We put small cuttings from our tansy plants near the areas where they enter, window sills, etc. It works great and is a nice chemical free alternative.

The cleaners some of you mention are much more toxic than most of the newer insecticides being used these days! Actually, table salt is even more toxic than many new insecticides. I think many people are just afraid of the word "chemical." (Actually, that's called "chemophobia".)

OK, go ahead and pour vinegar (aceitic acid) over your counters and maybe you will drown the ants. Add some Tabasco sauce also. If you throw in olives, lettuce, and some cheese, please invite me!

John

Here is a link that might be useful: Ant Research

Spray rubbing alcohol over the active ants. They will evaporate. Then, wipe down the area with more rubbing alcohol. It's safe, and it works.

I never saw ants evaporate, must be interesting!

Did you know that spraying a flammable liquid is not safe? It is extremely dangerous! Please donÂt tell people to do that.

You know what I discovered last year? Use any of the orange Citrus Cleaners. You can get em in a spray bottle.

Instant knockdown ! Acts as a repellent too, if you keep it up ! I've found that you can even dillute it 50% and it still works instantly.

I'm in San Diego, and this time of the year they come in looking for moisture, usually down my kitchen and bathroom drains.

Orange oil? The main ingredient is d-limonene. Natural and "organic?" Yes. Toxic? Yes.
I did a research project using orange oil (d-limonene) on carpenter ants. It will kill carpenter ants and I assume it will kill just about any other insect it touches directly, if you really wet the insect with it. Also, carpenter ants in an enclosed space, like a wall void, will be killed by orange oil in a few minutes. I suggest that you use orange oil with care and donÂt breathe the fumes. If you would like to read a very detailed toxicity study that shows environmental effects, look here (link below):

Here is a link that might be useful: toxicity of orange oil (d-limonene)

Thanks for the info on orange oil. I don't know if I'll try that anymore. Also, I don't agree on the 'clean house' ant factor. Besides coming in your home because they sense food, I had an Orkin exterminator tell me that ants will enter your home looking for a water source (i.e. kitchen pipes, plants, bathroom). He even told me not to leave those ant bait traps lying around your home because they only attract ants!

I've been having the same problem. Think my problem might be solved !

Went to Home Cheapo looking for a large bag of diazanon, and just happened to ask the clerk if there was any new ant control on the market. He pointed me to Ant Bait Stations made by Zep. They come in an 18 pack. I was a little skeptical because any bait stations I've used in the past have been completly ignored.

I put em down about an hour ago, and holy smokes ! they're Swarming with ants now ! OK ! I put all 18 of them around the kitchen, bathroom, and out by my dawgs' water dish, which also gets covered with ants.

The bait gets carried back to the nest. Death to the Queen !

If they are pharoh ants, they need to be baited. They live in walls, and the only way to kill them is with a bait that they carry back to the nest, and feed the rest. Spraying with chemicals can actually make them divide the nest (a survival technique), so ID of the ant is important.

A few comments:

Here is the MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet) for ZEP ant bait stations (http://www.zepcommercial.com/pdfzep/ZPAB18.pdf).

I would suggest you not use or buy Diazinon, which is an organic phosphate insecticide. Technically, it is a nerve poison. It will probably be taken off the market in a while and go the way of Dursban, which is also an organic phosphate. Why not use a liquid bait like Terro, which is much safer and preferred by most ants over many of the hard gel baits found in so many bait stations?

Remember, adult ants can not ingest solids, and so for many ants, liquids work better. On the other hand, ants like Fire ants (Solenopsis invicta), will pick up solid baits like Amdro and bring it back to the nest, where it enters the food supply of the colony and kills the queen. Therefore, it is a good idea to identify the ant you are trying to control, and buy the correct product.

Here is a list of some common products (link below) so you can compare how dangerous they are.

John

Here is a link that might be useful: comparative toxicities of some common products

I have had much luck with "Tempo"not only can you use it inside but you can use it outside and it's safe for the animals after it dries and it's great for other peste like spidermites, meallybugs,aphids, etc. the list goes on and on.

Here is the MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet) for TEMPO (link below). Notice that you should use a respirator, gloves, etc.

