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Ants, help... (Original Post) Eliot Rosewater Aug 2020 OP
The Terro traps always work for me Ohiogal Aug 2020 #1
Same. I Had My... jayfish Aug 2020 #18
Identify the family of ants and do an internet search. KS Toronado Aug 2020 #2
Cucumber skins worked for me. virgogal Aug 2020 #3
me too. mosty they are in for water and find food along the way. AllaN01Bear Aug 2020 #4
Use borax and save your money. we can do it Aug 2020 #5
Thanks Eliot Rosewater Aug 2020 #9
We use less sugar usually and it works great. we can do it Aug 2020 #11
I had some of those guys right outside my door a few years ago, a friend told me to mix a few Leghorn21 Aug 2020 #6
This is what I used and ants gone in 24 hours. chillfactor Aug 2020 #7
Thank you Eliot Rosewater Aug 2020 #8
Make your own ant bait. It's the same as terro. Use the sugar and borax recipe. Put it in empty soda OregonBlue Aug 2020 #10
White vinegar n/t sarge43 Aug 2020 #12
ultrasonic ants (search Amazon.com) aeromanKC Aug 2020 #13
I tried almost everything and they kept coming C_U_L8R Aug 2020 #14
Are they tiny Pharoh ants? Baitball Blogger Aug 2020 #15
tx Eliot Rosewater Aug 2020 #21
Yep - Ant kill works csziggy Aug 2020 #27
I had a terrible ant invasion in my kitchen last spring Trailrider1951 Aug 2020 #16
Just ordered, thanks... Eliot Rosewater Aug 2020 #19
Ants need water Brother Buzz Aug 2020 #17
If you follow them, you may be able to see where they come in. Midnight Writer Aug 2020 #20
This message was self-deleted by its author RandiFan1290 Aug 2020 #22
They won't go away until you kill the queens and remove the food source. Hotler Aug 2020 #23
Diatomaceous earth LuckyCharms Aug 2020 #24
I swear by this LibinMo Sep 2020 #30
Rubbing Alcohol works against ants. Spray in place where they are, spray again Stuart G Aug 2020 #25
You're not alone. Totally Tunsie Aug 2020 #26
Vacuum them up with the nozzle attachment, then... mysteryowl Aug 2020 #28
This is what I do. hunter Sep 2020 #33
Coffee Grounds yortsed snacilbuper Sep 2020 #29
Well... Lady Freedom Returns Sep 2020 #31
LOL Eliot Rosewater Sep 2020 #34
Corn meal. yankeepants Sep 2020 #32

Ohiogal

(31,669 posts)
1. The Terro traps always work for me
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 12:34 PM
Aug 2020

It will take about 24 hrs before they’re all gone though

Good luck! I hate bugs in my house!

jayfish

(10,035 posts)
18. Same. I Had My...
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 02:28 PM
Aug 2020

doubts but they were all erased in about 48 hours. They can be a little messy though.

 

virgogal

(10,178 posts)
3. Cucumber skins worked for me.
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 12:35 PM
Aug 2020

I had a problem in a kitchen and adjacent bath...scattered them all over the place.

AllaN01Bear

(17,383 posts)
4. me too. mosty they are in for water and find food along the way.
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 12:35 PM
Aug 2020
and then they tell their friends . ive heard such things as mustard , ciniman and other things mentioned . including vinigar and baking soda . i live in an apartment complex . a friend of mine who lives on the ground floor has a shallow pan under the ac condensate drip pipe , so they get their water that way and dont come in. advice . keep your place as clean as possible and empty trash often.

we can do it

(12,118 posts)
5. Use borax and save your money.
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 12:38 PM
Aug 2020

Mix 1/2 C sugar, 1 1/2 Tbsp Borax, and 1.5 C warm water. Soak cotton balls in the mixture, and put them out near the mess of ants. The sugar attracts the ants, and they'll take the Borax with it back to their home.

