Last year our ground floor apartment had a fly infestation that the rest of the tenants in the building supposedly didn't experience. We have since moved (about 5 blocks) and have had no problems until now. Its been about a year between instances. Can flies move from one place to another? In plants maybe?
House flies AGAIN!
pest-control
Related Solutions
There are plenty of recommendations out there on the web, but I can't say how well they work. I think the lifespan of a gnat is something along the lines of 15 days, so you basically just have to remove their food source, and they'll be gone in 2 weeks.
Clean dishes quickly, keep everything clean, get rid of potted plants (they feed on the manure found in many types of soil that you might get for potted plants) or cover the top layer of soil with an inch of sand to prevent them from getting to the manure, look for any dead animal bodies (rats, lizards, birds, etc.)
I've also seen ideas for traps, which supposedly work pretty well, but just because you catch some, that doesn't necessarily mean that you'll get rid of their breeding grounds. The basic idea is that you take a cup and put 1" of vinegar and one drop of dish soap in it, then cover it with something that resembles a funnel (curl up a piece of paper into a cone shape and cut the tip off.) They'll be able to fly in because the funnel will guide them downward, but they won't be able to get out so long as you seal between the lip of the glass and the funnel (maybe fold it back down on the outside of the glass and secure it with rubber bands. Like this:
Bed bugs are hard to see. They get in small cracks (e.g. between the flooring and wall) and can survive for months. Finding them by sight will be next to impossible. But you could have a service inspect the place before you move in. I think some use trained dogs that can smell them.
That said, no matter how careful you are, bedbugs can migrate through small cracks, vents, a shared laundry facility, etc. So even if you don't have any before moving in, it's possible they will migrate to your unit once there's a food source (people).
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Best Answer
What kind of fly? Fruit flies - put all your fruit/veggies that are on the counter into the fridge (peel bananas and freeze is another option). There's good fruit fly trap designs on youtube.
Flour moths? Throw away all baked goods/cereal. Start again.
Shower flies? Spray antifungus stuff/bleack directly on all bathroom grouted seams and/or dig out the grout and re-grout or re-caulk. Also in bathroom wall/floor corners where moisture can exist.
Those giant black flies? Those are common in older houses. Just kill em - get fly strips - don't let em breed - but they'll come in through window edges from inside the walls of the house.