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Council warning over maggots in bins

8:20pm Thursday 31st July 2008 in


MAGGOTS have been discovered in wheelie bins of two householders.

Now Swindon Council is urging householders to take extra care when using their bins.

Kevin Benham, from Stratton said: “My bin has been in the garage for the last week and when I opened the lid today to put in more refuse the maggots fell out covered in yellow froth they were still crawling out after we placed a brick on the lid.

“I have poured five kettles of boiling water on the floor of my garage to kill them and around the top of the bin. I feel disgusted by the whole incident.”

Ross Noakes, from Sun Lane in Wroughton, also had a brush with maggots.

He waited three weeks for a bin collection.

He said: “It was more than three weeks before it was collected and the bin had maggots in it – it was disgusting.”

A Swindon Council spokesman said: “The female common house fly can lay 500 eggs in three days, and during the summer these can hatch within eight to twenty hours, so maggots can just as easily appear in bins or bags that are collected weekly.

“In the days of weekly collections, it was common to find maggots in waste during hot weather.

“Wheelie bin lids, if kept tightly closed, prevent flies from getting at the contents.

“It also helps to store the bin in a shady area if possible, as this reduces the chance of the contents heating up which increases the smell, which in turn attracts insects.

“If the bin does have maggots in it most will be removed when it is emptied, but maggots and eggs will be killed by boiling water.”

, so it’s advisable to wash the bin out with a mild detergent after it has been emptied.”

“However, there are simple and effective ways of preventing the problem.

“Food waste shouldn’t be left uncovered in the house, as it can attract flies to lay eggs on it before it goes into the bin, so it’s best to place it immediately in the bin, securely and preferably double-wrapped.

“Disposable nappies and pet faeces should also be double bagged and put into the bin."

Comments(30)

ourtone says...
8:43pm Thu 31 Jul 08

We have tried double bagging food and faces.
We have tried keeping the wheely bin in a shady spot.
We have always kept food covered at all times.

We get maggots in summer. No matter how much we try. Round about the middle of the second week after the collection, there they are.

Here's the thing, we used to get almost no maggots when we had weekly collections. Maybe thats something the council could do.

By the way, I think the sub-editor was supposed to take out the last paragraph with the personal information left in.

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cfa says...
9:26pm Thu 31 Jul 08

Lost keys, maggots in bins not exactly ground breaking news!

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ourtone says...
10:26pm Thu 31 Jul 08

"cfa, newcastle says...
Lost keys, maggots in bins not exactly ground breaking news! "

Local news for local people!
Some guy was threatening to throw himself off Debenhams car park this afternoon. The police had roads closed and everything.
That's probably a bit too exciting.

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SpeakUp says...
1:14am Fri 1 Aug 08

Good idea - let's double bag the rubbish in the carrier bags we aren't meant to need or throw away. Brilliant.

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Moth says...
2:08am Fri 1 Aug 08

Oh, just a couple of householders then? I had the same problem and like Ourtone kept the bin lid closed, wrapped refuse properly etc. etc.

Commonsense should dictate to these morons that run our Council that if the maggots can crawl out of the lid when it is closed, then the flies can just as easily crawl in and make merry!

Incase it's escaped the notice of said morons in the Council, I'll spell it out.

THE LIDS DO NOT SEAL. THERE IS A SMALL GAP BETWEEN THE LID AND THE LIP OF THE BIN.

OK. Got it?

Now, can we go back to weekly collections as the current fortnightly collection is a major health hazard.

Incidentally, I had a walk down our street. Every bin had maggots crawling out of them, over them and they were even on the pavement though all the lids were shut properly.

Thoroughly disgusting!

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carrot says...
7:19am Fri 1 Aug 08

It is nature unfortunately not the councils fault - we had them before and we have them now

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dc the 2nd says...
8:41am Fri 1 Aug 08

maggots in bins, i demand the UN does something right now!

