Get rid of ants naturally

Video: A Natural Way to Get Rid of Ants in Your House

Content

To step
Method 1 of 5: Close your house to scouts
Method 2 of 5: Prevent the ants from entering
Method 3 of 5: Using barriers and deterrents
Method 4 of 5: Using bait
Method 5 of 5: Get the help of a professional exterminator
Tips
Warnings
Necessities

In total there are over 12,000 species of ants, and a small number of them manage to invade our homes in search of tasty things to eat. If you are bothered by ants in or around the house, or want to keep them at a distance, you can remove or deter them in various ways. You can make the so-called scouts among the ants harmless by keeping the kitchen clean and keeping all food properly closed. You can also prevent ants from entering your home by sealing all possible entrances with silicone caulk, creating barriers and using deterrents like cinnamon, and using bait, such as maple syrup sprinkled with boric acid. And if all of that doesn't help, there are always professional exterminators who use natural methods to get rid of the ant infestation.

To step

Method 1 of 5: Close your house to scouts

Watch for so-called scouts. The first ants you see in the kitchen are a warning. Scout ants are wandering ants. They are usually alone or with relatively few. They scour your kitchen for food and supplies. Once these ants return to the nest to let the other ants know they found something, soon more will be on the way. Then act quickly:
- Keep the kitchen clean.
- Seal all food tightly and keep ants away from sticky, sweet or greasy products, or meat or meat products.
- Sprinkle a fair amount of diatomaceous earth around all edges (aka the entrances) of the kitchen and adjoining rooms. Diatomaceous earth breaks the ants' exoskeleton. That way they dry out and die within a few hours.
Wash the dishes immediately after eating. Wash all dishes immediately after use, or put dirty dishes in the dishwasher and close it. Wipe down all kitchen cabinets, cutting boards and countertops with vinegar.
- Besides cleaning and disinfecting vinegar, it also scares the ants.
- Make sure no waste is left in the kitchen and keep the trash can tightly closed.
- Always rinse empty bottles and cans and other recyclable packaging before putting them away.
Sweep and vacuum the kitchen and adjacent areas every day. If you leave food scraps that have fallen on the floor or in the nooks and crannies of the kitchen, you invite the ants with open arms, as it were. You can also attract ants with crumbs and other leftovers that have ended up in the floor covering of the kitchen.
- If you don't always think about sweeping and vacuuming the kitchen, try to make it a habit and do it at the same time every day, such as after breakfast or after dinner.
Always rinse well leftovers or drops from opened packages. Check jam jars, ketchup bottles, pickle jars, lemonade bottles, and honey and syrup jars in particular. Place jars of honey or jam, and other sweet treats that may attract ants, in a bowl of water.
- In addition to keeping ants away from the honey, use the trick with the water bowl to keep ants away from cat food, for example.
EXPERT TIP
Store all food in well-closable containers, pots or drums. To store food, always use airtight containers or other packaging that you can close so that the ants cannot reach it. Do this consistently for three to seven days. That way, because they have no more to eat, the ants will go elsewhere. This trick works well because the ants will follow the chemical trails left by other ants that have found food somewhere.
- You may also need to close off products that smell good, such as washing powder, deodorant, and soap. Such products can initially also attract the ants' attention. Therefore, pay close attention to whether ants might be walking around in the vicinity of non-edible sources.

Method 2 of 5: Prevent the ants from entering

Try to discover all the entrances used by the ants. While cleaning your kitchen and looking for scouts walking around, do some detective work yourself. Can you see where the ants enter the house? Then follow the first ants to see where exactly they enter and where they leave again.
- Popular entrances for ants include holes in the woodwork, cracks in cement, vents, screens, cracks in the floorboards, and so on.
Close all possible entrances with silicone sealant. You can also use filler, glue, or plaster. To temporarily block ants' access to your house, you can use petroleum jelly or adhesive tape, among other things.
- If you are using a temporary sealant (such as tape), only use it until you can buy a more durable solution. With a temporary closure, the hole will always open again after a while.
Use a plant sprayer with soap suds as a weapon. Soapy water kills the ants and also destroys the chemical trail they leave behind. On those less, the other ants from the nest will no longer be able to follow them. For this relatively simple and inexpensive method, you just need to do the following:
- Put a teaspoon of liquid dish soap in a spray bottle and top it up with water. If you want, add some mint oil, orange peel or citrus oil to make this spray even more effective.
- Spray any ants you come across with the solution in your spray bottle.

