ants what to do

[frank]

I don't know if this is the proper venue for this question, but most if not all of you own houses and have dealt with ants at one time or another. I was wondering how you deal with the problem of ants in your yard and on your decks around the house. Which products to get rid of them? any preferred methods. I just usually go to the hardware store and buy some granules you spread around the lawn. so far this year I have tried terro granules and sevin granules and they seem to do nothing. they must have changed their formulas for the products as they no longer seem to work. thanks

frank

 

[Senator]

Chemicals and sprays. That is the most effective solution. Apply more.

 

[RonBoyd]

You do know that ants serve a very useful purpose, don't you. Why mess with Mother Nature? Poisoning our environment will, most likely, have consequences that far outweigh the "problem."

 

[Bamaman]

BugSpray.com is the #1 online seller of pesticides and termicides.

Their website has tutorials on 150+ bugs and critters and how to get rid of them.

They especially have a great tutorial on ants--one of our biggest pests.

 

[Senator]

You do know that ants serve a very useful purpose, don't you. Why mess with Mother Nature? Poisoning our environment will, most likely, have consequences that far outweigh the "problem."

Yep, that's what they said about DDT and mosquitoes too, then many people caught malaria when it was banned... And Bedbugs became common.

Pesticides are extremely safe. Ants serve a useful purpose, away from a home. At some point, there becomes a time where Darwin takes over and certain animals and insects are no longer beneficial and weed themselves out. Or need to be weeded out.

If you had Cobras under your deck, or bedbugs in your home, I am sure you would get rid of them. Regardless of what purpose they served.

Here is where I get all my stuff. As a landlord, I do have to work on non-human pests on a periodic basis.
Do It Yourself Pest Control Products & Supplies | Do My Own Pest Control

 

[folivier]

and DDT almost destroyed our native pelican population due to it causing the eggs to become too brittle.
Anyway what ants are you talking about? Those wimpy little black ants or our ferocious fire ants? If you're not sure of the difference I'll be glad to send you a sack of 'em.
I use Orthene on the fire ant hills. Doesn't destroy the hill but limits their expansion. Google "fire ant hill aluminum" to see how extensive their colonies are.

 

[RE2Boys]

Outside the house, I don't even get concerned. Each spring I spread the granules within three feet of the house foundation to keep them from getting inside. But if they get inside the house, I'll be setting up Terro liquid ant baits to be rid of them.

A couple of years ago had carpenter ants and called in the professionals....one treatment and several weeks later they were gone.

Fire ants are a different issue and had them when living in Alabama, but here in PA I've never seen any.

 

[harley]

Inside the house, getting rid of them is fine. I agree about Terro, although I use the liquid. DD had a major influx of them this spring (they like to come inside when it gets really wet outdoors). A few drops of the Terro on a piece of cardboard at the points where they were coming in, refill every day or two, and they were all gone within a week. These are the tiny sweet ants. If you've got carpenter ants or fire ants you'd need to do other things. We got rid of fire ants with Amdro pellets around (not on) the mounds. Just the ones right up near the house.

If they are outside, leave them alone. Senator is wrong on this one. Pesticides are not safe. If you put pesticides outside you'll also be killing the bees and other insects, not to mention the birds and lizards and such that eat them. Bugs belong outside. If there's a particular nest that's annoying you on your deck, you can kill that one off. But don't apply pesticides to your whole yard.

 

[Big_Hitter]

we hire a service to spray quarterly - no ants

 

[daylatedollarshort]

We use Terro liquid ant baits and orange oil spray for inside. Outside we leave them alone.

 

[lemming]

Memory from more then 60 years ago. Don't spray a fire ant nest with a garden hose.(intentionally-we thought it would work)
Memory from last summer Don't spray a ground hive of yellow jackets with a garden hose.(not intentionally)

I need to know how to get rid of that hive without getting stung again. Not really sure where it is. May just call it the Pro's I'm that scared.

 

[MRG]

Memory from more then 60 years ago. Don't spray a fire ant nest with a garden hose.(intentionally-we thought it would work)
Memory from last summer Don't spray a ground hive of yellow jackets with a garden hose.(not intentionally)

I need to know how to get rid of that hive without getting stung again. Not really sure where it is. May just call it the Pro's I'm that scared.

There's time for pros and a yellow jacket hive that needs located is one of them.