Here is a link that might be useful: TEMPO MSDS

i have been having problems with ants lately , and it is because of the rain.

well this morning i woke up at 4:30 with ants all over my pillows.
i go wash my sheet and i cant go back to bed because it scared me to wake up with ants all over me.

i clean up everything with clorax and spray stuff for ants.

well around 3 o'clock i go to changee my outfit because i am go to town. there are ants on my clothes. not all but the casual side of clothes , which i mostly where a lot.

i dont understand why they went in my bed and on my clothes. i understand it has a lot to do with the rain, but why in such an odd place.
and how do i get rid of them?
some of them even bit me.

Any other ideas here? they are crawling all over my kitchen walls by my sink, I have found them in my cupboards and even starting to invade my fridge, ( the seal is bad) I have found them in my bathroom and in my office on the complete other end of the house! I can't find how they are getting in. we spray the outside stuff all over the outside of the house, we have gone through three jugs already this summer.
HELP!! I am about crazy with them!

CHILI POWDER & ANY HOUSEHOLD SPRAY CLEANER! REMOVE ALL FOODS & Temporary MOVE THE GARBAGE elsewhere.

Kill them with any household cleaner. I have Seventh Generation and Clorox Green. I didn't like those toxic sprays because the smell will linger for hours.

Constantly disinfect and cleaned the counter whenever there's food.

Sprinkle Chili Powder along the edges of the counter.

The Raid Ant Baits worked last year but did nothing this year. I also tried the Combat gel - didn't work either.

Temporary move the garbage can elsewhere unless cooking and dispose every night.

Diatomaceous Earth is NOT kid safe. It is a potential carcinogen when inhaled.Otherwise it's not so bad.

You can read the MSDS sheet here. http://www.sciencelab.com/msds.php?msdsId=9923703 I'm a chemist and we treat it very carefully in the lab, unless it is wet and then not so hard to contain.

Please look up suggestions from other readers before taking one person's word about safety.

Isabel - I too found them in our bedroom all over our pillows, walls, windows, under, over and in bed. The black ants. What a mess. It is raining like crazy here (So CA), so they must want to come on in and be dry (?). Last night, I wiped all baseboards and hardwood floors with vinegar/water solution. Previously have used cloves which they don't seem to want to be near. Not sure what I'm going to get today to keep them out. Hard to see them on the dark wood flooring in our house. I'm sure they are in other rooms as well. Not fun at 9 pm to have to change sheets, wash sheets and get rid of those black ants. Hope you found a solution to your problem.

I just bought our house , I've been living in it less than 2 weeks and I'm getting invaded by tiny black ants. I've tried everything .. please helpi can't stand it. My house is clean. I haven't cooked much cause I'm still moving out of old house. So what's the problem

We have been having ant problems for the past two weeks. I can't find their trail or where they are entering the house. I see them wandering aimlessly in random places, clean the areas, and they reappear the next day. How well does the cinnamon work, if I can't find the trail will the borax/powdered sugar work if I sprinkle it on the ants I do see?

I've got the tiniest little ants in my kitchen. The red pepper powder boarder on where the enter is working very well. We also keep all food off the counters and wipe, wipe, wipe the counters after any food is prepared. I have a cat and dog so I'm concerned about their health - go natural if you can, then hit the heavy stuff if you need to.

The best way to get rid of ants is to burn the house down. Remove all pets and Kids, leave the mother in law, pour gasoline all over and light with a match.
No more ants, no more mother in law, and no more house. Works great!

I am in Israel for the summer and rented an apt in an old building so it would be impossible to seal up all the holes. I read that putting corn meal or cream of wheat on their trial will get rid of them. The cream of wheat makes them explode and they can't digest the cornmeal. I could not find cream of wheat here so used corn meal. I had a ton of ants on the third floor porch and they have almost completely gone after a few days. However I also used it on the bathroom sink and it has not worked at all.

* Posted by funkmetric 8b (funkmetric@hotmail.com) on
Sat, Jan 10, 04 at 20:00

if your place is very clean and there are not any bits of food anywhere inside your house, you will not have ants inside. If you vaccume often enough then the ants will have no reason to explore your territory.

