How to get rid of maggots in trash can? These squirmy things hanging out of your trash can are hell and disgusting during summer when they infest your trash can, but that is natural for you. We are all talking about maggots every day, the fly’s larvae that, if not well handled within five weeks, can result in an outbreak of strange and dangerous diseases like Cholera.
Therefore, it is our responsibility to get rid of them from the trash can, which is their main breeding ground, and if possible, it will best to seek a solution that will eliminate them for a long time. However, there is no permanent solution to these creatures, but this article will offer some of the best solutions that will make you forget about them for a long time for your wellbeing and long term interest.
Why you have maggots in your trash can?
As mentioned above that maggots are larvae from fly’s eggs. A female fly can lay up to 500 eggs within its lifespan of about 15-30 days. Hence, their breeding nature is the reason why it has been hard to eliminate them. Flies do lay eggs anywhere, but since they have a mother instinct like any other creature, they will seek a place where it will provide all necessities for their young ones to survive safely.
Therefore, don’t be surprised why they like infesting your home trash can since it offers the prime spot for their breeding due to the following reasons:
- Trash cans provide maximum protection for the larvae until they are mature.
- When summer arrives, it gives a lot of warmth, thereby providing a hot and humid condition, which is a favorable condition for breeding and enhances the food remnants’ odor, making it appealing to enter and lay eggs.
- A trash can is where we keep food leftovers, hence, providing the direct source of food to the larvae immediately they hatch, which enhances faster growth into adult flies and continue breeding.
The infestation of flies in your trash is an urgent issue that requires to be handled immediately. You spot them to prevent further infestation because when maggots are not well held within 36 days of their lifespan into adulthood, they can create many diseases. Thus, endangering kids’ lives is like playing around the trash can if they are not under control.
How to kill maggots? – Best ways to get rid of maggots in trash can
The best solution for handling the maggots from infesting or stopping a further infestation is to get rid of them. Fortunately, many mechanisms will offer you the best solution to get rid of them. However, before you use any method to eliminate maggots from the Trash Can, you must do the following;
1. Disinfect and deodorize
Disinfecting and deodorizing is one of the practical and pocket-friendly ways to get rid of maggots from the trash can, but it requires your time and devotion to do it. Below are steps to follow for you to disinfect and deodorize the trash can:
Step 1. Remove all the trash from the can to speed up the process. However, if it is not urgent, you can wait to empty the can until the regular collection day arrives.
Step 2. After removing all the trash from the trash bag, remove all the debris at the bottom and on the sides of the can.
Step 3. Boil water and clean any remaining maggots and fly eggs in the trash can and rinse the trash can with the hot water. But ensure to rinse it using a sponge mob to clean the bottom and inside walls.
Step 4. Allow the water to sit inside the can for about 60-90 minutes, then pour it out.
Step 5. After scrubbing and rinsing with the hot water, take a distilled vinegar and warm water to make a cleaning solution, which you will use to disinfect and deodorize the trash can.
Step 6. Then scrub the bottom, sides inside the can, its outside, and the lid with the vinegar solution and a sponge mop, but ensure you do it thoroughly into every nook and cranny.
Step 7. After scrubbing, allow the vinegar mixture to rest in the can for about an hour to neutralize the odor.
Step 8. Pour out the solution, rinse the can using clean water, dry, and sprinkle baking powder on the sides and the bottom to help eliminate odor in the can before inserting a new trash bag.
2. Diatomaceous earth
This is a natural ground rock powder that virtually eliminates maggots from the garbage can by sprinkling it over the areas maggot has infested. The ground rock powder is created from phytoplankton’s fossilized materials and is non-toxic to humans but can dry out the maggots and another bug family.
3. Boiling water
Boiling water is also good at eliminating the maggots. You carefully pour the hot water down the inside walls of the trash can to kill the maggots instantly; it comes into contact with them. However, this method’s downside is that it cannot eliminate the maggots for an extended period; thus, they will keep on returning, but only useful in dealing with a small maggots population.
Furthermore, while using the boiled water to get rid of them, if you do not thoroughly fry out your trash can afterward, the humidity created inside becomes the favorable condition for maggots to breed, thereby attracting flies to lay eggs inside.
4. Vinegar
Vinegar is also another natural method to get rid of maggots. While using the vinegar, ensure you make one part of vinegar and three pieces of boiling water. The combination of vinegar and water kills the maggots and helps eliminate the methane gas, which is an odor that attracts the flies inside the trash can.
The downside with this method is that it only works temporarily, which will require you to repeat this process once a week, and it is time-consuming.
5. You can use garbage guards
Trash guards are also the best solution for getting rid of maggots inside the trash can. Garbage guard is specifically designed to control any pest for even four-month thereby, and it offers prolonged protection against maggots infestation to your trash can.