OP I'm of the opinion that less is more on the outside. But if you can't get enough then it's time for the pros. Inside we use a service DW has phobia and it's well worth it.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Early Retirement Forum mobile app

 

[LOL!]

We use Terro liquid ant baits and orange oil spray for inside. Outside we leave them alone.

Yep, Terro inside.

Outside I only treat fireant mounds. I put Amdro granules around (but not on!) the mound or on lines of ant travel. Amdro should not be put on the mounds. You want the ants to carry the granules (probably made of poisoned cornmeal) back into the mound by themselves. The poison in Amdro will degrade by heat and over time, so an old container in the garage will do nothing for you. I buy the smallest possible container in the Spring, store indoors in a cool dark place, and keep it tightly sealed. I think this helps keep its effectiveness.

 

[RunningBum]

Baits over sprays. You want them to take the bait back to the nest and kill the colony. You'll never get them all by spray.


I use Amdro granules around the perimeter, and Terro liquid in spots where I see activity. Someone was on my roof last week and said they saw some of the winged ants so I just ordered the Maxforce gel and Advance granules, both carpenter ant formula, and will fight harder. The Amdro granules worked great for fire ants when I was in Texas.

 

[RobbieB]

Another Terro fan here. No pesticides, have dogs.

Terro works great, but you have to keep feeding them for a day or 2 and live with the "ant lines". When their gone their gone for good, they leave no trace. They even take their dead with them.

Amazing stuff -

 

[nash031]

I've dealt with the stupid little argentine ants that come with living where I do for the five years we've lived in our current house. In the first two years we had a bad problem with ants to the point where we'd come in to hundreds or thousands of them in single rooms for whatever reason, almost like they were nesting inside the house.

I've never called an exterminator, and believe in DIY for all of it. I've been able to mostly win the war (though they're pesky little buggers) with stuff you can buy at Home Depot. Below are my general steps that I take periodically:

- First and most important: find and eliminate entry points. These are almost always external, and often in places where plants or trees (especially sweet sap trees) come in physical contact with the house. We had several branches of a ficus tree that touched our roof, and that was where the ant infestation was starting for us. Since I cut that tree back, our ant problem has been far more manageable.

- Maintain your kitchen and food cleanliness. You won't be able to totally eliminate every entry point because ants can just crawl up walls, under the roof line, and still get in if they're attracted. Ants are attracted to sugar and protein depending on the time of year, and sometimes to moisture. Cleaning up spills and proper, tight food storage goes a long way to eliminating the things that attract them in the first place.

- When you find ants in a room, resist the temptation to kill them individually. Find out where they're coming from and stop it there. This means tracing them back to their entry point, not just finding where in the house they're coming in.

Recently for us, this was in the garage. They were coming in through a cableway into another small hole in the garage drywall and up into the attic, down through the wall and into the kitchen via the cabinetry. I never would've found that if I had just sprayed the area in the cabinet where they were coming into the kitchen.

When I start seeing ants, I start really looking closely at the borders of the house and usually I can find a line of ants coming in someplace.

- Once you find them, use a good bait. I prefer Terro - I've used the bottle dropper and it's my favorite, though the inside traps work well too. I like using a combination, actually. I'll put a few small drops of Terro close to or in the ant line when I find it, then all pied-piper-like lead them right to the trap. Believe me, some of the hordes of ants you see on this within an hour of applying the bait can be gross. DO NOT KILL THEM. Let them eat. Replenish as necessary. Within 4-5 days, the ants will slow down and eventually stop in the area. That's a good indication that you've made a dent in the population, or they've given up interest in that particular entry point. Battle won.

- If I really can't find the entry point right away, then I'll use Terro bait in that specific room. This won't eliminate the problem because you haven't stopped the source, but at least you'll kill a bunch without spraying. I don't spray much anymore on the inside of the house unless it's a real "emergency" infestation. Good food storage and cleaning discipline as well as maintaining known past entry points clear really help prevent those.

- About twice a year, I'll spray all of the known prior entry points as well as doorways, window sills and the house border with Ortho Home Defense. Theoretically, this creates a border for the easy access places that lasts a little while.

- About 2-3 times a year, I'll spray our back patio garden area with an organic, pet-safe pesticide that helps reduce bugs overall in the back yard.

Ants are a lot of work, but none of it is hard, none of it is time consuming and none of it is expensive. The problem with exterminators is that they're expensive and there's no guarantee they won't come back.