You have got to be kidding me... Apparently you don't live on the same planet as us normal people because your statement is complete bullsh!t!! I vacuum my house at least twice a day, have no open food or any other food sitting around, wash dishes either once or twice a day and all dishes are rinsed completely before they go into my sink, plus I am constantly wiping EVERYTHING down with Clorox and/or Lysol wipes due to the fact that I have two small children. But even with all of this cleanliness I still have an ant, spider, and field mice problem, and I wont even get on the long list of unwanted animals and insects outside. No matter how clean your house is you can still have unwanted pests(and I don't just mean family and in-laws :-) which I'm still trying to find a repellent for) These pesky little black ants are super ants or something because I've tried every spray in Wal-Mart and Dollar General along with the bait traps and dryer sheets. I can't find their ant hills or how they are getting in(same with the spiders and field mice) I guess the thing that hinders me most is the fact that I live in a very secluded wooded area... I tried to get away from nosy neighbors and ended up with unwanted guests(can't win for losing) :-( I just bought some Borax after spending forever trying to find it so since I can't find the ant hills or their entrance way I'm going to make the borax bombs... there seems to be a lot of luck with Borax so hopefully I will be lucky too. I'm a tattoo artist so I've got the perfect containers for the bombs!! To the ones with the fire ant problems... my sympathies are with you and I wish you the best of luck. Does anyone know about the little reddish orange bugs that attack the he!! out of you when you are outside?? All I know is that they are attracted to white... those little microscopic bugs bites hurt like crazy any ideas of how to get rid of them or does anyone know what they are??

To add to my previous post... I am up for all suggestions except putting sugar or something sweet outside in the yard for them. I've used nontoxic and toxic products but would prefer the nontoxic due to the fact that I have two small children, two dogs and more animals to come soon(My kids have started requesting animals). The ants are only in my laundry room, office, and kitchen around the sink and counters but no where near the cabinets or pantry, and only on upper areas I have yet to see them on the floor. As previously stated... I have no clue where their ant hills are or where they are coming in my house at.

I had success with Taro. It's a clear liquid that comes with cardboard tabs. Put several drops on a tab place where you've seen ants.

You will see a whole bunch of ants... They take the liquid back to their nest. Repeat . Be careful not to wipe the area as the pheromone attracts ants to the liquid. In a couple of days. You will not see ants. Then clean area where you had card board tabs. World like a charm. Also ants will not cross salt. You can put a small amount in door ways.

Ki1010, those little red/yellow bugs are called thrips. They are attracted to light green and yellow and moisture. I am not sure what products you could use to control them, as mine seem to invade the backyard for two or three weeks and then just go away.

something that has akways worked for me is alum. Sprinkle it right in their path line and zippo they are quickly gone

I'm 15 and cuz i left my lunch box down stairs for so long we got ants i felt horrible so i took care of em then they moved UPSTAIRS where i keep the computer stuff so i killed em there and now theyre in the pantry BUT being the genius i am I went and
emptied out the pantry
washed it out
sealed all open food
tossed infected food
then i dumped distiled white vinegar on the shelves and wiped it all around
then I took raid and put it on a cotton ball with some ductape out side (after going on a raiding rampage around the house and killing all of the colonies i saw outside there wer 3 i dumped hairspray and boiling water on them some of the ants acutally melted! XD awesome spectacle
anyway i found the crack the ants came through and I put stuck the raid soaked cotton ball on the hole with the duct tape and ive waited about 15 mintues and no more ants are coming out of the hole!!!! I febreezed the cabinent cuz when u opened it u got a face punch of vinegar XD and im putting the food back in! My mom's gonna love me for killing the ants so now you know clean it vinegar is and seal the crack with a raid soaked cotton ball and duct tape. we dont have any pets or babies so its fine for us and we do have grandbabies over some times but they dont get down that low so were good on the babies eating chemicals thing here XD make sure to where gloves when handling the raid cottonball and wash ur arms and hands before touching food again oh and if they come back do it again im gonna do this every 3 weeks just to make sure thhey never come back just keep replacing the cotton ball if you see any other ant-worthy cracks then just cotton ball them too i also wiped down the electical sockets with raid and lysoled my computer (THEY WERE INSIDE MY LAPTOP!) so i hope my long post helps! oh and for extra measure i may add some mint just to see if that works

Baby Powder! I sprinkle it along their path and across their entryway and it works like a charm, I just vacuum it away after a day or two.

