Homemade fly paper

[Mark on TL]

I just landed in Key West from Miami Beach, found a great anchorage; got through 50 mph winds in a squall by surprise, and my 25 lb or so danforth with. 60 ft of chain held me.

Great holding, will deploy my cqr tomorrow. The only thing that sucks here is the flies. Man, they come in packs. I kill 20 our so, and an hour later another 20 have arrived.

Its Labor Day weekend, so the hardware store is closed, and none of the bodegas have fly paper or fly swatters. My friend asked why I don't make my own? So I tried it.

I took a sheet of drawing paper and wet it down with my shower/dish washer bug sprayer. I applied gorilla glue and spread it around with a knife. Then I sprinkled the whole sheet with sugar.

An hour later, I have nine flies stuck, and the rest of the pack is checking it out.

A Google search found a recipe that uses sugar, honey, and heavy paper. I'm going to try that recipe next, as my gorilla glue seems to lose its stickiness really fast.

Anyone have any tried and true solutions?

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[sparrowhawk1]

How about trying some molasses. And you might want to experiment with different colored paper who knows flies may like yellow

[Mark on TL]

I like the molasses idea. Not sure about purple paper...

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[sparrowhawk1]

You could also do an experiment. Fill two bowls with water put a drop of dish soap in each one to break surface tension, add sugar to 1 vinegar to the other and see if the saying is true that you catch more flies with sugar than vinegar

[seandepagnier]

I got a pair of jumping spiders. It is fun to watch them stalk and capture flies.

[Cormorant]

I've had good luck with these soda bottle fly traps:

How to Make a Fly Trap: 17 Steps - wikiHow

That page also has a tin-can fly trap that involves making the outside of the can sticky by wrapping it with duct tape and then unwrapping. Never tried it, but might be worth a shot.

[Mark on TL]

Wow, love the first idea, heard of that for roaches, never thought of it for flies...

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[Mark on TL]

Where can I find jumping spiders?

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[delmarrey]

It seems different areas have different types of flies. When I lived in AZ years ago I bought these teepee fly traps. It was a double cone made from plastic screen door material. The inner cone had a quarter size hole. The outer cone, larger, folded over the top with a clip, and both connected to a lower ring with 4 legs.

You just put it over a dog dodo and the flies would crawl underneath. When they were through they fly up into the cone and thru the hole.

For some reason they couldn't figure how to get back down the hole. I took it to the Philippines and the flies there would have nothing to do with it. So, I guess different strokes for different folks (flies).

[Jimmy-Kim]

Anyone know cost of slip rental in St. John. Full service


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[delmarrey]

Originally Posted by Jimmy-Kim

Anyone know cost of slip rental in St. John. Full service


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So how's the fly situation in St. John? Will someone swat them for you?

[Sea Frog]

When I lived in Baja many years ago, locals used plastic bags (transparent) filled with water, hanging off the trees and in the houses. This supposed to somehow (I was unable to get any clear answer to the real mechanism of the action) deter flies. To my surprise this seemed to work when I tried it.

[onestepcsy37]

Originally Posted by Jimmy-Kim

Anyone know cost of slip rental in St. John. Full service


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With or without flies?

[Mark on TL]

It seems there is a current to everything, if you can feel it. I didn't make any fly paper today. Instead I noticed that they seem to go home at night. They woke me a little after dawn. I tolerated the little mother****ers all day, then at twilight, I shoed them all off, and only a couple came back. I haven't killed them yet, but I will if I have to.

This is a good anchorage, and I hate to surrender it to flies. I keep wondering if another twenty feet from shore will make a difference.

Just trying to make a life in the Florida keys.

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[Stu Jackson]

Just deploy your CQR and you'll be moving away from the bugs soon enough.