Help!! I have been having terrible problems with ants on my counters in the kitchen. I have sprayed and sprayed. Bleached down my counters, cleaned everything off and sprayed fully with ant spray and still they continue to come back. I absolutely cannot stand to have this type of thing going on. So unsanitary. I cannot find where they are coming from and have sprayed around the baseboards and all cracks and crevices but they continue to return. Please, if you have any sure fire way to get rid of these I would greatly appreciate your help!!! Thank you in advance for any advice.
I just had a conversation this morning about ants.
Cut up some cucumbers and leave it for them to feast upon. It is a feast to the death. Cucumbers kills them. :-( sad for the ants but great for you and the family.
I asked the same question last week! I got so many great answers. I can't tell you which one worked, because I tried so many of them at once! I wiped everywhere I saw them with vinegar. Then I sprinkled Cayenne and cornmeal in those areas and around all doorways and entryways. I drew chalk lines in places I absolutely don't want them, like the kids room and bathroom. I just did this weekend, so, I'm not sure just yet. I'm trying the home remedies 1st. If I see anymore than I will go ahead and buy the Terro. You can go to my profile and see the responses I got and see if any are helpful.
The ants must be bad this year! I use liquid ant bait. I currently have a bottle of the "Torro" brand that is in a bottle, but I just saw at Target recently that they have the liquid ant bait in the little discs that you just set out. I would think that the traps are safer with kids and pets. It's the only thing that I found works with these type of ants, but it does work great. Like one of the other ladies said, don't wipe the ants away, let them take the bait to their "mound" and that's what kills them all :)
Good luck!
My fiance and I were having the same problem. Although they were not on our counter tops.
He got 'AMDRO Ant killing bait'. You use those outside and then he also go ' ORTHO Home Defence Max' We spray that at the base boards of the doors and so far no ants!
Hope it helps you, like it has helped us.
Ok. here are some options we use...and it works for us.
Take chalk, the kind they use in school on chalk boards, and draw a complete line on the inside of your cupboards. The chaul cuts up their little bodies...they will not be able to get in or out.
I make a spray that kills the little buggars and get's rid of their scent so others don't follow...and it wont risk bleaching everything. Get a spray bottle. Fill it with 1.5 oz dish soap, 1.5 oz with mouth wash, 1.5 cups of water.
Something else I use, that is good on windows as well, is a spray bottle filled with 50/50 rubbing alcohol/water and a drop of dish soap.
Ants to not like orange oil. If your cabinets are wood, or you have any wood areas you want to keep the little buggars away from, use whatIuse It is fantastic for wood, non toxic, and the ants will not like the orange oil. Here is a link:
Best of luck.
I mix equal parts of borax (laundry detergent), baking soda and sugar and sprinkle it where they are. They will take it to their hive (?) for the other ants too. It does take a couple of weeks, but they don't come back once they're gone. Also, keep out of reach of anyone who may eat that - or skip the borax.
Never heard of the cinnamon thing, but next time I have a problem, I'll put the mix outside of a cinnamon line so they will stay out and self-destruct at the same time.
Hi C.. We always have ants this time of year too and I can't stand it either. I use Terro. It is THE BEST thing I've ever used to get rid of ants. I use the liquid - http://www.terro.com/products.php?product=liquid_ant_killer . You just put one drop of the liquid on a little piece of paper or index card (1 inch x 1 inch). The ants will swarm to it and take it back to the colony. It's safe to use inside too. Good luck!
I have never tried Rhonda's answer - but I will the next time I have an ant problem! Sounds great :)
When I have had ants in the past, I have liberally sprinkled cinnamon all over the area and left it overnight. The next morning I vacuum it up and do it again. After about a week, the ants stop coming. I have always had it work and I like it because my kids and animals never leave anything alone!
Try covering your countertops at bedtime with the cinnamon and as many times during the day as you can (I know it's hard because you need that area to prepare food) and give it a few days. Worst that will happen is that you are out about $5 worth of cinnamon :)
Good luck!
