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Post by freecharlie on Jun 7, 2015 19:25:25 GMT
Either my kid or one of their friends left a drink mix packet on the floor next to my sliding glass door.
Woke up this morning to an infestation of ants.
I put out the terro, but couldn't stand the amount of ants, so I Raided them and vaccuumed some of them up. All easy fine and then they came back.
I think I have sealed the hole the came through, so hopefully I am winning, but I hat ants in my housr.
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Post by KikiPea on Jun 7, 2015 19:28:52 GMT
UGH That sucks! I hope you fixed the problem. :shudder:
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calgal08
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,519
Jun 27, 2014 15:43:46 GMT
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Post by calgal08 on Jun 7, 2015 19:30:50 GMT
Sprinkle cinnamon, they hate it. A few weeks ago I found an army of them marching at the front door. Within a day they were gone thanks to cinnamon (plus, it's smells pretty good and won't hurt pets/kids)
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Post by anonrefugee on Jun 7, 2015 19:31:16 GMT
Ugh is right. They're fascinating little things, on a log, working together. But not near my house!
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JustTricia
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,894 
Location: Indianapolis
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Post by JustTricia on Jun 7, 2015 19:32:53 GMT
We have ants every year, but this year is ridiculous. We have had then for at least three months almost non-stop and nothing is working for longer than a day.
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Post by anonrefugee on Jun 7, 2015 19:34:17 GMT
Sprinkle cinnamon, they hate it. A few weeks ago I found an army of them marching at the front door. Within a day they were gone thanks to cinnamon (plus, it's smells pretty good and won't hurt pets/kids) Thanks for tip. I use ground pepper to keep cats out of my herbs, my patio is going to smell good. |
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Post by freecharlie on Jun 7, 2015 19:35:10 GMT
We have ants every year, but this year is ridiculous. We have had then for at least three months almost non-stop and nothing is working for longer than a day. I would be freaking out. We get a small group a couple of times a summer. Usually terro and vinegar does the trick and may have this time, but there were so many I couldn't handle it. |
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breetheflea
Drama Llama
Posts: 7,317
Location: PNW
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Post by breetheflea on Jun 7, 2015 19:35:41 GMT
diaotamceous earth or however it is spelled, sprinkled around our house foundation has really helped with our chronic ant problem (we have 4 kids...) and is cheaper than an exterminator...
ETA: correct spelling is: diatomaceous earth, too many vowels... |
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Post by checkwheelsdown on Jun 7, 2015 19:40:53 GMT
Yikes! I hate ants too...we had some discover their way into our pantry of all places, yuck!
I had to empty it, kill the little suckers, wipe down all cans and bottles (unopened mind you), vacuum, spray and set ant traps. I found only one bottle of syrup that had some drips on the outside and the ants weren't flocking to that. I have no idea what was appealing to them.
Fortunately, Terminex was coming by for their quarterly outdoor inspection the following week and found the source of the ants. Good-bye buggers.
ETA: thanks for the cinnamon tip! I'll know to sprinkle that in the closet if there's a next time infestation (hope not though)! |
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Post by moretimeplease on Jun 7, 2015 20:09:15 GMT
I've read that the Terro can be such a strong attractant that you'll draw more ants if you leave it out for too long. I've had really good results with Borax. Just a bit sprinkled outside the patio door, and a bit more at the tiny space in the hardwood right inside the patio door. The Terro killed the ants but didn't repel them at all. The Borax repels them.
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Post by Basket1lady on Jun 7, 2015 20:13:11 GMT
I've read that the Terro can be such a strong attractant that you'll draw more ants if you leave it out for too long. I've had really good results with Borax. Just a bit sprinkled outside the patio door, and a bit more at the tiny space in the hardwood right inside the patio door. The Terro killed the ants but didn't repel them at all. The Borax repels them. We have ants here, too. Ugh. Terro DOES attract ants. The idea is that they will bring the poison back to the nest. You really want to get to the nest, not just the ones you see out in the open. Thats the the professional theory, anyway. |
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Post by gracieplusthree on Jun 7, 2015 20:15:06 GMT
febreze kills them and smells better than bug spray.. just a fyi.
-grace
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Post by moretimeplease on Jun 7, 2015 20:23:19 GMT
I've read that the Terro can be such a strong attractant that you'll draw more ants if you leave it out for too long. I've had really good results with Borax. Just a bit sprinkled outside the patio door, and a bit more at the tiny space in the hardwood right inside the patio door. The Terro killed the ants but didn't repel them at all. The Borax repels them. We have ants here, too. Ugh. Terro DOES attract ants. The idea is that they will bring the poison back to the nest. You really want to get to the nest, not just the ones you see out in the open. Thats the the professional theory, anyway. See, all I ended up with was a Terro trap full of dead ants, and a small sticky trail to a few dead ants that managed to crawl away from the bait. Still had ants running around the kitchen floor. But within a day after putting out the Borax, no more ants. |
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Aug 18, 2025 21:36:13 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jun 7, 2015 20:35:20 GMT
We have ants every year, but this year is ridiculous. We have had then for at least three months almost non-stop and nothing is working for longer than a day. Us too. Last night the kids came and got me and told me that there were "thousands of ants" underneath a book on the basement carpet. UGH. |
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melanieg
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,611
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Post by melanieg on Jun 7, 2015 21:47:29 GMT
The only thing I have found that works on the mutant ninja ants at my place is a product called Dr Doom.
