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Getting Rid of Ants

Q.    I have a question about ants. We have had a problem with the small, brown ants.  We have tried the borax & sugar, and poison, nothing works. Does anyone have any suggestions?

• We have 'them, too. About everybody we know does, here in Southern California. We don't like to spray poisons around, so we have to put up with them to some extent, but we have found that they hate baby powder (preferably scented talcum). If you find a trail of them in your house, or some "scouts" looking for food so they can bring the rest of their nest to enjoy it, just sprinkle the baby powder on the ants and wherever they are coming in from, if you can find it, and you will see them begin to get upset. After a while, they'll be gone, and they won't be back again for awhile, even after you remove the powder. We dust  baby powder on our honey jar and sugar bowl, as well as the outside of the cats' dish and it keeps the ants off.

• Sounds crazy, but try vinegar! Fill a squirt bottle with plain old cheap white vinegar, and squirt it anyplace you've seen ants (kitchen counters, windowsills, etc) and let it dry. It's non-toxic, won't harm anything, and the smell will go away in just a couple of minutes. It worked for me!

• I have a suggestion for the ant problem; plain old cinnamon. I put in or at the site of the ant invasion, they back off quick!

• Black pepper is a nonlethal, poison free, cheap, and safe way to get rid of ants - sprinkle the black pepper where you see them congregating and watch 'them scatter. Follow them to where they're exiting - which is the same spot they're entering in at - and sprinkle the pepper at that spot to keep them from coming back in. It's safe to use in your cabinets, on windowsills, near your pets and kids, around food, etc.

• I have a book with several tips for the use of apple cider vinegar. One of them is getting rid of ants.  Make a mixture of 50/50 water and vinegar and pour it into a spray bottle. Spray the surface with the solution several times a day. Ants guide themselves with their scent. Vinegar has a natural chemical that alters ants' scent and which ants avoid.

• My husband was in conversation recently with a gentleman in the pest control business. This man preferred to use environmentally safe methods to control pests. His recommendation for ants was: equal parts Windex and Ivory Soap. Simply mix, and spray problem areas.

• Most ant poisons have a sweetness to them that attracts most but not all ants. Some ants are attracted to grease. Observe your ants and see what they like, maybe you need a different bait. Also, though this is sometimes difficult, see if you can trace them back to where they are getting in, because caulking is usually the best solution, as it prevents recurrence.

• I live in south Florida, the bug capital of the world, and I don't use anything toxic in or around my home. I discovered a safe way to get rid of ants. I found Shakley's Basic H. It is a non-toxic soap made from soybeans. I take a pint spray bottle, fill it 1/3 with Basic H and 2/3 with water, mixing gently. Follow your trail of ants to try to discover where they are entering. Spray a thin stream of the mix around where they are coming in. I also spray around my door frames and into any openings where they might enter. Caulking any little holes or openings is also helpful. Please remember this is a SOAP. Do not spray where it will be stepped on and someone will slip. I reapply it as needed. Try to keep it off painted surfaces as it will eventually bubble the paint. You can also put three tablespoons into a Miracle Grow feeder full of water and spray outside around the foundation of your house. It will soak into the soil and get into the nests. Do this once or twice a month until the problem abates. As an added bonus, use the same mixture in your feeder and spray your lawn to keep it flea free.  I also keep the little spray bottle handy to spritz any bugs that try to dash in the door when it's open. If it can kill a palmetto bug (roaches that are as big as B-52's), it will kill anything!

• I had a bad problem with them last year and tried everything. Then, I read in a book to place Bay Leaves on your counters and preferably along the trail where they are coming in (if you can find it). It worked. Now I make sure that I keep some behind my canisters, etc. on my countertops.

• We use plain white chalk drawn in a line at the place they come in they wont cross for some reason and also I use comet cleanser sprinkled where children/animals don't go.

• So far this has worked in my house. First you need to find out where they are coming in at. To kill ants that have entered  your home without poison I use straight Simple Green. Believe me it works. Then after they are all dead, clean the area and spray the area with a peppermint spray. Fill a spray bottle with water and add approximately 10 - 15 drops of peppermint essential oil , sometimes called Peppermint Spirits. Ants won't cross the area because they hate the smell. Hope it works as well for you as it has for me. Please note this can be dangerous to cats!

•Ants will crawl away from mint.  I did this as a science experiment and it worked.  Just plant mint all around your house.  Especially near doorways.

• A line of cayenne pepper usually stops them from crossing over it.

• Try putting some whole cloves around. I put them on the window sills and door jams and also sprinkled a few around in my bottom cabinets. It worked.

