Sam's Freestanding Fly Catcher

Sam s Freestanding Fly Catcher LIVESTOCK Miscellaneous “I have a small flock of sheep that are tormented by biting flies ” says Samuel Alexander Millington Tenn who came up with a freestanding fly catcher that works better than any fly trap he’s ever seen “The animals generally spend the night and part of the day inside the barn The flies follow them right into the stalls I noticed them trying to exit the barn through a large window bumping against the glass and falling downward I decided to use that idea to build a trap ” says Alexander The trap consists of a 3 by 6 1/2-ft glass panel from an old patio door It’s positioned above a 7-ft long trough made from a 4-in dia piece of pvc tubing cut in half Both ends of the tubing are closed off so he can fill it with soapy water “It’s very simple The trap is positioned by one of the exits from the barn and the flies hit the glass and drop down into the water It’s important to put a couple tablespoons of liquid soap in the water to break the tension on the water so the flies will drown “We catch up to a quart container or more of flies every day I scoop them out with a funnel-shaped piece of metal screen The trap has to be emptied out daily “The key to success is to place the trap in a spot where flies are looking for light to exit an area Also I added a 7-in wide panel of plexiglass across the bottom of the glass A wood spacer block keeps it a couple inches from the glass so flies fall down through the opening but then have trouble flying back out The bottom edge of the plexiglass is hinged to the side of the pvc trough so it folds back out of the way to clean out dead flies “The trap is mounted about 4 ft off the ground over the top of the pens “If any reader should feel a sense of gratitude for this idea please send a donation to the prison ministry of Brother Ken Avery Calvary Baptist Church 6665 Push Road Hornbeak Tenn 38232 ” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Samuel E Alexander 6550 Benjestown Road Millington Tenn 38053 ph 901 357-2957

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