What are drain flies?
Drain flies are insects also known as sink flies, sewer flies, and sewer gnats. Their scientific name is Psychodidae and they are part of the fly family. These tiny moth-like insects are related to sand flies and there are more than 2,600 species of these insects worldwide.
Drain flies pose a problem in many environments with the one we’re focused on in this article being food service venues such as restaurants, cafes, school cafeterias, hotels, commercial kitchens, hospital kitchens and catering environments to name just a few.
What causes drain flies?
Drain flies live in the stagnant water of clogged drains, rarely used and unused toilets, and standing water resulting from faulty or leaking pipes. They often enter buildings through windows and drain holes where they find the stagnant water in the pipes which is the optimal environment to dwell, reproduce, thrive and present unsuspecting issues.
Are drain flies harmful?
Drain flies don’t bite and have not been known to transmit disease. However, their larvae can cause Myiasis which is a parasitic infestation where larvae grow inside human tissue if contamination occurs, especially in food preparation areas.
Myiasis is common in tropical and subtropical areas. Its most common source of infection is the deposit of their eggs on or near a wound or sore which serves to be a concern for staff working in food service environments where drain flies are present. It may also occur if drain fly larvae are ingested after being laid in food or ingredients.
There have also been instances where drain flies have been known to trigger bronchial asthma in susceptible humans. This occurs with the inhalation of the fragments and dust of dead flies. In this instance, the dust may be present to customers in the presentation of dry accessories such as tablecloths, cloth napkins, or table accessories that have been in storage where drain flies have been present for an extended period. This is most common in newly sold premises that have been out of action for time or instances where items held in storage for extended periods are placed back in circulation without adequate cleaning and sanitation.
Who should be most concerned about drain flies?
After COVID lockdowns, businesses that returned to work were most at risk of infestations of flies. This was because long periods of closure left pipes with stagnant water, which attracts these little insects. They are harmless, but few realise they come from the long-unused drains when they see these critters. It is not surprising that most people see them as harmless and do not consider the possible impact on their business when it resumes operation again.
Others who need to be concerned are those who are active but experience an abundance of these insects. It’s a signal there is stagnant water that needs to be treated and the cause needs to be repaired. This is most important for food preparation and service environments as the chance of impact to the health and wellbeing of not only your customers, but your staff too may be unrecoverable.
How to prevent drain flies?
There are many ways to prevent drain flies from impacting your business operations and the safety of everyone who enters your venue, from staff to customers.
Drain Seals
Drain seals are one-way trap seal valves for water inlets. This handy drain accessory not only prevents pests from entering your drains, but it also has the added benefit of blocking odours, pathogens and gases from entering working and food preparation spaces.
Green Drain offers drain seals in various sizes with options available for each drain size and type to help ensure you’re protected from unsuspecting drain flies.
Green Drain seals feature four pliable silicone sealing ribs which have been tested and are guaranteed to allow drainage of water then immediately close after flowing has ceased to prevent insects, odours, pathogen spread, and gases.
BioActive Treatments
BioActive Treatments are an innovative cleaning solution that contains live probiotic bacteria. These hard workers target other bacteria that cause odours as well as the organic sludge that leads to pipe blockages, poor drainage flow, pathogens and malodour.
This product is ideal for drains and grease traps to prevent organic build-up while neutralising odours. The removal of organic build-up ensures your drains are clean and able to flow freely so stagnant water isn’t present where drain flies thrive.
These treatments are environmentally safe, non-hazardous, and easy to use. They’re safe to use with all metals and plastics as well making them an ideal treatment plan for scheduling in all businesses let alone food service environments that are susceptible to drain flies which may become prevalent in poorly serviced or maintained drains.
Drain Clog Dissolvers
Drain Clog Dissolvers liquefy organic material like grease, oil, fats, sludge, soap build-up and hair which can cause drain blockages. These blockages result in pockets of stagnant water where drain flies thrive.
These products contain powerful digestive enzymes that break down materials in drains while being non-abrasive on septic, pipe, and plumbing systems. Keeping pipes clean and free to flow is a sure way to prevent the prevalence of drain flies in your business, venues or facility.
Reward Hospitality New Zealand helps you avoid and eliminate Drain Flies
We offer a complete line of cleaning and sanitation products to keep your business clean, hygienic and sanitized—including the Green Drain, Eco Green and Green Gobbler lines of products. These products prevent drain flies from breeding in sewage systems that impact both the cleanliness and contamination within food preparation environments. These pesky flies can also negatively impact the health of your staff and customers if they aren't addressed appropriately.
If you’re looking for prevention, management, or elimination of Drain Flies – Reward Hospitality New Zealand has the products available as well as expert advice to help you and your business. Check out the products we have available online and contact our Customer Service Representatives via phone, email or online chat if you have any queries or concerns.