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miraz27 says...
9:07am Fri 1 Aug 08

We have been having problems with maggots, never had this problem when they were collecting once a week! Its not nature..its filth! Its about time Swindon Council pulls up its socks and sorts this out! What kind of place is swindon becoming??? Our bin is always closed, and we recycle all we can,but simple solution is to return to weekly collections. If other towns can do it, why not ours...we pay enough for it! Why not provide smaller bins and collect weekly instead? Id rather pay a bit more and have cleaner streets than to have a maggot infested one! Really disgusted!!!!!

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Bobfm says...
10:49am Fri 1 Aug 08

Maggots are a fact of life, however not that much a fact of rubbish until of course the EU landfill directive and 2 week collections.

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ronnie43cats says...
11:29am Fri 1 Aug 08

I actually felt bad for the bin men putting my bin out this week so was quite relieved to see this story appear!! With the close proximity of my bin to the kitchen door I was fighting a losing battle keeping these horrid things out of the house, I tried the hot water thing and they seemed to bounce back. It is not like I have a dirty house, overfill the bin etc etc but ask my friends I have become a women obsessed with the fight against these creatures. I have done everything as suggested to avoid them but to no avail. They seem to just appear. Short of keeping the wheelie in the garage which is accross the court yard and nowhere near the house what are we supposed to do. Kind of defeats the object of having a wheelie too as I may as well just stick it all in sacks and dump it in the garage as I used to do. I feel sorry for those people who have little garden or who have to have these sat on their front door step. When I spotted this story I actually thought it was going to say how the bin men were refusing to empty any bins found to have them in. Not a nice job for them is it really. Not a nice job for me either as when I get home later today I will be cleaning the thing out!!! It may be small story but one repeated accross the country no doubt.

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Mick12 says...
12:09pm Fri 1 Aug 08

Bring back the weekly collections that we are paying for in our Community Tax, end of problem. Or is this to much like Rocket Science for our Council to understand.

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Bobfm says...
1:31pm Fri 1 Aug 08

Mick. the next requirement will be for householders to buy special power to put in the bin. No powder no collection.

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Even Angrier Monkey says...
1:58pm Fri 1 Aug 08

What sort of special power will they recieve bob?

I hope I get the ability to breath fire.

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The_Dude says...
2:08pm Fri 1 Aug 08

How about the Council collect our rubbish every week instead of every fortnight? at least that way i might actually get something for my huuuuuuuuuuuuuuge Council tax that i pay every month!

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FunkyPablo says...
2:53pm Fri 1 Aug 08

Just so you self-righteous people can get a little perspective, less than 4p per week of your council tax goes on refuse collection!! 4p per week to have your waste collected from your doorstep? I'd say that was a bargain.

And as for this being a Swindon Borough Council problem, again you are misinformed. This is a nation-wide governmental scheme to encourage recycling and to help our increasingly damaged environment. SBC has a target of 50% recycling by 2010. It's already at over 65%. For once, why don't you praise the council for doing something worthwhile than slating at every given opportunity? Or, should that be too much for you, why don't you avail yourselves of the fact before making yourselves look a bit silly? It is a fact that these wheelie bins, if kept shut, are designed to keep waste in and everything else out. I would encourage you to be more vigilant when disposing of your waste to stop the infestation of maggots. I don't have a problem with it, and my wheelie bin is left outside 7 days a week.

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yiddo says...
2:53pm Fri 1 Aug 08

Long live the maggots

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yiddo says...
3:10pm Fri 1 Aug 08

My bin was maggot free after 4 weeks waiting collection due to srike, check your bin regular it dont happen over nite

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Even Angrier Monkey says...
3:31pm Fri 1 Aug 08

4p a week eh Funky pablo. Given that its the only visable service that I actually use with any reguality I wonder where the other grand gets spent on

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FunkyPablo says...
3:36pm Fri 1 Aug 08

Even Angrier Monkey wrote:
4p a week eh Funky pablo. Given that its the only visable service that I actually use with any reguality I wonder where the other grand gets spent on
Police, Roads, Transport, Housing, Environment, Schools, Fire Service, Ambulance Service, The Mayor's Whisky (allegedly!) etc.