We just bought our new dream hom, a log cabin in need of some love. We just had it stripped to re seal and I think we dis lodged every liitle black ant in the county. I have had a 1" stripe of them down the wall across the sink, over counters and up the fridge. I tried the vinegar rinse and while my kitchen smelled clean it still made my skin crawl and my nerves stand on end. I took not of every organic idea on this thread today and tried them all. Tansy in the cracks, cinnamon, salt, alum...no, no, no...noooo! I did not have any alcohol to melt them with then I remembered my bug spray repellant. It is a new "Eco friendly" brand. Its carrier is an alcohol and in it is oil of cinnamon, lemon grass and rosemary and wintergreen. While I was un thrilled about putting it on my skin, it seemed like the lesser of all the many evils. So I sprayed some on my counter. INSTANT DEAD I followed along the line...dead dead dead. I sprayed my whole counter top and then saturated a pice of paper towel and shoved it in their entrance/exit crack. It has been over an hour and only a few stragglers but they step in the spray and are soon dead as well. It is called ECO SMART organic insect repellent. So far so good.

I found cinnamon to be effective. Thanks for the natural remedy. I try not to kill things and would poison only as a last resort.... like if my life was threatened. That stuff is poison! :)

This post was edited by ajita on Sat, Apr 26, 14 at 15:36

I won't use Borax around my cat. I know a pest control guy. He said only Combat traps work for roaches, maybe other bugs too? He said they dry out sitting on the store shelves. You need to run water thru all four holes in the trap so the bait is damp.

I have used cinnamon, lemon scented dish soap, rubbing alcohol, and other strong-smelling wipes with mixed results in that they discourage the ants short term, but need constant renewal and don't get rid of the nests. Now I use Terro liquid bait traps which have boric acid in them, which while it shouldn't be eaten, is used in eye wash and eye drops and has a level of toxicity that I am comfortable with, though I would be cautious using it if there were any chance of pregnancy. I put the traps in closets and cupboards and on windowsill between the screen and the glass and where ever the ants are coming in that I can block off from critters. This way they can't be accessed by animals, but the ants can get to them and take it back to the nest. It has completely cleared up the issue for me.

I woke up in the middle of the night to let the dog out and found thousands of tiny ants in the kitchen. I saw their trail coming from a hole where the floor and cabinets meet. For a really quick fix so I could go back to bed when I let the dog back in, I sprayed them with alcohol and filled the hole with Vaseline. I wiped up all the ants smashing any survivors and then went back to bed. Will have to deal with the issue eventually I am sure, but at least they couldn't get through the Vaseline.

I am in the middle of a little ant invasion. We had used Raid MAX Bug Barrier on our houses perimeter in past years. We had this invasion coming from under the house. So we sprayed all the kitchen crevices. They would stop for about 24 hours and then they were back. So we bought Raid Ant Baits. I placed them on the counter and floor. An ant appeared on my counter so I placed one in its path. The ant ran from the trap. I then placed two traps on either side of the ant. It couldn't get away fast enough. At that point, I started to research why the traps didn't work. GUESS WHAT...THERE ARE TWO KINDS OF ANTS. ONE FEEDS ON SUGAR AND ONE FEEDS ON PROTEIN. The fact that the traps stated a warning: contains peanut products cause me to conclude that these ant killer products must be for protein feeding ants. I know mine swarmed on my honey bottle tells me my invaders are sugar ants. So back to researching what kills sugar eating ants. All the reviews praised TERRO ANT TRAPS for inside the house and TERRO GARDEN STACKS for your garden and under the house. You can get them at HOME DEPOT.

I'd like to l point out that you need to buy FOOD grade Diatenacious Earth. All others can kill you and your animals.

Food grade Diatomaceous Earth is great. Safe around kids and pets. Borax is NOT safe around kids or pets so I won't use that. I sprinkle it around the cat dishes, as that's where they mostly come (as my cats are messy and even though it seems like I am always cleaning up after them, it still gets licked off the dish).

