Fungus Gnats in Refeigerator - Ask Extension
How do I get rid of fungus gnats that are in my refrigerator? I have emptied the refrigerator, cleaned it, thrown away opened food, cleaned every jar,...
Knowledgebase
Fungus Gnats in Refeigerator #853801
Asked October 23, 2023, 12:53 PM EDT
How do I get rid of fungus gnats that are in my refrigerator? I have emptied the refrigerator, cleaned it, thrown away opened food, cleaned every jar, etc. Then, I open the refrigerator a few hours later and there is another one or two. I have an LG refrigerator bought new in 2020. It is a side-by-side with an ice maker and water dispenser in the freezer door.
Baltimore City County Maryland
Expert Response
Assuming the gnats are fungus gnats and not another kind of small fly (phorid flies or fruit flies, for example), we're not certain why they are persisting in the fridge. Fungus gnats should not be living in open food containers, though either of those other fly types might. All fly larvae require ample moisture to survive and tend to occur in wet areas, so maybe there is a condensation pan, dirty water filter, or leak that needs to be addressed or cleaned where the larvae are feeding on organic debris (algae or other detritus). Did you happen to store containers of potting soil (such as for stratifying seeds before planting outside) in the fridge before this became an issue? If so, that may have been the origin of fungus gnats.
Miri
Miri
The gnats also crawl around my daughters diaper pail even though it seals in odors. It was so bad that I had to put the diaper pail outside. They are attracted to the color white such as the top of my dining table and my daughters highchair tray and bread.
Best regards,
Best regards,
Rhonda
Dear Miri,
Best regards,
Thank you for your email.
I called pest control and they identified it as a fungus gnat. I did not store potting soil in the refrigerator. I did put plantains and other fruit in the refrigerator t to save them from the bugs, I saw floating around in the kitchen. Then, when I open my fridge, I saw the results of the infestation I completely cleaned the refrigerator, but not the freezer. I have another refrigerator in the basement and that refrigerator was full of the bugs also. However, after cleaning the basement refrigerator I’ve only seen two more bugs. But the refrigerator in my kitchen there has still been many. I don’t have open food containers or fruit in the refrigerator. Everything is bagged or in glass sealed containers.
The gnats also migrated to other parts of the house. Every time I turn on the light on my daughters bedroom dresser upstairs, there’s one crawling on the wall.
I called my refrigerator manufacturer and the service person said to open the refrigerator, unplug it and leave it open for two days empty. I also plan to pull the refrigerator out from the wall and check underneath, as you suggest.
I called my refrigerator manufacturer and the service person said to open the refrigerator, unplug it and leave it open for two days empty. I also plan to pull the refrigerator out from the wall and check underneath, as you suggest.
Best regards,
Rhonda
Sent from my iPhone
On Oct 24, 2023, at 9:45 AM, Ask Extension <<personal data hidden>> wrote:
Hello Rhonda,
Our apologies if this reply is received late...a glitch in Ask Extension might have delayed our notification of client replies.
It might not hurt to inquire with a second pest control company for another opinion, unless the identification from the first company was made by an entomologist or someone with experience differentiating between fungus gnats, fruit flies, phorid flies, and others. (Identified from a physical sample too, not just a description or photo that wasn't detailed.) Their behavior sounds more like that of phorid flies and not fungus gnats, but it's hard to say for certain, especially without close-up photos of the insects (and it's not impossible that it's both types of fly in different areas of the house).
Miri
Our apologies if this reply is received late...a glitch in Ask Extension might have delayed our notification of client replies.
It might not hurt to inquire with a second pest control company for another opinion, unless the identification from the first company was made by an entomologist or someone with experience differentiating between fungus gnats, fruit flies, phorid flies, and others. (Identified from a physical sample too, not just a description or photo that wasn't detailed.) Their behavior sounds more like that of phorid flies and not fungus gnats, but it's hard to say for certain, especially without close-up photos of the insects (and it's not impossible that it's both types of fly in different areas of the house).
