If I say maggots! Please don’t stop reading, if you do you might miss some useful information.
Firstly, what are maggots? (apart from horrible) Of course, they are the larvae of flies, yes even more horrible I know. The flies lay their eggs which then hatch into maggots which of course turn into more flies and so on, and so on. A maggot can become a fly in less than 24 hours, and if the weather is very hot it can take as little as 8 hours.
Flies live for approximately 28 days and during their short life they can lay as many as 2000 eggs.
Why am I telling you all this? In the hope that I can help you to prevent your wheelie bins being overrun with maggots and flies. Of course, we all know that maggots are more of a problem in hot weather. But that doesn’t mean that they disappear altogether in the winter.
So, what should you do to keep your bins maggot free in between bin cleans?
- Keep the lid of your wheelie bin shut tight. Maggots can only form if flies have been allowed to enter.
- Don’t be tempted to pile the rubbish high, leaving the bin lid open.
- Recycle everything you possibly can, and break it down into small pieces, giving you more room in your bin.
- Always wrap waste food up as tightly as possible.
- If you recycle food packaging, make sure it has no traces of food left on it, even if that means rinsing it. Flies love leftovers, the older the better!
- In summer, keep your wheelie bin in the coolest place possible.
- Bins in most areas are only emptied fortnightly. It’s easy to forget occasionally so set yourself a reminder to make sure your bin is out on the correct day, and check your council website for holiday collection dates.
- You might be surprised to know that there are some smells flies dislike. Cinnamon, lavender, peppermint, and lemongrass are just some of them. Spray these around your home and minimise the chance of flies in the first place.
- If you do find maggots in your bin, pour boiling water on them, and disinfect the bin.
- Lastly, but certainly not least, you won’t be surprised when I say that cleaning and deodorizing your bins regularly is one of the most important things in the fight against maggots.
Now, if you’ve managed to get through all this, because let’s face it, no one likes to thing about these things, I’ll leave you with a maggot fact. Did you know that the little horrors can change colour depending on what they have been living on? Maggots feasting on salmon for example are pink.
I’ll leave you to think about that one.