Ant Control: Everything You Need To Know

Everything You Need to Know About Ant Control

There’s nothing worse than dealing with an insect invasion in your home. Of all the bugs you might have to deal with, though, ants can be one of the most frustrating.

Maybe you’ve noticed a trail of ants going to and from your sink. Or, you might have opened a kitchen cupboard and found a line of ants marching towards your honey jar. Wherever they happen to be in your home, getting rid of an ant problem can be quite the challenge.

When it comes to ant control, it’s essential that you take the right approach. Simply killing a few ants here or there is unlikely to actually solve your problem, and determining exactly what you need to do to get rid of them once and for all can be confusing and complicated. That’s why we’ve put together this comprehensive guide to everything you need to know about ant control. Keep reading to learn more.

Why (and How) Ants Invade a Home

Before you can take the necessary steps to get rid of ants, it’s important to understand why and how they invade your home.

More than any other reason, ants enter your home in search of food and water. Ants live in what are called colonies, each of which is made up of a queen, a number of males, and a large number of sterile female worker ants. It’s the job of the workers to go out in search of food and water, and sometimes they’ll enter your home through various cracks and crevices while they’re out scouting for food sources.

Once a worker finds a sizeable, reliable food source (like the bag of sugar in your cupboard, for example), they’ll head back to the nest to let the rest of the colony know. Along the way, they’ll leave behind a trail of pheromones that makes it easy for more workers to find their way back. Next thing you know, your kitchen is literally crawling with ants.

How to Identify An Ant Infestation

From the moment you see ants in your home, you’re probably eager to spring into action and get rid of them. Before you can take the necessary steps toward proper ant control, though, you have to identify what type of ant infestation you have.

In simple terms, there are two types of ant infestations:

1. Ants that live outside and forage inside: Some ants will take up residence in a nest outside your home, and then come in and out of your house to transport food back to the nest. With this type of infestation, you’ll want to seal up entry points wherever possible and direct your ant control strategy toward disrupting their scent trails.
2. Ants that nest inside your home: A number of ant species, particularly Argentine ants and carpenter ants, will actually build nests inside your home. Ant bait is an effective way to control this type of infestation, as simply disrupting the ants’ scent trails is unlikely to solve your problem.

Carpenter ants can be particularly problematic. When they nest inside your home, they can cause serious structural damage. And, considering that carpenter ant queens can live to be up to 25 years old, you’ll need to take proper action in order to eliminate a colony for good.

You can prevent future infestations by trimming back trees and bushes around your house, and ensuring that the wooden structure of your home is properly sealed.

Professional Ant Control

At the end of the day, the best way to ensure that the ants in your home are eliminated is with the help of a professional home pest control company.

Ant control professionals have the experience necessary to get rid of your ant infestation for good. They can determine whether you’re dealing with an indoor or outdoor colony, and apply ant baits and sprays in the proper locations.

Professional home ant control can cost anywhere from $100 to $500 for an initial treatment, depending on the size of your home. Ongoing home maintenance usually costs between $20 and $50 per month. It’s also possible to bundle ant control services with other home pest prevention services, including termite prevention.

Additional Ant Control Tips

Dealing with an ant infestation isn’t easy. Here are some final tips to help you get rid of ants as quickly as possible:

1. Eliminate water sources: Excess standing water can make ant problems worse.
2. Remove sources of food: Remember, food is what attracts ants to your home.
3. Keep your yard tidy: The less debris there is in your yard, the less likely you are to end up with an ant infestation.
4. Find and eliminate the nest: If ants take up residence in your home, eliminating the nest is essential to getting rid of them for good.
5. Erase their scent trails: For ants with a nest outside your home, simply eliminating their scent trails may be enough to solve your ant problem.
6. Don’t go it alone: Enlisting the help of a home pest control company is the best way to ensure that your home is completely ant free.