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They might be coming from soil in the area or from food that's rotting in the trash or something like that.
We had a gnat problem and I tried all kinds of stuff like the vinegar in the inverted cone and things like that. Finally, in a fit of exasperation I bought biological weapons:
We don't have a gnat problem anymore, and I am very happy
We had a massive fly invasion here a few years ago and after keeping a few of the flytraps and flypaper plants around their numbers dropped off immediately
Plus they're super cool, way cooler than normal plants
I had some bugs in my office and I just casually swatted at them when they showed up and didn't think much about it. Today I'm on day 5 of an allergic reaction to something that bit me on Thursday and my arms are covered in hive-like bites that itch to high heaven. So I ran screaming to facilities to bomb my office. Wish I had done this before one of the little fuckers finally bit me. If it's really bad bring in pest control.
Could be fungus gnats; usually see these in offices with over-watered potted plants. The typical fix is to get plastic plants because getting people to stop over-watering is just about impossible IME.
Fruit / phorid flies would mean that there's some rotted fruit / food debris lying around. Usually see this in kitchens / break rooms that aren't well maintained or cleaned. Sanitation should remedy this, though it should be noted that these flies could be coming in from outside garbage areas if there is poor door control.
Drain / moth / phorid flies usually mean that there's a drain somewhere that needs cleaning. Common culprits - bathroom sinks, floor drains, janitorial areas. Recommend a biological drain cleaner diluted with warm water to increase coverage.
Could be fungus gnats; usually see these in offices with over-watered potted plants.
This was my problem in our office. I was the one over watering though. If the pots have holes in the bottom that then sit in another dish of plastic, you can lift the pot up and see all the water that is collecting at the bottom. Show that to your office manager as that is how much s/he is over watering and where the bugs are breeding.
Once I cut back on water and bought some indoor-okay insecticide, the flies were gone in a week or two.
Inquisitor772 x Penny Arcade Fight Club ChampionA fixed point in space and timeRegistered Userregular
edited May 2010
This is definitely something you shouldn't be addressing on your own - bring it to the attention of the people who are paid to deal with this kind of stuff. If necessary, use the fruit juice/vinegar mix to show them how many fucking flies you have to deal with as proof. Workplace sanitation is not a laughing matter.
A filthy kitchen and over-watered plants can all be sources of this type of thing. Chances are, if the kitchen is filthy then so are one or more cubes in the office as well. Flies breed like...flies, so even if only one place was the source, there's a very high chance that they're everywhere now. Fumigation is a temporary solution if the workplace sanitation issues are not addressed. The kitchen should always be clean, and people should be dumping their shit out from their desks. Sounds like the building/office manager need to implement some new rules in order to modify established behavior.
Also, a way to tell if the flies are living in the plants is to blow on the plants or shake their pots gently. The flies will scatter, but you'll know that they are indeed living there.
Posts
We had a gnat problem and I tried all kinds of stuff like the vinegar in the inverted cone and things like that. Finally, in a fit of exasperation I bought biological weapons:
We don't have a gnat problem anymore, and I am very happy
We had a massive fly invasion here a few years ago and after keeping a few of the flytraps and flypaper plants around their numbers dropped off immediately
Plus they're super cool, way cooler than normal plants
Fruit / phorid flies would mean that there's some rotted fruit / food debris lying around. Usually see this in kitchens / break rooms that aren't well maintained or cleaned. Sanitation should remedy this, though it should be noted that these flies could be coming in from outside garbage areas if there is poor door control.
Drain / moth / phorid flies usually mean that there's a drain somewhere that needs cleaning. Common culprits - bathroom sinks, floor drains, janitorial areas. Recommend a biological drain cleaner diluted with warm water to increase coverage.
This was my problem in our office. I was the one over watering though. If the pots have holes in the bottom that then sit in another dish of plastic, you can lift the pot up and see all the water that is collecting at the bottom. Show that to your office manager as that is how much s/he is over watering and where the bugs are breeding.
Once I cut back on water and bought some indoor-okay insecticide, the flies were gone in a week or two.
A filthy kitchen and over-watered plants can all be sources of this type of thing. Chances are, if the kitchen is filthy then so are one or more cubes in the office as well. Flies breed like...flies, so even if only one place was the source, there's a very high chance that they're everywhere now. Fumigation is a temporary solution if the workplace sanitation issues are not addressed. The kitchen should always be clean, and people should be dumping their shit out from their desks. Sounds like the building/office manager need to implement some new rules in order to modify established behavior.