Author Topic: Getting Rid of Ants (Read 4298 times)

Vic99 · « **on:** April 12, 2018, 04:22:41 AM »

How do I get rid of ants in my house? Do I have to go the exterminator route?

We are trying to keep the house clean, of course. I get both the micro sized ants and the black carpenter ants. I tried two different types of those small square bait traps with holes on the side - different pesticide in each - for about 10 days now. Doesn't seem to work.

If I do have to hire someone is it expensive?

Thanks.

Eowyn_MI · « **Reply #1 on:** April 12, 2018, 04:35:34 AM »

I would recommend an exterminator.

There were small ants and carpenter ants coming in our house when we moved in June 2017. I looked up a company online that advertised a "natural" product to get rid of ants (I'm not sure exactly what it was and I don't have pets so I wasn't worried too much). They came out once and put down some kind of stuff around the perimeter of the house. It cost about $150. Since then, there have been no more ants found in the house.

Cranky · « **Reply #2 on:** April 12, 2018, 05:07:02 AM »

I have done both - we were overrun one year and ended up calling an exterminator. We paid for 3 visits and it was a couple hundred dollars, but certainly did the trick. The exterminator emphasized that once he sprayed we must not, under any circumstances, kill any ants that we saw, as they have to take the bait back to the nest.

Now, we get a few marching into the house in the spring, and I put down the Terro traps. They seem very effective.

DragonSlayer · « **Reply #3 on:** April 12, 2018, 07:39:53 AM »

You have to know what your ants eat. The tiny little black ones like the sweet stuff. The regular Terro baits work for them. But there are some ants that prefer protein and there is another kind of bait for those. (I Think Terro makes one, but I can't remember.) You may have to put out both kinds. And then don't touch the ant trails once you see them taking the bait because they have to take it back to the nest to kill the queen. (That's the hardest part....it's kind of skeevy if you have a big colony.)

RocketSurgeon · « **Reply #4 on:** April 12, 2018, 07:48:55 AM »

I've had success the last two summers by locating the nest outside and pouring boiling water into it.

SunshineAZ · « **Reply #5 on:** April 12, 2018, 08:22:33 AM »

I get those little tiny black ants that are super hard to spot on the granite, unless the light is just right and they are moving. I have had good luck by locating their entry point and then spraying Raid Bug Barrier around the area, both inside and out. I have been fortunate to not get the larger ants inside the house.

frugaliknowit · « **Reply #6 on:** April 12, 2018, 08:37:47 AM »

Boric Acid in any cracks. Cheap and not toxic.

Easye418 · « **Reply #7 on:** April 12, 2018, 10:02:25 AM »

Ants are a serious pain in the butt. Eliminate the access points, make sure their is no food source you are missing anywhere, especially sugar. Clear silicone or caulk or grout filler, go to town. Also, look on the outside of your house by the foundation, treat any hills you might find with either Andro or boiling water.

This year I found out about Bifenthrin (insecticide), going to coat my entire outside of my house with this stuff.

acroy · « **Reply #8 on:** April 12, 2018, 10:16:43 AM »

Amazon is your friend!
ants eat 2 things; protein and sweet. one or the other or both.
"Combat" for sweet and Advance 375a for protein. Eliminates all our ants. Needs only a tiny amount.

I've had zero luck with the little ant motels. good luck!

Rob_bob · « **Reply #9 on:** April 12, 2018, 11:43:29 AM »

Quote from: frugaliknowit on April 12, 2018, 08:37:47 AM

Boric Acid in any cracks. Cheap and not toxic.

Yes for carpenter ants Boric acid. I new a guy who was a pest exterminator. He loaned me his dust gun, puffs out very fine Boric acid, like talc, shoot it into all the crevasses, it gets into the ants joints and kills 'em. He also gave me some bait granules that smelled like fish, scatter it around outdoors, they pick it up and take it back to the nest.

Asalted_Nut · « **Reply #10 on:** April 12, 2018, 12:43:48 PM »

We have had pretty good success using Terro liquid ant bates, for the tiny black sugar ants. You can find them on amazon or home depot or target for about five dollars/ea (the bates, not the ants).

Leave them around where you see a few ants, and soon TONS of ants show up to drink the sweet sweet nectar of death and take it back to their colony.

The only downside is if they are near your bed or on your kitchen counter and you use these, it does attract a lot more initially before they all start dying. So that is a temporary downside unless you like sleeping with ants.

Be careful with going after their nest directly, from what I have read the queen perceives the threat and if you haven't completely destroyed them they with either move, or move AND split so now you have TWO colonies! I could be mistaken about that though.

birdiegirl · « **Reply #11 on:** April 12, 2018, 12:57:02 PM »

I would recommend the exterminator too. We had the same issues with big & little ants and tried all sorts of traps, sprays, etc. Finally just had them come out - it took about 15 mins and cost around $150 or so. It's been almost a year and have no issues since that time.

Dragonswan · « **Reply #12 on:** April 12, 2018, 02:04:31 PM »

As a short term fix while you get the silicon is spray (and if you're allergic to most pesticides) Murphy's oil soap in the crevices you think they're coming in.

Saving in Austin · « **Reply #13 on:** April 12, 2018, 09:34:57 PM »

We've had an exterminator come a few years ago to rid our house of carpenter ants.

They haven't come back.

We get fire ant hills in our backyard each spring and summer.

