Motoring Discussion > Far fewer flies flying free	Miscellaneous
Thread Author: Iffy	Replies: 37

Sun 23 May 10 19:31   Far fewer flies flying free - Iffy

Collected a lot of dead flies on the front of the CC3 today. There were a few last weekend, but this is the first time this year when the car's been really covered. Stopped for an ice cream in Leyburn, North Yorkshire earlier. There was some bikers there, the front of whose bikes were covered with dead flies, as were the front of their tunics. They said they had not been racing around, and nor had I. Wonder what the death count would be if I did 70/80mph down the motorway for an hour or two. Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 23 May 10 20:07   Far fewer flies flying free - -

I've had to hose the work truck off every day this week, a carpet of flies and all gathered at 50 or less, if you leave em to bake in the sun they are a devil to shift. Not as easy to reverse hose the car radiators as it once was after a particularly insectified few weeks, everythings jammed in so tightly now. Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 23 May 10 20:15   Far fewer flies flying free - Zero

including the flies. I doubt we have made a dent in the world fly population Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 23 May 10 20:19   Far fewer flies flying free - Lygonos

Was driving along a country road and it sounded as if I was driving through a hailstorm - was just thousands of kamikaze invertebrates peppering the car.... Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 23 May 10 20:49   Far fewer flies flying free - Armel Coussine

>> Wonder what the death count would be if I did 70/80mph down the motorway for an hour or two. It would be a total massacre in the view of quite a few posters here, if you really went blinding dangerously down a motorway over the speed limit for a couple of hours ifithelps. Even the fact that you can suggest doing it places you in the near-toerag category I am proud to occupy myself. It would be a massacre! A MASSACRE! Of children and pensioners and inexperienced drivers exercising their right to meander slowly about in the path of the traffic!! A positive HECATOMB!!!! Never mind the damn insects. Who cares about them? Evil leer. Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 23 May 10 21:11   Far fewer flies flying free - Zero

Clearly AC, you have not seen men in black. Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 23 May 10 21:41   Far fewer flies flying free - R.P.

More flies this year for certain - my visors have been splattered from early on in the spring - I thought it was a Welsh thing. Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 23 May 10 21:57   Far fewer flies flying free - Runfer D'Hills

>> I thought it was a Welsh thing. Small flying sheep? Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 23 May 10 22:07   Far fewer flies flying free - Zero

>> >> I thought it was a Welsh thing. It is, if you go further north east from wales, they catch all the flies to put in eccles cakes, so all the flies try to escape to wales. Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 23 May 10 22:13   Far fewer flies flying free - Alastairw

I have been driving in N Wales today and notice more flys than normal on the Octy's windscreen on the way back. Could do with some rain now to soften the bodies before the next wash. Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 23 May 10 22:14   Far fewer flies flying free - Runfer D'Hills

Whereas the South East has the most flies, 'cos we know what attracts flies right ? :-) Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 23 May 10 22:17   Far fewer flies flying free - Zero

yeah, we export the eccles cakes back up again. Reply to this message | Report message

Sun 23 May 10 23:48   Far fewer flies flying free - Dave_

Individual vehicle aerodynamics play a big part in number of flies collected, in my experience. On the Octavia, hardly any flies would meet their end in the season if you kept it below 80, but even a small increase to 85 would suddenly ramp up the attrition rate by at least tenfold. I assume below this speed the airflow was sweeping them up and over the car? All speeds are in kmh, obviously (cough, splutter, cough). Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 19:58   Far fewer flies flying free - corax

....Never mind the damn insects. Who cares about them? I do. If it wasn't for insects we would be buried in our own crap, and there would be nothing to eat. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 20:11   Far fewer flies flying free - Armel Coussine

I yield to none in my respect, nay reverence, for insects as a Nation or People. It's just hard to take them seriously as individuals, given their kamikaze outlook on life. Even arachnids aren't immune. Who fancies being a randy male spider or praying mantis in their next incarnation? Well, better behave well in this life because it could happen (new report claims). Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 20:41   Far fewer flies flying free - corax

...given their kamikaze outlook on life... They're ruthless, that's for sure. I must add AC that I don't have an affection for all of them. The black flies that bite me when I'm cutting the grass at work I don't like (they leave a blood spot and an itchy red lump that lasts for a week), but thankfully there is a saviour in the form of the hoverfly that catches them in mid air, eats them and leaves the entrails to fall to the ground :-) Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 07:51   Far fewer flies flying free - L'escargot

One factor which affects the number of insects which hit a vehicle is the pattern of the airflow over and around the vehicle. This will depend on both the shape and the speed of the vehicle. Bicycles don't go fast enough to generate an airflow pattern, so they will collect a lot of insects. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 08:52   Far fewer flies flying free - Bigtee

Last week was worse here on the railway with green fly covering a layer on the front screens of our trains the washers can't cope had to top up at every end journey, Did loads last week 20 trains a day this week not as bad back to almost normal. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 09:00   Far fewer flies flying free - Ian (Cape Town)

>> Last week was worse here on the railway with green fly covering a layer on >> the front screens of our trains the washers can't cope had to top up at >> every end journey, QUICK MODS! Delete this thread, before somebody from the rail nutworks sees it, and adds to the list of spurious excuses for non-service! "The 8:46 to Chester has been cancelled due to greenfly." Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 09:09   Far fewer flies flying free - hobby

>> "The 8:46 to Chester has been cancelled due to greenfly." >> Hadn't though of that excuse before... now lets try it out... :) I was looking at the front of our train a few days ago after its 125mph dash from Darlington to Doncaster and the front was completely covered with the little beggars... even heavy duty wipers and spray had difficulty cleaning it off... thats why you see buckets and brushes at the end of some mainline station platforms! Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 09:18   Far fewer flies flying free - Ian (Cape Town)

