BajaNomad - Getting Rid of Ants

Getting Rid of Ants

elizabeth - 8-7-2009 at 07:57 AM

This subject seems to come up here from time to time...and both Pam and Vandenburg mentioned ants in a response to a weather thread. I had just found the following in the SF Chronicle "Ask the Bugman" column...hope it helps....

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Q: Can you suggest homemade baits for ants?

- D.D., Sausalito

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A: Here are some ant tips:

If you know where the ants are coming in from, you can repel them with such products as food-grade diatomaceous earth (DE), baking soda, talcum powder, damp coffee grounds, salt, cayenne or garlic powder. Place any of these materials in corners, under baseboards or in any cracks and crevices where you see ants emerging. These products are mostly powders and won't work around the perimeter of your home as they will be blown away or washed away.

If you can find the ants' entrance on the outside, you can block it with Vaseline petroleum jelly, any toothpaste or duct tape. You can also squeeze the juice from a lemon into the opening and leave the lemon peel there. You can spray the ants themselves with a mixture of 40 percent water, 40 percent alcohol and 20 percent dish soap.

If you have ants making mounds in your yard, you can flood the nests with club soda or with white vinegar or food-grade DE. If you use the DE, mix 4 tablespoons per gallon of water. You can also use 1 gallon of orange juice diluted with 2 gallons of water and a dash of soap.

Or mix applesauce, Karo syrup, Crisco shortening, sugar water, canned cat food (fish flavored), creamy peanut butter, honey or jelly with boric acid or borax. Mix about 2 percent boric acid or borax into the bait.

E-mail comments to home@sfchronicle.com.

This article appeared on page E - 8 of the San Francisco Chronicle

meme - 8-7-2009 at 09:22 AM

OR you can sprinkle Baygone & be done with them! :saint:

mtgoat666 - 8-7-2009 at 11:37 AM

all those baits and home remedies are just waste of time, i know, i wasted my time with them all.
Just get the liquid spray ant killer from Costco (in US comes in 1-gal jugs with sprayer). spray their trails, and spray around edge of house, spray their mounds. the stuff lasts several months between sprays.

chemicals are your friends :lol:

[Edited on 8-7-2009 by mtgoat666]

BajaGeoff - 8-7-2009 at 11:56 AM

Chemicals might be effective in getting rid of the ants, but they also might get rid of your pets too....or make them sick.

Woooosh - 8-7-2009 at 01:07 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by BajaGeoff
Chemicals might be effective in getting rid of the ants, but they also might get rid of your pets too....or make them sick.

Only if you have pet ants. :saint:

My lab puppy just carried a bottle of Sevin (my preferred full spectrum bug killer) and he's fine. I think powdered Sevin is what "flea powder" is made of. I use it everywhere.

For ants I use the Home Defense spary like a poster mentioned. For trails of ants I use the gel they eat and carry back to kill the queen. Killing the queen of the colony is the only way to get rid of them for good.

[Edited on 8-7-2009 by Woooosh]

DrTom - 8-7-2009 at 01:07 PM

"If you know where the ants are coming in from, you can repel them with such products as food-grade diatomaceous earth (DE), baking soda, talcum powder, damp coffee grounds, salt, cayenne or garlic powder. Place any of these materials in corners, under baseboards or in any cracks and crevices where you see ants emerging. "

lets see: dirt baking soda, damp coffee, salt etc......doesnt sound like im gonna have a problem looking at my kitchen

BajaGeoff - 8-7-2009 at 01:09 PM

We have more pet ants than we know what to do with Woooosh!

Skeet/Loreto - 8-7-2009 at 01:28 PM

If you live in Mexico CHLORDANE is the best, But make sure you use it Carefully!!

mtgoat666 - 8-7-2009 at 01:41 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Skeet/Loreto
If you live in Mexico CHLORDANE is the best, But make sure you use it Carefully!!

Chlordane? Are you nuts?

Taco de Baja - 8-7-2009 at 03:09 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by mtgoat666

Quote:

Originally posted by Skeet/Loreto
If you live in Mexico CHLORDANE is the best, But make sure you use it Carefully!!

Chlordane? Are you nuts?

Chlordane and Heptachlor were (are) great ant and termite killers. Diazinon works quite well too.

As ants don’t like chlorine (big component of Chlordane and Heptachlor), I'd bet a small amount of bleach mixed with water and sprayed around might work as a control too

Bajahowodd - 8-7-2009 at 04:14 PM

Interesting hypothesis, Taco. Let me know if it works. As for Chlordane. Geez. I'm with goat on that. It's just so toxic to so much more than ants. And the sad/funny thing is that way back when, when nobody knew nothing, I remember my parents sprinkling chlordane powder all around the inside of our house.

