If you’re an ecological enthusiast, you must be aware of the importance of ants in our environment. In fact, these tiny animals are fascinating and you might find yourself wanting to learn more about them. However, no matter the case, nothing is amazing about ants invading your home. They can deny you peace, and bring tons of problems into your space.
So…
What Attracts Ants?
When ants are hungry, and in search of food, there is no place that is out of bounds in their search. They will go through all types of foods to find that particular taste they’re searching for, that too in numbers. But even so, ants tend to have a particular liking for sugary particles. And that is why they tend to invade many homes because there are various sugary substances at their disposal. From tiny juice spillages, to cake leftovers there are so many things that attract ants.
Also, they don’t need a lot of sugar to keep coming back into your home. For instance, if an ant of a small group of ants finds their way into a sugary spot in your home, they will leave a scent trail as they leave to guide them back whenever they want to. So, other ants will also find it easy to invade your space to satisfy their sweet tooth cravings. Therefore, if you see one ant in your home, it could be an indication of more such visitors to follow.
Additionally, ants tend to come into homes in search of water and other foods, especially in dry seasons. So, this is mainly the case with those ants you see around your bathroom and other humid spots.
If you see ants in your house, after heavy rains, they might be hiding from the flood. Ants tend to relocate during such seasons to nearby buildings, including your home.
How to Prevent Ants from Invading Your Home?
The very first step you should take in keeping ants from intruding into your home is maintaining cleanliness. Start by wiping off spills immediately they occur or notice them.
These will leave no sugary traces for the ants to indulge in. Also, ensure all your cooking preparation spots are well cleaned.
Afterwards, ensure to seal all the foods in airtight containers to deny ants access. Plus, cleaning the area behind the fridge and toaster as often as possible. And if you have pets, see to it that no pet food is left out longer than needed.
Additionally, check bins around your house and home and ensure they’re tightly sealed as well. But that is after removing all rotten vegetables and fruits from around your home/house. Generally, ensure that there is a trace of food around any surface (both inside and outside your home) to entice ants. It’s always important to prevent ants’ invasion than having to deal with hundreds of them, once they do.
However, if you realize the invasion a bit late. You can still disrupt their trail by wiping the area down with some bleach or vinegar.
Sometimes, you might be doing everything right (keeping food containers tight and maintaining general cleanliness) but it doesn’t seem to work. In such a case, consider sealing up cracks and holes in walls around your home. In fact, this should be the first preventing measure you should take, especially when you notice a few cracks as you about your day. Doing this is the best way to prevent ants from nesting inside your home’s wall cavities, and reproducing to bring you even greater problems. In other words, nip them in the bud.
Now, if all the above tips don’t seem to work, you might want to consider using insecticidal baits to control the ants. However, before you settle for this, it’s important to ask yourself if ants are actually such a big problem, because we do need them in their various types. For example, they can help to attach and kill cockroaches, and even spread various plant seeds. They also come in handy to help remove various wastes from the environment.
So, if your ant issue is out of hand, it’s best to contact pest control experts to help you deal with them. But ensure they use ants-specific insecticides to avoid killing other insects within your environment.