Perhaps you have seen several ants crawling in your kitchen counter or on the wall nearby. There are probably times when you accidentally left some container with a sugary stain or you were not able to wash off some grease on it, thus leading to ants gravitating toward this object. It could be that there are now unseen cracks and holes in some corners of your house where ants are able to pass through and roam around your house looking for food to bring back to their nest. How can you get rid of ants in a natural way, without making use of any chemical solution?
Indeed knowing how to get rid of ants is very important for homeowners so as to protect their food and the house structure itself. Do not underestimate the size of these ants for some types can actually target wooden areas of your house and destroy them eventually. In such case, you will really need to practice pests control in order to eliminate these ants completely from your house.
Here are the top 5 natural ways you can use to eradicate ants:
1. Sealing Off the Cracks and Holes
You ought to follow the pathway of the ants toward where they are heading back. This way, you’ll be able to detect the entrances they use to get inside your home. When you find these entrances, you should silicone caulk, glue, plaster, or putty to seal them off for good. You can opt for a poster tack for temporary measure but you have to make it a point to replace it eventually as it can easily weaken over time.
2. Spritzing Ants with Soapy Water
This is a very easy natural method that actually works. All you have to do is grab an empty spray container, place only one teaspoon of your liquid dish soap and fill up the entire bottle with water. Now it’s good to be used as a weapon against those invading ants. You can even add some citrus peels to make the solution even more potent and effective.
3. Using Physical Defensive Barriers
You can actually put up physical barriers from the entrances so that ants will not be able to pass through. These barriers can be made up of those commonly found in kitchens such as cinnamon, white vinegar with water, and cayenne pepper. You can also make use of baby powder and chalk lines.
4. Utilizing Daunting Odors
Ants are quite sensitive to certain smells. Hence, you can actually sprinkle around some daunting odors that are sure to frighten them or discourage them from invading your house. Examples of these scents are crushed mint leaves, camphor, lavender oil, and dried peppermint. Use laurel or bay leaves as well inside your sugar jar or canister of flour and cornstarch to keep those ants from coming close.
5. Poisoning Ants with Food
Did you know that there are actually types of food you can use to poison the ants? You can make use of corn meal and leave a plate exposed in the kitchen where the ants usually go to. When ants eat this, they will not be able to digest it. Thus, it is fatal for them. You can also utilize raw cream of wheat which expands in the stomachs of ants and can therefore lead to their death.
With these natural methods, you are at least guaranteed of getting rid of ants temporarily. However, you will still not be able to certify long-term effects unless you target the actual nests of the ant communities. This can only be done by professional exterminators who can use specific tools and solutions to eliminate these through the cracks or holes they pass through or maybe by removing some parts of the wooden areas of your house to expose the nests.
Furthermore, a pests control service is necessary when fire ants attack your home. This is because such ants are more aggressive in terms of destroying your house and some items. These fire ants can also trigger allergic reactions with just one sting. Hence, you must allow specialists to employ their proven and safe methods to truly get rid of ants in your home.