• I recently purchased the book “The Garden Guy – A Seasonal Guide to Organic Gardening in the Desert Southwest” by Dave Owens. Below is quoted information that may help you out.  Dave Owens, does the Garden Guy's segments on KTVK (Channel 3) in the metro Phoenix area during Good Morning Arizona. – C.L.

Outdoor Ant Control
Supplies: 1 to 2 gallons water
Stove or barbecue grill
Instructions: Heat water to 160 to 170 degrees. Quietly sneak up to the mounds of ants and pour the boiling water down the hole.
Note: I normally try to do this between 11am and 2 pm.

Indoor Ant Control
Supplies: 1 tbsp. boric acid
  1 tbsp. mint jelly or peanut butter
  1 cracker
  Small cardboard box
Instructions: Mix the boric acid and mint jelly; spread mixture on a cracker. Punch pinholes in a cardboard box; place cracker inside. Place box in an area where ants cause problems, but away from children and pets.
Note: The mint jelly or peanut butter lures the ants in and the boric acid kills them.

Indoor and Outdoor Ant Control
Supplies: Diatomaceous earth
Instructions: Dust food-grade diatomaceous earth along the ant’s pathways.
Note: The white powder will cut through their exoskeleton and they will dehydrate and die.

Indoor and Outdoor Ant Control Supplies:
1 1/2 cup Cream of Wheat
Instructions: Place a dish of Cream of Wheat where the ants can access it.
Note: After they eat it, the cereal expands and the ants will explode.

• Red chili powder !! I've been using it to repel ants for years. Make a paste using a little water, find where the little black pests are coming in and going out and paste the area. you can sprinkle the powder too, but I find adding water makes it more potent. The ants hate the stuff. Brooke and Mary B.

• To trap ants leave an open bottle of maple syrup (cheap stuff is ok) the ants love it and they drown happy. Just make sure you your children and sig. other know about it (LOL). Also I have had luck with the Torro ant poison. It's like a syrup. This they take back to the colony. - Lucy

• Mix borax with sugar water. Place it on the ant trails and where the ants are coming in. It kills any ant that eats the mixture. From CSinbad

• Some mint oil and mint chewing gum help repel ants in a house. placed a stick or open pack of chewing gum on a shelf. Outside you can plant mint around the foundation. It makes a good groundcover and is fragrant when it's stepped on. I hope this helps. Please let me know. - Diana

For More Ant Removal Suggestions Click here!

Comments (82)

Thank you for your "Getting Rid of Ants" article. I appreciate the methods. Very informative and frugal indeed.
#1 - tequilasunrise - 11/11/2009 - 03:36
The vinegar works, but only on the ones you soak. I suggest you find the nest! -dani+donna
#2 - dani+donna - 10/03/2010 - 19:55
Thank you. I will use your suggestions in my kitchen. Those rascals are resistant.
#3 - Lucky - 10/05/2010 - 01:43
this gives you a good idea i am doing this project and this actually worked thank you
#4 - jonathan jung - 10/05/2010 - 14:12
Well I have them in my house I have tried everything to get rid of them it really is a hassel on me to get rid of them with out them coming right back in how do i get rid of them?
#5 - jennifer rainbolt - 10/13/2010 - 14:29
Jennifer - try the cinnamon - I have a vegetable garden in my front yard and had ants all over. I sprinkled it around every raised bed and around the edges of my house - all ants are gone overnight. It's wonderful!
#6 - My Edible Yard - 10/20/2010 - 20:01
Cornflour - works every time for us. Ants eat it but can't digest it. The cornflour is fine enough to be walked back to the nest. We have a lot of ant problems here in Brisbane, but cornflour saves the day !
#7 - Kate Brisbane - 10/23/2010 - 01:12
Black Pepper is my choice for these little pesky ants..... they hate it and scatter fast.
#8 - Scotty Boy Blue - 10/24/2010 - 00:37
I just used the cayenne pepper, yeaaahh eat that, they hate that to :) !
#9 - Marc - 10/26/2010 - 10:57
that does not help drrderrrs.
#10 - si213 - 10/30/2010 - 14:16
Boric acid kills ants, but the high percentage to the bait mix usually kills them immediately. What you want is a lower dose -- they take the poisoned bait back to the nest to share with the queen and the others.

Commercial baits contain about 10% boric acid, you want about 3%. It seems that kitchen-type ants like either sweets or grease. Get some of the commercial bait and mix it with sugar water or grease (shortening, meat drippings, etc), 1/3 bait, 2/3 sugar water or grease.

