Effective Methods To Get Rid Of Ants Naturally
Try these easy home remedies to keep ants at bay
The Spruce / Katie Kerpel
Ants can quickly invade a home and will continue to show up in large numbers if they find a food source. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to get rid of antswithout calling an exterminator.
Here are 7 easy and natural methods for getting rid of ants in your home or yard.
Understanding The Sugar Ant
Sugar ants, sometimes called banded sugar ants, arent a problem when they stay outdoors. However, they survive on nectar and other sweet foods and are quick to invade peoples homes. Since they are very social creatures, there are thousands more you dont see when you see one. Time is of the essence when dealing with an insect that multiplies so quickly.
Sugar Ants Are On The Shrubs Surrounding Your Home
Sugar ants and Ghost ants are attracted to your home because there are insects such as aphids, scale, and whiteflies feeding on the plant material on your property. As these sugar ants feed on the plants, they secrete a substance called honeydew which is a food source for ghost ants and other bugs.
Youll know for sure you have honeydew on your plants if you see a black sooty mold type substance growing on the leaves or if you look closely and see insects stunting the new plant growth.
If you have any palm trees surrounding your home, as most homeowners in the Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Port St. Lucie, and Vero Beach areas have, you can bet there are ant trails going up those tree trunks to feed off the honeydew on the trunks and palm fronds.
If any of those palm fronds are touching your home, you can also bet there is a trail of sugar ants possibly using those fronds as a bridge to enter your home while bypassing any preventative pest control foundation treatment.
During our home pest control treatments, we treat these plants to eliminate the insects feeding on them, which will then eliminate the food source for the ghost ants making your home a less attractive target!
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How Do You Prevent Sugar Ants In House Areas Outside Of The Kitchen
If youve discovered ants outside of your kitchen, its time to do some investigative work. If you locate a different food source that is drawing in the ants , then the same cleaning rules will apply. If you cannot find a source, however, you may be dealing with a different type of ant. There are a few strange things that attract ants. There are also many different ant species. Perhaps the one of most concern is carpenter ants. If you find ants near areas with wet or damaged wood, you might want to consider calling a pest management professional.
Controlling And Eliminating Sugar Ants With Powders
If you still have trails of ants popping up, its time to double down. These powders can kill ants when they are eaten and can also be carried back to the nest, killing nest mates as well. We do recommend using caution with these powders, especially around children and pets.
- Cornstarch: Cornstarch is a food substance that will kill ants if they ingest it. Please use with caution, even if it is food!
- Diatomaceous Earth: Made of fossilized diatoms, diatomaceous earth is a soft type of sedimentary rock. This substance can cause irritation of mucus membranes, lungs, skin, and eyes. If youre not completely comfortable with this substance, we do not recommend using it.
- Borax: A mineral commonly used in household cleaners, borax is an effective ant killer, when used in shallow dishes around entryways. Borax should never be used within reach of pets or children.
If trying to control and eliminate sugar ants with natural methods isnt working, its time to call in the professionals. At PURCOR, we have plenty of experience eliminating sugar ants from Pacific Northwest homes and businesses. Get your free quote today or !
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How To Get Rid Of Sugar Ants Step By Step Instructions
The sooner you start the battle with sugar ants the better. The great thing is that there are many methods that can help you get rid of the insects. All you have to do is choose the one that you think would work best for your specific situation. Always carefully read the instructions before trying out any of the sugar ant killers mentioned in the following sections below.
How To Get Rid Of Sugar Ants Naturally
Its totally understandable if you feel unsure about using harsh chemicals to solve your sugar ant problems. Even if you dont have kids or pets to worry about, its certainly not pleasant to use smelly chemicals in your living space.
Fortunately, there are several methods you can use to get rid of sugar ants naturally. One thing to point out with all natural solutions is that they are temporary fixes that are meant to work for a brief period of time. In most cases, these methods will rarely bring permanent relief.
White distilled vinegar has a myriad of practical uses around the house and using it as a sugar ant deterrent is no exception. Grab a spray bottle and mix up a solution of one part vinegar to one part water. Spray this solution wherever you notice ants. If you can locate their entry point, give that a spray as well. Spray your baseboards, counter tops or use it as a floor wash.
Quick Tip: This works because sugar ants hate the smell of vinegar, so spraying or mopping with a vinegar solution may act as a repellent. This solution will also get rid of the ant trails that they are following to get to their food source.
Another way to get rid of sugar ants naturally is to sprinkle coffee grounds in the areas where you see them. They can also be spread around the perimeter of your home. For some people, this may not be the best method because coffee grounds can stain surfaces.
