A survey by ConsumerAffairs found that ants are the most concerning pest that homeowners deal with and are a problem for over 60% of homeowners. Because ants are such a common pest, you must understand why you are dealing with an ant invasion and how to get rid of ants in your home.
Do you want to learn how to prevent and get rid of an ant invasion in your home? Keep reading these top treatments for ants to learn how to get rid of ants in your home.
Look for Ant Nests
The first thing you should do to keep ants out of your home is to identify the source of the invasion. You can do this by looking for ant nests in your home or your yard.
In general, ants prefer nesting in damp areas. This includes areas in your home that have flooded or have had other types of water damage. Often, homeowners find ants in their attics, bathrooms, and exterior walls.
Ants will also nest outdoors under logs, bricks, and rotting wood.
To find an ant nest, it is also important to identify the type of ants you are dealing with. This way, you can learn more about their nesting habits and learn more about the severity of the infestation.
When you find an ant nest, it makes it much easier to eliminate the entire colony of ants, rather than killing a few here and there.
Find & Seal Entry Points
Even if you are unable to find where ants are nesting in your home or your yard, you can identify areas of your home where they are entering.
There are many ways that ants can get into your home. Usually, these include holes, cracks, and gaps in the exterior of your home. For example, if you have pipes or wires that leave your home, ants may be able to get inside these gaps.
By finding the entrance points to your home, both inside and outside, you can prevent ants from ever entering in the first place. You can use caulk to seal these holes and keep ants out!
Remove Shelter & Food Sources
Next, you must remove any shelter or food sources for ants in your home and around your property. If your home is not clean, ants may come inside to find food, like crumbs on the floor.
When scout ants come into your home and find food, they will bring it back to the colony and may lead to more ants entering your home. By keeping your home clean and free of food, you can prevent ants from coming into your home.
You should also remove anything that may provide shelter for ants. Make sure you have several inches of space between the foundation of your home and any bushes or plants as this acts as a bridge for ants to reach your home.
Something else that can keep ants from finding shelter on your property is removing stacks of firewood near your home, keeping a healthy lawn, and trimming back the bushes and trees that are close to your home.
Erase Ant Trails
Something else that can help you stop an ant invasion is to erase ant trails in your home. Ant trails are scented paths that ants make in your home that are made from a mixture of chemicals and pheromones. They allow other ants to follow the same path to find food and shelter.
They also act as a territorial mark that allows ants to communicate with each other.
Even if you regularly sweep and mop, this will not remove ant trails from your home. Instead, you should consider using a mixture of water and vinegar to eliminate the scent. This will keep ants from coming inside for food and will help you get rid of ants in your home.
Set Bait Traps
Another way you can get rid of an ant invasion is by using bait traps and insecticides to kill the ants. Ant baits use food and other materials that attract worker ants. However, they are also mixed with insecticides.
Because the ants will be attracted to the bait, they will bring it back to the nest to share it with the other ants in the colony.
This is a much more effective option than spraying areas of your home with insecticides, as it will eliminate the entire colony rather than killing the few ants that come into your home. Many professional pest control companies use this effective method to remove ants.
Get Professional Ant Removal
Finally, you may need to consider getting professional treatment for your ant invasion. If you are dealing with ants that are nesting in your home or if you are having trouble removing the invasion on your own, a professional ant control company can help.
They will be able to determine the extent of the damage that the ants caused to your home and can provide you with many treatments for ants.
Have an Ant Invasion? Get Rid of Ants in Your Home
When you have an ant invasion, it may be too late to utilize these preventative measures in your home. Rather than trying to keep ants out of your home by yourself, you can hire a professional company for ant removal.
do you need help learning how to get rid of ants? Pest Extinct can help! Our team can help find the best exterminators near you.
Contact our team today to learn more about how to get rid of ants and to compare quotes for ant control from local exterminators.
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