen, what to do to remove them, here's how to identify and kill drain flies effectively?
If you know the following basic information, you can skip to the kitchen pest control step below.
What is Kitchen Gnat?
They are small winged flies with long saw-like antenna and beautiful small wings breed in drains of kitchen, bathroom, and don't bite.Biting gnats pictures

Common names of kitchen flies:
Drain Gnat: because they spend most of their live and multiply in drains.
Sewer Gnats or Sewage Flies: because they like to live around underground conduit for carrying off drainage water and waste matters.
Drain Gnats is the same of Sewer Gnats and Kitchen Gnats

Why Do I Have Gnats in My Kitchen?
What causes drain flies and gnats in the kitchen?
What attract flies and gnats in the kitchen?
Some of common causes of drain gnats in the kitchen
  1. Drain gnats are attracted to wet areas in the kitchen, Damp areas encourage gnat infestations especially in the kitchen and bathroom sink drains, 
  2. in addition to rotten and ripen fruit and food disposals, all are responsible of heavy infestation of kitchen gnat in the sink drain and above baskets.
  3. Sewage residuals can attract gnats in the kitchen as well.
  4. The remnants of hair and sludge waste in the drains which might form clogs in the sink drain and attract the adult drain flies lay more eggs on it.

Common Sources Of Drain Gnats:

Tips on locating where do drain gnats come from?
Sources of drain gnats in the house kitchens are any location with moist decaying organic substances which can be a breeding site, for instance:
  1. Probably you have seen gnats coming out of sink drain, this is the first inspection place. 
  2. Humid film of debris on the drain sides and in the drain trap attract all household pests as well.
  3. Above and around food trash.
  4. Drain flies or moth flies may come from under slab floors from a drain pipe that has broken.
  5. Floor drains and shower drains,
  6. Leaky shower pans,
Sources of drain gnats in commercial kitchens
In commercial buildings, the possible locations that drain gnats come from include:
  1. Sump pump pits, 
  2. Sewage pipes and sewers, 
  3. Elevator pits can trap moisture where drain gnats can breed.
  4. Water pouring in from the outside when it rains
  5. A leaking pipe
Types of gnats in kitchen:
  1. Common type of gnats in kitchen is the Drain Gnat or Drain Fly which come from bathroom and kitchen and can reproduce really quickly in drains.
  2. Fungus gnat may infest drains as well. fungus gnat trap
  3. Fruit flies larvae and adult ca make swarms around garbage and sewage in kitchen and bathroom too, as well as eating from dirty sinks. 
  4. Biting netwinged midges
  5. Moth flies.
What Do Drain Flies Look Like?
Drain gnats pictures to know how to identify drain flies from other insects in the house.
Drain gnats real size
Close up on Drain fly shape


Fruit Flies Vs Drain Flies
Drain Flies are also called Drain Gnats, moth flies, sewer flies or filter flies. They are flies with hairy wings and leave a powdery smudge when squish them.
Drain gnats are commonly found around drains, but drains may be infested by Fruit fly, Phorid fly, or Sphaerocierid fly as well.
Just look to the pictures of drain gnat vs pictures of fruit-fly to distinguish them easily.

How To Get Rid Of Gnats In The Kitchen?

Other related questions:
How to get rid of drain flies fast?
How To Kill Drain Gnats for Good?
How to get rid of Drain Gnats and sewer gnats is not hard task but can be done alone with yourself even without pest control assistant.

To get rid of sewer gnats and gnats in kitchen you have to know some facts:
Why drain gnats are resistant to most pest control methods?
Adult drain flies are protected by the extremely fine water-repellent hairs covering their bodies which mean:

  1. adults and larvae are difficult to drown in water 
  2. Adult drain gnats are not affected by contact with most water-borne remedies such as bleach. 
  3. Boiling water will not kill the adults

If you need an immediate solution to your drain gnats problems then consider getting one of these affordable pest traps. wish you get quick results.
  1. TubShroom for gnats in kitchen drain: the Revolutionary Tub Drain Protector Hair Catcher, Strainer, Snare, Green
  2. Getting rid of gnats in kitchen sink with RID-X Septic Treatment, 3 Month Supply Of Septi-Pacs, 3.2 oz
 

