While for most people the ant will just be an annoyance there is a danger with ant infestations. The main danger is that the ants could cause disease as they contaminate your food. Ants spend their whole time trying to take your food and they track through who knows what on their way to and from your home. They may walk through contaminated droppings or some other unsavoury site, spreading this through your food preparation areas.
When trying to get rid of ants, it’s helpful to first have a basic understanding how they live and thrive:
They live in colonies and one class within the colony is the worker/gatherer/forager. Workers make up approximately 10% of the colony and it’s their job to go out, find and collect food then bring it back to feed the rest of the colony.
Here are some natural ways to get rid of Ants without Toxic Chemicals
1. Borax Bait
Mix two tablespoons of borax with jam, jelly, honey or syrup until there is a paste. Smear some on some paper or a plate and put it where the ants are at. They should flock to it and eat it and take it back to the nest and it will act as a natural ant killer.
Borax can be found in any Laundry aisle in any Supermarket
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Sugar Bait
2 TBS Boric Acid (Borax)
2 TBS Black Strap Molasses or Honey
1 TBS Yeast
1 TBS Sugar
Mix and place mounds on lids or bottle caps,
Borax can be found in any Laundry aisle in any Supermarket
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Cinnamon Sticks & Garlic Cloves
Place cinnamon sticks or garlic in areas where you have seen ants enter, such as in window tracks, by doors and in corners around your home. While garlic cloves aren't as aromatically pleasing as cinnamon sticks, they work really well. Just peel and slice a few cloves and place them where you notice the ants. -
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Black Pepper
Sprinkle black pepper where you see ants. The ants will immediately scatter. Pay attention to where they run; chances are they will be exiting your house and you’ll be able to treat the entry area with pepper too.
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Mint
Mint destroys the smelling capabilities of ants and prevents them from entering your home. There are several ways to use mint to prevent ant infestations. First, plant mint around your home, especially near doors and close to areas where you have seen anthills. Second, place mint leaves in and around windows. If ants are entering your pantry, place some mint leaves on the shelves and in the corners. mix mint oil and water in a spray bottle and spray where Ants are to deter and repel them
mix this with cinnamon and they will not come in
this also repel Roaches and Ticks and Fleas too
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Citrus Vinegar
Click here to learn how to make Citrus Vinegar
Bug Be Gone Naturally
Mix Equal parts lemon Vinegar with Water in spray bottle and Spray along thresholds, windowsills, around door entrances, and near any cracks or holes where ants or pests may be entering. Ants do not like lemon and will not enter your home. Lemons are also effective against roaches and fleas.
Mix Mint and Lemon Together and you will keep them out all the time and have a Fresh Clean Smell
Corn Starch Honey
mix 2 tsp Cornstarch and 1 tsp honey together to make a thick paste and put it where the ants visit on a jar lid or bottle cap put it near nests or where they visit and you see them
the ants will be drawn to it by the honey but unable to digest the cornstarch but they will not know that until they take it back to the colony and it infects the whole colony
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Important: When baiting so they’ll bring poison back to the nest, resist the temptation to kill them when you see them. You want them to live and take big juicy pieces of poisoned bait back to the nest for the rest of the colony to feast on.
Destroying Their Nests
Here’s a list of spray cleaner recipes you can try…
Clean countertops and surfaces well with one of the cleaners below, these can also be used to spray them directly.
Vinegar
Vinegar & Water (50/50 mix)
Cider Vinegar & Water (50/50 mix)
One of these essential oils: Peppermint, Lavender, Eucalyptus, Tea Tree Oil, Witch Hazel Extract (1 tablespoon) plus water–per spray bottle
Liquid Dish Detergent & Water (about 1 tablespoon detergent, fill spray bottle with water).
Ants leave a scented trail for each other so they can easily find their way back to the jackpot (the food source in your house). Trails can be both visible and invisible to human eyes, but they can follow the trails with ease. Washing away these trails will confuse them and make it more difficult to find their favorite places. Making your own cleaners with the above ingredients also adds a repellent that they will avoid.
Find the nest and pour one of the following solutions into it. Cover your legs and wear rubber boots if possible, they will be streaming out of the nest while you’re doing this.
Nest Destroying Methods:
1/4 cup liquid dish detergent per gallon of boiling water (add soap after water has been removed from heat). This will likely kill surrounding grass and plants. (Good remedy for fire ants).
Pour large amounts of cider vinegar down inside the ant hill. Do this around the surrounding area as well, for at least three days. Will likely kill plants and grass too.
Bring water to a boil, mix in salt to make a strong salt solution and pour down nest. Repeat over three days (and pour over surrounding area as well to prevent them from rebuilding in the area).
Disturb their dwelling regularly: Flood with lots of water (just use the garden hose and let the water run for awhile). Do this daily for at least a week or two. They will eventually get fed up and move.
You can also use Diatomaceous earth instead of Borax
Diatomaceous earth is a remarkable, all-natural product made from tiny fossilized skeletal remains of unicellular plants called diatoms. But while 'DE' may look and feel like talcum powder to us, to insects it is a lethal dust with microscopic razor-sharp edges which cuts thier protective outer covering, leading to desiccation and death. And while DE spells death to insects, it is harmless to humans and pets.
source Wikipedia
Sprinkle a light layer of the powder over any indoor areas that you suspect of having pests such as fleas and ticks. It is very effective on upholstered furniture, carpets and pet beds or areas where your pets spend time. Use a broom to sweep it into any cracks where insects may be hiding. Be sure to get it into all parts of the furniture, including the edges and under the cushions.
Dust outside areas that hide pests, especially spots where your pet likes to rest, since such places can be havens for fleas. Don’t apply diatomaceous earth when the ground or grass is damp, since it will turn to paste and be rendered ineffective. You’ll also need to reapply it after watering or rainfall.
Apply diatomaceous earth to any other areas in your home that may be hiding pests, including crawl spaces, under porches, in the space between walls and in the attic. The more places you can put it, the more pests it can kill. In addition to fleas and ticks, diatomaceous earth is effective against termites and other such pests, but only if you put it where they live.
Vacuum the house a few days after you apply the diatomaceous earth. It isn’t necessary to remove it from places you don’t go, such as in the attic or crawl spaces, but do vacuum your furniture, rugs and other living areas to get rid of the powder and pick up all of the dead and dying pests, along with flea eggs. Outdoors, you can just leave the diatomaceous earth in place.
Kills spiders, Fleas, Ticks, Mites, Ants , Roaches , Bed Bugs, Silverfish and much more
you can find diatomaceous earth at home depot, Lowes , Hardware stores and online retailers