Yes, it is a chemical powder....a strong one. I don't have kids living here nor pets, so I don't worry. I hope I am smart enough to keep away from it outside.
I sprinkle it around the base of the house and windows.
My dad also told me he read about putting cucumber peels out...but that is gross. I decided to burn cucumber lime scentsy bars when it gets bad and hope that is part of the reason they are kept at bay.
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Post by bc2ca on Jun 7, 2015 21:58:41 GMT
Peppermint oil (not extract) is another natural remedy. I put a few drops on a dishcloth and wipe down the ant route.
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peabay
Prolific Pea
Posts: 9,975
Jun 25, 2014 19:50:41 GMT
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Post by peabay on Jun 7, 2015 22:00:06 GMT
We use an exterminator. I haven't found anything else that works.
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Post by cadoodlebug on Jun 7, 2015 22:02:48 GMT
I always spray Avon's Skin-so-Soft where they are coming in and they go away. I can't stand the stuff and neither can ants.  |
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seaexplore
Prolific Pea
Posts: 9,366
Apr 25, 2015 23:57:30 GMT
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Post by seaexplore on Jun 7, 2015 22:18:45 GMT
We use Amdro. Got it at Lowes or Home Depot. At the first sighting of an ant, we put it around the perimeter of the house in a 6" band. NO ants at all for at least 6 months! We had them BAD too! They were tunneling UNDER our tile floor thru the thinset and coming up in the MIDDLE of the floor! We had them so bad in the toilet room that I would have to wipe down the toilet seat before sitting down to avoid being bitten!
Borax/sugar? Ate and ate and ate it.
Terro? They came back begging for more.
Cinnamon? They tromped right thru it.
Chalk? LOL. They walked across it.
Salt? Same.
Peppermint? They LIVE in the pot of peppermint on the back porch!
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Post by airforcemomof1 on Jun 7, 2015 22:55:37 GMT
We use Amdro. Got it at Lowes or Home Depot. At the first sighting of an ant, we put it around the perimeter of the house in a 6" band. NO ants at all for at least 6 months! We had them BAD too! They were tunneling UNDER our tile floor thru the thinset and coming up in the MIDDLE of the floor! We had them so bad in the toilet room that I would have to wipe down the toilet seat before sitting down to avoid being bitten! Borax/sugar? Ate and ate and ate it. Terro? They came back begging for more. Cinnamon? They tromped right thru it. Chalk? LOL. They walked across it. Salt? Same. Peppermint? They LIVE in the pot of peppermint on the back porch! Seriously? Wow and ugh! |
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Post by LavenderLayoutLady on Jun 9, 2015 4:41:34 GMT
febreze kills them and smells better than bug spray.. just a fyi. -grace Spic & Span also kills them on contact, and is a disinfectant. Just throwing it out there. |
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Post by snappinsami on Jun 9, 2015 15:42:43 GMT
I still have nightmares about the ant infestation we had almost 5 years ago. Started in the kitchen (including in every single drawer and cabinet) and made it upstairs into our bedrooms. I woke up in bed with them crawling on my skin. Nightmares, I'm telling you. We tried a bunch of things, but the only thing that worked was having a professional exterminator come treat the house. That's when we got on a regular schedule with them and we never had an issue again in that house.
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Post by baylorgrad on Jun 9, 2015 21:17:06 GMT
When I had an apartment in an old house, I used to sprinkle chili powder in areas where I had seen ants -- I think I had read it in the "Hints from Heloise" column in the local paper. It worked for me!
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Post by gramasue on Jun 9, 2015 21:42:00 GMT
I found a couple of them in my downstairs bathroom the other day and that freaked me out. I can't imagine an army of them! Ugh! I sprayed Raid all around the baseboards and kept the door closed for the day. I'm sure they'll be back, though. I'll have to try some of these tips.
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scrapaddie
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,090
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Post by scrapaddie on Jun 9, 2015 21:50:08 GMT
I'm filing these suggestions. I get a few of them every summer.
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Post by anxiousmom on Jun 9, 2015 22:57:34 GMT
Stupid ants. Stupid stupid stupid ants. I hate them passionately. I am apparently hosting the ant rave of the year and it is the happening hot spot for all the cool ants. I swear I saw them twirling little glow in the dark sticks, dancing to Skrillex and trying to make baby ants in my kitchen last night.  |
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