Arrrggghh!!!

[WoodMangler]

ANTS!! I have never seen so many ants in al my born days...

I spray, I put out poison... and they never go away...

They're not in the house, but they certainly have me surrounded.

We can send a man to the moon, perform microscopic surgery, even have indoor plumbing, but we can't get rid of the freekin ants!!

Someone kmow a magic trick? I would like to eliminate the species, but I'd settle for them moving to my neighbors house :)

[PastorPaul]

Marc,

Our daughter had a major problem with ants that even repeated visits by the exterminator couldn't solve. Finally, he put out a bait in a few stragegic places on the outside of the house. Within about 48 hours her ant problem was gone, and I mean gone.

I'll have her check with the exterminator to see what brand those baits were. They may only be available to professionals, but your position as a Building Maintenance and Repair Technician may qualify you to purchase the baits. With differences in state laws, it may be something that is available here in the Midwest, but not out in your neck of the woods.

I'll let you know what I find.

Pastor Paul
http://webpages.charter.net/chalosi/usaC.gif http://webpages.charter.net/chalosi/usaC.gif

"If they don't have woodworking in heaven, I ain't going!!!"

[Cody Colston]

Marc,

I assume you are talking about RIFA..Red Imported Fire Ants. They were brought in to Mobile, Alabama circa 1920's from South America in ships holds and have inhabited most of the South from the Carolinas to Texas. They are also moving northward as they adapt to the colder climates.

THERE IS NO EFFECTIVE TREATMENT FOR FIRE ANTS. Spot treating the individual mounds and blanket treatment of your lawn can generally keep them at bay, but they will continue to come back as soon as the treatment stops or loses potency.

I use a granular pesticide, Triazinon I think it is, to blanket treat and usually treat the mounds with Orthene. I also keep the kids and dogs off the lawn for a week or so after treating...just as a precaution.

During the summer, they will go deep and get you thinking that you are winning, until a good rain comes. Then, you will see a ton of new mounds and the battle is on again.

Those suckers also hurt like the dickens and leave little blisters from the formic acid they inject when they sting. Nasty little buggers.

Good luck with your efforts at control, and if you find something that works, let me know.

Cody

[font color = "blue"]“If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to view every problem as a nail”[/font]

[WoodMangler]

OOps... sorry Cody... I forgot to mention the type of ants... DOH!

They're those little black uhh... Pharaoh Ants? Thief Ants? Pavement Ants? Argentine Ants? (suppose they speak spanish?) Odorous House Ants? (would that be a flatul-ant?? :) ) Crazy Ants? (Bahaha!!) Acrobat Ants? (You can tell them by their real tight leotards) Carpenter Ants? Cornfield Ants? Sweet Eating Ants? Protein & Grease feeding ants? ...

Uhh... No clue! Do I need to know???

We have fire ants at work, and I chase them around with the granules.. doesn't seem to kill them, just makes them move :) No fire ants at home though...

[Cody Colston]

Oh well, Marc,

Don't know anything about the little black ones.

BTW - as you've probably discovered already, fire ants in Georgia (and most of the South)is pronounced "Far Aints."

Cody

[font color = "blue"]“If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to view every problem as a nail”[/font]

[DaveZ]

Go to the supermarket, get some Borax and sprinkle it around. They hate it. BTW you are not the only one seeing lots of these little buggers this year.

[Frank]

Hi Marc! I had a problem also, then tried this recipie from a local weatherman. Worked great for me, give it a try!

"You'll find it effective, but be patient -- it may take a week to 10 days to be fully effective. In the meantime kill ants in the house with Windex or another ammonia-based cleaner. Clean and kill, all in one motion.
Recipe: 1 part 20 Mule Team Borax or Boric acid , 9 parts of a sweet sticky liquid like maple syrup, honey or Karo syrup
Mix the ingredients. Heating in a double boiler may speed the process. Take an empty margarine tub and poke 4 holes around the bottom edge (entry holes for ants to walk in). Place a dollop the size of a quarter in the middle of the tub, then put the top back on. This mixture is not non-toxic, however it is less toxic, and that's the key to its success. The ants carry it back to the nest where they feed it to the entire colony and wipe out the nest.

Tips To Keep Ants Outside:
Stop them from coming in by keeping plants away from the outside of the house. Ants like to live in many of those plants, or may use that as a vehicle for getting into the house. Keep the area around the foundation clean and clear of leaves, etc. Spray the area outside the home with pesticide. "

[TDHofstetter]

Heeeee...

Back in AlbuTurkey we had some kinda' ants that bit like crazy. They were bad enough to make my sick-of-ants (psychophants). OK, bad one there. Gasoline worked to spread the mounds around the yard, but nothing stopped 'em. I finally went completely off my toadstool and went after 'em direct.

I got one of those famous wild hairs and went outdoors wearing little more'n a pair of cutoffs & an old pair of canvas shoes. I squatted out there for hours, carefully watching to be sure no ant-ruders invaded my shoes (and from there to the soft dangly parts), and pinched every one of the little beggars as they came outta' the hole. I had to do that on two different days, and by the end of each of those days my fingers were badly raw & burned from the "ant-acid". Killed hundreds that way.

Because I hunted down every swingin' ... one ... of 'em and individually flattened its personal space, they grew to know me as one seriously crazy sumb**ch and they all moved to a different, less violent, neighborhood. Well, OK - partially responsible for that move was probably the fact that I was wearing cutoffs and squatting directly above 'em. Made 'em feel inadequate. :) :) :)

-- Tim --

If you require the approval of others,
You probably don't have your own.

[Lou_williams]

Marc,

I have found something here that works and works very well on the little black ones. I have use the boric acid solution and it does work sometimes. There are two different little blace ant types one likes sugar, one likes grease. The grease ants don't seem to go for the boric acid soluition.


But, Here in the bay area we have a large Asian population. We have a number of Asian super markets. At one of the local ones they sell something that is labled ANT Chock. It is labled low toxic. But, you have to ask for it they don't have it on the shelves.

You find where the ants enter the house and draw two circles around that point. If you can find the next draw two circles abound the next. Within a couple of hours no ants. None gone never were. That is the deal.

[DustyBob]

You can also find the same thing labeled as "Roach Chalk". It's made from....boric acid! Boric acid is one of the least toxic of nature's pesticides. Works on ALL insects by clinging to the hairs on their legs and working it's way into the breathing holes along the thorax. To really protect your home, liberally dust the crawlspace and attic space. Dust inside electrical boxes, around pipes and any other wall opening. I also dust inside walls whenever I have one open. Boric acid dust in a 1% solution is normally sold as a roach insecticide. One brand that comes to mind is "Roach Pruf".