Attach the garbage guard on the inside of the trash can lid release an odorless, deep penetrating vapor that will all the maggots inside, even those in hiding places, thus preventing new ones from hatching. A garbage guard’s advantage is that once you attach it inside, it can work for a long time, thus offering a permanent solution against maggots. It is also effective with other pests’ infestation.
6. Insecticides
Insecticides are also an effective option for handling this squirming family, containing a chemical solution that kills maggots instantly and destroys any available eggs inside the trash can. When purchasing insecticides for killing maggots, seek out a brand that contains permethrin. However, while spraying, ensure no cat is within since it is highly toxic to cats.
7. Freezing the maggots
This is also another solution for getting rid of maggots but is only useful with a smaller infestation. Thus, it allows you to collect them in an airtight container and place them in the freezer throughout the night to freeze them to death in a peaceful way.
How to prevent maggots from coming back?
Prevention is better than cure, so taking earlier precautions and measures will help eliminate maggots and prevent unnecessary diseases. Below are essential tips that will help to cub maggots from coming back; these are as follows;
1. Use a better-sealed trash can with a carbon filter
If you have been using an old trash can, it is recommendable to use a better-sealed trash can with a carbon filter. The importance of getting a better-sealed trash can is to contain the trash in one point and prevent the debris from falling off from the can.
Still, when you consider the one with a carbon filter, it will be the best solution to eliminate methane, which is responsible for attracting the flies into the trash can, thereby keeping the flies at bay.
However, it is worth noting that when you purchase a trash can, if you settle for a plastic one, go for the one that has a smoother interior and number 5 plastic, which allows the odor juice to slide off if the bags busts inside the can. But if you settle for the metal cans, go for the one made from stainless steel or a high-quality aluminum.
2. Use a high-quality garbage quality for the interior lining
Did you know that sometimes Maggots infestation can be caused by a low-quality garbage bag? Low-quality garbage bags are easy to break and bust easily, creating an open invitation to flies to lay eggs. Therefore, whenever you empty the trash can, ensure you use high-quality garbage bags that withstand busting to contain the trash and odor in place.
3. Do away with food sources inside the trash can
As mentioned earlier, maggots’ infestation brought by rotting food produces a methane gas that highly attracts the flies to the trash can to lay eggs and provides a natural feeding ground for the larvae immediately after hatching. Therefore removing the food source will be the solution to prevent the maggots from returning into the trash can.
4. Limit the time meat scraps stay in the garbage
Rotting meat produces many smells related to methane gas; thus, it attracts the flies, thereby creating a favorable breeding ground for flies. Therefore, you should dump the meat scraps a day or the night before the garbage is collected to prevent flies from flocking into the trash can.
However, if you are a busy person or hard for you to do the right timing, you can use a zip lock bag and freeze them until the day of garbage collection arrives. Or you can boil the meat bones and fat overnight to remove the juice, making the meat less smell, thus attracting fewer flies, or you can decide to feed them to your dog instead of disposing of the boiled meat.
Doing this will significantly help to cub flies from breeding further.
5. Rinse the can regularly
Whenever the garbage is collected, always ensure that you rinse the trash can, remove the odor since they invite flies, and keep the maggots away. However, during the summer, it is good to rinse the trash can regularly because the hot condition enhances the spread of odor.
6. Learn which time of the year maggot season is
During winter, the weather condition is unfavorable for the maggot to survive. Still, during the summer, the condition is hot and humid, a favorable condition for the maggots to survive and flies to breed. Therefore, when it comes to summer, you need to be prepared to maintain outdoor hygiene, like inside your house, to eliminate factors that may enhance flies to breed.
7. Use repellant to drive away flies and maggots
Did you know that pleasant smell does repel away from the flies and maggots? This could also be the right solution for preventing maggots infestation. You can drop any sweet basil into the trash bag because the sweet smell from the basil leaf confuses and makes the flies act crazily, thus driving them away from the trash can.
8. Use wintergreen alcohol
Did you know wintergreen alcohol is also effective on maggots? Wintergreen alcohol burns the maggots and has a pleasant smell that the maggots do not like; thereby, its presence drives out the maggots and flies from the trash can.
FAQs
1. Does dawn dish soap kill maggots?
Yes. Dawn dish soap is made up of sodium, which acts as a disinfectant; thus, it unfolds their protein and quickly destroys them when sprayed or splashed on the maggots.
2. Can maggots eat through plastic garbage bags?
Yes. The maggots are a hungry organism that is dangerous and is capable of chewing through plastic garbage bags and even thin cardboard.
Conclusion
Maggots are known to be harmless larvae that speed up decomposition, but when left without being strictly handled until they mature into adult flies could be dangerous, also make the environment to be unconducive for the human to stay. Therefore, our responsibility is to get rid of them near our homes, which is an easier task if you apply the measures and methods mentioned above.
