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.
More Natural Pest Control  Ideas
Removing Ticks Safely (plus prevention ideas)
Nontoxic Pest Control Ideas that Work
Natural Fire Ant Killer that Works FAST
Effective Bed Bug Removal Techniques
Natural Flea Infestation and Prevention Strategies
Attracting and Using Ladybugs for Garden Pest Control
Safely Get Rid of Carpenter Ants in a Snap
Spider Repellent Guaranteed to Work
Mosquito Bite Remedy
I live in south GA and my whole family uses this trick, including me! My husband is from Colorado and looked at me crazy when I out a bag of water up on the porch and he was amazed that the flies seemed to disappear .
i have done this in the past with good results as for hanging them very simple thumb tack just above the zip on a ziploc baggie
I tried this this morning and how ever did not work )-: I actually have flys sitting on it… I was so excited to get rid of them on my front porch. When it rains they are horrible, and with Isaac just coming thru and bringing so much rain they are crazy out there. Any more suggestions?? Thanks #crazyflysinOhio
This myth was busted by the myth busters and in a study done at the university of North Carolina
Try a pant/trouser hanger..plastic kids one would probably work as well 🙂
We tried this and I have to say it works. We have flies all over our front porch and today not a fly. I was wondering if anyone knew how often you change the water? We also hung ours on wire hangers with the big binders you buy at the office supply store.
this did’nt work for me at all. Does it need to be a certain size of bag?
Im having no luck with this. I’m sitting 3 feet from the bag and have flies crawling all over me. Does it matter that it’s overcast?
Cool idea! I will try this next weekend!
I tried this with a few bags hung around the patio area & it didn’t help one bit, as a matter of fact, the blasted flies actually landed on the bag to bask in the sun!!!