24-48 hours
The active ingredient in the bait interferes with the ants' digestive systems, eventually killing the ants within 24-48 hours after consumption. This slow kill gives the worker ants enough time to make multiple trips to the bait and share it with the colony and queen.

Leghorn21

(13,520 posts)
6. I had some of those guys right outside my door a few years ago, a friend told me to mix a few
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 12:38 PM
Aug 2020

drops of cinnamon oil with water and spray it around....and my little friends were GONE!

—-one of the few home remedies that ever worked for me!! Highly recommend, Eliot!!

chillfactor

(7,566 posts)
7. This is what I used and ants gone in 24 hours.
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 12:40 PM
Aug 2020

Pepper
Sprinkle pepper at the areas from where ants enter your house. This is will help getting rid of ants. Cayenne pepper or black pepper are hated by ants. You can also make a solution of pepper and water and spray it near the entrant areas. The pepper wouldn't kill the ants but definitely deter them from returning to your house. Make sure you clean the area where you want to spray the pepper solution.

OregonBlue

(7,744 posts)
10. Make your own ant bait. It's the same as terro. Use the sugar and borax recipe. Put it in empty soda
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 12:48 PM
Aug 2020

cans and turn them on their side in the line of ants. The advantage of the cans is you can put them anywhere indoors or out and pets can't get into them. Borax won't kill pets but it can upset their tummys. Also, place a line of diatomaceous earth around doorways, windows, etc. When they crawl across it it gets under their shell and kills them. I had them so bad when I lived clear out in the country I had to buy 100 lb. sacks and spread it all over. It worked!! You can get it at any hardware store in many size bags.

p.s., if you get food grade diatomaceous earth, you can eat it to clear out you digestive tract.

aeromanKC

(3,307 posts)
13. ultrasonic ants (search Amazon.com)
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 01:00 PM
Aug 2020

Got rid of ants in 2 days. No sprays. Just plug in to outlet and it works!! I got mine for about $35 six plug in units. I put 3 of them in my main living area and the others throughout the house. I do not know how it works, but it does.

C_U_L8R

(44,897 posts)
14. I tried almost everything and they kept coming
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 01:25 PM
Aug 2020

After weeks of battle with oils and sprays and powders, my neighbor suggested the Terro liquid baits and they did the job in a couple of days.

Baitball Blogger

(46,576 posts)
15. Are they tiny Pharoh ants?
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 01:33 PM
Aug 2020

There's a little bottle at the hardware stores called Ant Kill. Pour some of the blue liquid in a small crunched up aluminum foil "cup." Put it near a Pharaoh ant trail. Should take care of the problem within a week, unless if you have a huge Kingdom growing under the flashing of your roof. Just saying.

csziggy

(34,120 posts)
27. Yep - Ant kill works
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 11:14 PM
Aug 2020

I just had ants in my kitchen over the last week. My husband located the ten year old bottle of Ant Kill left over from the previous infestation. Since these were grease ants - they like fats and oils - we mixed a few drops of the Ant Kill with a little bit of canola oil in small bottle caps and left them in the ants' paths.

They kept trying different paths, so we moved the bottle caps to be in their way. Some of the caps collected a lot of dead ants, but the real trick is that they carry some back to their nests and kill off the rest of the colony. We've had no ants for three days now so I guess we can put the bottle caps outside on a fire ant mound and let them have fun with it.

Trailrider1951

(3,409 posts)
16. I had a terrible ant invasion in my kitchen last spring
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 01:36 PM
Aug 2020

I left some dirty dishes on the counter and woke up to every ant in the neighborhood having a party in my kitchen. I sprayed them with Scrub-free cleaner to kill the ones on the counter and dishes, and then put down three ant baits, this kind:

https://www.amazon.com/Hot-Shot-MaxAttrax-Bait2-8-Count/dp/B00HH8HHOU/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=1DXYYAVU5B7OR&dchild=1&keywords=ant+traps&qid=1598894773&sprefix=ant%2Caps%2C233&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExU002UjhCQlc0RFZMJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMDk2MTc4MklOWlhZM1NZUkhPRSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNTQyMjUzM09NT1M1SzBGWUlUSiZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

I don't know what is in that "Maxattrax" formula, but the invading ants LOVED it! When they found the bait, they stayed with it. There was a double line of ants on my wall, coming and going, and they all went right for the bait. Apparently, they took it back to the nest and shared it with the others. The next day, there were a couple of dead ants on the counter, and no live ants at all. Here it is 6 months later and no ants. I highly recommend this. Good luck!