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Chemical Methods To Get Rid Of Sugar Ants
For other ant control methods, try the following chemical solutions. Before using these methods, make sure you read the instructions and take necessary safety precautions to protect yourself from harmful chemicals. Additionally, be sure to keep chemical solutions away from pets and children.
- Set out an ant bait | Sugar Ant Killers The idea behind using ant baits to get rid of a sugar ant infestation is that the black ants will take the bait back to their ant colonies as food. Once the other ants have ingested the poisonous bait, theyll slowly begin to die. Most ant baits will contain boric acid or Borax, a slow-acting poison that kills the ants. Try Terro liquid ant baits these ant killers are extremely effective against common household ants.
- Wipe down kitchen countertops with an all-purpose cleaner every night Not only will this help sanitize your kitchen, but it will also break down the pheromones that ants use to follow each other.
How To Prevent Sugar Ants From Invading Your House
Of course, preventing sugar ants from invading your house is always better than trying to get rid of an enormous colony. Make sure to follow our tips, if you dont want to spend a lot of time and nerves in the future.
Check for Scout Ants Inside or Outside Your House
There is a special type of ants, the ones that wander around trying to find new food sources. You can notice a couple of sugar ants running around your house. The chances are high that those are the scout ants. Get rid of them because otherwise more ants can make their way inside your house.
Always Remove Ant Trails
You can use the home remedies that we have mentioned above . If you are not sure where exactly the ant trails are located, it is always better to spray the entire house.
Keep Your Place Clean
You should feed your family members but certainly not the ants. Make sure to clean up dirty dishes as soon as possible. Vacuum the carpets and mop the floors regularly, wipe the surfaces that have any spills or crumbles.
Use Sealed Containers to Store Food
No one wants to find ants in their food. Thats why you have to make sure that all your products are stored properly. Buy a few airtight containers and put any leftovers in them.
Make Sure That Your House Has No Cracks
Spend some time on finding any areas in your house that the ants can use to enter. Look for cracks around doors and windows. The sealants will degrade over time, so remember to reapply the products regularly.
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Final Notes How To Get Rid Of Sugar Ants
Sugar ant is just a slang term for a huge variety of insects that can wreak havoc on your life in a short period. That is why it makes sense to have the correct information regarding these bothersome creatures. And hopefully, we have provided that here.
It can be a challenging process to get rid of ants in your home, especially if there are a lot of them. Therefore, it is good to seek a pest control service or exterminator if you get stuck.
It makes no difference whether you have black ants, brown ants, or sugar ants. A trained professional can help you deal with them every step of the way.
Sweep And Mop Your Floors With Vinegar
Just like with your countertops, it is essential to sweep and mop your floors to get rid of any food debris that might attract ants. Use a mixture of water and vinegar to clean your floors and erase the pheromone trail that the previous ants have left behind. Make sure that you sweep all the nooks and crannies before you mop.
Finding that you have a sugar ant infestation can be incredibly frustrating. To effectively deal with the sugar ants, you have to destroy the pheromone trail they create, while dealing with the entire colony back at their nest.
These simple, natural solutions will help you effectively get rid of sugar ants from your home, and the tips will help you prevent a future sugar ant invasion.
We hope you enjoyed learning about how to get rid of sugar ants from your home. If you found the information in this article useful, please feel free to share it with your family and friends.
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Landscape Around Your Home
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Make sure that the plants in your yard are well kept and trimmed back, especially up against the house. Plants should be cleared at least 18″ around the foundation. Also, make sure that any shrub or tree limbs hanging onto the roofline or along the gutters are trimmed back, too.
Why this works: Ants are a worldwide problem, and keeping them out of your yard entirely is impossible. The main goal is to keep them outside where they belong, and plants and limbs against the home can become highways for ants hoping to get inside your home to look for food.
A Common Misconception About Sugar Ants
The sugar ants you may see in your home are not technically sugar ants. They are usually either pavement ants or pharaoh ants. The only true sugar ants, Camponotus consobrinus, are found exclusively in Australia.
Other types of sugar ants you may see in your home include ghost ants, crazy ants, white-footed ants and acrobat ants. There are many other types of ants that are in this category, but we wont list them all here. The type or types you may encounter in and around your home kind of depend on where you live.
Some of these ants will build a colony outside and only come in for food, others will set up nests inside your home. Whichever kind has set up shop in your house, they are highly invasive and very difficult to get rid of once they are established.
