I don't have the cash for a pro so i need to try and do this myself.
They seem to be in all parts of my home.
2006-07-08 00:04:02 · 11 answers · asked by Grumpa 1 in Home & Garden ➔ Do It Yourself (DIY)
They are carpenter ants which do not eat the wood in your house, but they burrow in it and weaken it, unlike termites that do eat the wood.
Your goal it to kill the queen ant - it's the only way to get rid of them completely. The ones you see are soldiers collecting food and water for her so she'll make more ants.
You have to kill the whole nest, else another queen will be born. Or the nest has to be so dwindled that the remaining soldiers wonder aimlessly away and their new queen is born elsewhere.
Like any colony they can be large or small. You can have a small colony that really only bothers you in the spring. You can spray a little and not really see much more of them until next year. This doesn't mean you got rid of your nest.
Spraying the house will only kill the ones the spray comes into direct contact with and won't get rid of your problem. Ants breed like crazy.
There are ant baits on the market that are dry chemicals in a small container. You poke holes in the side, put it along their paths, the ants go in and take the chemicals back to the nest.
Better than that is the liquid ant bait. Put a few drops of it in a bottle cap ('cause it's sticky) and put the cap in the paths that the ants travel. They leave scent behind and the next ant follows the path of the last ant. This is why you can find the path if you watch them.
They usually travel into your home at exterior doorways or windows. And you'll notice them walking along your baseboards. They seldom cross the middle of a large room. Check the outside of your house, it's often easier to locate the path outside. When it rains, you'll have more... they are always thirsty.
The liquid stuff is irresistable to the ants. You'll see gangs and gangs of them come out and drink the stuff until they are drunk with it. Then they bring it back to the nest, others eat it and the queen eats it.
What will happen when the liquid stuff starts working, is you'll have drunk ants staggering around your house and dying for sometime as the nest slowly dies.
This part took weeks for me. When I'd come home from work or when I got up in the morning, I'd sweep up dozens of dead ants.
But I'm finally ant free!!
2006-07-08 04:11:30 · answer #1 · answered by BRENDA K 1 · 10⤊ 0⤋
Consider hiring an exterminator, because these sound like carpenter ants and probably have already excavated a large colony in one or more of your walls. We had this problem when we first moved into our house 8 years ago. During the process of tearing down and rebuilding our large outside deck we discovered a large ant colony in one of the walls beneath the deck. The original builder had not used any flashing when attaching the deck to the house, so naturally water got in and rotted the wood. This attracts ants, as they can easily chew up the wood. So you see, the problem is not just killing the ants you can see - you have to find out where they are living, kill the colony and repair the damage. The longer you wait, the more expensive it's going to be to fix it.
Good luck!
2006-07-08 03:46:37 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Carpenter ants usually have a main colony near the home and will set up several satellite colonies. You can kill the satellite colonies with sprays, boric acid, liquids, baits, etc., but you need to get to the main colony to kill the queen and stop them from reproducing. Usually, the main colony will be in wood that is constantly very damp - sometimes in a basement but more often in an old tree stump or wood pile outside.
2006-07-08 17:01:00 · answer #3 · answered by taxmannyc 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
all great answers. I've only tried this in a kitchen, but you can try it around your house. Hopefully you don't mind the smell of vinegar. But I cleaned my kitchen with Vinegar, and did not have ants for a long time. Try using it on the ants favorite places. good luck to ya.
2006-07-08 02:16:20 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
flower on the floor clogs up the ants legs and Kills hi cause he tries to eat himself free and it is like colestrol to the ant and he dies
and all you do is vacuum them up and throw the bag out with the trush
I dio not know where I heard this but it seemed to work
when I had some ants so I don't know I hope you have
some luck with it.
2006-07-08 00:13:31 · answer #5 · answered by Paul G 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sounds like Carpenter Ants, they like water and wood. They will do more damage to your home than termites. They normally nest outside, like termites. With out a pro, I don't know what to tell you to use, but you have to treat inside and outside.
2006-07-08 03:18:32 · answer #6 · answered by uncle bob 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can purchase "Boric Acid" from your hardware store..
Sprinkle it along their trails... seems to work well.... I have had success on Red Ants.... J.
Also "Instant" Grits does fairly well... they will take it back to the colony.. eat it and then the moisture in their body causes the grists to swell up and they will burst....
2006-07-08 00:19:35 · answer #7 · answered by jay869_2006 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First of all - clean your kitchen - ants are looking for food... if you provide it to them, you'll never get rid of them.
Buy ant killer in a spray... and spray it over ants' nest
2006-07-08 00:09:44 · answer #8 · answered by dizorder 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
try drawing a line by a chalk in areas where they move..
i think that will do it without buying insecticide
2006-07-08 00:15:15 · answer #9 · answered by †eRicK...! 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Try bug spray. I've tried it before. Sorry if it doesn't work.
2006-07-08 05:37:20 · answer #10 · answered by danielle 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