Ants in my house. Grrr....

[Flying Crane]

Seems I've got an ant infestation. Looks like they've got a nest inside the wall near the floor. They come in thru a crack where the wall and floor meet.

I've got two cats in the house. No children.

Any suggestions on how to get rid of them, without endangering the cats?

Or should I just call the Orkin Man?

Thanks!

 

[dancingalone]

Depends on how patient you are. The toxic pesticide stuff works a lot faster than the environmental remedies like hot pepper or boric acid. I have a dog and we've been fine using the fire ant granules commonly sold at places like Walmart.

 

[Blade96]

We had a nest inside the clapboard of our house and they had an entrance where they could actually come inside the house.

We didnt relish the idea of killing them all so what we did was, We totally blocked off that entrance so they couldn't use it anymore.

Problem solved.

 

[Xue Sheng]

As the guy that was in my house killing ants told me, they look for moisture and build there. We killed off the ants, found the hole and the reason for the moisture and got rid of them all BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA :EG:

Call the Orkin man

 

[ShelleyK]

You can see if there is a retailer in your area that sells this
http://www.ecosmart.com/

 

[Carol]

We had an ant problem at work that took quite awhile to clear up...there were ants running around here for 6-8 weeks. I know our building maintenance guys were trying to do a lot to fix the issue (including sacking the cleaning crew) but it didn't go away until they brought in the pros a few times.

Personally I'd recommend calling the professionals...because 45-60 days of ants is something that gets wicked gross.

 

[Flying Crane]

well, I'm gonna give this a try.

I picked up something from the hardware store, Combat And Killing Gel, its in a syringe. I'll squirt it into the cracks where they are coming in, and then cover it over with masking tape to make sure the cats don't get into it. I'll let it sit for a week or so. I guess they bring it into the nest and eat it and it poisons the whole colony.

Once it's cleared up, I'l gonna seal up the cracks with liquid nails.

we'll see how this works. If it doesnt, then Orkin it is.

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone.

 

[Brian R. VanCise]

Save yourself some grief and call the professional's. They can get way better pesticide than what you can buy at the local hardware store.

 

[Flying Crane]

Save yourself some grief and call the professional's. They can get way better pesticide than what you can buy at the local hardware store.

I understand the thought, but here's the thing. My wife called Orkin today. They perscribed and tried to sell her on a muti-application treatment program over the course of several months. Total cost: over $600.00.

By comparison, at my local hardware store, Combat Ant Gel, 1oz syringe was $6.99. Roll of masking tape: $4.99. Tube of Liquid nails; $4.49.

Total, with tax (over 9% here in San Francisco): $18.03.

I'll give this a try first, before I agree to shell out over $600.

 

[grydth]

How about catching and bringing into the house some large (ninja) spiders?

That'd be free!

 

[Flying Crane]

How about catching and bringing into the house some large (ninja) spiders?

That'd be free!

hmmm... we've got black widows around here. Not familiar with the "ninja" species tho...are they especially hungry?

 

[Gordon Nore]

Given the size of the infestation, I'd go with the pros. We've had very small outbreaks the last few years which we've managed with ant traps in the spring. Then that's end of it.

I do have one tip that might be a bit obvious. If you have those occasions where you find a swarm of ants in your home, vacuum up the little darlings, treat the liner bag or your shop vac with insecticide and take it straight to the curb for pick up.

But I feel your pain. One spring back in the eighties I woke up in my basement apartment to find my pillow covered with flying ants.

 

[Gordon Nore]

hmmm... we've got black widows around here. Not familiar with the "ninja" species tho...are they especially hungry?

 

[Hawke]

Do you have any other professional pest controls that guarantee's their work?

Also did you search other areas around your home and yard where they may pop up?

My sister in the bay area used an ammonia cleaner to help wipe the chemical trails. But she doesn't have pets.