Bajajorge - 8-8-2009 at 08:51 AM

Ortho Defense works great on ants, pet safe too after it's dry.

Farbauti - 8-8-2009 at 09:04 AM

Mint Extract

Protect the environment first! Ants are our friends!

We have used this home remedy for years...and it works to repel ants, but does not kill them. A plus is the pleasant smell.

Method:

Mint oil extract in a spray bottle. Mix 1/2 teaspoon with 12 ounces of water and spray suspected entry areas.

Ants

tehag - 8-8-2009 at 10:49 AM

Among the 12,000 named species of ants, the Argentine ant, Linepithema humile is the great pest of the American Southwest. The tips in the article may have little effect on other species. I live in Loreto, where the variety of ants is spectacular, and have found that a commercial spray around the house footing and at obvious entry points works about as well as anything to discourage entry. Once they breech that and are in the house, I use a window cleaning spray directly on them. I pay attention to food source minimizing, ie no dirty dishes in the sink, clean up the spilled whatever at once, pick up the dog-food bowls soon after feeding, etc., and we sort of get along. The very last thing I want to do is risk poisoning my house-full of geckos — they eat spiders.

[Edited on 8-8-2009 by tehag]

ants in the pants

OLIGUACOMOLE - 8-8-2009 at 05:45 PM

Happened again...Just put on shorts from the floor that had red ants on them. Dance is the Ant in de #!@%# Pants

I have not tried this but sounds simple. Where can one get boric acid locally?
http://www.nathanchan.frih.net/?p=101

Bob and Susan - 8-8-2009 at 08:40 PM

diatamatious earth...chalk...other powdery stuff doesnt work

chemicals WORK!!!

home defense is sold at home depot ans it works for awhile
but is very weak

there's a new crystal that the ants take to the hive that works
its at home depot too

ants LOVE food and WATER!!!

Diver - 8-8-2009 at 09:00 PM

Can't you still buy Diazinon powder in Baja ?
A little sprinkled around the outside of the house a few times a year does it.

Cypress - 8-9-2009 at 05:13 AM

boric acid will work on 'em.

Ant control secrets discovered!

Farbauti - 8-9-2009 at 06:51 AM

Like the caveman who first stomped an ant said..." It ain't rocket science."

First realize though, tolerating a few ants in your Baja home may be a more realistic goal. Total eradication of ants may not be possible, nor even desirable. We have had a southern Baja home for over 20 years and rarely have ant problems..and those few are minor.

Second, toxic pesticide sprays and dusts are poor choices in managing ant populations. Their use can make ant problems worse by causing colonies to split up into multiple colonies. Most pesticide applications are not directed at the nest, and because in some species only 5% of a colony's workers are out foraging at any one time, they can leave 95% of the colony intact.

Sanitation. Simple, but most important. Clean, clean, clean...daily. Wash those dishes NOW. Empty garbage. Store food in rubber-sealed containers, not screwtops, put pet food bowls in slightly wider pans of soapy water, clean those countertops, etc....you know this. So eliminate the attractions.

Ants love water, too. Keep kitchen and bathroom areas dry. Wipe counters, eliminate standing water, and fix leaky faucets.

Ants sometimes nest in potted plants. If so, take the plant outside and submerge for 20 minutes in standing water.

A quick, but temporary solution...mix a teaspoon of liquid soap in a quart-size spray bottle filled with water, spray areas where ants are active, and wipe up the dead ants with a sponge. This will destroy the chemical trails left by worker ants. Boric acid mixed with water kills them, too.

Seal entryways. Use good caulking practices & weatherstripping in initial construction. In older homes, replace rotten wood.

Outside landscape control is important too. No overhanging limbs, branches or bushes that allow worker ants to invade your home. No wood stacking up next to the house, provide a vegetation-free border, such as brick or flagstone around the entire house. Regulary inspect potted plants, containers, etc.

Now the most important part..and the sad reality of practicing complete genocide of an ant colony...sigh.

If you feel you must destroy the complete colony, try following a trail of ants until they disappear. You can also place syrup or honey on cardboard or wax paper squares along ant trails. A thick trail leading from the syrup can help you pinpoint the nest. If the nest is found outdoors, pour large amounts of boiling water directly into the nest to destroy it. Use a full pot of water and repeat as necessary..be resolute, you killer.

