Have you ever dealt with an ant infestation in your home or on your property? If so, you know first-hand how frustrating and difficult this situation can be. In this post, we’re going to cover some of our best advice on how to get rid of ants with tips for controlling and treating the problem.
FACTS ABOUT ANTS
Before we explore how to get rid of ants, let’s cover some of the common types of ants and discuss some important facts about ants that help us understand their behaviour.
First, it’s essential to understand that ants are social insects who live in colonies. They’re known to enter through the tiniest spaces they can find in search of water or food. Ants are especially drawn to greasy, protein-rich foods or sweet foods. Being as social as they are, they leave a trail of pheromones behind them so other ants can find them and enjoy the food source as well.
This also explains why we often see ants traveling in a straight line: they’re looking for the shortest, faster route to the food source, so they follow the pheromone trail directly and in line with one another.
It’s also important to remember there are almost 12,000 known species of ants, many of which have different habits, behaviours, and food sources.
These are a few of the ones you’re likely to see in and around your home:
CARPENTER ANTS: The carpenter ant is most commonly black. However, they can also have a red or even a yellowish color to them. They prefer dead, damp wood but instead of consuming wood like termites do, they leave behind a material that looks like sawdust. A mature western black carpenter ant colony can contain about 10-20,000 workers once mature, with large colonies of more than 50,000 individual ants. Their bites do not pose a significant health risk, but can be incredibly painful.
PHARAOH ANTS: Pharaoh ants are tiny, yellowish ants known for being a major nuisance indoors. They can be especially difficult to eradicate since they make their nests in highly inaccessible locations, often near warm moist areas.
PAVEMENT ANTS: Pavement ants are small black ants. Pavement and pharaoh ants do not pose as serious a threat as the carpenter ant does to your home, but they still need to be dealt with immediately.
FIRE ANTS: Fire ants are a species of stinging ants found across the world, including in Ontario, Canada. This resilient species can survive floods by forming clumps of over 100,000 ants on the surface of the water. Their bites are known for being particularly painful. Here’s what to do if you’ve been bitten by a fire ant.
When it comes to how to get rid of ants, relying on the help of experts is useful because we know how to identify exactly what you’re dealing with and the best way to get rid of the ants.
However, when you first spot an ant problem that doesn’t appear to be serious, there are a few steps you can take on your own to sort out the problem.
HOW TO GET RID OF ANTS YOURSELF
Bait them: Baiting ants can be a good way to eradicate a colony. To do this, place bait where you’ve seen ants. The most effective bait can change during the year, though. Ants usually prefer protein-rich foods in the spring and sweets or greasy foods in the summer. To set a bait, start by setting out sugar or honey, fried, greasy food, and peanut butter, then see which food attracts the most ants. Then you’ll use the food they’re most attracted to as bait in an attempt to wipe out the colony.
Remove their trail: Remember what we explained about ants leaving a trail so other ants can follow and enjoy the same food source? Simply sweeping or mopping won’t be enough to eliminate the scent they follow. To stop outdoor nesting ants that entered your home to forage for food, mix 1 part vinegar with 3 parts water in a spray bottle. Use this solution in any areas within your home where you’ve spotted ants. Once ants have already nested within your home, you’ll have to use bait to wipe out the colony rather than throwing them off the scent trail.
Keep your home clean: Now that we know ants are attracted to different kinds of foods, we know just how important it is to keep your home clean and remove any food debris and mess as soon as possible. The longer food and other items sit around mean the better chance ants have to find their way into your home to cause trouble.
DON’T MAKE THIS MISTAKE WHILE YOU’RE GETTING RID OF ANTS
One of the common mistakes homeowners make in dealing with ants is waiting too long to get help.
If you suspect your home or property has been infested by ants and you’re eager to eradicate these awful pests from the area, don’t wait!
Call Brilliex Pest Control today and we’ll send pest control experts to your home to deal with the problem professionally and effectively. Our team of professional ant exterminators is ready to serve you at your home or business in Toronto & GTA. We are licensed by the Ministry Of Environment (MOE) and our technicians are trained and on standby to deal with any ant removal jobs.
CALL BRILLIEX PEST CONTROL FOR THE MOST EFFECTIVE ANT TREATMENT
At Brilliex Pest Control, we try to avoid the use of insecticides by implementing alternative, less toxic methods to control ants whenever possible. If an ant infestation is mild, getting rid of food sources, keeping the area clean, removing scent trails, and baiting potential areas like we described could help with controlling an ant infestation.
In the event of an extreme ant infestation, our team of Toronto ant exterminators will treat the area with safe insecticides and guarantee the work for 90 days.
