Getting RID of Ants from Your Home!
Here’s one thing about me.
I don’t like ants.
I’m not scared of them or anything. I just don’t want them in my house. Full stop.
I don’t want to see them under my dining table.
Or on my kitchen top.
Or worse, in my bedroom.
Especially NOT when there’ll be a baby on the floor in about two months time!
(I’d look at pictures of ants and I’d immediately feel itchy and start scratching all of the sudden! Haha)
Oh btw, don’t get me wrong though. When I see them OUTSIDE my home, like in a garden or on the streets, I just walk pass them. I let them do whatever they’re doing because to me, they ARE part of nature and they’re not harming us or anything.
(I teach my kids the same too, ie. They’re NOT to purposely kill or step on creatures when they’re not harming us and are outside our home)
…
Anyway.
I was especially annoyed today because I bought this sponge cake, left it on the kitchen top, only to find it covered with at least fifty ants a short while later.
I really NEED to get rid of these army of tiny ants (that often appear from I don’t know where) from my home.
…
I’ve tried using the ‘ant chalk’. I’ve used those ant traps too. But somehow, they don’t quite seem to work very well lately.
(When Brie is on the floor more frequently in a couple of months, I definitely can’t use the ‘ant chalk’ anymore)
…
So I posted a question on my Facebook today, asking for inputs.
I wrote : “Inputs please : how do you effectively get rid of ANTS from your home? Any recommended brand?”
And I got quite a number of responses (*Thanks guys!!*).
I’ve listed out the answers shared on my Facebook in the comment section, so that it can serve as a REFERENCE to others who are facing the same ‘ants’ problem as me.
…
I still do wonder about the many households out there … how do YOU tackle your ants issue at home?
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[…] come every 3 months and then in between as needed. The part that I don’t like is how these Ants appear so fast out of no where whenever there are tiny food bits on the floor. And as you know, […]
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[…] come every 3 months and then in between as needed. The part that I don’t like is how these Ants appear so fast out of no where whenever there are tiny food bits on the floor. And as you know, […]
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There are many useful sites with good list of products for getting rid of ants (here’s a pretty good one https://www.pestsurvivalguide.com/best-ant-killer/. I am facing ant infestation at home as well. The tough part is not about killing them, but keeping them out permanently.
Use plain white chalk around any place that might be an entry point. i have done little experiments with this, and they will not cross over that chalk line.
same! my house if full of ants!
The part that’s annoying is … I do wipe, I sweep, I mop, I put little ants traps and YET they’re still around, fast enough to find little bits of food that falls under the table.
Hi Leonny,
Try using lemon juice! Just squeeze some lemon juice onto a wet towel and wipe your kitchen counter top. Ants and many other critters hate lemon. And lemon is a great cleaning agent too and it doesn’t cost much (:
Esther
Maternity Exchange
Thanks heaps for the tips!! Gotta try this one!
Hi there, do you know that ants really hate Equal? Yes, the sweetener in sachet to replace sugar. Maybe you can test it first by pouring a little amount if you see ants and see the reaction 😉
Hi Shiella, Thanks for sharing this …
And, Equal? really? =)
Hi Leonny,
I was once in the problem as you… after i did some online search, and i found a cheap and good way to keep away.. I have been using this method whenever i saw ants.. and it works… keeping ants out of my house now..
And that is: White vinegar is considered to be effective home remedy to kill ants. Simply you have to spread white vinegar in areas affected by ants and you will get rid of ants in minutes.
You can read more from my blog:
http://thelittlethingsyjdo.blogspot.com/2011/07/10-simple-ways-to-get-rid-of-ants.html
Cool!! Thanks Yvonne for sharing!! =)
Not sure what’s the brand of the brownish grains that NTUC sells… I got mine from neighbourhood shops that sells household miscellaneous items. The brand is “Once for All” or “一扫光”. It’s effective as the ants usually disappear after I used one sachet.
I detest lizards! If there are effective ways to get rid of them, pls share =)
I heard that lizards hate peacock feathers?