Brother Buzz

(36,217 posts)
17. Ants need water
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 01:59 PM
Aug 2020

We occasionally get overrun with the Argentine ants when it is hot and dry outside. I follow the trail to where they enter the house and place water there, outside. The ants stop bothering us within 24 hours.

Midnight Writer

(21,548 posts)
20. If you follow them, you may be able to see where they come in.
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 04:22 PM
Aug 2020

They usually take food back to their nest.

If you can find a choke point, concentrate any poisons there, so you don't drench your living area with harmful stuff.

Response to Eliot Rosewater (Original post)

Hotler

(11,353 posts)
23. They won't go away until you kill the queens and remove the food source.
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 08:37 PM
Aug 2020

The workers carry some of the Terro borax back to the nest to feed the queens, they die and no more eggs and the workers die off.

LibinMo

(533 posts)
30. I swear by this
Tue Sep 1, 2020, 12:59 AM
Sep 2020

I think my house was built on an anthill! I fought ants for years until I happened upon DE while searching ant poison on Amazon. DE is nontoxic and works miracles. Go to Amazon, search for Diatomaceous Earth and read some of the reviews. You can probably find it at most hardware stores, too.

If it gets wet it won't work and you will need to reapply. In the spring I sprinkle it along the baseboards and inside my kitchen cabinets & drawers. It won't lose potency for as long as you leave it there & it stays dry.

Stuart G

(38,365 posts)
25. Rubbing Alcohol works against ants. Spray in place where they are, spray again
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 10:06 PM
Aug 2020

a day or two later and again later. Cheap, not poison, available, and it works..Give it a try.

mysteryowl

(7,323 posts)
28. Vacuum them up with the nozzle attachment, then...
Mon Aug 31, 2020, 11:30 PM
Aug 2020

then watch were they are coming in from, then... caulk the spot(s) and it will be over.
The first spot you caulk will help a lot and you might need to repeat it in another area close by. No chemicals needed.

Let us know what worked for you.

hunter

(38,264 posts)
33. This is what I do.
Tue Sep 1, 2020, 01:53 PM
Sep 2020

Even if you don't caulk the ant colony will soon learn not to go in the house.

If you kill too much of the colony with poison they'll forget, or another ant colony will establish itself, and then you'll have to start all over again.

The only thing insecticides accomplish is to clear out the competition for insecticide resistant pests like cockroaches and fleas.

Alas, our dogs must have expensive flea collars because we visit places where fleas and ticks are common.

The fleas around here laugh at Frontline and many other common flea treatments.

We don't use any other insecticides in our house or garden.

There's a flock of little yellow birds that eats all the aphids.

Starlings eat all the snails.



Lady Freedom Returns

(14,120 posts)
31. Well...
Tue Sep 1, 2020, 02:05 AM
Sep 2020

That's what happens when you invite one aunt, they all pop up. And they start criticizing everything! Tell you that your not standing straight, everything in your fridge is expired, and criticizing your cleaning!

Whenever an aunt wants to come over, take a vacation. And make sure you really take a vacation, because they will come over to make sure you are on vacation.

Oh! You mean Ants 🐜 ! Nevermind 😆

yankeepants

(1,979 posts)
32. Corn meal.
Tue Sep 1, 2020, 04:55 AM
Sep 2020

I have a tree where ants live in the roots. I love the tree and it is a cicada nesting area. So every spring I dump a pound or two of corn meal around it for the ants. They take it home and it expands in their stomachs and kills them. I find fewer and fewer ants each year. I have a dog business so I can't use any chemicals.

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