Flies in the pole barn ? ?

[Mrwurm]

I've never heard of anyone else having this problem, but it sure afflicts my pole barn.... I built my pole barn about five years ago and have had problems with flies ever since (common house flies). My barn was built with treated 4x6 lumber and standard 2x4's. The exterior is metal siding and I have a conventional wooden trussed roof with fiberglass shingles. The inside is not insulated. The floor is concrete with no cracks. There is no food source of any type in the barn.

Each summer the fly population grows to swarm proportions. When I open the door and walk in there are so many flies in the air that it is impossible to walk without having flies bump into my face and body. (they are thick in the air and also quite loud) When the cold weather comes around, they die and I have to clean dead flies off of every surface and sweep thousands off the floor.

(there are no horses or other type animals within 1000 ft of the barn)

Should I call in an exorcist or an exterminator ? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[Dozernut]

I have the same problem, the sun heats up the metal building and the flies are attracted to the warmth. I put up fly traps, but this does not eliminate all of them.

 

[PineRidge]

Jerry are you using Irish Spring each morning when you shower?


Sorry I couldn't help myself..... /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

 

[Mrwurm]

Mike, the flies are not following me to the barn, they are already there when I arrive /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[Junkman]

Are you using any form of mouse poison? If a mouse dies in the barn, then the carcass will attract flies to lay their eggs on it. When the new flies hatch, they call the barn "home". I would wait till there is a warm day and set off a flea bomb in the barn with the doors closed. This should kill off the fly population for a while.

 

[Mrwurm]

No mouse poison or dead mice that I know of, but I do have some bug bombs hang'n around. Why did'nt I think of that ??

 

[Junkman]

Just make sure that there isn't any open flame such as a gas water heater.... /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[beenthere]

I've a good friend with a log cabin that he leaves cold except when he visits on weekends in the winter. The fall flies would burrow in between the logs to get warm, and then when the inside of the cabin was heated, they would move on into the inside.
Upon a recommendation, he used the bombs and would set one off when leaving the cabin. Cured the fly problem. Now he is trying to do the same thing but with the asian ladybug beetles. To date, the bombs haven't worked for the asian beetles.
I use the bombs to kill heavy concentrations of spiders. Also now use the Ortho HomeDefense product. I am hoping it will work on the asian lady beetles when they come out of the fields this fall.
Good luck.

 

[DocHeb]

Maybe you're dealing with cluster flies. One site for control tips is Pest Products. Additional information can be found here and here.. I would suggests taking some fly samples to the County Extension office and see if they have an entomologist that can help make a definite identification, and get specific suggestions on control measures.

I had a swarm at the farmhouse this weekend.

 

[Freds]

Every fall I have to have my house sprayed for these, otherwise I have flies all winter. They come in when the temps start dropping and winter in the house.
The exterminator sprays the whole outside of the house and it keeps other bugs away, also.