Solving Nuisance Ant Problems Without Pesticides:
http://www.pesticide.org/ants.html

 

[jks9199]

Save yourself some grief and call the professional's. They can get way better pesticide than what you can buy at the local hardware store.

And, with the caveat that they have to be real pros, not someone given a crash course and thrown in a truck, they know what they're looking for and at. Among other things -- you really want to be sure what type of ants they are, and know what damage they might have done to your home. It helps to know where they enter, how to disrupt their travel paths, and more...

Would you do surgery on yourself?

 

[Hawke]

Ninja spiders....hilarious.

 

[Xue Sheng]

I understand the thought, but here's the thing. My wife called Orkin today. They perscribed and tried to sell her on a muti-application treatment program over the course of several months. Total cost: over $600.00.

By comparison, at my local hardware store, Combat Ant Gel, 1oz syringe was $6.99. Roll of masking tape: $4.99. Tube of Liquid nails; $4.49.

Total, with tax (over 9% here in San Francisco): $18.03.

I'll give this a try first, before I agree to shell out over $600.

Are there other pest control businesses in your area?

I did not go with Orkin. The bigger businesses are trying to survive and they are big on getting you into a contract type deal. Go for a 2nd or 3rd estimate and see what they say.

One treatment got rid of all the problems I had. But then it was a rather small infestation.

My parents had been working with getting rid of ants for years by themselves and so far, after about 10 years, it seems all they have been able to do is maintain the status quo

 

[Flying Crane]

I did the home application last night, and this morning, only one of the little bastards was out on the floor. He might have been out on an all-night scouting mission, only to return home and find the fort burned down by the infidels.

Squirted the gunk into the crack where they were coming in, and covered it with masking tape to seal it off from our cats.

Might be that this is their only entry point into the house, so simply covering it would block them, at least for a while. But hopefully they are all joyfully feasting on the little treat I left them, and they will all be dead soon of a massive belly ache.

I'll re-apply in a month, and maybe another one after that, to make sure we get any unhatched eggs that come to life in the meantime.

I'll let you know how it turns out.

 

[grydth]

I did the home application last night, and this morning, only one of the little bastards was out on the floor. He might have been out on an all-night scouting mission, only to return home and find the fort burned down by the infidels.

Squirted the gunk into the crack where they were coming in, and covered it with masking tape to seal it off from our cats.

Might be that this is their only entry point into the house, so simply covering it would block them, at least for a while. But hopefully they are all joyfully feasting on the little treat I left them, and they will all be dead soon of a massive belly ache.

I'll re-apply in a month, and maybe another one after that, to make sure we get any unhatched eggs that come to life in the meantime.

I'll let you know how it turns out.

Well, all the best...... it's not really something those with religion can pray for you on; seems kinda like overkill to be bothering the deity on something like this.

You know, spiders would have been the GREEN solution...

Not to worry you unduly, but who knows whats in that stuff you used? Remember that great sci-fi movie "Them!" ?......Look, if you start seeing strange big prints outside and the cats are hiding - Get Out Of There!!!!!

 

[Flying Crane]

Well, all the best...... it's not really something those with religion can pray for you on; seems kinda like overkill to be bothering the deity on something like this.

You know, spiders would have been the GREEN solution...

Not to worry you unduly, but who knows whats in that stuff you used? Remember that great sci-fi movie "Them!" ?......Look, if you start seeing strange big prints outside and the cats are hiding - Get Out Of There!!!!!

Yeah, I don't know how many spiders I'd need to keep nesting around the inside of my front door, to eradicate an entire nest of, oh, maybe at least 5000 ants, maybe more? And constantly reproducing...I've got a feeling that at best, it would eventually balance out so that I'd have a whole bunch of spiders who are always well fed, and neither would ever actually go away. I don't much like having spiders inside the house. They give me the heebie jeebies. My living room would become the stuff of nightmares.

I will keep an eye out for larger footprints, however. Good advice on that.