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emmylou83 says...
4:16pm Fri 1 Aug 08

We had maggotts in our bin the other month minging things that they are

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Trend says...
4:53pm Fri 1 Aug 08

Have to say we haven't had any maggots (yet), though we have had some pretty disgusting ooze at the bottom of the bin. After every empty I bring my bin in and hose it down (even if just smells).

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Moth says...
5:23pm Fri 1 Aug 08

FunkyPablo wrote:
Just so you self-righteous people can get a little perspective, less than 4p per week of your council tax goes on refuse collection!! 4p per week to have your waste collected from your doorstep? I'd say that was a bargain.And as for this being a Swindon Borough Council problem, again you are misinformed. This is a nation-wide governmental scheme to encourage recycling and to help our increasingly damaged environment. SBC has a target of 50% recycling by 2010. It's already at over 65%. For once, why don't you praise the council for doing something worthwhile than slating at every given opportunity? Or, should that be too much for you, why don't you avail yourselves of the fact before making yourselves look a bit silly? It is a fact that these wheelie bins, if kept shut, are designed to keep waste in and everything else out. I would encourage you to be more vigilant when disposing of your waste to stop the infestation of maggots. I don't have a problem with it, and my wheelie bin is left outside 7 days a week.
It is a nationwide government scheme that's been proven to be useless with several councils reverting back to weekly collections.

What would have made more sense would have been to continue with the weekly rubbish collection, supply larger recycling boxes and collect them fortnightly.

Since the day I got my wheelie bin, I've kept the lid SHUT. PROPERLY SHUT. All rubbish has been properly wrapped, often wrapped twice, placed within a black bin liner (that makes it wrapped 3 times) then put in the wheelie bin.

The bin is cleaned out with Jeys Fluid but still we got maggots.

The problem is, even with the lid shut, it DOESN'T SEAL. If it did, the flies wouldn't get in and there would be no maggots.

I use a compost bin. I have a little bin with a very tight fitting lid which I put my vegetable peelings in. I have never had one insect find it's way in there. Why, because the lid fits tightly and forms a seal.

The only one here who's making themselves look very silly is you. You obviously don't take the time to read people's posts properly.

Now, let's look at the extortionate amount we pay for our council tax.

You say less than 4p per week goes on our refuse collection.

That's £20.80 per annum.

What I'd like to know in that case is what the rest of the council tax is spent on?

It can't be for the police as they never turn up when called and don't do anything.

I can't be for street lighting because half of it in my area doesn't work.

I can't be for keeping the roads and pavements in good condition because there are so many potholes you risk wrecking your car or breaking your ankle every time you go out the front door.

It isn't to make Swindon an attractive town because it looks grotty and run-down.

So, where is the money going?

Another thing to note. Given that the majority of councils have been forced to make fortnightly collections and a lot of people have maggots in their bins, not just here but across the country, isn't the government raking it in again? A smallish tin of Jeys Fluid is just under £3. Add to that fly-spray etc. and lo and behold, for every purchase of these the government creams off 17.5% in VAT thus boosting their coffers and lining their pockets again.

Then there's the "fines" in some areas for putting one tiny piece of the wrong kind of paper in the wrong bin and the government is really on a winner.

So, get your head out of the "it's for the environment" sand and see this for what it really is - another tax raising, profit making con by this government.

Come to think of it, there are more maggots in this government than I had in my wheelie bin!!!

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robins69 says...
11:15pm Fri 1 Aug 08

Even though I have kept my wheelie bin lid firmly closed between collections, we've still had maggots in our bin. The last two collections maggots were still in the wheelie even after the council empted the bin. I jet wash the bin now after each collection then I spinkle Jeyes Fluid Freshbin in to the wheelie bin so far no more maggots in the bin. The strong odur of the freshbin seems to keep the flies away from the wheelie bin.

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ourtone says...
9:22am Sat 2 Aug 08

Moth, you have hit several nails smack on their heads.

The primary problem is that the lid of a wheely bin doesn't seal tightly. Even if you leave a couple of bricks on top to force it down, there is still a gap. Flies get in, maggots get everywhere. You can't argue with biology.

