11 ms·
I wonder if there is a more sustainable way of dissuading rodents from ever entering a building. I once had a terrible ant problem, they would always find thei
by tomxor 5y ago
I wonder if there is a more sustainable way of dissuading rodents from ever entering a building.
I once had a terrible ant problem, they would always find their way into the kitchen. I tried a variety of products either intended to kill off the actual ant nests directly or trap the invaders, but there was always some quantity of ants remaining that would persist. Then I tried one product that was to simply be sprayed around the entrances like an invisible barrier, the ants would encounter it and just turn around. This turned out to be far more effective, and I felt like less of a jerk by not carpet bombing all the local ant nests.
I guess it might be harder to induce such behaviour in a rodent, I think the spray exploits the fact that ants leave chemical trails, so even if one of them figures out a path the rest wont follow. But the constant game of killing and collecting invaders must be exhausting.
- devb 5y agoI managed to control my serious ant problem by feeding them. I would set up plates of sugar or sugary food outside, away from the house. Over time I got fewer and fewer scouts coming in to the house to snoop around.
- randallsquared 5y agoI would expect this only works for you because something else is preventing population growth in ants near your house.
- darkerside 5y agoEither this or confirmation bias. Ants will reproduce colonies and expand to take as much resources as you're willing to give them.
- giardini 5y agoFire ants seemed at first a scourge in Texas but they also eliminated certain pests. During the time I presided over a condominium we had no need of termite or carpenter ant control, thanks to our ever-alert fire ants. Once the pests are gone, if necessary you can reduce the fire ants' population with say, Amdro. By simply paying attention, you can keep your lawn and buildings in a steady state vis-a-vis insect pests. I was not so successful with alleged mice/rats. Some tenants insisted there were rats present. We do have an abundance of possums but I've never seen a rat or mouse here and baby possums are often mistaken for rats. So I put out some mouse/rat bait boxes. The results over the first season was only two dead very small baby possums, indeed small enough to enter the rat/mouse trap, eat the anticoagulant and die before leaving. After that I threw out the rat/mouse traps.
- LinuxBender 5y agoI have done this as well. An abundance of food and water near their nest will keep them from wandering. If you occasionally remove the food you get the bonus of them scouting your house frame for termite larva. If they find even one larva, there will be an army of ants eradicating them within minutes. Ants can go where termite control can not.
- sandworm101 5y agoSalt. Ants taste with receptors on thier feet. Walking on salt is painful to them. Smear some salty water and let it dry. No ant scout will ever cross the line. Ive used that trick countless times to keep ants off of counters or from crossing open doors in summer.