The ants are then gone for a week or so, but they always come back. I wonder if I mix the DE with some powdered sugar if that would work at getting the DE back to the nest and kill them that way? I just tried it, but I wasn't thinking and also sprinkled it around -so if they die before they take it back to the nest, I defeated my purpose, I think. Oh well, I will see what happens.

I also heard mix sugar with baking soda, but I don't want to do that in case the cats eat it (one LOVES sweet stuff) cause I don't think it would be too good for them.

If they aren't coming in the house, leave them alone. What have they ever done to you?

I think almost all of the people on here are HAVING them come in the house! That is why they are trying to kill them!

I'VE RECENTLY HAD A BIG LITTLE BLACK ANT PROBLEM.... I've found that the best thing that works for any pest (with the exception of the common house fly and moths). Including spiders of all kinds and fleas, is Ortho bug be gone, you treat the outside perimeter of the house and nothing is coming though that alive..... I have 2. Beautiful furry babys, one tea cup poodle, one pug, and a wonderfully spirited grandson, who is almost 2.... this lawn treatment has never been a proplem for them... it isnt really accessible to them when applied properly...nor does it damage the the flower beds.

One more pest tip for avid gardener's want to get rid of slugs w/out slug bait, (that usually doesn't work and os a mess), or ducks...... take foil or tin pie pans and place one on each side of the garden, or in a few spots on long gardens and then place a pieces of cut up chunks of cucumbers in each pan... thats it, thats all you have to do the rest is done for you.

We did this last time we had a vegetable garden and I chucked the cucumber put it in the pie tins, gave them to my husband, he placed them around the garden, we forgot them completely and shortly before harvest it dawn on us that we had not seen one slug or any evidence of any. The tins were still there and traces of cucumber that had not become part of the tin. But that was it no muss no fuss......

o

I don't know who still looks at this post but we have had issues in the past and the best thing to use is TERRO liquid ant baits.

They are little containers that ants walk into and eat.

You do not want to kill the ants on the spot because they need to eat the poison and bring it back to their nest.

We had an exterminator come around and he told us to use them, but open up and pour the liquid near the ant trails. If you use the container they come with, most ants will drown inside and you need the ants alive to take back to their home.

Be weary of breathing on the trails of ants because they will sense your breath and move to another area, possibly somewhere you can't find. You breathing on them will be a threat and they will find a new way to get around the house.

Also there will be a great amount of ants feeding around the TERRO puddle you make so just leave them alone until they are gone from it.

Sometimes you need to add more if they are all of it or if there is not enough TERRO liquid.

Keep the liquid in spots you won't touch or pets won't touch by accident because it is very sticky. You may want to pour it on a notepad because it is hard to clean up afterwards.

Yep TERRO liquid does the trick they act like its candy they have it at Home Depot. We got the kind in the small clear bait traps.

Hello Everyone,

You are all right. All your methods work. We all fall into the trap of it doesn't work anymore. OR 24 hrs and they are back. All I can say is you have to look at your situation and be smart. If you live in an apartment, expect roaches. If you live near a restaurant, expect rats. If you live in a house with landscape, expect spiders, ants and mice. Bottom line.

MICE: Look around before you open the door, and don't leave your doors open. Make your screen doors snug around the edges. Try to screen off your roof vents or openings with metal screen. Plug up holes with steel wool. Leave traps up year round and eventually they will be gone. If not for good, a long time. An old building was demolished across our street and it took a year to get rid of them as they were looking for a new home. Been there!!