Boric acid is mildly toxic (mostly as an irritant), so I put the poisoned bait in a small screw-top jar with some holes put in the top, saved for just this purpose, and put the bait in that. It keeps it away from curious cats, and the dog can't get into it even if they knock it onto the floor. LABEL THE JAR!
#11 - Sue - 11/07/2010 - 18:19
....................................it's so amazing!you know what.,it really works in my house., it help me s lot
thank you!!!!!!!
#12 - rex joseph dj enabore - 11/15/2010 - 02:35
I wish someone would say which of all these works the absolute best every time.
#13 - Butch - 11/19/2010 - 10:46
I am in LOVE with your comments!
#14 - Liz - 11/21/2010 - 22:59
The simple green makes them smell good when you squish them after they have eaten there own........ugh I have mutated ants!! 6 months later and the ones I kill now smell of simple green...
#15 - Tina - 11/29/2010 - 01:00
i was thinking of trying the pepper idea but my family left some hot red chili peppers out and ants are all over those! why is that?
#16 - #15 - 11/29/2010 - 02:25
Just a caution. From what I was told black pepper can be deadly to cats.
#17 - Ben - 12/01/2010 - 12:12
I had a problem with these buggers coming in through various cracks and all I did was squirt the green Palmolive dish soap in whatever cracks I have seen them come from, it stops the usage of that route forever.
#18 - james - 12/04/2010 - 20:26
If your running low on vinegar but you want to get rid of the ants now! try using 2 parts vinegar and 1 part water (little bit less effective but you can spray more. Also if you only need to spray a little area but are low on vinegar 3 parts vinegar and 1 part water.
#19 - - - 12/10/2010 - 21:22
If you have a line of them and want to get them up without scattering them, use hairspray, and then wipe them up...
#20 - rae - 12/13/2010 - 13:50
baby powder works really well. thanks so much for this article!
#21 - a.tom - 12/19/2010 - 02:02
If you just want to kill the ants, I have found glass cleaners to be very effective. Just one squirt will kill as many as it contacts. After the ant genicide use a paper or cloth towel and wipe down the counters. Unfortunately this only kills those that you spray it on but considering thats what most ant sprays do, I prefer the smell of window cleaner over poison any day. Also if you can stand leaving the dead ants laying around the effect seems to last longer before you get invaded again. Have a great ant free Christmas and good luck in your war on ants.
#22 - John - 12/22/2010 - 11:22
I have tried everything I could think of that is pet friendly and nothing is working. In fact, they are tripling in number. They are in everything. Clothes, cupboards, food, counters, heaters, floor and even in the fridge. Last resort, I think is to bomb everything and move. If anyone has any other suggestions, please feel free to let me know. I have tried back pepper, baby powder, cinnamon, cornmeal, disinfectant spray, bleach, ant traps, and salt.
#23 - JONI - 12/23/2010 - 08:17
you know what worked for me. i made a paste made of comet and water. you ues more comet than water i am not sure excactly the amount. mix it together until its a paste. take a knife and spread it around the infestation. it killed the ants on contact and creates a barrier so they dont come back in. hope that helps
#24 - Mindy - 12/25/2010 - 20:02
Peppermint essential oil - you can get it lots of places including Whole Foods. Put a couple drops at the end point of where they have arrived and they will reverse course on their own. I don't like to kill them so that's what I do. You can also use your finger to smear a line of it and they won't cross it. The first ones might as the smell confuses them and they run around a bit. Wash your hands after and don't touch your eyes! It is very strong, but non toxic. I have reversed a 100' foot line that way - took a couple hours but they did not come back. And that line was like 1" thick! Then note where they came in and caulk that hole.
#25 - Heather in LA - 12/28/2010 - 12:22
I just moved into a place and it gets sprayed by termnex but i still have ants they drive me crazy how do i get rid of them for good my neighbors say i won't ever be able to get rid of them cause we live by a crick but please help me and prove them wrong b4 i go ant crazy. :)
#26 - Cassie - 12/28/2010 - 18:11
I did an experiment at school (Science Research Project or SRP) on natural or homemade ant repellents. DO NOT USE CUCUMBER UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES!!!! If anything, it attracts them. Vinegar (especially red wine, but any kind works) and baking soda or powder work really well. The ants hightailed. While the cleaning agents mentioned DO work, the ones I just listed are eco-friendly along with Simple Green.
#27 - B in VA - 12/30/2010 - 11:46
Visting my sis and she has a major infestation...baits not working...so last night, I grabbed the Windex bottle and sprayed it in the hole they seemed to be coming from in the kitchen center island. This morning, way less ants are here in the kitchen. Seems that we may have discouraged them so no new ones are coming in. And I just found your site this morning so now we are going to sprinkle cinnamon around the foundation and see it that will help keep them outside!
#28 - MY visting in NV - 01/02/2011 - 12:42
I have a horrible foundation problem in my apartments. They several times sprayed everything but the ants still keep coming back. I saw them crawl out of a phone jack in the kitchen. But in my bedroom they're always on my nightstand and I can't seem to figure out where they're coming from. I tried Windex but that didn't do much but get them a little dizzy. Salt didn't do much either. I will try the pepper and cinamonn tonight.
#29 - bebe - 01/10/2011 - 20:01
