Early in our relationship, I stopped by my husband's house (now our house) after work and almost immediately placed a frantic phone call to him, asking him to stop at the store for some Raid on the way home. The kitchen had been taken over by ants, those little black ones that sneak through invisible cracks in search of crumbs.
Since then, we've battled the ants every spring. All our neighbors have the same problem. Over the years, I've gotten very good at ant murder.
I've also become more green over the past couple of years. I am concerned about exposing my kids to chemicals and I don't want to risk contaminating the water supply with insecticides. No more Raid. So I did a little research on how to control ants naturally and this is what I found.
To PREVENT The Ants:
First of all, make sure your invaders are actually ants. Ants are commonly confused with termites, and you will need to contact a professional if you have termites. Once you have positively identified your bugs as ants, try to find out where they are coming in and block the holes. Silicone caulk works great.
Ants are usually found in areas with a high food concentration, so clean up really well. Clean counters and floors with soapy water. If you have to kill large quantities of ants, fill a squirt bottle with hot water and a small amount of dish liquid. The soap will kill the ants, so you can easily wipe them up with a sponge or paper towel. The soap also eliminates the pheremone trail that the ants leave. Seal up all your food in tight fitting lids or plastic bags with ziploc closures. (This is also a great time to clean out and organize your cabinets. See what you can make with what you find!) Don't forget to clean the crumbs out of your toaster. Wipe up spills immediately, clean your counters with soap frequently and sweep or vacuum the floor as needed (in my house, this means three times a day. At least.). Consider relocating pet food bowls or your fruit bowl to another room until the ant problem is resolved. Empty your trash can frequently and scrub it out if it gets damp or sticky.
Once you've eliminated the food supply and determined where the ants are coming in, decide if you want to kill the ants or are happy to just deter them.
With most natural methods, you'll need to be constantly vigilant and you might need to repeat the process more than once. All of these methods came highly recommended, but don't work for everyone. So if one doesn't work, try another!
To KILL The Ants Try:
To DETER The Ants Try:
The following list are all substances that ants hate. They don't actually kill the ants, but they cause them to relocate. As long as they'e not in my kitchen, I couldn't care less where they are, so relocation was good enough for me. I personally had great results last year with cinnamon. I bought a big bottle of it for cheap and sprinkled it wherever I found the ants. By the following morning, there wasn't a single ant in my kitchen. I wiped up the cinnamon later that day and the ants stayed away for at least a month. They always seemed to show up again after a heavy rainstorm and I had to use the cinnamon again. Petroleum jelly also strikes me as a barrier method more suited to around windows or low traffic areas. Vaseline on my kitchen counters would be a disaster.
Johnny spent some time out in the yard today and he dug up a grub, which he promptly squashed. He told his father, "Dad, I deaded the brown thing! I cutted it with the shovel and then stepped on it!"
Here's hoping that using these methods, your ants will be "deaded" too!
Since then, we've battled the ants every spring. All our neighbors have the same problem. Over the years, I've gotten very good at ant murder.
I've also become more green over the past couple of years. I am concerned about exposing my kids to chemicals and I don't want to risk contaminating the water supply with insecticides. No more Raid. So I did a little research on how to control ants naturally and this is what I found.
To PREVENT The Ants:
First of all, make sure your invaders are actually ants. Ants are commonly confused with termites, and you will need to contact a professional if you have termites. Once you have positively identified your bugs as ants, try to find out where they are coming in and block the holes. Silicone caulk works great.
Ants are usually found in areas with a high food concentration, so clean up really well. Clean counters and floors with soapy water. If you have to kill large quantities of ants, fill a squirt bottle with hot water and a small amount of dish liquid. The soap will kill the ants, so you can easily wipe them up with a sponge or paper towel. The soap also eliminates the pheremone trail that the ants leave. Seal up all your food in tight fitting lids or plastic bags with ziploc closures. (This is also a great time to clean out and organize your cabinets. See what you can make with what you find!) Don't forget to clean the crumbs out of your toaster. Wipe up spills immediately, clean your counters with soap frequently and sweep or vacuum the floor as needed (in my house, this means three times a day. At least.). Consider relocating pet food bowls or your fruit bowl to another room until the ant problem is resolved. Empty your trash can frequently and scrub it out if it gets damp or sticky.
Once you've eliminated the food supply and determined where the ants are coming in, decide if you want to kill the ants or are happy to just deter them.
With most natural methods, you'll need to be constantly vigilant and you might need to repeat the process more than once. All of these methods came highly recommended, but don't work for everyone. So if one doesn't work, try another!
To KILL The Ants Try:
- boiling water: this requires knowing where the nest is. Boil a large pot of water and then pour it on the nest. This is only effective if you kill the queen in the process. Make it more fun by cackling evilly as you pour the water.
- dry grits: Sprinkle these around where the ants are coming in, and around the nest. Supposedly, the ants eat them, then drink water and explode. Super fun!
- cornmeal: This is the same concept as the grits.
- mouthwash/dish liquid drench: Mix 3 capfuls of mouthwash with a squirt of dish liquid and dilute with one gallon of water. Then pour it on the nest.
To DETER The Ants Try:
The following list are all substances that ants hate. They don't actually kill the ants, but they cause them to relocate. As long as they'e not in my kitchen, I couldn't care less where they are, so relocation was good enough for me. I personally had great results last year with cinnamon. I bought a big bottle of it for cheap and sprinkled it wherever I found the ants. By the following morning, there wasn't a single ant in my kitchen. I wiped up the cinnamon later that day and the ants stayed away for at least a month. They always seemed to show up again after a heavy rainstorm and I had to use the cinnamon again. Petroleum jelly also strikes me as a barrier method more suited to around windows or low traffic areas. Vaseline on my kitchen counters would be a disaster.
- cinnamon
- spearmint
- fabric softener sheets
- tansy cuttings
- Avon Skin So Soft
- coffee
- citrus peels
- eucalyptus oil
- baby powder
- petroleum jelly
- bay leaves
- tea tree oil
Johnny spent some time out in the yard today and he dug up a grub, which he promptly squashed. He told his father, "Dad, I deaded the brown thing! I cutted it with the shovel and then stepped on it!"
Here's hoping that using these methods, your ants will be "deaded" too!
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8 comments:
add chalk to your deterrent list... ants will not cross a chalk line!
We had ants horrible last year. WE called a company that said the chemicals were all non toxic. They also claimed that their products work for 5 years...This spring, essentially the start of year 2, so far NO ANTS!
My mom always mixed mint jelly and borax and put it in soda bottle caps and put them around where the ants were, but usually up high so the kids/dog couldn't get into it. Supposedly they carry it back to the nest and it kills them.
Your enjoyment of "killing the ants" are cracking me up! Thanks for these. Hoping I can PREVENT!
We use yeast. Pretty much the same concept as grits. They feed it to the queen & she blows up. I do the cackle thing, too, as I watch the little multi-legged morons carry it into their hole, LOL
You can also use either talcum powder or baking soda as a barrier the ants will not cross. Thanks for such a succinct sharing of your ant knowledge.
Nice article as for me. It would be great to read more about that topic.
BTW check the design I've made myself High class escorts
I really like the cinnamon idea. Thanks!
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