Homemade Fly Repellent – Keep Flies Away with Pine sol

This homemade fly repellent formula uses the common household cleaner Pine Sol. 

We all know how bothersome flies can be in any outdoor gathering. Keeping them away often means using harsh chemicals.

What if I told you that a common household cleaner, Pine-Sol, could be used to do this job? The reason it works is because of pine oil that is in  the original Pine Sol.

But not just any Pine Sol works. Read on to discover which version to use and why this fly spray works.

Keep flies away with Pine Sol!

Sometimes, common household products can be used in unusual ways to treat insects. I recently tested Borax and apple cider vinegar in a quest to kill ants. Find out the results of my Borax ant killer tests here.

We recently had a huge graduation party for my daughter and the flies were a problem for us. At the time, I did not realize that one way to keep flies away from my tables was to use the household cleaner Pine sol.

I did a bit of research on the subject and now I am sold!

Why does Pine-Sol repel flies?

Pine oil is quite expensive, but very effective at keeping houseflies away. You can test this by putting a few drops on a cotton ball and placing it near flies. They should quickly fly away.

Other essential oils that are reputed to repel flies are lavender oil, peppermint oil, eucalyptus oil and lemongrass oil.

I made a homemade mosquito repellent recently with some essential oils. See the DIY essential oil mosquito repellent formula here.

Since this worked out so well, I decided to see what I could find about repelling flies.

Pine oil and flies

A recent study showed that using pine oil is very effective at repelling flies, even after 24 hours.

The findings about keeping flies away applies to concentrated pine oil, but what about Pine Sol? The product has a strong pine scent. Does it contain pine oil?

Unfortunately for those wanting to make a homemade fly repellent spray, the answer is “it depends.”

The original Pine Sol, a widely used pine oil based cleaner, contained 8-12% pine oil, along with other ingredients. Alas, two things have happened over the years. The original formula of Pine Sol is no longer sold in stores and Pine-Sol has changed!

Today, the cleaners that are branded as Pine-Sol contain no pine oil. However, in response to consumer requests for the original formula, Clorox, the owner of Pine Sol, has made available a product containing 8.75% pine oil. This product is not sold in stores, but is available to online purchasers.

Trying to find the Pine-Sol product with 8.75% pine oil is a challenge if you are shopping locally.

The reason you cannot find the original product in stores is that pine oil is quite expensive to manufacture. This is the main reason it was discontinued in the Pine-Sol brand.

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Homemade fly repellent spray

If you have some of the original Pine-Sol, you can make this homemade fly repellent easily and quickly.

This spray is great for outdoor and indoor use. Flies seem to HATE pine-sol. To make the fly repelling spray, mix the original Pine-Sol with water, at a ratio of 50/50 and put it in a spray bottle. Use to wipe counters or spray on the porch and patio table and furniture to drive the flies away.

Note: Please take notice that this homemade fly repellent spray is not meant to be used on children,  on your skin or near food. Treat Pine-Sol fly repellent spray just as you would any other chemical in your home.

Pets in particular are a problem,, since Pine-Sol is toxic to them. This fly repellent should not be used around any household pets.

What methods have you used to keep flies away for outdoor parties?; Please leave your comments below.

Label your homemade fly repellent bottle

Print out the instruction card below, which has a label for your spray bottle. Use a glue stick and attach the label to the bottle so that everyone will be aware of what is in the bottle.

Pin this homemade fly repellent for later

Would you like a reminder of this post to keep flies away with Pine Sol? Just pin this image to one of your household boards on Pinterest so that you can easily find it later.

Admin note: This post on how to keep flies away with Pine Sol first appeared on the blog in June of 2013. I have update the post to add all new photos, more information on pine oil, a project card and a printable label.

Yield: ! bottle of fly repellent spray

Homemade Fly Repellent with Pine Sol - Keep Flies Away!

Print

The original Pine-Sol product contains pine oil which is know to repel flies. Make your own homemade fly repellent with this formula to keep flies away.

Active Time 5 minutes

Total Time 5 minutes

Difficulty easy

Estimated Cost $2

Materials

• 12 fl oz Original Pine-Sol formula
• 12 fl oz Water 

Tools

• 24 oz spray bottle
• Glossy Photo Paper
• Printable label (shown below the instructions)

Instructions

Make the fly spray

1. Mix the original Pine-Sol cleaner with the water.
2. Mix well.
3. Pour into the spray bottle.
4. Use the fly repellent spray on tables, screens and other hard surfaces outdoors.

Print the label

1. Load your printer with the glossy photo paper.
2. Print out the label, trim, and attach to your bottle with a glue stick.
   

Notes

Keep the spray away from pets and children. This formula is not meant to be used on skin.

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

• 
  HP Glossy Advanced Photo Paper for Inkjet, 8.5 x 11 Inches
• 
  Pine-Sol Original Pine Six-Pack
• 
  BAR5F Plastic Spray Bottle, BPA Free, 32 oz, Crystal Clear, N7 Sprayer - Spray/Stream/Off

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