When I was growing up during the warm summer months my grandma's kitchen would be filled with ants. Each morning we would wake up to ants around the sink, on the counters, and crawling up the cupboards.
One day she hired a person to come to the house to spray for the ants. Afterwards, we couldn't use the kitchen for several hours and had to disinfect the countertops and sink area. After the spraying my grandmother took sick. The smell of the spray was toxic to her and put her in the hospital for a few days.
During this time I needed to clean the kitchen and try to air out the home so she could return. I decided to clean the windows in the kitchen. I noticed that we had ants again. The spay they used didn't stop the ants in the kitchen or garden.
When I was cleaning the windows I decided to spray the ants with Windex. I saw the ants dying off quickly. For the next week we didn't have a single ant in our kitchen. When the ants returned a few weeks later I sprayed them again with Windex. This seemed to be the perfect solution to control the ants in the kitchen.
Windex was't harmful to my grandmother and the ammonia in the Windex was perfect for cleaning the kitchen. We used Windex on the stove and refrigerator to clean the stovetop and outside of the refrigerator. Now we used Windex on the counter, around the baseboards, and sink area. We no longer had ants in our home.
Years ago we didn't have Internet, home remedies, or other solutions to control ants. When we had an ant problem we just took out the bottle of Windex and sprayed the kitchen.
Today I still use Windex or another brand of window cleaner to control ants in my home. I guess some old tricks stick with us through the years.
Does anyone have a suggestions on how to get rid of ants? They are on my kitchen counter and believe it or not in my bathroom! Please help.
By Kathy F.
Well, the ants come from outside and they may have built a nest in your wall cavities so you could hire a exterminator to spray the foundation on the outside. They use a product that the ants carry back to the nest to feed on and die.
How does one get rid of the small tiny ants that keep coming back almost every summer in the kitchen?
By John Bliss
As soon as you see the first ant, put out a mixure of borax and sugar with enough water to make it liquid. I use an old can lid and put it down where I have seen the first ant. They will flock to the sugar, borax, water mix.
I put borax and sugar in the blender to make a light powder. I place a teaspoon of this on every ant hill, where ever I see a line of ants, and about every eighteen inches all around the foundation of our house. Our neighborhood has been over run with ants. It has taken me about 4-5 years of doing this several times every summer.
The ants started thinning out after a couple of years, and this spring was the first time no ants came into our home (so far, I have not put any out).
No other method has worked for me. If you want immediate response, this is not the method for you - but I'd still use it along with any other method you choose. One note: the sugar actually attracts the ants, so don't be surprised to see lots more when you first put it out.
A little line of talcom powder does it. Across the doorstep and along the walls where they are coming in. They won't cross it and it is harmless to everything.
Be aware that borax is a poison, and is not a relatively harmless substance just because you find it in the laundry room. You may poison something else with this as well. This is not to tell you not to use, just to say that it isn't that much more environmentally friendly than a pesticide you might purchase. You might also kill some bees or "friendly" insects like ladybugs, and you would not want it anywhere near food or where your pets might walk in it.
I use the little ant traps that look like little tin cans. I believe they also have a substance that the ants take back to the hill. Diatomaceous earth which is sold under a variety of names is a substance made from petrified seashells that will shred the ant's exoskeletons. Not a comfortable experience, I am sure, but it is non-toxic to pets and people.
If you want to kill them in the hill, the best pesticide I have used is the Raid spray foam. It is a bit pricey, but VERY effective. It, of course, is a poison.
I spray apple cider vinegar full strength along baseboard and door sill as well as on my counter tops. Kills the ants and won't harm you. It lingers quite a while to keep them away.
We have got ants everywhere in the kitchen. How can I get rid of them?
By Alec
There is a product called Terro. It's basically a syrup that has chemicals that kill the whole colony. You put a quarter sized drop on the little cardboard pieces they give you and stick them between the fridge and stove, stove and counters, under the sink, etc. It's ok if pets or kids get into it, but it's better if it's where the ants are and not seen by curious critters. The inert ingredient is basically a sweet syrup like pancake syrup.
If you can see the circle an hour or so later, you will see the entomological equivalent of a solar eclipse. They will be around the outside like a bunch of animals in a drinking hole. Then, they will take it all back and kill the rest.
The other solution is to also find out where they are coming from. You didn't mention if you lived where your home connects to others? It might be they are coming from them. If so, you landlord needs to be contacted and they will pay for and exterminator for all the units effected, and charge the person causing it.
Most of the time, it's simply poor housekeeping so that is an issue they can address at the same time. If you need more info, go to www.terro.com and they have everything you need to know. A small bottle costs about 4.00 and goes a long way.
I hope that helps.
I have these little brown ants crawling all over my kitchen counters, my sink, etc. and want to get rid of them. I have tried all kinds of things, but nothing works. I would like to know if anyone has a natural home remedy for getting rid of these pesky ants? It is kind of unappetizing to have these things crawling over the dishes and silverware and everywhere else!
By Linda Delcamp from Brighton, MI
My husband and I live in an apartment complex and we had the same problem. There were ants crawling around our kitchen and bathroom floors. I called the management office and one of the maintenance men gave me a box of Raid Double Control Ant Baits. There are 3 in box. The front of the box says that it kills the colony and keeps killing for 3 months. It definitely took care of the problem.
You must be careful where you place these. This is toxic to children and pets. This does not work instantly. The ants will take this back to the nest. Eventually all the ants will die. I have found boric acid in dollar discount stores. As it is with any powder chemical, be careful when adding the boric acid that you do not inhale it. As a precaution, I always place these in areas of our home in the spring whether I see ants or not.
ANT KILL
3 cup warm water
4 tsp. boric acid
2 cup sugar
Mix in large bowl until dissolved. Add some cotton balls to three jelly jars or something similar. Pour some of the mixture onto cotton balls in each jar. Do not fill completely. Leave small amount of mixture on the sides outside of the jars to lure the ants. Tightly place lids with small ant holes on jars. Put in areas where you see the ants but out of reach of children and pets.
I am a vegetarian and try not to kill living things and this includes ants. Is there anything I can use to keep ants out of the kitchen without killing them?
By CuddlyDuck from Birmingham, West Midlands
I am having a hard time with ants in the kitchen. Is there something I can do to get rid of them? It seems like every spring I am having this problem.
If you see ants in your kitchen, it's really pointless to kill them. If you kill 10, they wont be missed by the nest which may contain thousands. You can use these 10+ ants to your advantage.
How can I keep ants off my kitchen cupboard?
By joann berg
I kill them by using non stick cooking spray! It kills them if they are the little black ants.
Please help I have ants are all in my kitchen.
By
Vinegar is cheapest, cleanest and easiest way to get rid of them. I used white but imagine cider would work as well. I put it in spray bottle and wiped everything down. If I saw an ant I sprayed it then threw it away and then sprayed trash. They do leave trails that others will follow.
Now about once a week I walk around entire house and give a vinegar spray. I have not seen another one.