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Q Why Are Sugar Ants In My House
A: Every nest of ants sends out scouts looking for food and water. These scout ants explore every possible place within several hundred feet of their nest entrance and that always includes homes and buildings that are accessible through cracks and crevices. Older homes, therefore, are a bit more ant friendly than newer constructions. Even then, new construction isnt completely immune to ant invasions. Preventing ants from entering your home is tough, but it can be done. You need to look for and close every possible entry point, sealing them and then spreading TERRO® Ant Killer Plus outdoors, as needed. Keeping the inside of your home clean is also a big help. Avoid leaving food out, clean dirty dishes, empty trash daily and only eat in easy-to-clean areas. Mop, vacuum, and scrub regularly. Basically, you need to do everything you can to make your living space uninteresting to the legions of sugar ants exploring the area.
Get Rid Of Ant Food Sources
The reason why sugar ants would want to go to your homes is that they see your homes as an abundant supply of food. These ants would want to feed on the sugars, syrups, jams, jellies, cake, and other sugary foods and enter your house in search of food. They also like moisture and they also see your house as a good water source.
As such, a way to control sugar ant infestation is to stop giving them a reason to enter your homes. Pet bowls must always be cleaned after use and must not be left with food after your pets have finished eating. Dirty dishes must always be cleaned after use and not left at the kitchen sink. Foods must be properly sealed and stored so these ants won’t have access to food.
Regular checkups of water pipes must be done to prevent leaks that may encourage these ants . Cleaning parts of the house such as the kitchen counter, kitchen sinks, cupboards, and other parts are also important aspects to consider in stopping these ants from wanting to get inside the house.
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Q Are Sugar Ants Destructive
A: Other than contaminating the food they touch, most ants that are called sugar ants are not considered destructive. Carpenter ants, which are sometimes labeled as sugar ants, however, can be very destructive. In order to make a nest, carpenter ants create tunnels and nests in moist wood. This activity weakens the wood and poses a real threat to homes.
Should I Worry If I Have One Sugar Ant In My Kitchen
What if a lonely ant is crawling around the kitchen and you cannot see any others? Should you be worried? You most definitely should. It is a foraging ant looking for food. Once it finds it, it will give a signal to the others, drawing them to the source of food. Their diet and preferences change during the season: they opt for sweet foods and drinks, sources of protein or fat. At this stage, the invasion can be stopped by eliminating the forager. If this is not done, then in the near future, a trail along which hundreds or even thousands of insects will run will be formed.
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Natural Remedies To Get Rid Of Sugar Ants From Inside Your House
Since the very act of fixing dinner or pouring sugar in your coffee can release odors ants can smell so far way, theres no way you can prevent them from being attracted to your house. What you need, is a way to get rid of sugar ants.
Here are some all-natural ways to take care of an ant problem in your house.
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White Vinegar Home Remedy
A great, natural way to get rid of sugar ants is to mix equal parts of water and white vinegar and pour the liquid into a spray bottle. Acetic acid, which is found in vinegar, helps to eliminate the odor of an ant trail whilst also serving as a deterrent against these pesky insects.
Once you have located the spot where the ants are entering, spray the area with the solution, including any probable entrance pathways or trails. This will prevent the ants from going along these paths.
After the ants have been sprayed, use a paper towel to pick up any dead ants and discard them. Spray the mixture in the early morning or late afternoon, when the sugar ants are most active, for the best results from this home treatment.
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Clean Away Ant Trails
If you can see where the ants are traveling, you can see the chemical trail thats been left behind by the scouts. Trace the path by following ants that are foraging, then clean it up with soapy water or window cleaner. Although scouts will return to lay the path again, youll buy yourself some time to remove food sources and create some new ant hazards.
What Are Sugar Ants And What To Do If You Have Them
Staff Mgmt Pest Control
Imagine this. You walk into your kitchen to get an afternoon snack and you notice little black specks all over your counter. Your first thought is, who spilled the pepper? But then you realize that these tiny pepper flakes are moving around. And thats when reality sinks in you have a sugar ant infestation.
The first rule about sugar ants is, there are no sugar ants. Yes, you heard that right. The term sugar ant was coined to describe several different species of ants that do not bite or sting but invade your home.
Pharaoh Ants, Argentine Ants, and Ghost Ants are several species of ants that have come to be known as sugar ants, said John Moore Services Pest Control Manager Brian Menn. They are interior feeding ants that people see in their kitchen or bathroom. They dont do any damage to health or property but they are a nuisance and are very hard to get rid of.
What is a sugar ants habitat?
Where do sugar ants live?
Sugar ants differ from other ant species because they do not set up traditional mounds that you typically see around your yard. They prefer to nest near a water source inside a home such as inside a wall void or pipes. If they do nest outdoors they pick a spot underneath vegetation, rocks, or under the landscape.
Do sugar ants really eat sugar?
How to get rid of sugar ants
Here are some tips for sugar ant prevention:
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