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You can use bleach to kill fruit flies, but it's not the best option because bleach can be toxic to people when used on surfaces. It also isn't as effective as killing flies in drains, as it passes through the drain too quickly to do a thorough job.

Ants hate strong odors such as peppermint, citrus, cinnamon, and essential oils such as lavender and eucalyptus. You can sprinkle cinnamon in the area or combine essential oils with water to form a spray that repels ants in the event of an infestation—just make sure nothing you apply will harm your surfaces, kids, or pets.

Roach spray usually starts working almost immediately on contact—within seconds to a few minutes. However, if it's a residual spray designed to keep killing over time, it can take hours or even days to fully affect roaches that come into contact with treated surfaces. For larger infestations, it may take at least a week to see a noticeable drop in activity, since not all roaches are exposed at once.

According to the Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management, no frightening devices are proven effective for squirrel control. This is likely because the squirrels quickly become habituated to the noises. However, strobe lights show some promise, so motion-activated lighting could be an option worth considering as part of your integrated pest management strategy.