Miri
Hi Miri,
Best regards,
These are the gnats. They land on everything and are in parts of the house with no food or moisture. They land on my face when I am reading in my bedroom or eating in the dining room. I have UV light glue traps in different rooms. I have a glue trap in one of my mostly empty refrigerators. Can you recommend an entymologist? I really don’t want to throw away both of my refrigerators.
Best regards,
Rhonda
Hi Rhonda,
Thank you for the photos. Unfortunately we can't concretely ID the gnats from the images since they are not quite in focus. (We realize it can be hard to take clear pictures of something that small, especially if you can't place a ruler next to it for the camera to focus on.) They do look generally like fungus gnats, though we can't rule out phorid flies. At this point, having a pest control company take samples to an entomologist for ID would be helpful in narrowing-down an approach to eliminating them. Some companies may have their own entomologists on staff, while others might submit samples to either an Extension entomologist or one at an agency like the Maryland Department of Agriculture. Since we at HGIC do not have an entomologist or indoor pest specialist currently on staff, we unfortunately do not have a particular reference to suggest; we don't maintain a list of pest control companies or the services they provide, so are unable to make a business recommendation in that regard as well.
We find it highly unlikely you would need to get rid of either refrigerator. If anything, there just might be a breeding site for the flies that hasn't been checked for cleaning yet, like a drain pan, water filter pad, water line, or some other source of organic debris and/or moisture. Even though you mentioned the adult flies are appearing in areas without moisture leaks or sources, the fly larvae themselves will still require a moisture source to mature and complete the life cycle. If there is a crawl space under the house, especially if soil drainage is poor or there might be a pipe/drain leak in that area, maybe the flies are originating there, though that wouldn't necessarily explain how or why they are entering a fridge. If you are in a townhouse, maybe a unit next door has a fly issue due to a moisture problem, even if they are not aware of it. Hopefully you can locate a pest control company with experience in dealing with indoor fly infestations and who is confident in their pest ID, though that might involve the use of a microscope (or at least a good magnifier hand tool) to confirm an ID, since fine details of insect body shape and wing venation are often needed in such cases.
Miri
Thank you for the photos. Unfortunately we can't concretely ID the gnats from the images since they are not quite in focus. (We realize it can be hard to take clear pictures of something that small, especially if you can't place a ruler next to it for the camera to focus on.) They do look generally like fungus gnats, though we can't rule out phorid flies. At this point, having a pest control company take samples to an entomologist for ID would be helpful in narrowing-down an approach to eliminating them. Some companies may have their own entomologists on staff, while others might submit samples to either an Extension entomologist or one at an agency like the Maryland Department of Agriculture. Since we at HGIC do not have an entomologist or indoor pest specialist currently on staff, we unfortunately do not have a particular reference to suggest; we don't maintain a list of pest control companies or the services they provide, so are unable to make a business recommendation in that regard as well.
We find it highly unlikely you would need to get rid of either refrigerator. If anything, there just might be a breeding site for the flies that hasn't been checked for cleaning yet, like a drain pan, water filter pad, water line, or some other source of organic debris and/or moisture. Even though you mentioned the adult flies are appearing in areas without moisture leaks or sources, the fly larvae themselves will still require a moisture source to mature and complete the life cycle. If there is a crawl space under the house, especially if soil drainage is poor or there might be a pipe/drain leak in that area, maybe the flies are originating there, though that wouldn't necessarily explain how or why they are entering a fridge. If you are in a townhouse, maybe a unit next door has a fly issue due to a moisture problem, even if they are not aware of it. Hopefully you can locate a pest control company with experience in dealing with indoor fly infestations and who is confident in their pest ID, though that might involve the use of a microscope (or at least a good magnifier hand tool) to confirm an ID, since fine details of insect body shape and wing venation are often needed in such cases.
Miri