I read somewhere about using vaseline to deter ants. I applied some along the door frame of a trouble spot in my home--the ants were coming in through little cracks between the pieces of frame! I watched as several ants would not cross the semi-sticky vaseline barrier. I did caulk the area as best as I could, but I know the vaseline helped keep the ants at bay as well. I applied some in my cupboards recently when I found a few stray ants in them. I like how the vaseline is clear and can't be displaced as easily as remedies in powder form. I simply apply the vaseline with a cotton swab that I've dipped in the vaseline jar.
#30 - Heather - 01/18/2011 - 02:30
Hmm...so what about ants that do not get into any food/grease? These guys seem to eat their way thru the foundation..and appear in the bathrooms and along exterior walls. I'm about to lose my mind! It's disgusting!
#31 - Becca - 02/11/2011 - 16:39
I have tried straight bleach and lysol spray. I kills them but they keep coming back.
#32 - Sondra - 03/13/2011 - 21:42
ants
Waaah! this last comment sounds exactly like me! nothing seems to work as i cant get to the main area where they come out from, like behind the aircon or inside the foundations!!!
#33 - kittywitty@kittymail.com - 03/16/2011 - 15:12
The thing that works best for me is a few drops of C.I.L. liquid and killer wherever they come in and they take it back to the nest and in seven days the colony will be dead works every time.
#34 - Clarke Pegg - 03/28/2011 - 13:57
March 20011 - This WORKS
Windex Multi-surface with Vinegar... Works...not sure if they will stay away for any length of time though. Safe on wood floors, too.
#35 - Kathy - 03/30/2011 - 18:46
ants and tangerines
I noticed this morning that my old-fashioned orange juicer had about 50 ants inside even though I had washed it after the last use. So I cleaned it up, made myself a nice glass of honey tangerine juice, and left the remains of the tangerine in the cupboard near where they enter, open side up. Now they are swarming into the tangerine -- and in order to get there they have to cross a ring of diatomaceous earth! This bait works incredibly well. In one day I've flung open the cupboard door and thrown that tangerine shell into the kitchen sink, and washed hundreds of ants down the drain with boiling water. The tangerine half is still working tonight and there are far fewer ants elsewhere in the ktichen. Die, you devils, DIE!
#36 - Ron in Toronto - 04/06/2011 - 21:24
Seventh Generation Multi Surface Cleaner with thyme oil kills the ants almost immediately. Vinegar and water didn't kill them for me, maybe my solution wasn't strong enough.
#37 - gb - 04/10/2011 - 13:58
get rid of ants
i have two dogs and two cats what can i use that wont harm myanimals
#38 - virginia latscha - 04/11/2011 - 12:19
Vinegar does not work
I have tried many things such as Vinegar and water, that did not work, the chili powder didn't work for me either. I did the baby powder and that only seemed to work the first time. I even mopped my hardwood floors in vinegar, but the dumb things are back, I am at my wits end with this because of the fact I have two toddlers two dogs and a cat in the house so I can not do poisons in my house. the dang things are in every room of my house,
#39 - Kt - 04/18/2011 - 21:22
pesky ants
I have found that using a can of 10w/40 lube spray will kill ants instantly and keep them away for a while but best used outside where you have ants going up the foundation! Have used inside but test spot s before spaying on countertops or painted surfaces!
#40 - robert in arkansas - 04/23/2011 - 22:01
Aspartame, a poison for all!
One more to add to the pile of ideas, try mixing aspartame and a little flour. I hear that kills them. I hear aspartame turns into wood alcohol in the body, same stuff used in making some perfumes. Probably should not eat the stuff yerself. heh.
#41 - Nik the Brick - 04/24/2011 - 10:23
Black Pepper didn't work for us, but I will keep trying different methods something has to work I am sick of them!!
#42 - Joanna - 04/30/2011 - 11:20
outdoor ants
We have large ant hills in our lawn and tried many any killers back they come back every year, any suggestions that work?
#43 - Linda Skeggs - 04/30/2011 - 13:02
Indoor Ants
I found that the vinegar worked brilliantly. Everyday last year in April, i would diligently spray the entire area where the ants were coming I sprayed about twice a day or everytime i saw them, and after about 3 weeks i had no more for the rest of the summer. I also tried the baby powder which really does make them angry!!! But the vinegar completely worked. I think if you need to get rid of them you have to practically sit over them for a few weeks. Having said all that, they came back again this year so I do feel as if I'm back to square one... but i've got my big cheap vinegar and I'm all prepped to get rid of them again.
#44 - kaede - 05/03/2011 - 14:44
peppermint oil warning
i also am fighting ants and have parakeets in my kitchen---be careful about spraying any essential oil near birds!
from experience, i made an air freshener ( a few drops of essential oil in a sprayer full of water). after one spray , my little parakeet was showing respiratory distress!!
( the little guy recovered but i learned a lesson!)
i would be careful to apply on the ant trail as even the fumes might hurt your birds.
#45 - teresa - 05/11/2011 - 08:35
you all got it wrong! you need to work at it;.find starting point then,bait; when ants form line, get vac and boric acid.put boric in vac, and vacuum from bait to starting point.repeat time after time until ants deminish. then pour boric acid in crevise or baitpoison for two to three days.KILL THE ANTS; QUEEN DOESN'T EAT;
#46 - denny170 - 05/20/2011 - 22:14
brake cleaner
just everyday brake cleaner found at your auto store will kill ants on contact
it is a poison so be careful
#47 - kevin - 05/21/2011 - 10:33
ants herdin aphids!
I have a huge problem with red ants spreading aphids all over my garden is there anything that takes care of both? I have tried the 2cups water 1cup veg.oil 2tsp. Non-chlorine bleach dish soap but it burns the plants when the sun comes out! And the ants just bring them back within a few days!
#48 - matthew - 05/22/2011 - 10:58
Most of these are bunk!
I have heard that coffee works, it only attracts them. Boric acid works, be diligent. Terro is essentially the same chemical and works well.

