Ants are survivors. They were on Earth with the dinosaurs. Getting rid of them requires patience and persistence. Many homemade DIY solutions take care of smaller infestations. Sometimes chemicals and professional pest removal are needed. Here are some options to try.
Getting Rid Of Ants In the House
Ants don’t carry diseases and very few species bite. It just seems unhealthy and unsanitary to have them running around the house eating crumbs, leftovers, and garbage. Not to mention pooping on things and leaving trails for friends to follow.
Act Early
If there is one ant in your house, more will follow because they leave a pheromone trail that others follow. Kill the first ants you see and wipe out their trail. This can be accomplished in several ways.
- Soap and Water. Soapy rags or a sponge will pick up the ants and wipe out the trail.
- Apple Cider Vinegar. Mix apple cider vinegar and water equally in a spray bottle and squirt the ants and trail. Wipe up the ants and give the trail a final cleaning once they are all gone.
- Vacuum Cleaner. If you have too many ants to wipe up, vacuum them up. Then eliminate the trail with soapy water or vinegar. Seal up the vacuum bag and put it outside the house. You don’t want ants coming back out.
- Commercial Bait Traps. Commercially available ant bait traps can kill the entire colony. The ants take the poison into the colony for food. The bait kills any ant that eats it including the queen. Bait traps are available online and from many retailers.
- DIY Bait Traps. Mix one tablespoon of boric acid with 1 ¼ cups of icing sugar or two tablespoons of peanut butter, two tablespoons of honey, and half a tablespoon of borax detergent. Place the bait where you see ants. The food in both mixtures attracts them and the borax kills any ant that eats it–including the queen when they take it back to feed her.
Keep children and pets away from ant bait traps.
Seal the Entrances
Getting rid of the ants in the house is only the first step. Ants are relentless in their search for food. Find and seal the access points or they will keep coming in. Follow the ant trail back to its source before killing them, then fix the problem.
Ants get through tiny openings–under door sweeps, gaps around window frames, cracks in foundations and walls, wall penetrations like dryer vents, and any other hole in the building envelope. Seeing ants coming from under baseboards or from around windows and door casings could be an indication that they are nesting inside your walls–not just marching in from outside.
Repel Ants Before They Come In
Sealing every tiny entrance into your house or tracking ants to them may not be possible. Keeping ants out by using a repellent at suspicious locations is another option. Ants are repulsed by many common natural items in your house. These homemade bug sprays are non-toxic and effective.
- Essential Oils. Blend a half cup of water with essential oils (30 drops of tea tree or peppermint or 15 drops of citrus) to spray along baseboards, window and door sills, and around wall penetrations. Cotton balls with a few drops of oil keep ants out of cabinets and from under appliances, furniture, and beds.
- Vinegar. Mix equal parts vinegar and water to use as a spray where ants may be entering.
- Natural Barrier. Sprinkle dry cinnamon, cayenne pepper, cornmeal, diatomaceous earth, or ground-up chalk along door and window sills or any other likely spots. Dried ground-up citrus peels–orange, grapefruit, lime, or lemon–also work well as a repellent.
Eliminate Food Sources
Ants are constantly searching for food sources–and possibly water. They are attracted to sweet foods first, but almost any type of food source draws them into your home. Once an ant finds food, she will leave a trail for others to follow.
Keep floors and countertops clean. Wipe up spills and crumbs and clean the area with soapy water or vinegar to eliminate the smell that draws ants. A dried soft drink spill brings ants in search of more. Seal all food containers. An uncovered sugar bowl invites ants to the table. Do not leave uneaten pet food on the floor or open bags–even in the garage. Ants will find it.
Clean tables and countertops after each meal–with soap. Don’t leave dirty dishes in the sink. Empty the garbage regularly or store it in an ant-proof container. A little grease, a few bread crumbs, or some egg yolk is not much to a human but they are a feast for ants.
Getting Rid Of Ants In the Yard
Ants colonize rotting stumps, wood piles, compost, mulch, flower beds, gardens, and lawns. Most ant species forage for food within 25 feet of the colony so the ones coming into your house don’t live too far away. This makes your search area smaller. Some ants will travel further.
The ant hill or small volcano-shaped hill of dirt is less than 10% of the total colony size. They can be two or three feet deep and over four feet in diameter. Colonies continue to survive as long as the queen is alive. All ant elimination efforts have to focus on killing the queen.
- Water. Open up the nest and soak it with a garden hose for up to 30 minutes. Repeat 22 hours later because ants can survive underwater for 24 hours. Make sure the nest is saturated both times.
- Boiling Water. Rake open the mound to expose as many tunnels as possible. Pour boiling water mixed with liquid soap into the nest. Be careful. Boiling water will kill surrounding plants.
- Vinegar. Pour a gallon of 50/50 vinegar/water–mixed with a couple of tablespoons of liquid soap–into the nest after opening it up. Do not get vinegar on surrounding plants.
- Borax Bait. Mix one cup of water with a half cup of icing sugar and two tablespoons of borax. Use as a spray on ant hills or ant trails. Soak cotton balls in the solution and place them close to hills and trails. Put a little of the mixture into a disposable cup with a lid. Cut a small hole into the cup to allow ants to get to the bait. This should eliminate the colony when worker ants feed it to the queen. Sugar attracts them. Borax kills them.
- Chemicals. Many types of commercial ant baits contain borax as the active ingredient and act like borax bait–eventually killing the queen and all the ants inside. Other ant killers are chemicals that kill on contact. It is not carried back to the queen but repeated applications will weaken the colony and it should die out.
When To Call a Professional
If your ant problem persists or you do not want to deal with it, call a professional exterminator. They will explain your options. A house can usually be cleaned out in a day. The yard may take a little longer. If you suspect you have carpenter ants, an exterminator is your best bet. These ants eat wood and left unchecked cause as much damage to a house as termite infestations.
