We Finally Found a Use for Stale Wine

There are a lot of pesky bugs that can get into your home, but gnats might be the worst. These tiny flying menaces seem to come out of nowhere and getting rid of them can feel impossible. But, do you have any wine?

No, we’re not suggesting that you just drink until you forget about the bugs. But that wine you left out last night could be your secret weapon for getting rid of gnats, as well as fruit and drain flies. Yep—it can take care of all three.

To use this trick, David Price, associate certified entomologist and technical director for Mosquito Joe, recommends pouring the stale wine into a shallow dish and adding two drops of dishwashing liquid. Place the mixture where the gnats are congregating and wait for them to get stuck.

Why stale wine? Essentially, because it’s turning into vinegar. While wine that’s only a few days old isn’t actually vinegar yet, you can avoid the awful smell of similar homemade gnat traps.

When you leave red wine out, the oxidation process begins converting it to vinegar. With the gnat trap, that process is in the very beginning stages, but it’s enough to attract gnats, fruit flies, and drain flies. Plus, there’s still a bit of sugar in the wine, as well. As gnats are attracted to both, it makes an effective trap.

As for the dish soap, it thickens the wine, making it difficult for the gnats to escape.

If you want to add even more nonchemical insect repellent to your home, you might want to invest in a few of these plants.

[Via Insider]