Several companies (A--------) have come up with granules that WORK! Sprinkle granules outside, boric acid inside.
#49 - Larry - 05/29/2011 - 22:22
How to get rid of Ants
At the camping site, I got rid of most ants hols very easily.
Molasses pore the molasses in the hole the will not be able to get out or in. under rocks when you lift it you will find the eggs and nest pore the molasses on the eggs the ants cannot go through it is like tar for them. So this year I do not have any ant around the trailer the one that decide to survive they went further and I have peace. In the house I use Pledge cleaner were they get in and problem solve.
Good luck
#50 - Lise - 05/31/2011 - 17:58
At least we're not alone
Thanks for hilarious comments. 'Glad we're not alone! They come out of our outlets, shower heads, invisible holes in the wall. Basic conclusion: EVERYTHING kills the little suckers - shoot, water or a finger works great! KEEPING them out is a whole 'nother deal. We'll try the Boric acid - sounds like the ratio is the big trick - and yeah, it does seem to help to clean vehemently, get rid of every crumb, vacuum, yada yada. At least they don't bite. Too bad they can't clean!
#51 - F&L - 06/12/2011 - 23:55
Windex with Vinegar Works wonders all on its own
no mixing bottle is less than three bucks and kills them with a few spritz and your house doesn't smell like vinegar. I love it and found out by accident. I sprayed them to slow them down so I could squish them and missed a couple of them on the wall I didn't see (but since I sprayed all over lol it hit them) they were curled up dead. Since then I have tried it again, on piles of them and they are dead big ones little ones no squishing needed they do not like it, the funny thing is this is the environmentally safer windex lol
#52 - Sunnie Bell - 06/19/2011 - 19:36
peanut maple bombs
We have a horrible ant problem at our house! After reading these posts I decided to try a mix of borax, peanut butter and maple syrup. I mixed the three together enough that it was like a dry dough that when in your hands, if you rubbed them together, crumbles into tiny carry-away bits for the ants to easily take back to mama ant. My wife previously had sprinkled borax all over and around our house and for about a week. Afterwards we saw none anymore. The ants all died, but probably didn't get a chance to feed the white death of borax to the queen, They were back in full force less than a week later. After reading these GREAT suggestions, I did the above combination, I applied crumbled piles of it wherever I saw an independent group, the next morning they were all gone and no dead anties except the one I killed for fun while I laid the trap! THANK YOU ALL!
#53 - Edward Mosin - 06/27/2011 - 22:49
Peppermint oil
I tried the peppermint and it worked wonders. I put a perimeter around the window panes and along the walls * make sure you get every crack* the ants just back away and some tried to swim around it but ended dead.
#54 - Verna W. - 07/01/2011 - 21:55
how do I get rid of ant hills
does anyone know how to get rid of ant hills we have a major problem with them this year,red, black and flying ants they seen to like poplar trees to killing the trees
I'm open to all sollutions
thank-you
#55 - sandy - 07/11/2011 - 23:53
The way I got rid of ants that where everywhere, bedrooms, living room and worst in the kitchen was with a vacuum cleaner. I used just the nozzle. Whenever I saw an ant in the kitchen I vacuumed it up. Now once the room appears empty I just sat there and stared. Often as got distracted and turned my head for an instant and when I looked back there was an ant in the middle of the floor. I saw ants coming from crack in the baseboard but that was just a small cave. Eventually I saw that the only place new ant where coming from was through the living room door. I did the same thing in the living room and found they where coming through the door to the porch. I did the same thing in the porch and fond they where coming up through a short cold air duct to the basement . I found that they where coming through a crack in the basement window. I sealed that with duct tape and her problem was solved. Ps there where still a few more ants they were probably in various crevasses. She happened leave an unwashed class with a bit of coke in it on the table the next day there were 7 ants stuck to the coke. After that she intentionally left a unwashed coke class and caught 2 more ants. Since then her house has been ant free. This only took about four hours to do and most of the time we spent sitting there and drinking coffee while we waited to see where the ants were coming from.
#56 - Adolf Rogoschewsky - 07/16/2011 - 01:36
VERY,VERY tiny red ants!
I live in Milwaukee, Wisconsin & I put dry cat food out for the homeless cats. Every time I put food in the dish, with-in a minute there are hundreds of red ants. ( they are about the size of a "dot" of a pen.) Very,very,very small. Is there something I could put around the dish to keep them away? ( but not harmful to animals) Thanks!
#57 - Michelle - 07/17/2011 - 12:18
Better Living Through Chemistry
Chalk & Baby Powder Do Not Work!
I have tried this, and watched as the ants just crawl right over it. If you don't believe this, just grab a piece of chalk and draw a circle around any ant on your sidewalk or driveway.
I've tried all the remedies listed here, as well as some that are not. But I've found the very best way is to get some diazinon. This stuff kills everything that flies or crawls. Just google diazinon
I'm all for the environment, but I've gotta draw the line somewhere. ;-)
#58 - Craig - 07/18/2011 - 08:07
I have ants even in underwear drawers...cabinets..pen holders...folowed one trail once found them on a shirt in a pile of about 20 shirts.. They were feeding off this tiny rubbery tag of my husbands golf shirt. Imagine ants covered the swoosh (Nike) it's sick. I will try basil cinnamon vinegar...
#59 - Carla - 07/20/2011 - 01:43
Today I was in my closet looking for something and I have a basket on the floor of my closet, well I have just random things piled in the basket. But today I had picked up the item that was on top and underneath that was my gray cardigin. Well let's just say when I saw it I couldn't even tell it was gray I freaked and regretfully picked it up and threw it. Now there's ants EVERYWHERE in my closet. There is no food in my closet so I don't know why there are so many there. I have no idea where they are coming from either. I haven't tried anything yet but I am soon just want to see if anyone knows which is the best for this situation.
#60 - Sara - 07/20/2011 - 03:23
ANTS!!!!!!!!!!
These little creatures are driving me CRAZY! I have tried bleach, pepper, windex, cinnamon, salt, comet, vinegar, and comercial ant houses. Nothing works. They seem to become immune to EVERTHING. PLease help me.
#61 - Virtinia - 07/20/2011 - 15:06
REMEMBER MINT IS INVASIVE
So if you plan to use that mint solution by planting some, make sure you plant it in containers in the ground. Otherwise you will have mint everywhere and I mean EVERYWHERE. I even found it in the drainage ditch half a mile down the road from our place.
#62 - pjh - 07/24/2011 - 20:50
ANTS!!!