Home Remedies For Gnats In Kitchen

Depending on a home remedy for gnats in kitchen can effectively remove gnats and fruit flies for good but if applied correctly,
Getting rid of drain gnats and kitchen flies in kitchen with one or combination of these natural remedies:
  1. Into the sink drain, pouring down baking soda and vinegar can kill eggs of drain flies or at least clean the drain. repeat the same dosage of drain cleaner once a day for five to seven days.
  2. Trap of apple cider vinegar with drops of dish soap.
  3. Home-made trap of leftover red wine into a used jar.
  4. Trap of a jar partially covered on the top with a plastic wrap and contain slices of banana.
  5. Pouring bleach/ammonia solution into the bathroom/kitchen sink.
  6. Drain gnat natural repellents: DEET, citronella, vanilla, or pine oil, that what keeps drain gnats away naturally?
  7. Dryer sheets can be used to repel drain gnats ad other house insects.
  8. Method to kill adult drain flies by a mashed up banana trap
    1. Place rotten fruits into a jar to attract the adult drain gnats and fruit flies as well.
    2. Pour bleach solution into the bathroom sink but remember that mixing bleach with ammonia in sink drain is wrong, don't do it like that.
Pictures of real home-made drain gnat traps used by persons like me and you

Natural Remedies that are not effective against drain gnats:
Vinegar alone without soap, boiling water, and commercial bleach are not effective remedies for getting rid of drain flies but must combined with other methods,
indeed, the natural remedies are effective repellents not killers.

Best way to get rid of Gnats in Kitchen

Here's in details how do I get rid of gnats in my kitchen easy and effective

How to Kill Drain Flies Eggs?
The Drain Flies Eggs are highly resistant to both chemical or thermal effects.
Eggs are resistant of dehydration, follow the next tips to get rid of them.
How To Kill Drain Fly Larvae?
Firstly you could identify from pictures of drain fly larvae, they are:
  1. nearly transparent with a non-retractable black head 
  2. May be seen moving along the moist edges of crevices in shower stalls or bathtubs or submerged in toilet water. 
  3. The larval stage lasts for between 9 and 15 days, depending on species, temperature, and environment
  4. Moth flies larvae is usually between 4 mm and 5 mm long and have "worm-like" appearance than that of most aquatic insect larvae.
  5. have attachment disks on their ventral side to secure themselves to surfaces of their environment
  6. While their strong jaws are capable of cutting through the hair and sludge waste in drains which might otherwise form clogs in the sink drain. However, unless this sewage layer is removed entirely, the adult flies will continue to find it and lay more eggs.
  7. Biting netwinged midges also have larvae with attachment disks but with multiple deep lateral constrictions of the latter, what do fleas look like?
How to inspect drains for kitchen gnat larvae?
There are several methods to identify breeding sources of kitchen gnats include:
Method 1: oil-coated cup on drain
  1. Coat a plastic cup or glass jar with vegetable oil or petroleum jelly
  2. Place the coated jar or cup or taping a clear plastic bag over suspected drains, 
  3. and check every day for newly formed adult flies.
Method 2: Tape on drain
Like mosquito larvae, they are unable to absorb oxygen through water and instead breathe via a small spiracle located on their posterior end, they must regularly reach the surface to obtain oxygen, so that it's better to close airways to kill them for good, to get rid of kitchen gnats larvae follow steps below:
  1. Cove the drain opening with adhesive tape, 
  2. make it sticky, 
  3. and let partial opening for air, 
  4. then check if there is a fly stuck on it every while.
The best way for extermination of kitchen gnats:
All people ask about the most effective pest control for drain gnats infestation, this technique can guarantee extensive extermination for gnats in the kitchen and bathroom:
Method 1: cut off food sources
  1. Remove the food source for larvae by thorough continuous mechanical cleaning the household drains for a period of at least three weeks.
  2. Remove grime from the sides of the sink pipe by twisting plumbing snake or use a metal pipe brush.
  3. To break down the gelatinous scum deposits in the drain you can inject bacterial enzymatic foams, Apply roughly 4 oz (125 ml) around drain edges.
Examples of foamy enzymes for kitchen sink:
  1. Invade Bio Foam (BioFoam) - Concentrate Foaming Enzyme Cleaner 16 oz
  2. GET SERIOUS Grease Trap Treatment Commercial Enzyme Drain Opener, Cleaner, Odor Control, Trap Cleaning And Maintenance. 1 Gallon
  3. BioFresh - Enzyme Drain Cleaner & Odor Eliminator. Deodorizes and Unclogs Smelly Garbage Disposals, Washing Machines and Slow Drains. Super concentrate w/Pleasant Fragrance (32oz)
Method 2: fan-based traps with light bait for commercial drain flies:
Drain gnats attracted to light, therefore you can use fan-based traps which the bait is visible or ultraviolet light.
That trap is effective only for killing adult drain flies, therefore, to make it useful against larvae you should remove food sources of larvae as we explained before to stop new hatching from emerging.

Method 3: Use Gnat sprayer,  full Best gnat spray

That was how do you get rid of gnats in your kitchen like me and stop gnat bites and dirt.