>> the front was completely covered with the little >> beggars... even heavy duty wipers and spray had difficulty cleaning it off... thats why you >> see buckets and brushes at the end of some mainline station platforms! >> During the spring, have the same problem, especially on some of the more scenic routes. Bugwash and wipers don't cut it, so hourly stops to clean the screen are needed. Drove through a plague of locusts once - THAT was hairy. Worse than a hailstorm, and they leave HUGE splodges on the screen. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 09:01   Far fewer flies flying free - Notdoctorchris

Flies splattered on your screen is nothing. As a keen cyclist I'm SWALLOWING dozens of the little blighters. I used to wonder why some cyclists wore masks, thought it was down to air pollution, now I know the real reason! Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 09:03   Far fewer flies flying free - Runfer D'Hills

Hey ....um.....wassup Doc !!!?? :-) Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 09:17   Far fewer flies flying free - Bigtee

before somebody from the rail nutworks sees it, and adds to the list of spurious excuses for non-service! Lol.................. We have excuses for everything but not used this yet biggest problem with this "heat" is trains overheating blocked radiators etc. wow they run in spain......... Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 10:10   Far fewer flies flying free - Bazzabear

It's ben two weeks since I washed the GTA, and it is absolutely covered in dead flies. I've never seen it so bad. I've probably done 300 miles in that time. It is, as an example, much worse than after a 2000 mile wash-less sojourn across Europe in mid-summer a couple of years back. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 10:44   Far fewer flies flying free - helicopter

Having done around 800 miles up and down the A1 Friday and Saturday the Accord was given a £6 wash at the local Albanian operation which did a pretty good job of getting rid of them although I still had a bit of work to do . Its an ill wind ....one thing I noticed when breakfasting on Friday in a Little Chef by the AI was the small flock of sparrows taking advantage of the free food by fluttering around the front of the parked cars and pecking off the juicy dead insects.... Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 14:32   Far fewer flies flying free - Mike Hannon

Seems to be lots more of everything around at the moment - maybe it's a consequence of the horrible winterspring? We have cotoneaster on the front of the house that is always covered in flies and bees at this time of the year. The other day I noticed five lizards lined up on the office window sill for the easy pickings. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 15:21   Far fewer flies flying free - Redviper

I was driving up the A19 the other weekend, and it sounded like it was raining, the front of the car was absoultly covered in dead flies, splattering blood and goo all the up the front of the Vectra Ive never seen so many for such a short trip - can anyone recommend a good product to get rid of the flies, and left over mess? Ive hosed of as much as i can using the jet wash but there are still some stubborn ones Last edited by: Redviper on Mon 24 May 10 at 15:22 Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 15:27   Far fewer flies flying free - Bigtee

Don't forget these little critters are getting stuck into our radiators might just be worth a pressure wash occasionally to remove a few, don't want it to overheat. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 15:33   Far fewer flies flying free - Stuartli

At one time I used to have to clean dead flies off the car and windscreen on a regular basis, yet I haven't needed to do so for a number of years now. It fact it's rare to find a dead fly or flies on the car...:-) Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 16:14   Far fewer flies flying free - bathtub tom

I recall a journey through Belgium, many years ago. I had to stop and use an ice scraper to remove what looked like horse-flies. Reply to this message | Report message

Mon 24 May 10 19:12   Far fewer flies flying free - VxFan

>> Don't forget these little critters are getting stuck into our radiators might just be worth >> a pressure wash occasionally to remove a few A gentle hosing is more preferable. A pressure hose is likely to cause more damage than just leaving the flies in place. Reply to this message | Report message

Tue 25 May 10 03:11   Far fewer flies flying free - Armel Coussine

My motoring memories contain many opaque smeared pre-washer windscreens and choked radiators, an entomologist's Jackson Pollock nightmare, in three continents... and mudguards lined with dead frogs, and bumpers caked with blackened dog and monkey blood and fur... one noticed such things as a child... Reply to this message | Report message

Tue 25 May 10 04:51   Far fewer flies flying free - Auntie Lockbrakes

Crikey, AC I presume you can't sleep because of such nightmares?! Reply to this message | Report message

Tue 25 May 10 05:08   Far fewer flies flying free - Ian (Cape Town)

>>can anyone recommend a good product to get rid of the flies, and left over mess? Spray-on Furniture polish. Give it a zap, leave for 5 minutes, and they should shift. Reply to this message | Report message

Tue 25 May 10 09:32   Far fewer flies flying free - madf

>>can anyone recommend a good product to get rid of the flies, and left over mess? Windolene or any window cleaner based on vinegar.. O a vinegar /water solution... Reply to this message | Report message

Tue 25 May 10 11:04   Far fewer flies flying free - Iffy

Hot soapy water will shift flies faster than cool or cold soapy water. Reply to this message | Report message

Tue 25 May 10 11:39   Far fewer flies flying free - Dave_

The trick is to soak the flies in whatever is your potion of choice. No point in wasting good elbow grease when 5 minutes' softening is all that's needed. I had a job one night about 10 years ago to shuttle back and forth carrying some pressed foam pieces from Bedford to Luton, half a dozen at a time, all night. The machinery in Bedford had broken down in the daytime and the production was needed in Luton at the rate of one piece every 10 minutes. I had to drive past a sewage works twice on the round trip, on a warm summer's night. It was like a small hailstorm of flies on each pass, and there were plenty of other bugs around on the journey anyway. I cleaned the windscreen and headlights after every second trip, but by the morning (13 trips done) the car had a carpet of flies so thick the front number plate was completely illegible. I set a few records that night too, as it was before the installation of 8 speed cameras on that stretch of A6 ;-) Last edited by: Dave_TD {P} on Tue 25 May 10 at 11:41 Reply to this message | Report message