I have a problem with ants also, especially around my animal dishes. Outside I use cayenne pepper circle on a plate around the cat dish to control them. Or take honey and put it in a soda bottle mixed with soap. The honey draws them to a specific location and the soap /honey mix keeps them like a fly trap.

Spray 100% vinegar on counters and around where the are entering. It also makes a natural room freshner for homes with pets.
#63 - christine - 07/25/2011 - 13:17
I initially sprinkled talc powder around their entry site and as a barrier to my food and garbage. Eventually they stayed away completely and I do not need to put any more powder down at all.
I read that they do not like to get any powder on their feet.
#64 - ruth - 07/31/2011 - 16:56
my flat is covered in baby powder, hope it works, they've started running in circles, but it kinda seems they've taken the long way round. i hate them now, i had to buy an anti-ant bread box surrounded by water.. grr
#65 - garbo91 - 07/31/2011 - 19:08
Ants in Kitchen
I have found several ants in a drawer in my kitchen. What is the best way to remove them. Anything would be appreciated!
#66 - Dana - 08/02/2011 - 15:26
have been battling all morning, the black pepper worked instantly thank you!!!!!!!!!!
#67 - Suzan - 08/09/2011 - 12:26
ants
I just poured black pepper all over my kitchen floor. I haved ued ant bail traps, gleased lightening, Hot shot ant and roach gel. (this gel from Home depol ) worked for about 2 months. I believe in 10/w/40....so maybe my next choice. I can see where they are going out around the back splash. Are they coming in at the same place?
#68 - roberta - 08/11/2011 - 11:49
Ants
i have baby powder all over my kitchen sink and the ants are still coming in! Now to clean up the powder and try red pepper - or black pepper - or vinegar - or a combination of all of them!
#69 - EILEEN - 08/12/2011 - 18:35