If you must use chemicals (which we never do), then use a bait chemical. This will carry the poison back to the nest where it will do the most harm. It will kill all the little baby ants, eggs, the queen mother, the males..the entire population...dead, dead, dead...sob.

Now...who can tell me how to destroy these pesky hummingbirds and Monarch butterflies?

[Edited on PMu1u3931/10/ by Farbauti]

vandy - 8-9-2009 at 07:08 AM

I used to use Spic n Span powder to wash my tile/concrete floors. Leave the soap residue on the floor, and ants/bugs/flies stay out.

This thread just made me remember that. I'll have to give it another try.

They seem to have bleeped the first word. I'm sure you know what it is. They are awfully niggardly with their use of language.
(A school superintendent in North Carolina lost his job for using that word).

[Edited on 8-9-2009 by vandy]

CaboRon - 8-9-2009 at 07:38 AM

It is a proper noun ... a brand name .... how rediculous to bleep it :lol:

HotSchott - 8-9-2009 at 04:55 PM

Soak the anthill(s) with a hose or 5 gal bucket of water and wait for the ants to bring up their larva. Then spray with Triazicide. Propane torch works great too, but you have to watch where you torch.

Bob and Susan - 8-10-2009 at 05:13 AM

"Spic n Span"

maybe you spelled it WRONG??? :lol:

[Edited on 8-10-2009 by Bob and Susan]

vandy - 8-10-2009 at 07:11 AM

Spic n Span or "Spic n Span"
Maybe it's the quotation marks

The stuff works on bugs in the house though

Hey BajaNomads, como esta? Been Far North for a spell. Good to be back aboard. So..got a big ant problem?

Pompano - 8-10-2009 at 09:20 AM

(How about some fun? I like this thread, not so...intense.)

ANTS!

"The trouble is...you kill one, and two take it's place."

Here's a proven 2 step program to success.

Step One. AWARENESS

Discovering and acknowledging you have an ant problem.

Have you heard reports of strange flying objects?
Any RV's found torn apart and large suspicious footprints nearby?
Hear eerie shrill chirping sounds coming from large holes in the desert?
Has there ever been a radiation leakage in your neighborhood?

Have you ever come across a little girl wandering the desert near your Baja home, mute and in a state of shock? If so, then have her smell the contents of a vial of formic acid. If that smell frees her from her state of near-catatonic withdrawal, screaming "Them! Them!"..then you have a problem with ants...BIG ants.

Step Two. THE BEST DEFENSE IS A STRONG OFFENSE

Be resolute..do not avoid confronting the problem.

Let's face it, you gotta buck up and kill those queens.
(Now you folks from San Francisco - don't get nervous, we're talking ants here.)

If you come across an ant trail, they'll certainly be worker ants foraging. You must destroy as many of the worker ants as possible with a .45 cal Thompson machine gun. Revolvers have little effect. These ants will be the size of automobiles.
(Hint: shoot for the antennae)

Now follow any surviving worker ants as they lead you back to the main colony. There should be a huge mound in the desert near a few shredded campers. Load a large tanker truck with poison gas and drive it next to the hole. Pump the contents into the colony. There may be some collateral damage at this point but don't let that deter you.

Wait for the gas to disapate and enter the mound cautiously....with many flamethrowers and more Thompsons. Scorch, fry and machinegun the living beejeebers out of anything that is still moving. Hopefully you will kill any and all queens nesting there. There may be some collateral damage at this point, but don't let that deter you.

The threat should be over now, but I would be remiss if I did not issue a grim warning that the atomic genie has been let out of the bottle.....and further horrors may await mankind.

Amendment:

Unfortunately in our last ant shoot-out a queen got away and started a whole new colony in a LA sewer...but that's another story....

DENNIS - 8-10-2009 at 10:35 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Pompano

Hey BajaNomads, como esta? Been Far North for a spell. Good to be back aboard. So..got a big ant problem?

Hi Roger. Good to see you back. Are you here in person?

vandenberg - 8-10-2009 at 10:58 AM

Roger,
Problem here is" No guns allowed "
So, the best I can do would be my BB gun and that would constitute "mucho" work in this heat. :biggrin:

Any other suggestions, like TNT or small nuclear device maybe. :biggrin:

Cypress - 8-10-2009 at 11:53 AM

Pompano, Welcome back. I got an Idaho moose tag!!

vandenberg - 8-10-2009 at 12:26 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Cypress
Pompano, Welcome back. I got an Idaho moose tag!!

