Solving Your Ant Problem
An ant infestation in your kitchen or multiple rooms inside your house is frustrating, confusing, and a little gross. You might feel like you keep a neat home and wonder why they keep showing up and how you can stop them. Try these suggestions.
Use Peppermint
The minty, pleasant odor of peppermint can be energizing and uplifting for humans. Ants, however, are overwhelmed by the scent. The strong odor is disorienting and can mask the smell of food that could be luring them into the house in the first place.
For peppermint to be an effective deterrent, you might purchase peppermint oil. A few drops near windows or other entry points could be enough. Peppermint plants around the house's perimeter could work too.
Make Borax Paste
Borax is poisonous for ants and many insects. A sweet borax paste could be what you need to eliminate the ant problem you've got. Combine borax, water and either peanut butter or sugar to make a sweet-smelling paste and put it into a shoebox or plastic container. Punch some holes so ants can smell it, become interested, and venture inside.
If you do use borax paste, be aware that it could make small animals ill. Ensure that your own pets don't get into the jar containing the paste.
Draw Chalk Lines
It seems completely odd that something your children may have in their rooms could help combat ants, but chalk might help. When ants get chalk dust on their tiny feet, it throws off their tracking senses and pheremone recognition that helps guide them. Some people claim that ants won't even attempt to cross a line drawn in chalk. Try it; your results may be positive.
Mark Off Areas with Petroleum Jelly
If you're seeing the same ant line leading to pet food or the sink, stop them cold with a finger's worth of petroleum jelly marking off the area they seem to like so much.The stickiness of the substance could cause them to get and remain stuck, and other ants should steer clear once they realize the barrier's there.
Soak Cotton Balls with White Vinegar
Plain white vinegar may already be in your kitchen somewhere, and if you've got cotton balls, you have the means to stop an ant problem. Soaking the balls in the liquid creates a scent that, like peppermint, is very strong and disturbing for the insects. They won't want to be nearby.
With all the solutions here, your ant problem should improve. For quicker results, pest control companies can help.