1. Ants only go into dirty homes. Whilst we always try keeping our homes clean from any leftover food, crumbs or clutter we still somehow manage to have the odd mess – not enough to be classified as dirty!
Keeping food out of reach, cleaning up every day and being neat is a great way to prevent ants from invading, but it's not always a sure way of keeping them out. Only a pest control company can do that.
Ants are attracted to areas where there is a lot of clutter and dirt. A messy kitchen will provide everything they need—food, water, and shelter.
The most common food sources that draw ants inside your home are the sweetest: spilled drops of soft drinks or fruit juices, candy, jellies and jams, cookies and other sweet baked goods, honey and syrup, and over-ripe fruit are some of their favorites. A zealous group of ants will even carry off a wad of chewed gum.
Chalk is made from calcium carbonate, which ants hate, so they will be deterred to cross.
Flour. Wondering how to get rid of ants without dangerous pesticides? Sprinkle a line of flour along the backs of pantry shelves and wherever you see ants entering the house. Repelled by the flour, ants won't cross over the line. This is the best way to get rid of ants at home.
You can scatter fresh mint around your home (especially focus on any entry points) or place a few drops of peppermint essential oil on some cotton wool and wipe the areas you know ants tend to pass. Mix a 50/50 solution of vinegar and water and spray around windows, doorways and any other areas you notice ants.
Both cayenne and black pepper repel ants. Ants hate cayenne pepper. Black pepper will work just as well too. Locate the source of the ant infestation problem, sprinkle some pepper around that area and if possible, create a wall that will stop the ants from accessing your household.
A sudden ant infestation in your kitchen means there is a food source somewhere. The food can be honey, sugar, syrup, meat, fats, breadcrumbs, etc. Once the ants determine these food sources, they form long trails to connect their colonies to the food source.
Even though the colony may be indoors, most of the ants will go outdoors to feed. This also reduces the likelihood of detection. To make matters worse, the ants are more active at night than in the daytime and some colonies go dormant during the winter. (The colony is most active during the spring and summer.)
Straight white vinegar makes a great ant spray. You can saturate ant trails to kill on contact, or spray counters and other areas and either wipe up after a few minutes or allow the treatment to dry in place.
For ants and other insects, cleanliness is a matter of survival. Dirty antennas don't pick up scents, and that's how ants, in particular, navigate and communicate.
Always remember that Vinegar is not a permanent solution to remove an ant infestation. It is reasonable to spread the solution thrice a week over the affected areas to remove ants slowly.
If piles of dirty laundry include any moisture, perfumes, or food stains, they can become overrun with ants looking to set up shop. Infant and baby clothing, in particular, can attract ants because of the smells of many infant detergents and the number of food particles on these clothes.
To get rid of ants, start by mopping the floor at least once a day. Mopping and vacuuming help to remove the ants' pheromone trails. Cleaning and mopping will also rid your home of the food and crumbs that attract the ants.
Ants hate the smell of citrus fruits, such as lemons, limes, and oranges, so they're an excellent natural repellant. Save your lemon or grapefruit peels and scatter them around entryways. They act as natural deterrents without causing ants any harm.
Windex, the glass cleaner, is a known insect killer. When you have an ant swarm in your house, spray them all with Windex and they will die nearly instantly. Windex can also eliminate some of the scent trails that ants follow to find food.
Lemon and Peppermint
Using the lemon rind also works. Ants dislike the smell and taste of lemon, plus the scent masks their pheromone trail. Mixing lemon essential oil with water in a spray bottle is also an easy way to spray entry points to your home.
It is advised not to squash ants, doing so will only release pheromones and trigger more ants to come to the location and cause more trouble to you and your family. Ants are known to pack a deadly bite that causes excruciating pain for a short time.
While many people believe that salt is an effective way to get rid of ants, the truth is that salt may only temporarily repel certain species ants, rather than kill them. Ants live in a colony often consisting of thousands of ants.
Creatures That Eat Ants
Spiders, such as black widow spiders and jumping spiders. Snails and other hard-shelled organisms. Snakes. Fish and lizards.
Baking soda; vinegar; lemon juice; some detergents (and cleaning products); Tabasco sauce (and other spicy substances, such as red chili pepper, black pepper and cayenne pepper) usually repel ants to varying degrees, and you may have seen them trapped in these circles.
Ants do not like the strong smell of black pepper. Salt-boil salt and water into a mixture and once cooled, pour into a spray bottle and spray nooks and corners. Oranges-half fresh orange juice and half water sprayed around your home will keep the pests out and keep your home smelling nicely.