I’m ok with cockroaches (not that I ‘like’ them of course!) BUT … lizards, … urgh, I know they’re supposed to clean, harmless and all, but I have such a phobia!
Hi Leonny, lately,my home has been invaded with those tiny red ants which bites human. Usually, for black ants, I do not care….I let them do whatever they want as I know they just want food.
I usually will just put COMBAT bait to lure these ants and let them carry to their nest. I believe it’s a seasonal thing, sometimes you see them, sometimes you don’t.
Initally, i thought of using Dettol multi cleaner to clean it up, especially so when I thought Danson has some sweet stuff on his hands and touch things all over. I even used detergent…yeah, it did clean up the pathway and the ants were not using that track anymore.
I have begun to accept that as long as there is no railway tracks of ants to a particular food particle on the floor or mountain of ants, it’s okie to have a few ants here and there. It’s part of natural. The most important thing is to clean everyday.
I used Combat the mini baits. Doesn’t (and did NOT) work. sigh.
The part that I don’t like is how these ants appear so fast out of no where whenever there are tiny food bits on the floor. And as you know, with kids around, how can the house be completely sterile … =) basically I’m more concerned now because Brie will be on the floor more often real soon (actually even now she’s on the floor in our living room a lot already)
I don’t used any insects spray to get rid of ants…the place we eat, like the dining table, kitchen. I only used the ant chalk outside these area.
A very traditional way, sweet things inside the cupboard, i just put a little of water in the a saucer and place underneath a plate or bowl.
Sometimes, is our careless for not close the lid or tied up nicely. So everytime I make sure everything is closed nicely and tightly.
Ants love to walk around the area which still have stains (where we can’t even notice and seeing it). Clean the kitchen, table or that area with detergent, as our normal practice and then second round damp the clothes with luke warm water and wipe again.
I also practice dip my table coths with detergent and hot water every week to make sure is clean.
Thanks for sharing the tips, Angeline! =)
Here are the shared TIPS and inputs from friends on Facebook!
– Use eucalyptus oil
Drip some where the ants gather (best, to their nest)
Risk: they’ll all come out, but usually they’ll die afterwards.
– Ants chalk (can be found in supermarkets in Indonesia)
– I detest bugs and all sorts of critters, you know that. 🙂 So we use a pest control service with an annual contract. They come every 3 months and then in between as needed. When we were in Cambodia, we were at a house that had their food cabinet raised up with bowls of water underneath the legs. This kept ants out of their food. I’m sure that’s not what you’re needing but I thought it was brilliant.
– Ants chalk, but not too ‘safe’ when kids are around. Eucalyptus oil is safer.
– This ‘ant chalk’ is banned in the US because it’s considered as pesticide and is poisonous (to kids, esp.) if swallowed
– I use ‘Zambuk’, apply it on the nest. It works!
– Use Baygon (spray)
– Lemongrass oil?
– Buy from NTUC supermarket, small grains. Place them near the nest. The ants will come out in the beginning, and they’ll bring them to the nest. They’ll disappear after a while.
– I think combat brand is helpful.. Can buy from any supermarket..
– A friend used baby powder and it deterred but wasn’t a fix. They ants wouldn’t cross the line of powder.
– I bought Pest Stop in Popular. Plug it to the power socket. It works on insects, except spiders. It gradually works in about 2 weeks or so. After that, they’ll disappear.
– Ants chalk ….. the same as the chalk we used during our schooldays on blackboard
– Heard from Filipina maid once, use BLEACH and toothbrush (with no added water). Brush over the ” passage ways ” where the ants / insects walked pass
– Try PC-CIDE from DiY shop, very effective !
– Bought the ‘grains’ from NTUC supermarket. Tried the one where you plug in to the power socket too, but it doesn’t repel lizards …
– I bought and placed the Mortein Plastic squarish trap-like ant killer along the areas with most ants and today, I opened my cabinet and saw tons of dead ants. It’s 5 days since I lay those mortein stuff. I do see a decrease in ants. I say it works. Cost me $5 for a pack of 4.