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I am in a constant battle with ants in my kitchen, they are tenacious little buggers and the only way that really works is to keep the kitchen immaculately clea
by boznz 3y ago
I am in a constant battle with ants in my kitchen, they are tenacious little buggers and the only way that really works is to keep the kitchen immaculately clean!
- ethbr1 3y agoPlot twist: ants just aesthetically prefer tidiness and so engineered your behavior to ensure a clean kitchen.
- coding123 3y agoBest way is to kill them and not clean up the bodies. They smell like mint usually. Keeps them away
- powersnail 3y agoMy experience with ants (at least with common small black ants) is that they tend to eventually remove the dead body after some poking around, rather than keep away from the crime scene.
- qiqitori 3y agoI've had excellent results with ant bait containing hydramethylnon. Just placed a couple bait containers in the room I had them; they were gone the next day and it's been almost three years.
- Joel_Mckay 3y agoI live in an area where Monomorium pharaonis is an invasive species, and there are many fruit trees in our city (mostly varieties of cherry and plum). Leave this Mixture in a shallow lid/dish next to the Ant entry point: 1 part borax dish soap 3 parts granulated sugar 15 parts warm water They will ingest the mixture, and return the payload to the colony if dilute enough. A few days later the slow poison should start to knock out the group. Indeed, once a path is chemically marked it is very hard to keep ants out, and failure to remove a waste bin lures them in again. Mixing kiln dried diatomaceous earth with water for treating the surrounding external structure also helps knock down anything with a chitin exoskeleton. It can be effective if a colony has attached to a tunnel system. Best of luck =)
- progman32 3y agoThree other options (admittedly less effective, but the upside is no killing). 1. Give them what they want. I have a bottle of cheap corn syrup I use as a truce offering. If I start getting scouts or the beginnings of an incursion I just dump a big glob of the syrup right next to their nest outside. Everyone disappears from my house within a half hour. Usually, they forget about the kitchen for a couple weeks. Then I repeat. 2. Peppermint oil. The ants here will avoid it. If I smear it across an active ant line it interrupts it even. 3. Ant moat. Works great for sugar products and pet dishes. I use 4 shot glasses full of soapy water holding up a small kitchen rack. The rack is perched on 4 small submerged pillars I added to the rack's feet. Edit: of course an invasive species needs to be dealt with in accordance to the threat to the local ecosystem. I'm just providing options for simple nuisance ants.
- Joel_Mckay 3y ago"1. Give them what they want." Not a great idea, as people can skew the ecosystem into causing more harm. More ants can increase Aphid populations that spread viral plant diseases (see Huanglongbing or citrus greening disease). "2. Peppermint oil." Never tried this one, but seems expensive. Also, most mint products are illegal to import in some areas, given it can carry symbiotic fungus spores that may decimate food crops. "3. Ant moat. " Many species have building skills, and some will even build tiny twig/gravel roads/bridges over dangerous/irritating substances. They are fascinating little creatures, and an important part of the ecosystem. =)
- quickthrower2 3y ago> only way that really works is to keep the kitchen immaculately clean Prevention better than cure, as always :-).
- lukas099 3y agoThey're helping you find spots you missed.
- powersnail 3y agoSadly that's not always effective. My house is immaculately clean, no food residue for ants to find, but they still come......for water! They get into toilet tank, cat's water bowl, flower vase, my cup, looking for nothing but water. Not once had I seen them moving any sort of food in my house, (they also doesn't seem to be interested in cat food), but they always manage to find water. I wonder how they manage such a low calorie diet. It took quite a bit of effort to caulk every one of their entrance; which seems to be the most effective measure so far.
- lupusreal 3y agoLeave a water bowl outside for them maybe?
- powersnail 3y agoI’m on the 3rd floor. They come from the walls. There’s nowhere to place a sacrifice.