Method 3 of 5: Using barriers and deterrents

Use barriers to stop the ants. You probably already have many of the products with which you can make these natural barriers for the ants; you just need to apply them in the right place. A barrier does not have to be much wider than half an inch, but it must be a continuous line. Place these barriers in places such as thresholds, floors, counters and around the entrances through which the ants enter. For example, you can create barriers with, among other things:
- Powdered charcoal
- Chalk
- Turmeric
- Cinnamon
- Citrus oil
- Black pepper, cayenne, or red chilli
- Vaseline (this works great on doors and windows)
- Baby powder
- Powdered cleanser
- White vinegar and water
- A so-called drying agent or resistant powder (such as diatomaceous earth or silica)
Give off a scent that will scare ants. There are certain smells that ants don't like. Examples are peppermint, camphor and garlic. You can exploit these scents with the help of fresh produce, or its oil, to keep ants in and around the house at a distance. Just be careful when using camphor, as it is poisonous to humans and animals.
- The great thing about these fragrant deterrents is that you can choose the scent that you like best, so you can immediately make the kitchen and possibly the rest of the house smell better.
- Sprinkle some broken mint leaves in the ant rooms and plant mint near the entrances that will allow the ants to enter. Dried peppermint also works.
- Rub a raw clove of garlic over ant tracks and entrances.
- Drip some lavender oil in areas where ants live and plant lavender near the entrances they use.
- Drizzle some clove oil here and there within the areas where the ants roam, or crush cloves and sprinkle the powder to form a barrier.
Use bay or bay leaves to keep ants away from foods they are attracted to. Ants are mainly attracted to sugar, paprika and flour. Therefore, put a few bay leaves in your sugar canister, with the flour and paprika.
- Over time, the bay leaves' deterrent effect will diminish and they will not deter ants as well. Therefore, replace them every month for the best results.
Sprinkle the ant tracks with Splenda. Splenda is not dangerous to children. That is why this is a great tool in places where many children walk around, such as in schools. It's also safe for animals, making it a great option if you have pets too. Sprinkle some Splenda over all the places where you see ants.
- If the Splenda ants eat, they should die shortly afterwards. Top up the Splenda as needed.
Use coffee grounds. Spread some coffee grounds on the ant mounds and along the baseboards in the house. Coffee grounds are completely safe and it causes the ants to get confused as they lose their scent trails through it. In this way, the hatched larvae in the ant colonies no longer receive food and starve.
- Persevere and be patient when using these barriers. It can take a season before you see results.
- It is important to reshape the barriers at least every year, but the more often you refresh the barriers, the stronger and more direct the result will be.
Use dish soap with baking soda. Put a little dish soap and some baking soda in a bucket half full of water. Stir this mixture well by hand or with, for example, a long spoon. Apply a thin line of this liquid where the ants enter.
- This is an excellent way to get rid of ants that enter through the windowsills.