My compost bin on the other hand, does seal tightly, because it is a black bin from the garden centre with the bottom cut out. Thre are a couple of locking handles on top.

Recycling boxes. Don't use one. Mainly because we've never had one, and the council have never supplied one, despite being asked about 17 times.

Even if we had one, I don't think I'd use it, because it is too small. Even if you crumple your cans and flatten your cardboard, one of those boxes would be full in a few days.

I have to collect my various kinds of recycling in sacks and take them to the tip. ABout once a month I take five or six sacks of cardboard, glass, plastic and tins to Cheney Manor.

That is a cost over and above the 4p a week my collection apparently costs.

4p a week. Don't make me laugh! Commercial companies are filling the gap caused by fortnightly recycling. They will empty your wheely bin for £8 a week, which sounds about right.

Bleeding heart environmentalists need to take their heads out of the "sand" and realise that their pathetic ideas are totally impractical.

Give us weekly rubbish collections and a reduction in our council tax for recycling, and we'll get behind the idea.

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Bobfm says...
9:27am Sat 2 Aug 08

FunkyPablo,I agree one should get our facts right. It is in fact a directive from the EU to reduce landfill as you describe. HMG are merely implementing something they have no control over, as with post office closures, smoking bans etc, etc. The only difference of course is that very few EU countries actually implement the directives. Readers may be interested to learn that the claim that Germany has ratified the Lisbon Treaty is a lie. The matter is before the very powerful German Constitutional Court, and until such time as they say yes Germany hasn't ratified. Also the same court has decided German Smoking bans are undemocratic, which means no further bans can be introduced and the existing ones have to now offer real choice. That is democracy, something we as Britain's should be embarrassed about, as we clearly cannot match it. As for Power, I'm sure most realised it should have been powder. I think my eyes have got worse since my operation.

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Merlins Pants says...
9:17pm Sun 3 Aug 08

Makes me laugh how some of the morons on here blame the council for everything. Get a grip people & start taking a little more responsibility yourselves. PS I have had a maggot free bin for approx 3 years now & there is no problem with the f/nightly collection if you recycle properly. Good day.

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Bobfm says...
2:46pm Mon 4 Aug 08

Merlins, perhaps you could enlighten us all how you have achieved this. Waste and flies go together, I am no expert but I would have thought it was virtually impossible to remove the threat, and the longer food is left to rot the greater the risk.

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Merlins Pants says...
11:07pm Tue 5 Aug 08

Bobfm wrote:
Merlins, perhaps you could enlighten us all how you have achieved this. Waste and flies go together, I am no expert but I would have thought it was virtually impossible to remove the threat, and the longer food is left to rot the greater the risk.
Cant say I consider it an achievement but thanks all the same. I cant explain how this phenomenom has happened, I just know that I have never had any problems & have no complaints whatsover about the wheelie bin service. I just think people like to whinge about the most pathetic things.

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WiltshireNutty says...
12:50pm Thu 28 Aug 08

We have never had a problem with flies or maggots in our waste bin until the warmer weather. Now we have maggots every time in the wheely bin. We wash it out with boiling water and bleach each time it is emptied. Our waste is wrapped in the bin liner, tied and then it goes in a wheely bin liner as well. Ok, so maybe we should be wrapping it before it goes in the kitchen bin. We'll use some of the plastic bags from the supermarket that we no longer get!

Somehow, we have also managed to get a maggot infestation under some slabs outside the front door. Boiling water and bleach has only resulted in more of them coming to the surface. Now instead of arguing the toss over who is to blame for maggot infestations.. please could someone give me an idea on a good product to use to kill the damned things off??

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AK says...
11:55am Mon 1 Sep 08

Same happened to us, despite taking all precautions and most of our food waste goes into our composter!
The problem is bins now contain plastic and meat waste as all else is composted or recycled. The smell of bones/meat is irresistable to the flies and is no longer 'hidden' amongst all other waste.
To cap it all we were then left with a note from the bin men offering to clean our bin for £5 a week! We just bleached it

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