3 Tips To Help You Conquer Ant Colonies

Keeping your home free from pests can become challenging once the warm summer months set in. A variety of pests flourish during the summer, but few have the ability to colonize as quickly as ants. Finding ants in your home can be intimidating, as these pests can be notoriously difficult to get rid of.

Here are three tips that you can use to successfully conquer any ant colonies you may come across in your home in the future.

1. Deal with the ant trail.

When seeking entry into your property, ants will typically form a line and follow one another inside. You can start eliminating ants from your home by dealing with this ant trail. Locate the source of entry by following the ant trail to a wall or cupboard.

Place some petroleum jelly or an upturned piece of duct tape in front of the entry point to stop new ants from coming inside. Next, take a soapy sponge and wipe up the ants along the existing trail. Clean the trail with a solvent to remove any scents that could be used by ants to find the trail in the future.

2. Eliminate lone scouts.

In addition to dealing with the ant trail, you need to eliminate any lone ants that have been sent out as scouts. These scouts are tasked with locating food sources and bringing this information back to the colony.

If you see any lone ants on your counters, in your cupboards, or on the floor, kill these ants before they can return to the colony with the location of a food source that will be used to establish new ant trails into your home.

3. Keep your home as clean as possible.

Once you have dealt with any existing ants inside your home, you can deter future ant activity by keeping your home as clean as possible. Sweep and vacuum your floors regularly.

Wipe down counters and cupboard shelves daily to eliminate any crumbs that might attract ants to your property. By cleaning your home thoroughly to eliminate any easy food sources, ants will seek nutrition elsewhere and stop coming into your home.

Being able to effectively deal with ants allows you to keep your home free from these colonizing pests in the future. Be sure that you deal with the ant trail, kill off lone scouts, and eliminate crumbs through regular cleaning to keep ants at bay. Work with a local pest control company for more help if needed.