Little black butterflies from drain pipe

Man?el

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Jul 22, 2012
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Tried putting muriatic acid, boiling water, bleach, into the drain pipe but after a couple of weeks they are back. They only come from one floor drain hole.
 

ctrob

Silver
Nov 9, 2006
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Where does it drain into - a sewage tank or a line in the street? Being a floor drain, they could have just run it outside down hill somewhere.

And chances are it does not have a trap in the drain line. Ever get odors from the drain?

Once you find out where the pipe drains to, you may be able to stop them with a pipe snake and foaming pipe cleaner. They are probably living/hatching in sludge/dirt that is in the pipe. If it drains to a sewage tank system, I wouldn't use anymore acid or bleach. Not good for the system.
 

arturo

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Mar 14, 2002
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Those are not butterflies. They are known as "drain flies." Flush the drain with heavily bleached water daily until they disappear. They are super annoying.

Tried putting muriatic acid, boiling water, bleach, into the drain pipe but after a couple of weeks they are back. They only come from one floor drain hole.
 

ctrob

Silver
Nov 9, 2006
5,591
781
113
Those are not butterflies. They are known as "drain flies." Flush the drain with heavily bleached water daily until they disappear. They are super annoying.

Do not use bleach. You'll have more problems.

Snake it and flush with a power washer if you can get a hose in the pipe.
 

Garyexpat

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Sep 7, 2012
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I had them when living in a first floor flat in Villa Mella a number of years back. I used that toilet unblock acid which I don't believe they even sell anymore. It was sold in a plastic bottle which had an incredible weight for its size. I held my breath, poured some down a few times (fumes would come up from this toxic stuff) and never had them again.
I was told that this was the acid that jealous boyfriends or girlfriends would use to permanently scare their loved one when caught with another.......really nasty stuff.
 

dv8

Gold
Sep 27, 2006
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wow. i imagined this:

ev53kg.gif


but you are talking about those tiny black flies i occasionally see. are they bad or something?
 

Man?el

Member
Jul 22, 2012
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I believe it all goes to a sceptic tank.
We do have a power washer. They are like little moths, you can see them outside near standing water a day or two after lots of rain. They start at wiggly little worms in the water.
 

ctrob

Silver
Nov 9, 2006
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I believe it all goes to a sceptic tank. .

One of two things is probably happening:

Being a floor drain the trap may not get flushed with fresh water as much as a toilet or sink trap would and it allows sitting water and the moths to hatch. A powerwash cleaning once a month might help that.

Or, being just a floor drain they may have not put in a trap and moths are being hatched somewhere in a low section of the pipe or even in the septic tank itself. No trap allows them to come right up. If you do a good power wash and they come back, there probably isn't a trap. You should be able to see if you have a trap with a flashlight or sticking a wire down there and kind of feeling around. A trap won't let you send in a wire too easily.

Do you get odor out of that drain?