Gawd D little black ants....Requesting the Planet's divine wisdom.

[talastan]

I bought a house this last fall and this is my first spring in it. Apparently it has started to be plagued with little black ants. I've tried the terro liquid baits and some basic home perimeter sprays, and they work for about a couple of days, but they still keep coming. Anyone here have any other ideas on how I can kill/get rid of the little ****ers?!

[allen_kcCard]

The liquid bait traps work wonders for those ants at our house.

I've found the trick to be to get a swarm of them at them though....set out something they will go for...can of partially drank pop, a honey bun, anything like that, and wait for them to find it and let the colony know so that is is covered in the little bastards. Then, add the terro liquid bait and remove the other item.

They already have the scent trail for the ants to keep coming back to it there, and when all that is there is that bait, they will gorge themselves and pack the poison back to the nest. Sure, some die inside, but there is a lot of that stuff carried back to the nest and I've never seen them last more than 1 day once I hit a bit line of them.

If I put it out without the big swarm, it seems like they do get shy of the thing, but when they are coming there looking for specifc food it tears the next a new one.

Originally Posted by NewPhin

Don't use the terro liquid baits. They've proven to be ineffective in my experience.

Use the actual terro liquid. Put it on aluminum foil in several spots. If you get ants trapped in it or that die in it (which is what happens with the baits in my experience), then replace that piece of foil. I think the reason the traps fail is that ants eventually die in it or get trapped in it, and this dissuades the other ants from taking the liquid.

[Stevie.Wonder]

I've never had an ant problem, so I apologize for the naivity.

It seems to me that the solutions have all been about killing a bunch of already problematic ants. What could the OP do the prevent the ants from returning/ever appearing?

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by NewPhin

Don't use the terro liquid baits. They've proven to be ineffective in my experience.

Use the actual terro liquid. Put it on aluminum foil in several spots. If you get ants trapped in it or that die in it (which is what happens with the baits in my experience), then replace that piece of foil. I think the reason the traps fail is that ants eventually die in it or get trapped in it, and this dissuades the other ants from taking the liquid.

Yeup.

Terro liquid is some seriously brutal stuff. We had some ants in our garage and didn't know where they came from. I put a little square of the terro liquid across where they traveled and went on my merry way.

A few weeks later I was moving some stuff around in my basement so I could put shelves in. Low and behold I find this gigantic mass of dead ants. Evidently they carried the liquied back to wherever they were coming from, stirred them out of it and thousands of the little bastards died in my basement after that poison set in.

Took some pretty serious satisfaction in that carnage.

[T-post Tom]

I'm surprised the Terro didn't work. I've had 100% success with it. I prefer the liquid.

1. I create long, regtangular feeding troughs (3" by 1/2") with a pieces of cardboard. (Ants sometimes seem annoyed by foil.)

2. Trap placement is very important. Make sure the ants find the traps and then keep the traps there for 5-7 days as it usually takes that long to kill the entire colony. Keep the liquid fresh every few days as it dries out and becomes solid. You can put a few drops around the trough to lead them there.

3. Do NOT use any poisons while using the traps. It disorients the ants and makes the traps much less effective.

4. Certain ants are more attracted to grease/fat (ex. some types of carpenter ants). If you fail to kill them off with the previous instructions; mix the Terro liquid with a small amount (15-20%) of hot bacon grease. Spread this out on the troughs and retry as listed above. Or you can use the grease mixed with boric acid.

Good luck.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by Stevie.Wonder

I've never had an ant problem, so I apologize for the naivity.

It seems to me that the solutions have all been about killing a bunch of already problematic ants. What could the OP do the prevent the ants from returning/ever appearing?

Terro will go back to their source and wipe out the whole nest.

Generally that takes care of it. Occasionally a new one will find the way in (if you haven't in the meantime). In which case, another tiny cardboard square and a few drops of this stuff will create another little anty genocide.

[Stevie.Wonder]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

Terro will go back to their source and wipe out the whole nest.

Generally that takes care of it. Occasionally a new one will find the way in (if you haven't in the meantime). In which case, another tiny cardboard square and a few drops of this stuff will create another little anty genocide.

So, Terro is de-facto pretty good shit? A + in the quality/cost ratio? Particularly in preventative considerations? Thanks.

[Demonpenz]

tyler perry's when black aunts move in.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by Stevie.Wonder

So, Terro is de-facto pretty good shit? A + in the quality/cost ratio? Particularly in preventative considerations? Thanks.

I wouldn't use it as a preventative because you don't know where the ants are moving and if they would ever stumble upon it. You can't set it outside the house, it's just a couple of drops of liquid that would dry up.

I use it once they show up. That will take care of that infestation and prevent any other ants from that colony from showing up. If another colony were to arrive, then you just lay it down again. You won't just go laying it around strategically (like I said, it would likely dry before they found it), you lay it where you see them and they dirty bomb their own colony for you.

It has no sort of deterrence value, it just kills them at their source. Less of a loud warning, more of an electric chair.

Yes, the stuff is cheap.

[T-post Tom]

BTW, these work outdoors (same deal on the bacon grease if they don't work after 7 days):

[talastan]

Thanks for all the advice....I'll keep trying the Terro. I think I need to keep the dead ants from the bait. That will probably help. Thanks again and I'll let you know what happens.

[tooge]

not sure how much time you have on your hands, but picking them off one by one with a straw and spit wads is pretty fun. You need to get a 12 pack of beer first.

[Sofa King]

This one just hit me, can't believe noone thought of this one..



magnifying glass in the shadows... works great.

[FAX]

Why can't we build a little, teeny, tiny ant robot using creativity, nano-technology, and teensy weensy parts, program the ant robot to go to the neighbor's house, and place the ant robot in first place in the ant follow-the-leader line?

FAX

[Bane]

[Bob Dole]

If you can find where they are entering the house, you can build a little talcum powder levee and they usually won't cross it.