Sealing it off for flies

bratyboy2 · #1 (**permalink**) 01-29-2012, 01:28 PM

I dont know if this is the right place for this but if its not please move it! Thanks

im planning on getting a tank that has a vent strip in the front. I want to keep it to have just enough air flow in the tank...BUT i dont want flies to get out....SO my plans were to silicone on a piece of window screening to it if not 2-3 overlaying the patterns.....should this keep flies in the tank?

thanks!

B-NICE · #2 (**permalink**) 01-29-2012, 03:43 PM

The hydei's get out more than the melo's. It is annoying I just started feeding my darts hydei, and those flies climb all over everything.

josh_r · #3 (**permalink**) 01-29-2012, 06:40 PM

Flies usually end up finding a way out somehow. If your viv is fly proof, they will get out when you open the viv to do maintinence or feed again. A good way of keeping flies in your vivs and even getting ones that escaped to go back into the viv is to put a dish or chunk of coconut shell in the viv with a piece of banana on it. The flies will go out of their way to get to the banana to feed. This also creates a nice common feeding area for the frogs. I see my frogs every morning gathered around the banana snapping up flies like crazy, and I really don't see escaped fruit flies too often at all.

Josh

bratyboy2 · #4 (**permalink**) 01-29-2012, 08:43 PM

I'm still going to seal that off the best way...but always have banana slices in it

B-NICE · #5 (**permalink**) 01-29-2012, 11:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by josh_r

Flies usually end up finding a way out somehow. If your viv is fly proof, they will get out when you open the viv to do maintinence or feed again. A good way of keeping flies in your vivs and even getting ones that escaped to go back into the viv is to put a dish or chunk of coconut shell in the viv with a piece of banana on it. The flies will go out of their way to get to the banana to feed. This also creates a nice common feeding area for the frogs. I see my frogs every morning gathered around the banana snapping up flies like crazy, and I really don't see escaped fruit flies too often at all.

Josh

I just did the same thing. The melo's don't trouble me though. The hydei are wild though.

Shinosuke · #6 (**permalink**) 01-31-2012, 09:25 PM

Hydei are escape artists, but wait till you try bean beetles. They're escape MASTERS.

josh_r · #7 (**permalink**) 02-01-2012, 04:48 AM

Hahahaha!!! Oh back in the day I used to hate sitting down for dinner and a movie then all of a sudden being swarmed like vultures around a carcass by starving fruit flies! It got old real fast. Nowadays, banana in the viv keeps them where he food is so they don't come after mine!

Josh

bratyboy2 · #8 (**permalink**) 02-01-2012, 04:57 AM

I got told that bananas will work but if left in for more then a day that I would get house flies...

josh_r · #9 (**permalink**) 02-01-2012, 11:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bratyboy2

I got told that bananas will work but if left in for more then a day that I would get house flies...

You won't get house flies even if you leave the banana in there for weeks. Just be sure you have a good seal on everything and you shouldn't get even native fruit flies in there. I do this with all my vivs and I have no issues. I know others that do this as well with no issues. If native fruit flies do get in there and start breeding, just pull the banana out before they get out of hand.