Zap Gnats Out Of Your Home Fast With This Easy DIY Recipe

Gnats are a sort of catch-all name for minuscule, annoying flies that invade our homes. Fruit flies, fungus gnats, and drain flies are all different. They're equally annoying and, luckily, equally attracted to apple cider vinegar – mostly. A cheap and oh-so-easy mixture of apple cider vinegar and dish soap lures these pests in with its fruity scent that they truly can't escape. This is the DIY gnat trap you need.

This folk remedy has been passed on for years, but experts from Auburn University say there's science to back it up. There are a few variations of this formula floating around on the interwebs, some including water or sugar. However, the recipe most commonly shared by exterminators is straight apple cider vinegar with a few drops of dish soap to coat the surface of the liquid. Whether you're luring them to a deadly dish or flushing them away with a hot mixture, this simple concoction is definitely among the best ways to get rid of gnats infesting your home.

A small bowl with an inch or so of apple cider vinegar and a few drops of dish soap is all it takes. Place traps anywhere you notice the flies. Add a dish on your kitchen counter where you normally leave fruit out or next to your compost bucket, next to potted plants, and near sinks or shower drains. If you choose to, cover the container with plastic wrap and poke holes through it to make sure that the gnats can fly in, but not out.

If your drain flies aren't attracted to the dishes, 4 Elements Plumbing suggests a slight tweak to this formula, adding hot water and subbing the dish soap for baking soda. Although they don't share the precise measurements, an effective combination may be 1 cup of boiling water, 1 cup of apple cider vinegar, and 1 tablespoon of baking soda. Stir the mixture together and pour into the affected drain. The solution will wash away much of the infestation. Follow up with another flushing of boiling water.

Of course, a dish of dead gnats can be unsightly, so if you're looking for a container that offers both form and function, you have options. Plow & Hearth's flower trap and Vermont Country Store's red apple made of glass are cute enough to make part of your decor even if they weren't doing a discreet yet essential job.

Fruit flies are drawn to acetic acid like bees to honey. Fruits produce this compound as they ferment and rot, and it's also what gives ACV its distinctive pong. A dish filled with apple cider vinegar convinces gnats that they're in for a treat. Although fungus gnats and drain flies feed on things other than fruit, exterminators and plumbing experts share that this apple cider vinegar mix can be effective against both fungus gnats and drain flies. You can also get rid of gnats with white vinegar, but many professionals specifically recommend apple cider vinegar due to its fruity origins.

Adding a few drops of dish soap to the surface is what keeps the gnats from flying away; the soap breaks up the surface tension of the apple cider vinegar, and once the flies touch the mixture, they sink.  If flies are also a problem in your home, you can also check out different designs with our guide on how to make a DIY fly catcher.