AimeeM Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Well, in the kitchen. They seem to only be hanging out around the door and counter next to the kitchen door (that leads outside). We have a service (Hired Killers). They come out and spray our house quarterly, but it'll take a day or so to get them out when I call for an "emergency". So, in the meantime, is there anything I can do to deter the little suckers? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pink and Green Mom Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 In FL, we have tons of bugs. We had these little tiny ants called sugar ants or ghost ants. One thing our exterminator told us was not to squash them to kill them - the scent brings more. I try to vacuum them up. There are some recipes on line using sugar and borax to make some gel like substance - the exterminators use a commercial grade solution that is basically just that (so my exterminator told me). You put a drop or two of it where they are and in about 30 minutes the drop will be gone and there will be several dozen dead ants where the drop was. I would probably use the solution on the outside of your property to get them before they come in rather than once they are already inside. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KatieJ Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Terro ant traps, or the terro liquid put out on tiny pieces of cardboard have always done the trick for us. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
earthyfamily Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 We had a pretty serious ant problem at the beginning of this spring. Ant traps and terro liquid just were not working for us, even though we had used them with success in the past. This time, the only thing that seems to have worked is half a box of borax, mixed with one cup of sugar and then a small pile of it set near where you see the ants coming in. I have children and cats, so I only used it outdoors as borax is poisonous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 I have a good record of getting rid of sugar ants. I'm sure my method is all wrong, but it generally works. I kill them all. Like, mercilessly. I squash every one. And I ziploc up the squashed ants with the paper towel just in case there are survivors. I'll sit and watch for them for a few minutes at least. And then I bleach clean everything they touched. Then I ant spray around the windows and doors where they could have come inside. I never kill without finding my entry point and spraying there. I've never had to do it more than three times. And we've had them pretty bad a couple of times. Sugar ants. Bah. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 We get tiny sugar ants every year. In fact, they come about once a month in the summer. We put out Terro and it takes care of all of them in a day or two. Just don't leave it where pets or young children can get at them. Last week for the first time, we got giant sugar ants! They were so creepy! Terro worked on them, too. Grease ants are harder to get rid of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katilac Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 What works best for us is bait stations and peppermint water. First, put out your bait stations - these don't trap the ants, they take the bait back to the colony and it's supposed to kill the queen and colony. So you don't want to spray ant killer or in any way kill/remove all of the ants on your counter right now, because you want them to take the bait and live to bring it to the colony. If you have a visible 'line' of ants going back and forth a few hours might be enough, but I would try to give it overnight if possible. Then you can kill/wipe away any ants you see and clean your counters like normal, but you still don't want to use bug spray or the peppermint water just yet. If you see ants again, try to ignore them in between using the counter for meal prep. You want them to take the bait, that is what will help in the long-term. After 1-2 days of this, I start using the peppermint water, just a few drops of peppermint oil mixed with water in a spray bottle. This will repel ants. It's non-toxic and smells good, so you can spray it on your counters, in your sink, and at the likely points of entry (both inside and out). We just spray on clean counters and wipe down with a paper towel. When you don't have an active invasion, you can use the peppermint water anytime to try and prevent one. It definitely seems to help. I can't tell you if it would work 100% to prevent an invasion, because we always forget to keep spraying it once summer is over! Now that I think about it, we should plant mint below the kitchen window. Hmm . . . Note: there are bait stations for different kinds of ants, so if you have fire ants you need a different kind baited to attract them. Check the label. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callie Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 I'm dealing with them now & Terro seems to be working. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denise in IN Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 We have been dealing with tiny ants and large ants (ugh!), and the only thing that seems to work against them is Terro. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Are they teeny tiny or REALLY teeny tiny? We get sugar ants every year. I practically just ignore them at this point,lol. But, for a couple years running, when we had a couple very hot and dry summers, we got these REALLY tiny ants. They looked like crumbs, very difficult to see. They were attracted to fat and grease first, but really any food. The first reason I knew about them was they got into the butter. I had never seen ants crawling all over the butter. Those were very difficult to see and to get rid of, but they did go away. Mostly we just had to put any food away and bag up anything in the cupboards. Thankfully we have had two years of our usual wet and relatively mild summers and I have not seen them. Now we just have the regular sugar ants. Those I can deal with. And Terro is very helpful with those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AimeeM Posted June 25, 2015 Author Share Posted June 25, 2015 Oh, they aren't as small as crumbs... but they are much smaller than the bigger black ants we occasionally get (only the random large black ant that comes in an open door). I definitely cannot use anything poisonous. The Marvelous Flying Marco has started "mouthing" things and there's no way that I can put it where I see the ants coming in without it being dangerous to him (or to our dogs). I can't put it at the outside entrance either - we live in a smaller subdivision and some of the neighbors' cats roam. It's a harmonious existence between neighbors and I really don't want to start a riot by poisoning the neighborhood cats :P Reading the above responses, I would hazard a guess at "sugar ants" - they are staying right next to the cabinets that store the baking supplies and coffee. I might just deal with them until our pest guy can come out. They aren't really bothering me, per se - I just don't like seeing them, lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katilac Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 I definitely cannot use anything poisonous. The Marvelous Flying Marco has started "mouthing" things and there's no way that I can put it where I see the ants coming in without it being dangerous to him (or to our dogs). Would they be able to get to bait stations if they were up on the counter only? I really encourage using those, even if you put them out for a few hours when they are out or you can stay in the kitchen, and then pick them up. They're so helpful that I would arrange to have one person take the kid and the dogs out of the house for the day or afternoon, just so I could put them out. Then maybe try to repeat for shorter periods of time the next day or two, only on the counter when you can watch them, and your phone set with an alarm to remind you to pick them up. But even the one day would probably be good. Other than that, I would use tons of peppermint water. When we had a bad invasion before I discovered the bait stations, we would wipe down the counters with it a few times a day, and then leave some (not wiped down) in and around the sink, and wipe down in the morning. Spray tons of it outside on all the walls that meet that room. You have to keep it up, but it is perfectly safe, and I would do that before calling out your service. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 I always used bleach water or vinegar and water. I killed them and then wiped up their trails with one or the other mixture. If you can stop the trail and bag up anything they are attracted to, they seem to get the message. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momof4babes Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Have you tried diatomaceous earth? Last year we had a zillion ants coming in our kitchen. I put down the powder along the edges at the baseboards, windows, counters etc. We haven't had an issue since, asking as I remember to reapply after vacuuming. Apparently it kills them by dehydrating them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spudboy Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 We had tiny ants (probably https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argentine_ant) that formed long trails, so first thing in the morning I would try to track down a trail and put bait somewhere along the trail between the nest and our food, where crawling children couldn't touch it. The space under a kitchen cabinet was good (behind the toe kick) if I could get to it. For bait the best option turned out to be Grant's, with a drop of honey on top of the poison. (They get started on the honey, lay a strong trail, attract a bigger foraging crew, then a lot of ants hit the poison when the honey is gone.) A really strong-smelling orange oil cleaner seemed to be good for cleaning up the trails between bait location and food. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 I use Terro traps. I have two areas where the ants like to come in, so I use them on the countertop behind the sink (the countertop ends there) and one in the window sill by our pantry. They will attract ants for a while, so it can look gross. For us, they work. We also make sure any sugared products are put in cabinets they can't get to. Our pantry doors have a gap, our regular cabinets do not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momto10blessings Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 Terro and try to find where they're coming in and spray with ant killer. Or just spray the whole perimeter of your home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ammv15 Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Last year we had an ant problem. I refuse to use pesticides because we have asthma.I used vinegar.All you have to do is put straight vinegar Ina spray bottle and several times a day spray where you are getting them.It doesn't smell great but it works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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