2 parts Honey to 1 part yeast. Long time ago someone told me to warm some honey to disolve a some yeast. The honey attracts the ants, they take it back to the nest. The yeast swells up and bam their gone. I heard they actually take it to the queen and feed her, so this may get rid of the whole nest. I placed this mixture in a shallow dish, covered, so other animals can't get to it. They were all gone within a day.
#70 - Cathy C - 08/15/2011 - 14:38
used coffee grinds
spinkle used coffee grinds around hosue including windows and dooways and the ants will walk up to line and wlak away .
#71 - JN - 08/28/2011 - 22:53
ants that like grease
I really can't find where they come from - they are just there crawling one at a time on the counter or in the sink if Ihave left something there that has oil/grease on it. So should I use the boric acid solution even if I can't find the source? Would I just spray it on the splash board and edges of the sink?
#72 - Susan - 08/31/2011 - 16:36
try using lemon. I tried baking soda at first and they crawled right over it, then I remembered hearing about using lemon to kill them, I squeezed it where they were coming in over the baking soda and it started a chemical reaction that killed them immediately! I left the lemon wedges where they were coming in by my sliding glass door and so far so good. hope this helps! :)
#73 - cherie - 09/07/2011 - 12:17
We should avoid killing Ants because they deserve to Live.
I have read most of this article comments and I agree with encouraging ants to walk away and try to find food somewhere else. But I don't agree in killing them, they are hard workers, they diserve to live like we do. They are among us for a good purpose, God knows what he is doing. Anyway try to do like me. I feed about 20 ant nest every day shredding some biscuits in my yard. - Regards to anyone who likes my idea.
#74 - Martin Buttigieg - Malta - 09/16/2011 - 04:53
Mankind deserves to live free of ants in our homes!
Well, the person who said to feed the ants is an environmental nut! I hope no body still believes in global warming as caused by mankind. One volcano eruption produces more pollutant than all of the industrial age. I think the best solution to KILL ants is the diatomaceous earth and ant baits. Keep everything scrupulously clean and mop with bleach/white vinegar. I wish I could plant the mint but this is totally desert and growing anything is difficult.
#75 - Linda - 09/22/2011 - 11:54
noise
We live in the desert and have small but very sturdy ants with blocky heads. They appear in waves and will avoid cinnamon but what works best for them is noise. Bang a pot lid near them and they zoom back out the way they come in. We've gotten them trained so tapping a spoon will even get them skedaddling. These ants drown easily so we're careful not to leave puddles or crumbs of food around. When we do slip up and there are hundreds appearing out of nowhere, the spoon or pot lid has them disappear in moments..
#76 - jacob - 10/10/2011 - 02:27
AWE AND SHOCK VERSUS HEARTS AND MINDS
I agree with Martin #74 and here is why. I use to hire a bug company and they sprayed everywhere esp. outside to combat the ants. Problem became worse. I realized when they sprayed outside. Hmmm. this killed all the food for ants. so they came inside and moved under my house I believe.

2 things have helped me. I feed them cat food around the perimeter of my backyard they love it and also let these daddy long leg spiders reside in all the corners of my house. they are benign and when you look at the pile of ant bodies below their webs you will be amazed. so they kill the few scouts who meander in and I feed the large flock outside. The ants have actually built a pyramid with my face on it outside (just kidding) but I have had the best antless summer. (occasional attacks occur that are shortlived.) Hearts and minds so to speak.
#77 - robert - 10/10/2011 - 03:15
Those Chinese hot oil ointment works too! we just had ants coming out of out electric outlet. So I dab some of the ointment on a cotton swab around the outlet. And within 10 seconds, none came out anymore. Some might not like the smell but it goes away real quick. Plus you dont need to put a lot. One swab is enough.
#78 - Akamyi - 10/12/2011 - 23:56
They are driving me NUTZ!! and to think that feeding colonies is helping the environment is even nuttier. I may consider myself an environ-mentalist...but I don't feed ant colonies.