I take care of them with a soil drench using an ounce of orange oil to a gallon of water.

diapasoun · « **Reply #14 on:** April 12, 2018, 09:48:35 PM »

Quote from: Asalted_Nut on April 12, 2018, 12:43:48 PM

We have had pretty good success using Terro liquid ant bates, for the tiny black sugar ants. You can find them on amazon or home depot or target for about five dollars/ea (the bates, not the ants).

Leave them around where you see a few ants, and soon TONS of ants show up to drink the sweet sweet nectar of death and take it back to their colony.

The only downside is if they are near your bed or on your kitchen counter and you use these, it does attract a lot more initially before they all start dying. So that is a temporary downside unless you like sleeping with ants.

Be careful with going after their nest directly, from what I have read the queen perceives the threat and if you haven't completely destroyed them they with either move, or move AND split so now you have TWO colonies! I could be mistaken about that though.

The square traps never worked for us. Consistent Terro liquid trap use fixed the problem. We had colonies in the walls and a cheap landlord, so we didn't want to pay for an exterminator. We went from thousands of ants at once - I'm not joking on numbers - to only the stay ant.

You do have to wait for them to take the bait back to the nest. But oh, is it glorious when they do. You feel like Odysseus.

markbike528CBX · « **Reply #15 on:** April 12, 2018, 10:09:56 PM »

PTF. Had exterminator A) spray perimeter and B)give us a tube of ant bait/killer.
It is important not to repel them, just to leave the appropriate bait to take back to the nest.

I have "odorous ants" , kinda like the odor when I squish one, but I'm a chemist.

So far, less visible ants, but the bedroom might have a nest under the crawl space. We'll see later this summer.

catccc · « **Reply #16 on:** April 13, 2018, 06:08:44 AM »

We've had luck with the terro liquid ant baits and also a spray I've found online called "tri-die" that works pretty well. I found out about tri-die here when another mustachian hired an exterminator and said this is what the exterminator used. I'd try the terro first, they are more widely available and cheaper.

JoJo · « **Reply #17 on:** April 13, 2018, 12:39:19 PM »

Quote from: markbike528CBX on April 12, 2018, 10:09:56 PM

PTF. Had exterminator A) spray perimeter and B)give us a tube of ant bait/killer.
It is important not to repel them, just to leave the appropriate bait to take back to the nest.

I have "odorous ants" , kinda like the odor when I squish one, but I'm a chemist.

So far, less visible ants, but the bedroom might have a nest under the crawl space. We'll see later this summer.

We have these odorous house ants at my condo complex (PNW). They existed before I moved in 11 years ago and still are not gone. We have monthly visit by exterminator. I am one of the lucky units - I've only had 2 infestations in 11 years. Some units have infestations every year.

I've had good luck by putting a bit of the sweet liquid on a small cardboard near where they enter. This keeps them from disbursing and searching and eventually they die off from the poison.

pk_aeryn · « **Reply #18 on:** April 14, 2018, 11:13:23 PM »

We were fortunate to not have to pay an exterminator - our problem was coming from a colony that set up camp in cracks in our driveway. We repaired the cracks ourselves and just used some store bought ant spray on the outside wall where they were coming into the house and we haven't had a problem since then.

Penn42 · « **Reply #19 on:** April 15, 2018, 05:29:19 PM »

Ants were invading really bad few weeks ago. I got some borax off amazon and put it out mixed with sugar or OJ next to their little scent trails. After two days I haven't seen any since. It worked way better than I ever imagined it would.

fixie · « **Reply #20 on:** April 17, 2018, 02:05:59 PM »

Since I have a kiddo and hate poisons and biocides, I use diatomaceous earth and white vinegar. Neither of these will harm pets or people. Avoid breathing the diatomaceous earth is all(silica).
1. Eliminate the food source or structure/reason they are around.
2. Ants leave scent trails so their buddies can find the food source. Wipe up the trails with the vinegar. Thoroughly clean areas where they congregate.
3. Diatomaceous earth is a natural mineral product made of billions of tiny fossilized plants...mined and processed. The tiny particles get into the crevices in the exoskeleton of insects and shred them, drying them out. It's super cheap and only requires a dusting to really piss off any insects. Vacuum it up and re-apply if it gets wet.

Worked wonders when tiny ants got into the cat food.

-fixie

GuitarStv · « **Reply #21 on:** April 17, 2018, 02:10:13 PM »

Quote from: fixie on April 17, 2018, 02:05:59 PM

Since I have a kiddo and hate poisons and biocides, I use diatomaceous earth and white vinegar. Neither of these will harm pets or people. Avoid breathing the diatomaceous earth is all(silica).
1. Eliminate the food source or structure/reason they are around.
2. Ants leave scent trails so their buddies can find the food source. Wipe up the trails with the vinegar. Thoroughly clean areas where they congregate.
3. Diatomaceous earth is a natural mineral product made of billions of tiny fossilized plants...mined and processed. The tiny particles get into the crevices in the exoskeleton of insects and shred them, drying them out. It's super cheap and only requires a dusting to really piss off any insects. Vacuum it up and re-apply if it gets wet.

Worked wonders when tiny ants got into the cat food.

-fixie

I worked as a pest control technician for quite a while. This is the approach I would take, personally.

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Author Topic: Getting Rid of Ants (Read 4298 times)