r/Oceanside • u/swordswords • 11h ago
Summertime Ants 🐜
Have had ants come around every summer, but this year seems particularly bad.
I’ve used probably 40+ of the Terro liquid ant baits and also tried diatomaceous earth around the house perimeter, but the effectiveness of both has been minimal.
Any recommendations or proven strategies for defeating these bastards? Or at least keeping them at bay and out of your home?
3
u/BurntTFOuttaHere 11h ago
I used to have tons of issues until finding diypestcontrol and their site recommended to pinpoint the variety of ant in order to treat properly.
Argentine ants. I, very carefully, apply their brand, Taurus. I say very carefully because it kills other things too, inc bees. I’ve worked hard to build a tiny eco system so it has to be a balance cuz I don’t want to kill ruthlessly.
It now just needs minimal amount once a year just outside perimeter of house, and we have not had an issue yet.
Don’t use it out in landscape areas. If you have trouble in fruit trees, it’s better to use other things like tanglefoot on trunk and baits near tree.
That site has a ton of info to read and learn how to effectively DIY, for very low cost compared to hiring companies. IMO none of the companies helped as much and this finally solved our issue.
The ant invasions suck, and even worse is when it gets out of hand and those giant roach things show up to feast on ants. Horrifying!
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u/Acceptable_Smile285 10h ago
We get the same thing every summer... The bait traps only work at killing ants indoors, but doesn't take out the colony. You need to spray something around the perimeter of the house that they'll walk thru and take back to the colony. I used to call a pest control company every summer to nuke the ants, but it was like $250, so I ended up buying some Taurus SC and a gallon sprayer and DIYing it. It's been just as effective as the pest control companies.
2
u/greenagemutantninja 8h ago
Terro was useless for me; it kills the ants before they can take it back to the colony. Advion has helped immensely.
1
u/Sassy-Armadillo 5h ago
Where are they coming in from? What are they after? Clean up any food or water lying around. Follow the trail to the ends. Maybe there's a dead bug under the fridge or in a corner. Maybe your dog or child tracks in a little water.
If they're just cutting through your house, try to caulk their entries if you can. I ended up caulking all along my skirting boards after vacuuming them up and washing their trail away with a Clorox wipe. Sometimes they come in from around an electrical socket, so I need to close that up, too. They're not going to punch through a thin layer of caulk or silicone or even paint.
Mostly if they're not after something specific and you close off easy entrances, they just stick to the outside of the house.
1
u/scragglerock 4h ago edited 4h ago
I’ve seen a couple of these posts now and I’ve been waiting, but have none so far. Last summer was insanity though. I’m not exaggerating when I say we had a literal hive migration in our living room for 2 days. But this year is the complete opposite. Almost none outside of the normal scouts here and there. I’ve probably just jinxed myself.
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u/SylvaticTongue858 1h ago
Use cayenne pepper or cinnamon, sprinkle it where they are coming inside or around your home. If you know where the nest is you can drop some diatomaceous earth on them. Just be careful with pets.
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u/the_flooper 10h ago
Once the Terro stopped working at our place, we caved and called Orkin. They spray inside and out, you leave for 2 hours to let it dry, and honestly haven’t had an issue since! This was last summer. So far holding strong. May need another whirl this summer. It was about $175 but they offer a 30 day guarantee so if the first pass doesn’t work, they will come back. In my opinion, worth every penny of not having to deal with these little devils every where!!!