Ants are the most common insect infesting homes. Ants enter your home because they need food or water or to find a mate or nesting site. They can take their time getting into your house, but once inside, they will scavenge for any type of food and contaminate everything in their path with pheromones that attract other ants. They also create unsanitary conditions by depositing droppings on floors, countertops, and other surfaces where disease-causing organisms thrive. So what can you do about it? Read on to find out!
Rosemary Oil
Rosemary oil is a very common and relatively easy way to keep ants at bay. First, try mixing a few drops of rosemary oil into a spray bottle with distilled water. Then, spray the mixture around the perimeter of your home, along windowsills, doors, and any other possible entry points for ants. The strong scent of the rosemary will deter most ants from entering your home.
Garlic
Garlic is a strong-smelling, natural pesticide that can keep ants out of your house when mixed with water and placed near openings in your home. Another method of using garlic to exterminate ants is by mixing 1/2 cup chopped garlic cloves with 2 cups water in a blender for about 1 minute. Next, strain the mixture through cheesecloth and mix it with 1 teaspoon of liquid dish soap together in a bucket before pouring it down drains or other areas where ants may enter.
Cayenne Pepper
Cayenne pepper powder is helpful for keeping ants at bay because it masks their scent trails which they use to follow each other. To make an infusion, mix 1/2 cup cayenne pepper powder with enough water to cover and boil over medium heat for 5-10 minutes before removing it from the heat and letting it stand overnight. Strain and pour into a spray bottle and apply as needed around your home, making sure not to get the mixture on furniture or fabrics as it will stain.
Bay Leaves
Bay leaves can be used in 2 ways to keep ants out of your house. First, if you place fresh leaves or whole dried ones near entry points such as doors or windows where you notice ants entering the house, they will be unable to cross them because the smell of bay leaves overwhelms their sense of smell and confuses their path. Dried crushed bay leaves can also be used in cracks around baseboards, windows, doors, or wherever ants enter your home to deter them from coming inside.
Cucumber Slices
Cucumber slices are a great alternative to using chemical pesticides for killing ants because they act as an ant repellent, poison bait, and trap all in one. To use, cut cucumbers into 1/2-inch thick slices and put them where you have seen ants crawling around your home. Ants will eat the cucumber slices thinking it’s food but once consumed by the pest, it will release a substance that kills the ant. If this doesn’t kill the ant, it will at least deter them from entering your home.
If you have ants in your house it means there is a nest nearby (look for it in the mulch areas, for example, near the perimeter of the house–you’ll see a lot of activity where it is). Douse the nest area with white vinegar, then repeat after an hour or so. After two or three soakings the ants will move their queen and they’ll go somewhere else.
No need for poisons which unnecessarily kill wildlife and enter the soil and water tsble.