Your Solutions for ANTS

Living in south florida for 11 years, the only thing i ever found effective for ants was Terro drops. Put a couple drops on a piece of cardboard and set in the corner. They eat it and the go off to die. Very effective.

I'd either try Lisa D's trick, or spray outside around the perimeter. Inside, use vinegar. Vinegar wipes away their pheremone trail so that they can't find their way back to their nest. They die pretty quickly when they can't get back to their nest. Plus, the vinegar is a cleaner so that's a win-win.

Dawn

I sprinkled Borax in the areas I saw them. They carry it back and feed it to their buddies...and they all die.

I also made home made bait mixing a tablespoon of Borax and a tablespoon of powdered sugar. Then add drops of water and mix into a syrupy paste. Put in a milk lid or another shallow throw-away container. Put it under furniture or against the baseboard where kids and pets can't get it.

I got rid of all ants within a week...and haven't seen any since.

Food Grade DE (Diatemaceous Earth) Non-Toxic to children and pets, dust all areas outside your home. It's crystal structure with literally shred their little carapices without any harm to you or the environment.

Google natural ant control. Borax and sugar gets rid of them.

Terro bait traps work great and you'll see results in 12 hours, but they are very dangerous for kids and let's to be around. If you can put them someplace safe and non-accessible, use them. Corn starch works well too, very messy, but safe for everyone.

It sounds like you have a pretty big invasion, so I am not sure if my ideas will help. Last year when we were getting hit hard, I washed down surfaces I spotted ants with vinegar (ants dislike vinegar and it washes off their scent trails)...I usually clean and mom with apple cider vinegar so this was no biggie. And when I found spots they were getting in, I sprinkled cinnamon. They won't cross it. But if they can find another entrance,this may not help. Baby powder is also supposed to work as an ant repellent.

Well we had ants bad and we had pest control come over numerous times and it just kept getting worse. Then we go Ortho Ant Barrier (not sure the exact name but it is something like that). We used it ONCE and we have never had ants ever again. It creates some sort of well barrier and the ants never come back. I have the entire bottle of it under my counter still

After trying everything we finally broke down and have Dewey Pest Control come out and spray every month. Without them we had no hope. They only spray around the base of our house and not the whole yard and if there is a nest nearby they will deal with that.
I argued with myself over the use of the chemicals but, in the end, I could not take the ants.

Call Termite Terry. They are local and they took care of our ants quickly! Seriously, I didn't see another ant for a couple of years after they came.

Honestly, there are a lot of ant hills in Irvine, so I wouldn't be surprised if you do live on one. You probably do need to have the sprayers come. Termite Terry's solution is non toxic and safe to use around children.

Cinnamon (or any other finely ground powder). Insects breathe through tiny holes in their sides called spiracles. Finely ground powders (not granules) stick to their sides, clog the spiracles, and they suffocate. Cinnamon is safe if pets or kids get into it.

Vinegar and water in a spray bottle, spray all entry points. Also try making a pot of unsweetened mint tea and spraying it on walls baseboard and windowsill. Dawn dish soap and water or bleach work if you don't have a problem using them and baby powder on carpets sheets and rugs.
Hope this helps

I put borax in a line on the outside window sill. Works well.

You may not like this because of the potential mess, but it totally worked for us. If your heating vents are on the floor, sprinkle a mixture of spicy spices like cumin, turmeric, paprika (all natural non-toxic - we have cats & had a baby at the time) all around the vents and another spots where they enter. They won't and can't cross the line. You must mark it so it's completely enclosed because they won't go over it. You may have to leave this in place for a few months - yes, I know, a few months! But, after those few months, the ants will leave. And, they will never come back.

It worked for us anyway;) Good luck!

The also come in for water.

What I use when I notice a line of those pesky little black ants in the house (it happens once or twice a year in various "regular" locations--usually a bathroom) is to put down Terro.

You can pick it up at any Home Depot or Lowe's type place. It's an inexpensive little bottle of clear liquid, costs about $3. Put a few drops out on a little piece of paper, on their ant trail, and they line up around it to suck it up like cows at the trough. They take it back "home" with them to share, and they die. Usually works in less than 48 hours.
It is sugar water and borax... so it is poison. Best to use where pets and kiddos can't get to it.

I tried natural solutions for years and the army of ants kept growing exponentially until I discovered Terro Liquid ant baits. After a treatment or two their nest will be destroyed and you will have few to none in coming years.

I put baby powder around the perimeter of my house and at the entrance to the garage door. The ants can't cross it so they don't come in. The only bummer is I have to reapply it during the rainy period.

Good luck and let us know what worked!

Mix corn starch (2/3) and powdered sugar. They eat it and the corn starch swells up and kills them. I even put it in the pots for my balcony plants. That was when I was single. My Mom taught me that trick.

More recently, nothing worked and I had to get the place sprayed. That was 7 years ago and I never had to call the exterminator again, and they were bad.

Outside last year, I saw a bunch making a move on my deck and used vinegar and it worked.