How to Get Rid of Ants in Your Home
How To Get Rid Of Ants In Your Home
Some of the most common, and sometimes difficult, household pests to get rid of are ants. Once inside, ants can cause a wide variety of problems in your home beyond just eating your food. Ants will also commonly chew on wood and in some cases ants carry bacteria that can be harmful to your family, especially those with asthma and other respiratory concerns.
Need help getting rid of ants from your home? Our team at MosquitoNix® are experts in bug and pest control. By following the steps below, you'll be able to protect your home against ants and fruit flies, rodents and other common household pests.
Step #1: Identify What's Attracting Ants
Before you do anything to clear ants out, you'll want to take the time to identify what's drawing ants and how they're getting in. Ants are most active in the summer, but you might experience an ant invasion deep in winter, depending on where you live and what they're seeking.
Ants typically seek food, water or even flowers that they can feed off. As such, make sure you do the following to reduce the risk of attracting ants inside:
- Do not leave food out once you're done eating. Put leftovers in containers or bags inside your fridge or in drawers instead.
- Regularly take out your garbage. Put garbage in bags you can tighten and seal up. If you have an ant problem inside your dumpster, clear it out with a mixture of water and bleach.
- Regularly clean or wipe down surfaces. Even a small stain of honey or other foods can be enough to draw in an army of ants.
- If you have flowers that draw in ants, try to place them in pots and elevate them higher so ants can't reach them.
Step #2: Eliminate Ants From Your Home
Now you're ready to get rid of ants that have made it inside your home. There are multiple cleaning solutions that can take care of your ant problem, but if possible try to avoid killing every ant you see right away. Ants move in colonies, so the goal is to try and get the ants to take poisonous bait and harmful chemicals back to their nest. Doing so can kill off other future invaders before they enter your home.
There are many different ant-killing solutions you can use depending on the severity of your problem. For small ant invasions, it can be as easy as boiling water to kill or drive away the ants inside. If they're on a surface you can't wash with water, use a vinegar spray instead. Vinegar spray will not only kill ants but destroy their pheromone trails, cutting off the paths that ants would use to guide their nest to your home.
For more serious ant problems, dedicated bug killers and other insecticide solutions can help you clear your home. This can include insect sprays, insect traps and other dedicated bug killers. Just make sure you read the warning label to determine their impact on your home furniture before you purchase.
Step #3: Seal Or Spray Ant Entryways
Ants don't need a large opening to enter your home, allowing them to crawl through small cracks beneath your door or through your window. To prevent this, install sealing tape to close up the potential entryway and reduce cold drafts in your home.
Enjoying summer air? Ants might be getting in if you leave your door open to enjoy the warm breeze. If you want to leave your door open during the summer, we highly recommend installing a screen door. You'll be able to breathe in fresh natural air without providing a gateway to ants, flies and other harmful pests.
If you have multiple ant entryways, or if the solutions above aren't fixing your ant infiltration problem, try to spray the entryways to discourage bugs from getting in. Ants are generally guided by scent, so they avoid areas that have scents they hate. This includes:
- Peppermint
- Lavender oil
- Glass cleaner
- Black or red pepper
- Tea tree oil
- White vinegar
- Lemons
- Limes
- Oranges
Pick the scent you enjoy the most from the list above and spray your ant entryway with it. Try to spray enough to create a strong odor but not so much as to attract other pests to any leftover liquids created by the spray.
When Should I Call A Professional Pest Killer?
Most ant problems can be solved with common household cleaning supplies or supplies you can purchase from your local general store. However, some infestations can be serious enough to justify hiring a professional pest killer. This is especially true if you've had repeat invasions from ants and other pests, or just can't seem to find the source where ants are coming from.
Professional pest controllers like us at MosquitoNix will clean your house from top to bottom of any pests inside. Once your home is clean, they'll search the nearby area outside for places where ants are making their nests. Ant nests can be difficult to find since they can make a home in trees, broken wood or even underground. Professional pest controllers have the experience to track them down and can safely destroy ant nests without disrupting your yard or outdoor living space.
Interested in professional pest control services? We invite you to reach out to us here at MosquitoNix. Founded in 2003, we've expanded our commercial and residential pest control services to over 500 cities across America and the world. We've also created the MosquitoNix® On-The-Go Portable Misting System, the ultimate automatic outdoor misting system for residential properties in need of an affordable and easy-to-use pest controller.
To learn more about our pest control services, along with how to best clear out ants from your home, contact us today at MosquitoNix.
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