Even though there are more than 12,000 species of ants around the world, there are only a few of them that like to make their way into your home. These ants are searching for something greasy or sweet. As much of a pain as it is to have a bunch of ants inside of your home and getting into everything, they do serve a purpose for the environment. The best thing you can do is try to prevent them from coming into your home, rather than trying to eliminate them entirely. To help control ants, there are a few things that you can do on your own.
Eliminate the scouts.
The very first time you see an ant in your home that often means that more are lurking around somewhere. Ants often send out what is referred to as a scout. These scouts come in and scout out the place to determine whether it is a good place to make their home or not. When you see an ant, you need to get to work right away cleaning your kitchen.
Eliminate all traces of anything sweet, greasy, sticky or fleshy. If you have any dirty dishes that need to be washed, make sure you do it before turning in for the night. Wipe all surfaces down with a disinfectant that repels ants and makes them go elsewhere. The key is keeping your surfaces free from anything that is going to draw the ants in and make them want to invade your space.
Seal off entry points.
If possible, try to track down where the ants are making their way into your home. By finding where the ants are coming in, you can seal off the entry points and prevent them from being able to come back inside. Use some form of silicone caulk, glue, plaster or putty. There are other temporary methods that you can use to seal off the entrances, such as petroleum jelly. However, those should only be used as a last resort and just until you are able to get something more permanent. Otherwise, the gap will end up opening up again and again, thus defeating the whole purpose of trying to keep the ants out.
Go on the defensive.
There are a variety of methods that you can use to form a barrier around your home and keep the ants away. Many items are those that many people have in their kitchen already, you just have to use them the right way. Essentially, you want to make a barrier out of the item. The barrier doesn’t need to be extremely thick, even a quarter inch is sufficient. However, you do need to lay down a line of the item to form a solid barrier.
Common items that people use to form barriers are cinnamon, turmeric, baby powder, Vaseline, black pepper and citrus oil. It doesn’t matter which item you choose to use. Just make sure your barrier is a solid line and there are no breaks in it. Otherwise, the ants will find that break and keep making their way into your home.
Use coffee grounds to your advantage.
Instead of throwing out your old coffee grounds, consider using them around the outside of your home. The coffee grounds will leave the ants confused and prevent them from being able to find their trail and make their way back inside of your home. The best part of all is that the coffee grounds are biodegradable, which means you don’t have to worry about a bunch of messy clean-up.
Simply empty your coffee grounds around the foundation of your home until you have formed a solid barrier around the entire perimeter of your property. It might take a bit to see the full effects of the coffee grounds, but it will be well worth it in the end when the ants go away.
When all else fails, you can turn to a pest control expert to come out and tackle the problem for you. Even though ants are needed, you don’t need them in your home. You deserve to have an ant free environment where you can rest assured that your food is safe, secure and free from ants.
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