Method 4 of 5: Using bait

Make your own ant bait with boric acid and maple syrup. You can buy ant bait, but these are usually chemical products, so you don't have a natural pesticide at hand. Fortunately, you can easily make your own bait to lure the ants. A particularly effective bait is made with boric acid. Boric acid and sodium borate salts are naturally found in minerals such as sassolite.
- When ants walk in or over boric acid, they absorb it and die. Boric acid is poisonous if you ingest it. Also, it should not come into contact with your eyes, nose, or mouth. Always wear gloves when using it.
- For example, you can make bait from boric acid in combination with maple syrup. Put a spoonful of syrup on a plate or saucer and sprinkle plenty of boric acid over it.
- Spread the acid evenly over the syrup using a skewer, toothpick or cotton swab.
- Place this bait wherever the ants go. Make sure that the children or any pets cannot reach it. It may take about a week for this method to take effect.
Use food against ants. There are foods that ants cannot digest. These methods are effective, but you may have to clean up the dead ants yourself afterwards. As bait, spread some of the following products around all areas where you have seen ants:
- Cornmeal. This works especially well in places where pets or children roam, as cornmeal itself is non-toxic.
- Wheat flour or Brinta. Spread this raw in all places where you have seen ants. The flour will expand in their stomach and kill the ants.
- Coffee grounds. Ants are not good at caffeine. Leave some of the coffee grounds left in the filter where the ants pass so they can take it to their nest and eat it. It may take a few weeks for this method to show results.
Try as natural as possible get rid of carpenter ants. A carpenter ant infestation is a major problem. They can seriously damage the structure of your home. If you see piles of broken wings and ants with body longer than average, you may be dealing with carpenter ants. You may also encounter their feces (this looks a bit like sawdust) and hear them rustle in the walls. A few ways to get rid of this problem are:
- Lure the carpenter ants with carrion. They like sugar, so you can use that well. For example, try the boric acid method described above.
- If possible, use a vacuum cleaner to vacuum the carpenter ant nests from the affected walls.
- Call a professional exterminator. A professional exterminator can drill holes in the wall and blow in diatomaceous earth, silica or boric acid to get rid of the ant infestation. They may also be using Pyrethrin spray.

Method 5 of 5: Get the help of a professional exterminator

Make sure the exterminator is indeed using natural pesticides. Some exterminators specialize in the use of natural control methods. Find one near you by searching the Internet for "Organic Insect and Pest Control" or "Natural Insect and Pest Control".
- Often there are no clear rules regarding this type of pest control. Some pest control services may present themselves as "organic" or "natural", but in practice they are not.
- Call a number of exterminators and inquire directly about the type of service they offer. For example, ask, "Can you tell me exactly how natural your methods are?"
Call a professional to work with fire ants to go. Fire ants rarely come into the house, but get help immediately if they do come in. They are aggressive, their bites are painful and can trigger an allergic reaction in some people.
- If the exterminator says to spray the ants, ask if he or she can use some type of bait that contains a growth inhibitor, such as abamectin.
Follow all the advice of the exterminators. The exterminators are professionals who are trained not only in the removal of pests, but also in their prevention. If you have had problems with any of the techniques mentioned above, get advice from the exterminator.
- For example, you may have tried absolutely everything, but you have not been able to discover through which entrance the ants enter your house. An exterminator can track the entrance for you.
Tackle the nest directly yourself. Even if you are not a professional, this technique can yield professional results. On a cool day, walk quietly to the ant's nest. Then pour a few liters of boiling water into the entrance of the nest.
- If you want to make the water more deadly, add some vinegar, insecticidal soap, citrus oil, pyrethrum insecticide, or ammonia.
- Do this every day, or every few days, until you feel like the ants gave up and moved elsewhere. This can take up to a few days.

Tips

Spray hydrogen peroxide, H2O2 on the ants and they will be killed instantly. It is not toxic to humans and does not stink.
Spray the ants and ant spores with undiluted vinegar.
You can also mix the boric acid with syrup or honey and spread it on a three or four square piece of cardboard 7.5 to 10 cm. The ants will eat it, take some more of it to their nest where they all die. With this method you usually get rid of the ants in two or three days.
Simple all-purpose cleaner from the Green brand also kills ants if they come into contact with it.
Ants that you often find indoors include the Argentine ant, the pharaoh ant, the wood or carpenter ant, the sidewalk ant and the so-called house turn hole.

Warnings

Boric acid is banned in some countries.
Pyrethrin is deadly to cats. Do not use this product if you have cats.
The carpenter ant is an ant whose sole purpose is to destroy the wood that sustains your home. If you have carpenter ants, get professional help as soon as possible.
Camphor is a poison not only for ants, but also for humans and animals. Do not use this in places where children or animals are or may be present.
Boric acid can be harmful to humans. Although the toxic dose is a few grams, always take precautions in handling and use. Wash your hands after use to prevent your children or pets from coming into contact with it.