How To Get Rid Of Ants In Your Home
Ant Removal Techniques
There are many DIY products available today on how to get rid of ants in your home. However, controlling ants effectively often takes the effort of a pest expert to fully eliminate and prevent a recurring infestation.
Incredibly, there are more than 12,000 species of ants known to humankind. And, to date, Australia plays host to over 1,300 identified species out of these so far. Even though most ants tend to nest outdoors, they often find their way indoors in search of food. But, most people are completely unaware that ants can transmit many diseases. This is especially disturbing since ants are typically found in common food preparation and food storage areas.
How to Get Rid of Ants in Your Home
Although several homeowners may try various DIY remedies for ant removal, in many cases they’re generally unsuccessful. A small pest issue can easily and quickly turn into a much larger problem if people try to address it themselves. Once homeowners notice they have ants, they often use a wide range of commercial insecticides in order to get rid of them.
If their efforts fail, however, they will typically turn to the help of a professional pest exterminator to quickly solve their ant problem. This will ensure that both their family and pets are 100% safe. Once the ants are eliminated, the homeowners will be informed about how to take further precautions in order to prevent them from coming back.
Where Do Ants Prefer to Nest in the Home?
If ants can make their way into your home, they can be a real nuisance. Also, because they’re coming in from the outside, they could have come into contact with literally any source of disease. And, since ants are constantly traveling about, they will follow any food source trail they can find.
Ants are often found in the following areas in the home:
- Inside wall cavities
- Inside cupboards or under stoves
- Underneath floors
- Behind architraves and skirtings
- Around or near foundations
Once ants discover a viable food source, they leave behind a chemical trail known as ‘pheromones‘. This enables other ants in the nest to follow the trail and lead them straight to the source of food. These ant trails are extremely resilient and can often prevail even in wet weather conditions. Keep in mind that ants can eat virtually anything humans can.
You can reduce attracting ants by:
- Always tightly sealing any food containers that ants may be drawn to
- Address any ventilation or moisture problems in your home
- Keep all cupboards and floors free of food debris, especially small crumbs
- Empty your garbage bins often and keep them clean
- Keep food preparation areas clean by immediately transferring any food wastes to the garbage bin
The Hidden Health Dangers of an Ant Infestation in the Home
Various rodents and pests, including ants, can potentially harm the health of you and your family. Therefore, it’s crucial to understand the possible dangers that can result from these kinds of pest infestations. Are you aware that one of the most common pests in the home is ants? For most people, it’s unnerving to know that they’re sharing their homes with an insect that can pose a potential threat to their overall health.
Watching an ant crawl across your kitchen floor is not only visually disturbing, but they also have the ability to contaminate your food. When you stop to consider that both you and those ants are eating from the same food supply, the potential for cross-contamination becomes very real. Therefore, if you have an obvious ant infestation, it’s best to contact an expert pest management team as soon as possible to eliminate any future infestations.
How Ants Can Damage Your Property
Ants, specifically carpenter ants, can unquestionably cause damage to your home. They can penetrate and cause damage to hollow doors, wood frames, and other aspects like foam insulation. Carpenter ants can cause the most amount of damage when they tunnel their way into damp wood in order to establish their nests.
Colonies of carpenter ants are typically found in kitchens, bathrooms, or around windows or decks. They often use the pipes and wiring of different structures in order to gain access to and from their nesting locations. In fact, noticing a swarm of ants almost certainly indicates that there’s a nearby colony.
Final Verdict
Hiring an expert at removing ants is the best course of action to take. Professional pest technicians understand where and how to treat ant infestations. Protect the integrity of your home as well as the health of your family by eliminating them as quickly as possible.