Tiny ants that appear in your house or garden can make you feel uncomfortable constantly. If the ants start to bother you, you can take a few easy steps to keep the ants out, or get rid of them completely.
Step
Part 1 of 3: Repel Ants
Step 1. Find an area where ants can enter
There are two reasons why ants come to the house: to find food and to find shelter in cold weather. Ants use a variety of ways to get into your home, so you should check windows, doorways, light fittings, and any other possible entrances. If there are ant trails in your home, follow them to find out where the ants are coming from.
If you find a specific entry point that ants use to get into your home, focus on these areas to repel and prevent their arrival. This can reduce the chances of ants re-entering the house through this route
Step 2. Close all ant entrances
When you find an area where ants are entering your house, barricade and seal the entrance. Try using silicone putty to seal cracks and cracks. You can even put some repellent (borax, coffee grounds, cinnamon, bay leaf) in the gap and then cover it with putty.
Latex and silicone caulk are not effective at sealing driveways because ants can destroy this type of putty
Step 3. Create a barrier
Try creating a barrier around your house or garden to prevent ants from getting in. Spread the coffee grounds around the foundation of the house, along the outer perimeter of the garden, and in places where ants can see traces of ants or use ants to move around.
- Try planting mint or chili peppers around your house or garden. Both plants are known to prevent the arrival of ants.
- You can also sprinkle food-grade diatomaceous earth (safe to use and environmentally friendly) around the outside of your house or garden. Sprinkle the soil near the foundation of your house or garden, and sprinkle it circularly over mounds and anthills.
- Diatomaceous earth can damage the exoskeleton (the hard covering on the outside of the body) of ants and dehydrate the ants. This soil is not toxic to humans, but you should not inhale the powder particles directly.
- You can also use factory-made insecticides to apply outdoors, but remember that insecticides are usually hazardous to humans, animals and sometimes the environment.
Step 4. Eliminate ant trails
Ants leave a scented trail for other ants to follow. Therefore, wipe off the scent trail with soapy water when you find it indoors. Make a mixture of water and dish soap, then use a sponge to wipe off the ant trail and the area around it. In this way, the other ants will not be able to follow the previous ants because their tracks have been lost.
Scented ant trails can also be removed with vinegar. Spray white vinegar on the areas where the ants work, and wipe down any surfaces where the ants have walked
Step 5. Use herbs and spices to repel ants
Cloves are very effective at repelling ants and can be placed in various areas around the house to get rid of annoying ants. Place whole cloves in areas where ants roam (kitchen counters, wall bases, etc.). In addition to cloves, you can also use other herbs and spices that you can plant in your garden or place around your house to repel ants:
- red pepper
- Bay leaf
- Min (peppermint)
- Cinnamon
- Garlic
Step 6. Use other natural ingredients to repel ants
In addition to herbs and spices, you can use some natural food ingredients and a number of other ingredients that are known to repel ants. Try sprinkling these materials around driveways, other places where ants live, or in gardens. Some natural ingredients to repel ants include:
- Coffee grounds
- Cornstarch
- Lemon juice
- Wheat cream
Part 2 of 3: Killing Ants
Step 1. Poison the ants with borax
Borax is a cleaning chemical that is toxic to ants, but not toxic to humans. Kill the ants at the source by making a bait of borax so that the ants invade and carry the bait to the nest. Mix one part borax with one part corn syrup (or another sweet sticky substance), then spread the mixture out on a sheet of paper. Place the paper in the area where the ants work. The ants will transport this sweet and poisonous mixture to the colony, and the bait will slowly kill the ant colony.
- It is recommended that you place this bait at night because the ants tend to look for food at night.
- You can also make a toxic mixture of borax and powdered sugar. Mix 1 part borax with 3 parts powdered sugar. Put this mixture in a small container (spoon, bottle cap, etc.), then place it around the area where the ants enter the house.
- If children or pets are likely to touch the borax mixture, we recommend mixing 1 cup of warm water with cup of sugar and 3 tablespoons of borax. Soak a cotton ball in this mixture, and place the cotton ball in a shallow dish near the entrance of the ants.
Step 2. Set a commercial bait trap
Commercial bait traps work similarly to borax traps for killing ants, but tend to work more quickly (although they are still slower to work), and can be targeted at certain foods that the ants in your home like. For example, you can use ant baits that are sugar, fat, or protein based depending on the type of ant you're dealing with.
- If you're not sure what type of bait to use, try using each type of bait one at a time.
- If the ants don't eat the bait, you'll need to change the type of bait you use, or place the bait in another area where ants are more frequent.
- When using bait, you must remove all other rival food from the area. Ants can invade existing rival food, reducing the effectiveness of the bait you use.
- When the ants start eating the bait, let the ants feast and carry the bait to their colony. After some time has passed, the number of ants in your house will decrease.
Step 3. Pour boiling water over the ant mound
If you can follow the tracks of the ants returning to their nests or mounds, try pouring boiling salted water into the holes of the ant mounds. You may have to use a lot of water, but this is a great way to get rid of large numbers of ants.
Part 3 of 3: Preventing the Arrival of Ants
Step 1. Keep the sink clean
Do not pile dirty dishes and cutlery for a long time in the sink because ants love food crumbs. After you've finished washing the dishes, wipe the sink with a rag to make sure any sugary food residue has been removed from the surface of the sink.
Try pouring a little vinegar or bleach down the sink drain to help remove food debris that can attract ants
Step 2. Wipe the surface of the object with bleach
Bleach (like vinegar) can remove traces of pheromones (chemicals that animals release to communicate with each other) which can help reduce the number of ants wandering around. Wipe all surfaces such as countertops, refrigerator tops, cupboards, and other areas to prevent ants from getting in.
Step 3. Clean your kitchen floor
The kitchen floor is a favorite area for ants to find food crumbs and carry them to their colony. Make sure to sweep and mop the floor regularly (if you can't do this every night) with warm water and bleach to keep ants from hanging around there. Even if there are very few food crumbs, ants will invade your home in large numbers.
Step 4. Vacuum the area you usually use to eat food
In addition to sweeping and mopping, vacuum the areas you use for eating. This could be a dining room, family room, or basement. You'll need to remove any crumbs that might attract ants to enter the house and have a great time.
Step 5. Take out the trash regularly
Food or dripping juice in the litter box can immediately attract ants to enter the house. Make sure to clean the litter box daily, and use a strong and durable trash bag so it doesn't leak and spill its contents.
Step 6. Store food in closed containers
Ants will look for food in every corner of the house so you must store food in containers and keep them tightly closed. It's a good idea to store sticky foods like honey, molasses, and syrup in the refrigerator.
Try storing baking ingredients (sugar, flour, etc.) and cereals in an airtight container or bag
Step 7. Replace the rotted wood
Check around the house for foundation wood, shingles (wood for the roof), or rotting frames. Weathered wood is a favorite place for ants to nest and serve as a way to enter the house. If there are rotten areas, you should replace them with new wood to avoid ant infestations.
Tips
- You can use bleach or white vinegar when cleaning kitchen surfaces to help prevent ant infestation.
- It's a good idea to set traps at night because most ants are nocturnal (active at night).