Now just hoping that you have better success hunting then you do fishing. :no:

And, don't forget, those Idaho moose are smart and will be looking at you from either Washington or Montana territory and tempt you to break the law. :biggrin:

Cypress - 8-10-2009 at 12:45 PM

vanenberg, Thanks for the advice.

Saw a decent bull this morn, still in velvet. Not even thinking about breaking any laws. Will keep you posted on the moose hunting.

Pompano - 8-10-2009 at 01:06 PM

There are ants here, too!

Hola Dennis,

Not quite to Baja yet. Got sidetracked coming south from the Northland and ended up here at the Sturgis Rally. Ever been to one of these? There are lots of nice Sharkey-type places - stimulating conversations abound.

Hola Ed,

If you can get ahold of some C-4 we'll have a winner. Fire in the hole!

Hola Cypress,

I will return your cane pole and bobber soon. Ants ate the night crawlers, though..sorry. I recently heard the fish were coming back to Mulege...??

Idaho moose. Keep yer powder dry..windage and elevation, windage and elevation.

Skeet/Loreto - 8-10-2009 at 01:14 PM

Pompano: Welcome Home>

Please keep posting those great photos of you catches.

Skeet

Pompano - 8-10-2009 at 01:22 PM

Hola Skeet,

De nada, amigo. I see you're still giving em hell here!

I had a blast reading your fishing comments just now...and all the retorts. Finest kind. Never confuse a good 'barb' with facts.

Glad to oblige with the upcoming photos. But will have to wait until I get back to Baja. The only recent ones I have are salmon, halibut, grayling, char, lakers, and some puny rainbows. I did manage to snag a couple walleyes on the way south ...best shore lunch around.

GeoRock - 8-10-2009 at 01:45 PM

I was told by MaryAnn H. that ants HATE cinnamon. So, I put cinnamon powder on an ant hill outside to test it out. They scattered quickly and avoided contact with the powder. Ants would exit the hole and approach the cinnamon, only to become frantic and go back in the hole. Ants on the outside of the hole, and on the outside of the cinnamon powder encircling the hole, would not cross the cinnamon no matter what.

The next morning the ants had piled sand gravel over the cinnamon and were travelling to and fro their ant hill once again.

However, I used the knowledge to spread cinnamon powder on the inside and outside of all window sills of my Bola house. Not a single ant has risked the burning sensation of the cinnamon oil and entered my house since.

So, however it helps you, I do believe that ants do not like cinnamon powder.

Pompano - 8-10-2009 at 01:56 PM

GeoRock,

In all seriousness, I remember this cinammon home remedy for stopping ant trails. It's a very old solution. My mother would use her old cinammon sticks and grounds along some of the window sills. It worked for us.

Thinking of cinnamon and such..some more old advice moms gave us when we left home. Mine said if we were ever missing home too much to boil some cinammon sticks, pickling juices, and nutmeg in a pan of water. The smells would take us right back to her kitchen.

vandenberg - 8-11-2009 at 02:18 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Cypress
vanenberg, Thanks for the advice.

Saw a decent bull this morn, still in velvet. Not even thinking about breaking any laws. Will keep you posted on the moose hunting.

Don't forget, No hunting in the Zoo. :biggrin:

Hook - 8-11-2009 at 04:14 PM

Cinnamon is probably more expensive than most of the ant control products at the nursery.

We have quite a few red ant hills on our new lot and will be moving onto it within a month. Ferget about interdiction at the front door; I want to begin doing pre-emptive strikes. Any recommendations???

Pompano - 8-16-2009 at 01:45 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Cypress
vanenberg, Thanks for the advice.

Saw a decent bull this morn, still in velvet. Not even thinking about breaking any laws. Will keep you posted on the moose hunting.

Cypress, where we hunt on the high plains we use Mother Nature to bag our moose for us. Just shoo them out onto the flatlands during a lightning storm. Being so long-legged, they are the highest things around. Cooks 'em right on the spot, too. Can't beat a deal like that.

Cypress - 8-16-2009 at 03:11 PM

Pompano, vandenberg, Oh yea, I'm fired up! Those moose are long- legged. Saw a possible shooter the other day. The cane pole? Fiberglass is more better. Been catching lots of 12" crappie and nice blue gills on a 12" fiberglass pole. Wiil be heading for the marsh country after the moose hunt. Look out! Red fish, specs, flounder, etc. Gonna do some squirrel, hog and deer hunting. :biggrin:

Cypress..

Pompano - 8-16-2009 at 04:15 PM

Think big.
.

Cypress - 8-16-2009 at 05:08 PM

Pompano, Thanks. That's a monster. Got my fingers crossed.