HOW TO GET RID OF ANTS IN YOUR HOME
Have you ever dealt with an ant infestation in your home or on your property? If so, you know first-hand how frustrating and difficult this situation can be. In this post, we’re going to cover some of our best advice on how to get rid of ants with tips for controlling and treating the problem.
FACTS ABOUT ANTS
Before we explore how to get rid of ants, let’s cover some of the common types of ants and discuss some important facts about ants that help us understand their behaviour.
First, it’s essential to understand that ants are social insects who live in colonies. They’re known to enter through the tiniest spaces they can find in search of water or food. Ants are especially drawn to greasy, protein-rich foods or sweet foods. Being as social as they are, they leave a trail of pheromones behind them so other ants can find them and enjoy the food source as well.
This also explains why we often see ants traveling in a straight line: they’re looking for the shortest, faster route to the food source, so they follow the pheromone trail directly and in line with one another.
It’s also important to remember there are almost 12,000 known species of ants, many of which have different habits, behaviours, and food sources.
These are a few of the ones you’re likely to see in and around your home:
CARPENTER ANTS: The carpenter ant is most commonly black. However, they can also have a red or even a yellowish color to them. They prefer dead, damp wood but instead of consuming wood like termites do, they leave behind a material that looks like sawdust. A mature western black carpenter ant colony can contain about 10-20,000 workers once mature, with large colonies of more than 50,000 individual ants. Their bites do not pose a significant health risk, but can be incredibly painful.
PHARAOH ANTS: Pharaoh ants are tiny, yellowish ants known for being a major nuisance indoors. They can be especially difficult to eradicate since they make their nests in highly inaccessible locations, often near warm moist areas.
PAVEMENT ANTS: Pavement ants are small black ants. Pavement and pharaoh ants do not pose as serious a threat as the carpenter ant does to your home, but they still need to be dealt with immediately.
FIRE ANTS: Fire ants are a species of stinging ants found across the world, including in Ontario, Canada. This resilient species can survive floods by forming clumps of over 100,000 ants on the surface of the water. Their bites are known for being particularly painful. Here’s what to do if you’ve been bitten by a fire ant.
When it comes to how to get rid of ants, relying on the help of experts is useful because we know how to identify exactly what you’re dealing with and the best way to get rid of the ants.
However, when you first spot an ant problem that doesn’t appear to be serious, there are a few steps you can take on your own to sort out the problem.
HOW TO GET RID OF ANTS YOURSELF
Bait them: Baiting ants can be a good way to eradicate a colony. To do this, place bait where you’ve seen ants. The most effective bait can change during the year, though. Ants usually prefer protein-rich foods in the spring and sweets or greasy foods in the summer. To set a bait, start by setting out sugar or honey, fried, greasy food, and peanut butter, then see which food attracts the most ants. Then you’ll use the food they’re most attracted to as bait in an attempt to wipe out the colony.
Remove their trail: Remember what we explained about ants leaving a trail so other ants can follow and enjoy the same food source? Simply sweeping or mopping won’t be enough to eliminate the scent they follow. To stop outdoor nesting ants that entered your home to forage for food, mix 1 part vinegar with 3 parts water in a spray bottle. Use this solution in any areas within your home where you’ve spotted ants. Once ants have already nested within your home, you’ll have to use bait to wipe out the colony rather than throwing them off the scent trail.
Keep your home clean: Now that we know ants are attracted to different kinds of foods, we know just how important it is to keep your home clean and remove any food debris and mess as soon as possible. The longer food and other items sit around mean the better chance ants have to find their way into your home to cause trouble.
DON’T MAKE THIS MISTAKE WHILE YOU’RE GETTING RID OF ANTS
One of the common mistakes homeowners make in dealing with ants is waiting too long to get help.
If you suspect your home or property has been infested by ants and you’re eager to eradicate these awful pests from the area, don’t wait!
Call Brilliex Pest Control today and we’ll send pest control experts to your home to deal with the problem professionally and effectively. Our team of professional ant exterminators is ready to serve you at your home or business in Toronto & GTA. We are licensed by the Ministry Of Environment (MOE) and our technicians are trained and on standby to deal with any ant removal jobs.
CALL BRILLIEX PEST CONTROL FOR THE MOST EFFECTIVE ANT TREATMENT
At Brilliex Pest Control, we try to avoid the use of insecticides by implementing alternative, less toxic methods to control ants whenever possible. If an ant infestation is mild, getting rid of food sources, keeping the area clean, removing scent trails, and baiting potential areas like we described could help with controlling an ant infestation.
In the event of an extreme ant infestation, our team of Toronto ant exterminators will treat the area with safe insecticides and guarantee the work for 90 days. Call us today!
To learn more, contact Brilliex Pest at 647-776-7739 or Toll-Free 1-866-650-1811 or Contact Brilliex Pest for a Free Estimate