ANTS: Its not just you.....what about your neighbor. My neighbor was collecting soda bottles outside his house as I discovered.......which created a SUGAR ANT SUPER COLONY. Guess where they decided to live?....That's right!!! in my garden. Borax and sugar bombs worked great. However, they were only control devices. We had to open up the ground and burst the colony, then spray. We left bombs inside and out, as well as next to all the ant ports. Eventually.......gone. But.....they are never gone, so don't be fooled. We also used bates of three Brand names....only temporary. Borax bombs worked best. ECO SPRAY Seems to do a good job. We also use peppermint and lemon essential oil as a spray to finish coat on our counters and other areas where they might wonder. Just a quick coat before we go to bed and no visitors in the morning. They hate that stuff and so do spiders. The spray mix so far does not damage anything. We use consumable essential oil...in other words we can eat it. If you need help getting some, I can direct you where to get it. We noticed in our new home that we had a different kind of ant. A protein ant as others have stated. So we left some ice cream on the counter all night for two days. Not a single ant. But, when we used a frying pan, and even washed it.....they came to visit again. Soooo............here are some tips. Ask the correct questions first. What are they going after? How big are they? What is our weather like? Where are they located? (Kitchen, Bathroom, Shower). Can I trace the ant trail outside? Do I think the nest is inside? Once you have done that...take it from there.

SPIDERS: They really are a pain. Lots of trees? Lots of spiders. Lots of junk? Lots of spiders. And so on. Don't give them a home or opportunity, and you wont have a problem. Lemon pledge, Lemon and peppermint essential oil spray, keeping your house orderly, and window sills clear will help a lot. We use our diffuser with essential oils and they don't seem to appear anymore. I leave essential oils in bottle caps under the couch, closet and hidden corners, and again no appearances. Determine what type of spider you have the most in the same way you did with the ants. Sometimes they are just lost checking out your house and trying on your shoes!! (Joking) Do some reading and try different things. I read once where a couple had a super spider invasion and could not get rid of them. They were in everything and everywhere.

When any pest problem gets to this level.............call a professional.

****No matter how you slice it....you share space with all of these creatures because your dwelling is on the ground somehow, and someway. You don't have to kill every spider you see...just keep it from coming in. You get what you put into it!! Bottom line. If you want to get rid of them....you have to go the extra mile. If you go the extra mile as I did when I dug up the ant colonies.......you get the big results.

Like everything else in your house............its work. And it has to be done.

And remember...the BUGMAN is like your Auto Mechanic.....do you think he will tell you everything!!??? It's up to you!!!!!

Good Luck.

I am a new resident of San Antonio, and was surprised to discover in the house last night two separate streams of small black ants, one running the length of the carpeted hallway and the other in the bathroom, across the bathmat in a narrow line. There was no rhyme or reason to where they were going--nothing spilled or sticky, nor was it raining outside. My best guess was that they were entering and leaving through baseboards.

I vacuumed both trails, completely resolving the problem without using any chemicals. (I took the extra step of putting the vacuum outside for the night, since, if ants are like fleas, they know how to get out of the machine. Alternatively, one could simply take the bag out and dispose of it in the outside trash.)

Bought ant bait from Dollar General. Max Plus by Black Flag. Did nothing. Hubby is on his way to get the Terro from Lowe's. $5.97 for 6 traps. It is a contained borax and sugar bait. Got great reviews. Will tell you how it works!

The cleanliness thing is a myth (guess) by people who happen to not have ants. It may help in that the ants won't be lured in, but it certainly has nothing to do with seeing or keeping ants out.

a mixture of water soap and hairspray works just fine for black ants.

I read all the posts and will try them. The post about if your house is clean, vacuumed, and no food around the ants will not come in really upsets me because I am very OCD and my home is ALWAYS clean and vacuumed, and zero food ever left out, also my home is totally refurbished since the August 13, 2016 floods in Louisiana. First we were in need of rain and we were getting the little black ants then lately we have had rain every day and now there are more. The only major thing we have left to do is replace all the windows, something that I will have to do a little at a time. Our insurance did not give us much to remodel, we put in about $20,000.00 of our own money and still didn`t get the windows. So can anyone tell us other than what was said in the previous posts how to get rid of them? Thank you for your help and God Bless.

Lots of good tips on this thread. I didn’t see this mentioned but some cleaners actually attract ants! Cleaners that have a lemon scent and Sprayaway glass cleaner does a great job attracting them. It’s a shame bc Sprayaway has such a pleasant scent but it doesn’t contain any ammonia. I found out the hard way with Sprayaway when I wiped an entire bathroom down from top to bottom with it one evening. The next morning ants were everywhere having their own little ant based convention. I think ammonia products r helpful as to not attracted them.

I'm having same problem with black ants I put down orange slices and they make nests in them when they fill up I dispose of orange