Local fly information

Fly control in Washington

Learn what to look for around your property, explore your city, and ask about an inspection or a quote.

Flies in Washington: what to know

Around Washington

Conditions vary across the state. Choose your city below, then describe what’s happening around your home or business.

What to note

Where you see flies, how long it has been going on, and anything you’ve already tried are the most useful details to mention.

A useful next step

Ask about an inspection, what treatment would involve, and whether follow-up visits are included. You don’t need to identify the problem yourself before getting in touch.

Local research

Flies in Washington: what the public record shows

Before you compare quotes, it helps to know which flies actually live in Washington, when they are busiest, and what the state figures look like. Everything below links to the agency or university page it came from.

Males swarm about 1.5 meters off the ground and can move from development sites over two miles away

Little house fly swarm behavior and range

Swarming flies under a Washington porch or carport are usually little house flies, and the source may be blocks away.

Pacific Northwest Extension (Oregon State University, Washington State University, University of Idaho)

Moist, decomposing plant matter including moist grass clippings, rather than the garbage and excrement house flies favor

Little house fly breeding medium

In wet western Washington, a pile of grass clippings is a more likely source than the trash can.

Pacific Northwest Extension (Oregon State University, Washington State University, University of Idaho)

Adults 8 mm or larger; larvae or multiple flies indoors indicate an animal has died somewhere inside

Blow fly indication indoors

A sudden indoor blow fly hatch means finding the carcass, not spraying.

Pacific Northwest Extension (Oregon State University, Washington State University, University of Idaho)

Fly species recorded in Washington

House fly (Musca domestica) — Non-biting; breeds in manure, garbage, lawn clippings, decaying produce. 45 days at 60°F to 7 days at 95°F. Carries bacteria and viruses causing diarrhea, cholera, food poisonin…
Little house fly (Fannia canicularis) — Most numerous in cooler spring and fall; males swarm 5–6 ft above ground in protected areas; develops in animal waste and fermenting grass clippings.
Flesh fly (Sarcophagidae) — Large gray flies with black stripes; carcasses in attics, chimneys, walls.

When flies are busiest in Washington

Cool, wet season west of the Cascades slows house fly generations; cluster flies enter buildings in late summer and fall, and drain and phorid flies run year-round indoors.

PNW 770: inspect drains with a flexible borescope or smoke-test plumbing lines, and repair breaks under concrete slabs and remove infested soil where phorid flies are emerging.

For context, nationally

About 45 days at 60°F; 7 days at 95°F — House fly life cycle vs temperature. Texas A&M AgriLife Extension
75–150 per cluster; 350 to 900 in a lifetime — House fly eggs per female. University of New Hampshire Extension

Sources: Pacific Northwest Extension (Oregon State University, Washington State University, University of Idaho); Indoor Flies and Their Control; University of New Hampshire Extension; Flies (Home and Landscape). Figures are quoted as the source prints them. How we check our sources

Explore Washington cities

Auburn

Marine West Coast · suburban setting

Fly control in Washington

Flies in Washington: what to know

Around Washington

What to note

A useful next step

Flies in Washington: what the public record shows

Fly species recorded in Washington

When flies are busiest in Washington

For context, nationally

Explore Washington cities

Auburn

Bellevue

Bellingham

Everett

Federal Way

Kennewick

Kent

Kirkland

Olympia

Redmond

Renton

Richland

Seattle

Spokane

Spokane Valley

Tacoma

Vancouver

Yakima

Walla Walla

Ask about fly control in Washington