Fruit flies

[dralarms]

made a peppermint wine, 3 gallons, and just checked on it and the airlock is full of fruit flies. Plus there’s a dozen or so in the carboy. I’ve already pbw’d the crap out of everything that was out in the open.

My question is how do I tell if my wine is screwed?

 

[salcoco]

you are not. just siphon off the flies and clean the airlock. make a trap buy adding wine to a small jar cover with saran rap or metal cover poke holes in the cover. fruit flies head for the juice cannot get out and drown.

 

[JaiB]

you are not. just siphon off the flies and clean the airlock. make a trap buy adding wine to a small jar cover with saran rap or metal cover poke holes in the cover. fruit flies head for the juice cannot get out and drown.

It cant hurt to add some dish soap as well... Not to Your Wine... but to Their Wine! That will actually Kill them, instead of relying only on them drowning after they have too much wine But Seriously....2-3 drops in the glass of wine...dawn or even antibacterial hand soap

 

[Bubba1]

I been fighting the fruit flies for a couple of weeks the trap with wine and soap works but the hose end of my vacuum cleaner sucks them right up a lot faster....its a vicious battle

 

[Ajmassa]

The traps work. But when it’s bad they get filled and dont even make a dent. Vacuuming them did have a very satisfying element to it I gotta say.
Since it was so bad I started reading up on it. And this isn’t just a home winemaker problem. A very real issue for commercial as well. An ongoing struggle.
Seemed like consensus was they prevent as much as possible, properly sulphite and sanitize, and naturally removed via racking.
I also think I did my last crush inside the house. (That mess did not help)

 

[trucknut]

On the top of the air lock I add a balloon of saran wrap and a rubber band sealing the little critters out. Also K-meta spray the air lock rubber where it meets the carboy glass, it will dry with that white film, hopefully stopping the little critters from laying their eggs and bacteria deposits.
For a fruit fly trap I use a quart glass jar, add a little apple cider vinegar and a touch of honey. Top with saran wrap rubber band with a few small holes - away from the edges. Good luck...

 

[bstnh1]

A small bowl, jar. bottle, etc. with a half cup of cider vinegar and a couple drops of dish detergent also works.

 

[JaiB]

I been fighting the fruit flies for a couple of weeks the trap with wine and soap works but the hose end of my vacuum cleaner sucks them right up a lot faster....its a vicious battle

Join the club. But honestly i just started using these two Rescue brand reusable fruit fly traps. They are red and round dome shaped with small holes on the top. They come with attractant and that’s actually (for once) done the job. Or maybe the colder weather shift? All I know is I have no more fruit flies, while I also have 25 gallons of done and fermenting watermelon wine in 2-5gal buckets,2-5gal plastic carboys, 1-3gal, and two 1-gal glass CB’s (not a term I am sure haha, but, all with airlocks. Sometimes they’ve snuck in to the water barrier but now they are gone. Even in my small 8x10 kitchen (aka a hallway with my sink and D/Washer on one side and the range and fridge on the other side).

But they are gone. It was only a huge problem right when I cut up all the melons. Or usually after any re racking and the spills that come with it.
They were Cheap on amazon ($8?) reusable so you can put vinegar or wine and soap in them instead of attractant cause they dry out every 6 weeks or so.

 

[CK55]

I have never seen a fruit fly so luckily I don't have to worry about them. But it does seem like a mess lol.

I get some nasty ones here that bite. And hurt like hell.