So we tried the borax/sugar/peanutbutter mixture. It was more liquid than pasty. Perhaps we failed in making the right mixture. Irregardless, 3 cups of sugar to one cup of borax and pb simply bored them. Not a single curious ant. Not a lick, not a nod.

Windex was used as the first thing to grab upon discovering a 'train' in the kitchen lined up to the chicken packaging in the trash. HUH? they aren't interested in sugar....they are meat eaters?, The Windex killed them on contact and softened the paint on the cupboards. But it didn't stop the cavalry from returning time and again.

I did not have any opened food in the cupboards, so they seemed to stay away until today. I now take whatever piece of trash outside to the trash can and have turned into a neurotic vigilante, armed with Windex. They never bothered with the fruit bowl on the counter, or the containers of grains...sealed before they arrived.

Cinnamon headed them off at the pass, but the thousands of armies only relocated elsewhere in the yard, and most likely under the house where it is a crawl space with screened air vents.

There is a huge colony in the base of our orange tree...and they plowed through the 'Great Wall O' Cinnamon' with swords drawn and royal shopping carts filled to the brim for their Queen.

I might try the corn flour around the foundation? Maybe some Castille mint soap? mint plants? I dunno!! I need HELP!!
I think our problem is gargantuan, and any effort is nothing more than using a tin can to bail out the Titanic.

What's left?
I feel like I'm ready to arm myself in true Elmer Fudd fashion and just blast their wasskally holes to smithuweeeenes, but that wouldn't help and I don't own a gun anyways.

Sooooooo, chemicals? I might be ready....since my kitchen counter is covered with sterilized pots n' pans & de-greased skillets. All food is hermetically sealed, and I'm going away for a week. YIKES! What will I come home to?

I would consider feeding them cat food, but the possums who make nightly visits to our orange tree would simple gorge themselves.

HELP!! HELP!! HELP!!
#79 - going nutty - 10/14/2011 - 23:13
I have just spent the last half hour or so reading anti ant posts and having a laugh about marvellous concoctions for doing away with the annoying little blighter’s. (some good, some not). Ants are either sweet eaters (carbs) eg. flower nectar, aphid milk, scale insect milk, jam on kitchen benches etc. or meat eaters (protein) eg. insects dead or alive, dried up snails, pet food, etc. Queen ants need a bit of both. The active ingredient I use to lace their last supper is borax powder, mixed with blood and bone garden fertiliser, for the meat eaters, at a rate of 20:1 blood& bone -- borax power. Mix in well with a stirrer and add a little cooking oil to help with the adhesion of the powder to the b&bone. Place the bait where the ants are preferably in a container with access for the critters and out of the way of your pets.
For the sweet eaters mix 20:1 maple syrup --- borax powder. Mix well with 1-tsp icing sugar add a little water to make a runny consistency and place in a flat container eg. jar lid, where the ants are, being vigilant to keep away from your pets.
Now for bull ants. I live in Tasmania with nasty bull ants called "jack jumpers" that can kill men with just one sting and have done so in the past. The only effective way deal with these marauding soldiers is to locate their nest mounds, which may take a bit of time. This can be done by following a fully laden individual with food in its jaws as they usually make a B line strait to their nest. Once the nest is located be careful not to aggravate them and return to the site at dusk when the troops are back home. Pour petrol down the entrance to the nest. No ignition is necessary as the volatile vapours do the job. This kills them outright, queen and all. This seems a bit over the top but it works. By the way don’t smoke when you carry out this last exercise.
Good luck
#80 - Max - 10/20/2011 - 07:16
I have had tiny brown ants invade my kitchen but only on one side of my kitchen where the food cupboard is, ,I was told by a friend of ours who works with pesticides to use Boric acid or Borax laundry detergentand mix it with powdered sugar, 1 quarter cup of sugar to 1 half cup boric acid or the detergent. I watched where the ants were comming from so I put this mixture on my cupboard by their opening to the wall that they were using and after a couple hours I had a trail of many ants comming and going carrying this mixture into my wall where they must have been nesting,after about a week I never saw another ant after that. The boric acid is also the same ingredients used in pesticdes for ants.I have had many friends also try this same remedy and they swear by it! Please do not kill any ants if you spot them,they give off a danger oder to other ants and they will move their nest elsewhere in the house which could be harder to find where they are comming from next time! Please keep this mixture out of reach from pets and children!.
#81 - Mardy - 10/28/2011 - 18:53
yip
after reading these comments i went and tried the body talc idea.
To discover that this is a very affective and fast action plan.
I put on the front doorsteps, and on the carpet where entry points are.
within minutes the ants went nuts and they were gone.
#82 - TAZZ - 11/30/2011 - 18:02
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