There's really nothing more unpleasant than a swarm of fruit flies, gnats and mosquitos hovering around you. I tested the popular Katchy Insect Trap, and here's why I gave it 5 stars on Amazon.
FYI, prices and ratings are accurate as of time of writing.
Katchy Indoor Insect Trap for Fruit Flies, Mosquitos, Gnats and Moths
Highlight: This gadget uses a three step process to nab those pesky bugs—UV light lures them in, and then a fan sucks them down, and then there's sticky glue boards that seal the deal. And nope, there's no zapping involved!
Helpful review: So, I have to start by saying that I bought a slightly damaged unit. It was obviously used, missing a small part, and had a sticky disk already in there with a gnat on it. I was like, all right, let's give it a shot. Plugged it in, hit the standard setting, and the light came on with a gentle fan breeze. It's a bit bigger than I thought, but hey, I got a serious bug issue here, so whatever works. They say it works better in dim light, so I set it up in a troubled spot. Four hours later, I peeked in, and bam, more than one gnat on the sticky pad. It's doing its job.
The usual methods—letting pots dry, using hydrogen peroxide and water, mulching, and those yellow sticky traps—didn't cut it, but this seems to vacuum them up. Yay! If this keeps up, I'll buy more since I have plants all over the house. Trust me, I've got fruit flies, fungus gnats, and a variety of tiny beetles, you name it the bugs love me. Keeping the swarms down without harming my plants is wonderful. Will update as I go along.
UPDATE 1:
My house is big, and the bug collection is mostly at one end where the first unit is, so I ended up taking the plunge and grabbing a second one for the other end of the house. Someone said it's like a fly spa, but nope, it won't work on houseflies—they're too big. I wish! There are other models for that, and I definitely might get them in the future. But for gnats and smaller bugs, it’s filling up the sticky pads fast. I have to say, it’s nice to work at my computer without swatting bugs constantly. The fungus gnat problem from potting soil is nearly gone. If you have a grow booth or plants, stick one in for a night every two weeks, and it’ll clear out the pests.
UPDATE 2:
The first one clears out the plant room, the second one near the kitchen sink handles the other end of the house. I doubt it'll catch sewer flies, but flushing the disposal with hot vinegar and a lemon usually does the trick for those. I’ll keep you posted. I turn them off during the day and on at night when the UV light is most effective. I’m curious if the kitchen one will attract the spiders that crawl up my walls, as they go for the dead prey, so we'll see if it can stick them down too.
UPDATE 3:
Plant area one catches loads of gnats, while the kitchen unit gets the fruit flies from the bananas. Spider traps near both areas are working well. Yep. My bug problem is getting ready to say goodbye! Couldn’t be happier with these Katchys. Spring starts are going well with no gnat problems. No chemicals needed. Still worth every penny! Replacing the sticky pads is a breeze.
UPDATE 4:
Late fall update—we have two mixed breed Persian cats shedding everywhere, plus house dust. I clean the Katchy with a q-tip weekly to keep airflow clear (same as our tower fans). Still catching the tiniest bugs—fungus gnats, fruit flies. Fall harvest brought in more fruit flies, but a cupful of apple cider next to the kitchen unit did the trick. Plants brought in micro bugs, but their numbers are dropping. Katchy doesn't instantly solve your problem, but you'll see results in days.
I also got a no-zap UV sticky pad catcher for house flies over the toilet, and it works too. Overall, I got everything I could and wanted and more. Can’t be happier with how well this works and how easy it is to use and maintain. Totally worth every dollar if you ask me! — Megan MacGregor
Get it from Amazon now: $37.99 & FREE Returns
