Tips for Stopping That Ant Infestation

Springtime is when ants typically become a household problem, but these insects can invade your home at any time of the year. These small pests are capable of squeezing through the tiniest of spaces, making it seem impossible to prevent them from getting into your home. Here are some tips that will help stop that ant infestation from happening to your home.

Destroy the Trail

When ants travel through a home, they tend to leave a trail behind that is invisible to humans but visible to other ants. It is made by leaving a smell that ants can sense that help them with navigating back to their nest. If a scouting ant discovers that a home has food in it, they'll head back to the nest to tell the others. If you can destroy that trail, you'll prevent the ants from finding their way back to the food. They'll eventually head back and, hopefully, leave your home.

The best way to destroy an ant trail is to use a powerful cleaning solution that is made with ammonia or bleach. Wipe down all the floors and countertops where ants may have been traveling to find food. It creates a powerful smell that will be overwhelming to ants, which they hate.

Use Deterring Scents

One thing to keep in mind is that the scents that are appealing to you will not have the same effect on an ant. Due to their strong sense of smell, pungent scents can cause ants to go back in the opposite direction. Use this to your advantage by having strong scents in your home that are pleasant to you. Two scents that ants do not like are peppermint oil and cinnamon. You can place these near where you have seen ants traveling, which will help repel the ants.

Use Ant Bait

Sometimes you have to let ants into your home to get rid of them. If you see a trail of ants that are looking for food, you can place ant bait in their path in order to kill them. They'll take the bait back to their nest, where it is consumed by other ants and eventually kills them. Over several days, enough ants will take the bait and the rest of the ant colony should be killed off.

Contact an Exterminator

If these tips are not working, it may be time to call in a professional. Reach out to a local extermination business such as Be There Pest Control.

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