You know Spring is here when your home – specifically my kitchen – becomes invaded with those tiny little black ants. I hate those f*ckers! And no matter what I try, I can’t get rid of them. Here are 13 things I’ve tried within the last week:
1. Raid Ant Killer – Yes, ant killer was the first thing I tried. The problem is that I can’t spray this stuff in the kitchen, which is my problem area, but I have sprayed it all along the doorways and the corners of the floor. The ants don’t seem to mind.
1. Raid Ant Killer – Yes, ant killer was the first thing I tried. The problem is that I can’t spray this stuff in the kitchen, which is my problem area, but I have sprayed it all along the doorways and the corners of the floor. The ants don’t seem to mind.
2. Eli – He certainly loves to squish those little buggers. He screams “ANT! I GOT IT!” Unfortunately, there’s only one of him and about a bazillion ants.
3. Clorox Green Works – I have discovered that anything will kill ants if you spray it directly on them. This is what I squirt them with when I see one running across my kitchen countertop because at least it’s non-toxic.
4. Rubbing alcohol – Eric rubbed everything down with alcohol because he read that worked. All it did was give the ants a sterile environment in which to frolic.
5. Vinegar – I read that vinegar was supposed to work so I rubbed everything down with that. It was about as effective as the alcohol.
6. Cinnamon – This was supposed to repel ants. All it did was make my kitchen smell good. The ants don’t care.
7. Black pepper – This is what I’m trying today. I have sprinkled black pepper all around the kitchen floor and the countertops. I’ve seen six ants on the counters since I put it down, so my guess is that pepper is about as effective as the cinnamon.
8. Ant traps – Eric has scattered these all over the kitchen, and I have yet to see an ant actually go inside of one.
9. Chalk – I’m sick of people telling me, “Ants won’t cross a white line.” Maybe not, but they’re damn good at finding a way around it.
10. Outdoor ant killer – This stuff looks like fertilizer that you sprinkle outside. I read that if you kill the ants outside, they won’t come in. Makes sense, right? Wrong!
11. Windex/dishwashing liquid combo – Unless you can spray it directly on them, all it does is create a soapy mess on the counter and give the ants something to bathe in before they head on their way.
12. Mint – Just one more thing that ants are supposed to avoid because they hate the smell. The problem is, repelling the little buggers doesn't work. I want to kill them!
13. Up next: Bay leaves – I’ll try this tomorrow, but I’m not holding my breath.
21 comments:
I HATE ants! One year we left milk and cookies for santa on the fireplace. Poor Santa got a mouth full of ants when he went to take a bite of the cookie. He hates ants as much as I do! heh heh heh
Happy WW!
I hope the Bay leaves works out for you
. . . hate ants!
My husband's bachelor pad had the same problem when I moved in. I had no problem solving it: We moved. :) Good luck with the bay leaves!
Ugh, we have ants too. I don't know what to do about them...
...but now I know what NOT to do.
We have ants as well. They started appearing around mid-April.
Ants are attracked to water. So don't leave ANY water in the sink. We were told by a friend of ours that Ants seek out water.
We spray our house with Ortho Home Defense max. It is for the inside...but we spray it both inside and out...
The 'home' rememdy's never worked for us.
It's sad that our house gets these Ants. My house is only 3 years old.
Great List.
Happy TT!
I also meant to mention that my Thursday thirteen is up at..
http://kitchentablechat.wordpress.com...
I had the same problem a few years back. I tried everything and nothing got rid of them. All over my house. Then someone asked if we had a wood pile near the house. Answer yes. I moved the wood to the woods and the ants disappeared.
Bay Leaves are very dangerous when ingested, for humans.
So do NOT let Georgia eat any!
When I was in college, I had a perforated intestine. Took them two days to figure it out - they thought it was appendicitis, and were going to do exploratory surgery because the "appendix" was in the wrong place.
The barium enema for the lower GI actually worked the bay leaf out and I was able to start healing.
Moral of the story: don't let your kids eat whole bay leaves!
Best way to get rid of ants: borax.
I'm not sure how you'd do it in a home with kids, but it is the best environmentally-friendly thing to get rid of them. Of course, Georgia eating the borax is not a good thing, either...
Make sure your pet food bowls are in a saucer of water - the ants can't cross the water to get to the food. Pet food dishes are one of the top attractants to ants.
That, and the 6,576 pounds of Halloween and Christmas candy that Georgia has stashed around your home like a dog hiding a bone...
:)
I heard lemon juice.
best thing to try: borax mixed with sugar water. It attracts them at first, but it dries them out and kills them, they GO AWAY. Also, find out where they are coming from outside and put containers there, too.
Combat makes them now, too. Premixed, premeasured. They work. Good luck, I hate those things.
My TT is up, too.
Good luck. My exterminator recently told me the reason ants take so long to get rid of is because the queen produces so many so fast. Lovely thought huh.
Again good luck!
The best and the most economical way i have ever tried to kill ants was to use a multi purpose liquid cleaner (With orange oil flavour). You can get them for $1 each at any dollar store. When sprayed on ants, the bubbles chokes the ants and the ants dies. You can spray some of the liquid on the ant hills and that would destroy them. For more info, visit http://killgardenants.blogspot.com
I came across a way to kill ants when cleaning mildew off of baseboards in my basement. I mixed a couple of cap fulls of green soaptincture, a couple of drops of tea tree oil with water. I simply was spraying the baseboards with this solution and the ants that were crawling around died instantly. Within a few seconds I wiped them away. As far as I know it is safe, it cleans well and smells good. The areas I clean daily like the floors and countertops etc... do not have ants coming around anymore, I guess I trained them to stay away. Good Luck!!!
it is said that cinnamon oil is more steril and can kill/repell ants. Be careful the stuff burns skin but is all natural. I found a bottle at GNC.
I think this is an i nformative post and it is very useful and knowledgeable. therefore, I would like to thank you for the efforts you have made in writing this article.
pest control san antonio
You have a good point here!I totally agree what you have said!!Thanks for sharing your views...hope more people will read this article!!!
pest control san antonio
#pestcontrolsanantonio
This is really weird, but a strong (it should border on pungent) smelling perfume worked for me, it also keeps out the dead ant scent trail which the ants follow.
Thanks to the writer of this article. I appreciate your effort in making this informational blogs. I know it's not easy to do this but you have done a really great job. Congrats. I'm pretty sure your readers enjoying it a lots.
Pest Control in Dallas
Thanks to the writer of this article. I appreciate your effort in making this informational blogs. I know it's not easy to do this but you have done a really great job. Congrats. I'm pretty sure your readers enjoying it a lots. Pest Control Company in Kansas City
Post a Comment