HELP! Ants in the house!

[luzagirl]

They've made a long trail from under the flooring of a closet to behind a kitchen cabinet. How do I get rid of them without poisons? I've been wiping down their trail with a mix of water, clorox, and dish detergent a couple of times a day but they keep coming back. I think they may be moving a nest because I see them carrying little white particles that could be eggs. Our little crawler is all over this area so I've worried about her getting bitten and about exposing her to poisons.

Mom to Lina, 8-04

[Globetrotter]

We use Grants ant stakes with great success. They are poisonous; however, you put them outside the house. Keep them where you see the ant trails coming in, and they work like a charm! We used to have terrible ant problems until we started using these. Once in a while they will come back (if we don't get the scouts) so we put them out again.

I've tried non-toxic remedies with little luck. One was an orange scented spray that the ants don't like, but it worked only to divert them from a certain area. They quickly figured out alternate pathways!

Kris

[Marisa6826]

Ground cinnamon powder works. It takes longer, but it does. I used to go to the dollar store and get a giant shaker for cheapy cheap.

-m

[luzagirl]

I'll try it today! Do you just make a pile by the trail or is there something else I need to do?
Mom to Lina, 8-04

[tigalig]

Try putting out a few Bounce sheets until you find their source. You have to find where they are coming from before treating them effectively, but the sheets will keep them away from the areas that you want to protect right away. hth

[lmariana]

I'd be really concerned about mixing Clorox with dish detergent!! That combo will usually release toxic chlorine gas or chloramine gas! Big, big no-no!

Here are some things to try:

1. Make up a solution in a spray bottle of 16 oz water and 3 tablespoons liquid soap OR 1 tablespoon liquid detergent. Spray the ants and wipes them away. The soap will dehydrate them, killing them. You have to be diligent and spray all the ants you see, but eventually you'll get all the scouts and they'll stop coming around.

2. Clog the openings where the ants are getting in with petroleum jelly. Ants can't get through it. You'll have to touch it up though if dirt gets in it, which will reduce it's effectiveness.

3. Honey pot! Take a little bowl, planter, paper plate, whatever...and add some super sugary mixture of 1/2 c. water, 1/4 honey, and various other sweet treats like sugar, syrup, candy, etc. Place outside your home. Find the ant trail and leave a little trail of the sweet stuff to your honey pot. The ants will stop going in your house for food. Refill as needed.

4. Peppermint Oil and water - use after you've gotten rid of the ants with the soap/water solution for a few days. Mix 8 ox water and 2 tsp pure peppermint oil in a sprayer. Spray where you think the ants might be getting, a few times a day, for several days to keep the peppermint scent strong. Get the window sills, doors, baseboards, whatever!

5. Ground cinnamon - we open our windows and sprinkle this in the window sills. Works wonderfully, but can be annoying to clean up. This will just keep ants from getting near the cinnamon, so it's only really effective as a repellant.

I got all these ideas from an awesome book, Clean House, Clean Planet by Karen Logan. It has a whole bunch of non-toxic and cheap ways to clean your whole house. :) Very cool book!

Mariana
Owner of HappyDayBaby
Mom to Gabe, 8/03
www.heinzandmariana.com

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[lisams]

One time I was desperate and used Windex and it worked!! Of course Windex is toxic, but I'm sure much less than bug spray. After that we kept those little ant traps in the cabinets and haven't had a problem since then.

Hope you get rid of them soon, they're such a pain and there's always so many of them!

Lisa

[hellosmiletoday]

If you do a search for Ants, there are actually quite a few posts on this issue. One good site is http://www.thebestcontrol.com/bugstop/control_list.htm.

When I lived in Fl (just moved last month), I had ghost ants which were very hard to get rid of. Sounds like your ants are bigger so the problem should be easier to solve! I've had some success with Zep(?) ant baits.

Now that I've moved to NC, I'm having a huge problem with millipedes. I see like 10-20 a day! Much worse than ants, and they are really difficult to get rid of apparently! Many pest companies wont even give me a guarantee!

Mommy to baby girl 5.8.04

[starrynight]

They hate the smell of peppermint or tea tree oil. But if you put it in one place they will only find another. I suggest looking to see what is attracting them in the first place and see if you can remove that.

[pixelprincess]

We had a HUGE ant problem and finally had the exterior of our home sprayed by a professional. I was worried about the toxicity of the spray so we didn't spray the interior. We stayed away from the house for several hours- the spray was mainly on the perimeter of the house. In a few weeks the ants were gone. All the home remedies and ant traps didn't really do much for us.

Here is the company we used http://www.burgepest.com/burge/residential.html

Good Luck!

[JElaineB]

I second the cinnamon. We were getting ants and our kitchen and sprinkled it all over the doorway. They don't come in any more. I don't know exactly how to do it in with the trail situation, but I would definitely put it at entry and exit points that you can get to.

Jennifer
mom to Jacob 9/27/02

[Emme]

Try Ortho pest control spray (available at any lawn & garden or hardware store). But use it only in the perimeter of your home and where you see the ants coming in. I found ants dumping their "trash" in our garage. I saw where they were coming in, sprayed that area, and haven't seen them since.

Also, from Linda Cobb's "Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean:" for ants on the counter, use undiluted white vinegar to wipe down the surfaces. To prevent them from coming into the house or getting in cupboards, sprinkle dried mint or red pepper where they're entering the house or in the cupboards. To get rid of anthills, pour 3 gallons of boiling water down them (best when the ants are active and near the surface; but not near flowers you don't want dead). Finally, to kill ants, mix 50% borax (a laundry additive) and 50% confectionier's sugar. Place on cardboard near the ant hill (away from pets & children since this is toxic when ingested). The ants will take the sugar (& toxic borax) to feed the queen and other ants.