Flies seem to be everywhere this time of year. Some people prefer to use homemade fly traps. What if you want to simply repel flies instead of trapping them after they’ve already become a nuisance?
I was out at a local farm just yesterday and the flies were very noticeable and quite annoying as I went about my work. Seeing all those flies reminded me of a simple, non-toxic, and very effective fly repellent that I observed in action at one of my children’s field trips a couple of months ago.
The class was visiting a petting farm with a large open barn where donkeys, horses, goats, and other livestock were available for the children to observe and interact with.
Despite so many animals in a small semi-enclosed area, there were no flies buzzing around! Curious, I asked the owner about this, and he pointed to the heavy-duty plastic bags partially filled with water hanging over every stall.
He explained that a clear bag of water with a penny at the bottom would repel the flies very effectively. He went on to explain that the “eye” of a fly is actually hundreds of eyes and the reflection of light on the bag of water keeps them away.
“Why the penny at the bottom of the bag?”, I asked.
Grandpa the farmer answered that he wasn’t exactly sure but the penny did seem to increase the effectiveness of the hanging bag of water alone. He added that he didn’t know how many square feet each bag covered so he just put a bag over every animal stall to keep as many flies away as possible.
He also had put up a few bags over the picnic area and it was so nice to be able to eat lunch without flies swarming everywhere!
Note that the clearer the water, the more effective this trick is. If you use rusty well water, it won’t work as effectively as ultra clean and clear filtered water.
Try this fly repellant method for yourself! If you do, please check back and let us know how it worked for you!
Fly Repellent Only Works for Flies
Please note that this fly repellent trick only works for flies, not mosquitoes, and other insects. It also works very well for flies in the Southern United States. However, it may not work as well for flies from other geographical areas such as blowflies in Australia.
If you need to repel other insects like mosquitoes, ticks, or horse flies, this article on natural herbal insect repellent can help.
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I work at a nursing home and on the front porch there are two bags hanging without pennies and I always wondered what they were for….now i know. It really does work because there are never any flies around pestering the residents and their families that sit outside.
Would this work inside the house as well. I have been having a fly problem in my house this year more than usual.
They must have forgot the penny! We ate at a wonderful steakhouse and decided to eat on the deck outdoors. They had the bags hanging everywhere and we could not enjoy our meal. The fliew were everywhere!
I’m not sure why, but this didn’t work for me. I tried 2 bags on my gazebo. Flies are buggin me even as we speak! 🙁 HELP!
i’m going to give this a shot around the dog run.
The flies are driving us crazy! So we are trying this today!
the penny is just for good luck because alot of places hang this over the door of their house or business and its good luck
The penny is to keep the water clear…. Dates back to the “Old’n days… Throwing pennys in wishing wells and fountains. The things you learn growing up in Kansas City… “The City of Fountains.”