HOUSEHOLD ANTS

So what happens when you arrive home, and to your horror, you find household ants everywhere? Your immediate response may be, horrible things, get rid of them.

As you rush to find the pesticide, think about the following. Household ants play an important part in maintaining a healthy ecosystem, and it should be recognized they can be beneficial as well as pests.

Household ants are great scavengers and they control numerous insect populations, they will kill fleas, fly larvae, cockroaches, even termites. Household ants usually build their nests in soil, and are reputed to be more efficient at turning the soil than earthworms, which of course helps to keep your soil healthy.

It’s only natural that when they invade your home in search of water or food they are going to be treated as pests however, do not panic, they can often be controlled allowing them to continue to play their part in the outdoor environment.

The first line of attack to free your home of household ants is to remove the food source.

They can be attracted to various types of food, so the cleaning of kitchen surfaces after preparing your meals is a must. Any leftovers should be put in the fridge or in plastic containers with snap on lids. Keep all floors well swept as household ants are great scavengers and will find the tiniest particles of food. Wash your dishes after every meal, if time is your enemy, leave them to soak in soapy water.

In the summer the search for water intensifies, so make sure when you shower that the floors are left dry, it’s a good idea to check for dripping shower heads too. Of course the laundry area is a great place for the ants to find water, keep it dry. When you find ants that are active, vacuum them up and seal the bag before you dump them in the bin. You can also try Liquid Ant Bait.

If you have pets and you leave food and water out for them, place their dishes in a larger container filled with soapy water, works a treat.

Have a good look around your home to see if you can spot cracks which allow the household ants access into your house, use a silicone gap filler to close off that particular rout. You can put boric acid in the cracks before closing.

Household ants can often invade plants which are in pots. Flood the plant pots with water to get them to move out.

A temporary quick fix approach can be achieved by the use of a spray bottle filled with a weak solution of soapy water or vinegar sprayed directly on them. Wipe up the dead ones, this also gets rid of the trails left behind by the working household ants. If this is done regularly you may encourage them to leave.

Pesticide sprays or dust are poor choices as they only kill a small percentage of the colony that is foraging at that time leaving the queen ant to carry on laying her eggs. If you need to destroy the colony you have to kill the queen.

Wait till they are active, a little honey strategically placed along their trails will get them feeding. Just follow them to their nest, and if it’s outside, pour a kettle of boiling water directly into the nest to destroy it. Repeat as needed. For a professional approach try the Ant Pro Liquid Bait Kit.

These simple procedures can hopefully, help prevent household ant infestation in your home becoming a major problem.

Find out about other Garden Pests