How to get rid of tiny flies in cage?

[ChameleonBoss]

My chameleon is getting a bit bigger and I've been cleaning his cage fairly frequently trying to get his wastes out as early as possible, but I've noticed that some of his wastes may have ended up sliding under the rocks in the pots of the plants in the cage, so I have a bunch of little nat looking flies, how do I get rid of these? Any special remedies? Thanks a lot.

 

[junglefries]

removal

Either completely cleaning the area and disinfecting, which will still leave eggs in plant and around where you can't see or wait for seasons to change. They just come with the use of live plants. I found to remove plant from cage for a while, let the cage dry thoroughly between mistings, and after a while when they are no longer present, you can put the plant back in. I hate them little buggers. Once they arrive, they swarm every living plant. You can wait for winter to remove them or separate and clean. Part of doing business, kind of like having to deal with pennies. If you want to use money, you will eventually get pennies in your pocket. [ps some people will also dip the plants in a bucket with dish soap and water mix, to clean off unwanted: eggs, fertilizers, etc...]

 

[pigglett79]

The gnats are usually due to the plant soil staying wet. What I did to get rid of them was repot the plants in new soil mixed with sand, I did about 50/50 soil and sand. The sand allows for better drainage of the plant. I havent had a gnat problem since.

 

[ChameleonBoss]

Either completely cleaning the area and disinfecting, which will still leave eggs in plant and around where you can't see or wait for seasons to change. They just come with the use of live plants. I found to remove plant from cage for a while, let the cage dry thoroughly between mistings, and after a while when they are no longer present, you can put the plant back in. I hate them little buggers. Once they arrive, they swarm every living plant. You can wait for winter to remove them or separate and clean. Part of doing business, kind of like having to deal with pennies. If you want to use money, you will eventually get pennies in your pocket. [ps some people will also dip the plants in a bucket with dish soap and water mix, to clean off unwanted: eggs, fertilizers, etc...]

Thanks I'm going to try and disinfect the areas.

 

[ChameleonBoss]

The gnats are usually due to the plant soil staying wet. What I did to get rid of them was repot the plants in new soil mixed with sand, I did about 50/50 soil and sand. The sand allows for better drainage of the plant. I havent had a gnat problem since.

Wow, I thought it was due to the chameleon waste, had no idea it was from wet soil.

 

[Trillian]

You can also put a half-inch layer of sand on the top of the soil in the pots, this discourages them. I bought Gnatrol, which is a biological control (bacteria that kill the larvae) and I add it to water and water the plants with it when I start to see a few flies.

 

[pigglett79]

You can also put a half-inch layer of sand on the top of the soil in the pots, this discourages them. I bought Gnatrol, which is a biological control (bacteria that kill the larvae) and I add it to water and water the plants with it when I start to see a few flies.

Oh yes, I forgot to mention that I put sand as the top layer, it helps prevent the gnats from reproducing.