Dozens of flies in the house all of a sudden, clusters gathering at the windows, or tiny flies around the sink that won’t go away? Our fly control service finds out what type of fly you have and where it’s breeding, for homes and businesses across Bexley and South London. Killing the flies you can see only helps for a day or two, so I focus on the source. Call me for a price over the phone.
A few flies coming in through an open window in summer is normal. A sudden swarm, especially with the windows closed, usually means flies are breeding somewhere close by, often inside the house itself.
A common cause is a dead animal. A mouse, rat or bird that has died under the floorboards, in a wall cavity, in the loft or behind the kitchen units becomes a breeding site for bluebottles within days. If you are seeing large flies indoors and have noticed a smell, or you’ve recently had a rodent problem, that is very likely the cause. Our mice control and rat control services deal with the underlying problem.
Other common sources include bins and food waste, blocked or dirty drains, compost bins close to the house, pet waste and spilled food under appliances.
Different flies breed in different places, so identifying them is the first step to getting rid of them.
The familiar grey house fly and the larger, metallic blue or green bottle flies breed in rotting food, rubbish, animal waste and dead animals. Large numbers indoors usually point to a breeding site nearby, and they can carry bacteria onto food and worktops.
If you find groups of slow, sluggish flies gathering on warm windows in autumn and early spring, or collecting in the loft, you are probably dealing with cluster flies. They don’t breed indoors. Instead, they come in from the fields and gardens in autumn looking for somewhere to spend the winter, often returning to the same houses year after year and emerging on warm days.
Tiny flies hovering around the fruit bowl, bins or recycling are usually fruit flies. Small, fuzzy, moth-like flies around sinks, showers and plugholes are drain flies, which breed in the build-up of organic matter inside drains and waste pipes.
Very small dark flies around your houseplants are normally fungus gnats. Their larvae live in damp compost, so they are a sign of overwatering rather than a wider infestation. Letting the soil dry out between watering usually brings them under control.
If you have searched for how to get rid of flies, you’ll have found sprays, fly paper, plug-in devices and vinegar traps. They all catch or kill adult flies, but none of them deal with the maggots developing in a bin, drain or under the floor. A few days later a new batch hatches and the problem is back. The only lasting fix is finding and removing the breeding site.
We start by inspecting the property to identify the type of fly and track down where it is breeding or getting in. That can mean checking under floors, in lofts, drains, bins and outside areas. I’ll explain what I find and what needs to happen next, including anything you can do yourself.
Once the source is dealt with, we treat the areas where flies are resting and breeding to clear the remaining population. For cluster flies, we treat the loft and other areas where they gather, and advise on sealing gaps around windows, eaves and roof spaces to reduce the numbers coming in next autumn. We then follow up to check that the problem has cleared.
Keep bins closed with tight-fitting lids, and wash them out regularly in summer. Clean drains and plugholes, rinse recycling before it goes in the bin, and keep compost bins and pet waste away from doors and windows. Fly screens on kitchen windows and doors make a big difference in warm weather. For cluster flies, sealing gaps around window frames, soffits and the roofline before autumn helps stop them getting in.
Flies are a serious food hygiene issue for restaurants, takeaways, cafes, food manufacturers and shops, and a common reason for problems at environmental health inspections. On busy high streets across Peckham and Streatham, and in business parks out towards Dartford, waste storage and deliveries give flies plenty to work with. Our commercial pest control contracts include regular inspections to keep fly activity under control.
For other flying and crawling insects, see our insect control page. If the small moths or beetles in your kitchen cupboards are coming from food, our stored product insect control page can help.
It depends on the type of fly, the size of the property and how much work is needed to reach the source. Call us with a few details and we will give you an estimate over the phone.
Usually because they are breeding inside, often in a dead animal, a drain or food waste, or because cluster flies that spent the winter in the loft or wall cavities are waking up on a warm day.
House flies and bluebottles can carry bacteria from waste and dead animals onto food and kitchen surfaces, so large numbers indoors should be dealt with. Cluster flies don’t breed in food and are more of a nuisance than a health risk.
Flies from a single dead animal may stop once it has dried out, but that can take weeks, and the smell is unpleasant. Flies from bins, drains or ongoing waste will keep coming until the source is removed. Cluster flies tend to return every year unless the gaps they use are sealed.
Once the source has been found and removed, fly numbers usually drop quickly. We’ll give you a realistic timescale after the first inspection.
Rentokil-trained and Level 2 certified, so you know you’re in safe hands.
We don’t just show up, treat, and leave. We walk you through exactly what we found, why it happened, and what we’re doing to fix it.
Pests don’t work 9 to 5, and neither do we. We’re available when you need us most.
We are Level 2 certified technicians, fully insured, and members of BPCA, BASIS Prompt and RSPH. You’re in safe, qualified hands.
Hundreds of satisfied clients across South London have trusted us to get the job done right, and we back every job with a satisfaction guarantee.
We’re not a faceless national company. We’re local, we care about our community, and we treat every property as if it were our own.
Call us or fill out the contact form. We’ll assess your situation and give you a straight, honest estimate over the phone.
Our technician visits your property, carries out a thorough on-site inspection, and begins treatment right away.
We carry out a 3-visit treatment programme to make sure the problem is fully resolved, not just temporarily patched.
Job done. Your property is protected, and you’ll know exactly what was done and why every step of the way.
Same-day response available
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Rodent proofing specialists
