Ants and similar kind of pests and insects have been around our homes and offices. They keep on making our lives hard and infects our houses. The first step in battling an ant infestation is to eliminate the things in the environment that are attracting them. Remember that ant-proofing your home will also reduce the number of cockroaches, moths and beetles, and predators like spiders. Ants medically known as Hymenoptera Formicidae, are one among the few pests that are harder to get rid of, once they’ve established themselves in your home.
Most common form of ant i.e. the pavement ant invades houses, apartments, and other places where found can be found. It is commonly called the sugar ant and the house ant. Pavement ants are the little brown ants that make small mounds in the sand near sidewalks, driveways, and the sides of houses.
Preventing and getting rid of Ants at home
- Store food in rubbermaid type plastic containers, jars with lids that have sealing gaskets, or jars with tight-fitting hinged lids.
- Refrain from storing anything in the open or in bags.
- Jars without sealing gaskets can permit ants to enter through the threads, so replace any that you find with the above mentioned containers.
- Clean out your toaster or toaster oven after every use.
- Clean (with soap) all of the surfaces in your kitchen at least once a week to remove crumbs and food residue.
- Sweep or vacuum the kitchen floor weekly.
- Try putting some whole cloves around. I put them on the window sills and door jams and also sprinkled a few around in my bottom cabinets. It worked.
How Ant barriers get rid of Ants?
There are a lot of home made or easily available any barriers such as Baby powder, Petroleum jelly, Eucalyptus oil (a little on a cloth goes a long way), Bay leaves (Keep out of reach of children and pets!), Cinnamon, Dryer sheets, Tea tree oil, etc. Below are some more tips on getting rid of Ants at home:
- Clean bench tops and cupboards down really well, and then wipe down with a clean damp cloth that has a few drops of essential peppermint oil on it, you may need to apply a few drops of oil a couple of times.
- Use those ant traps, or raid, if that doesn’t work then you need to try an exterminator, maybe they can give some advice before shelling out a ton of money.
- Use regular chalk to draw a thick line between the food source and their home. Make sure they can’t go around the end of the chalk line.
- Black pepper is a nonlethal, poison free, cheap, and safe way to get rid of ants - sprinkle the black pepper where you see them congregating and watch ‘them scatter. Follow them to where they’re exiting - which is the same spot they’re entering in at - and sprinkle the pepper at that spot to keep them from coming back in.
- Detergent barriers are made by placing something in a larger dish or platter partly filled with a water and detergent mix to create a moat. The detergent will break the water’s surface tension causing any ants that attempt to cross it to drown.
Some more tips to get rid of Ants
Sprinkle powdered red chili pepper, paprika, dried peppermint or borax on ant trails, in cracks and near entryways to deter them from moving in. Create liquid bait by mixing 1 tsp. boric acid with 2 1/2 fluid oz. corn syrup or honey. Heat until the boric acid dissolves. In an eyedropper, add equal amounts of water and solution to drop in places ants frequent for 2 weeks. Fire ants are the most notorious of these common pests. Not only do they have a painful bite, they devour gardens and build unsightly mounds that can be up to 2 feet tall. Careful removal by a professional may be the best option.
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