 

[Whisper66]

Here in Texas (Houston area), I used to get fire ants. Mounds will continue to spread across your yard if not treated. We used a Spectracide red ant granular product. Sprinkle on live mounds and they are dead in a day.

Couple years ago, we got invaded by crazy ants. These ants multiplied like wild and killed off all the red ants as well as lizards and small frogs in the yard. The new ants are more destructive and take much more to get under control. If not controlled, they invade your home and mess up wiring such as in your fuse box. They don't respond to the normal chemicals. Had to get an exterminator to treat around the house and across the whole yard to get them under control.

 

[ERD50]

Like most others, I wouldn't bother with any ants outside, unless they are close to the house or a sitting area or something.

....
- About twice a year, I'll spray all of the known prior entry points as well as doorways, window sills and the house border with Ortho Home Defense. ....

I should comment on "Ortho Home Defense" in the "Superior Products" thread. First, I really hate using pesticides around the house, don't like the smell, possible reactions, and feeling like I need to be so careful with them, but I do what I need to do.

So one day, I'm looking for something for ants in the house. I had used those granules in the past, and there are warnings and it is hard to spread it w/o breathing in some of the dust. Gross!

Then I see the "Ortho Home Defense", and the label warnings are really mild. The label says things like "For pet areas, spray the area, keep the pet away until the surface dries". That's it!

I go home and read up on the active ingredient, it attaches itself to receptors in insects, mammals do not have these receptors, so it seems to have no effect on us. The official MSDS sheets read like you could probably drink the stuff, and the worst problem would be choking on it.


So I buy it, and it sprays like water. No smell, not sticky, nothing. But the ants are dead and gone within hours. This stuff really works and appears to be as safe as you can get. And it lasts a long time if not washed away. I sprayed the inside of the garbage can heavily last spring, and all summer long there were no maggots in the can (maggots just gross me out!). Re-apply if you wash the can out.

Yep, this stuff is great. The gallon I bought must be three years old now, maybe older? It goes a long way.

I have not used the Terro traps, I see they get really good reviews on Amazon as w ell, and might be more appropriate in some areas.

-ERD50

 

[daylatedollarshort]

Memory from more then 60 years ago. Don't spray a fire ant nest with a garden hose.(intentionally-we thought it would work)
Memory from last summer Don't spray a ground hive of yellow jackets with a garden hose.(not intentionally)

I need to know how to get rid of that hive without getting stung again. Not really sure where it is. May just call it the Pro's I'm that scared.

What we did is put Dawn in a garden hose, point it at the hive, and then turn it on from a safe distance. I try to avoid killing any insects if possible, but this was a war they declared. They were coming after us nonstop.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

I agree with not killing them and let the Terro baits do their work when possible, but if they are in some place like a kitchen cabinet where they are getting into food, then we use the orange oil spray.

 

[38Chevy454]

Fire ants are the worst, had to deal with them when I lived in San Antonio. Kill all fire ant colonies, however you choose with chemicals or bait.

 

[Beldar]

We use the following weapons of mass destruction to combat the insects (some are rather persistent and deadly here in the desert). These work, period.

Demon WP Insecticide Insect Killer (available from Amazon or the DIY pest control sources). Small dissolvable packets you use with a pump-type sprayer. Lasts about 2 months.

Diatomaceous Earth (available at Home Depot, etc). Spread / mix with soil or apply in recesses. Kills anything with an exoskeleton.


I suspect the aliens will employ similar products once they arrive.

HTH.

_B

 

[harley]

The problem with exterminators is that they're expensive and there's no guarantee they won't come back.

Usually if you stop paying them they won't come back.

 

[txtig]

The only kind of ant I ever have problems with are fire ants. And regardless of what any of the ant-hugger types here may say, the only good fire ant is a dead fire ant. If they claim stake to my yard, it's all out war. And, I'll use anything I need to (except that's mostly Amdro). I hate those little buggers. Get off my lawn!!!!

 

[daylatedollarshort]

The only kind of ant I ever have problems with are fire ants. And regardless of what any of the ant-hugger types here may say, the only good fire ant is a dead fire ant. If they claim stake to my yard, it's all out war. And, I'll use anything I need to (except that's mostly Amdro). I hate those little buggers. Get off my lawn!!!!

I agree with you on killing fire ants in the yard. They are a menace and can kill local wildlife.