How to get rid of ants? ~ Now tons of RED

[Dace]

We literally have ants coming out of the walls...along the baseboards.
I there a natural/non toxic remedy? I really do not want to call an exterminator but it is getting out of hand!

 

[redhen]

I've heard everyone say DE. But it didnt work for me, and i used a whole bag. Also i've heard of vinegar, bay leaves, borax.

 

[k0xxx]

I have been told that uncooked grits work. My mother sprinkles grits on Fire Ant piles, and says it greatly reduces them.

 

[redhen]

I have been told that uncooked grits work. My mother sprinkles grits on Fire Ant piles, and says it greatly reduces them.

Yup, I've heard that also. I think they eat the grits and swell and die?

 

[PunkinPeep]

someone told me just the other day that she had success with cornmeal. i haven't tried it yet though.

 

[PunkinPeep]

We literally have ants coming out of the walls...along the baseboards.
I there a natural/non toxic remedy? I really do not want to call an exterminator but it is getting out of hand!

i just re-read your post and realized that i didn't really answer your question. i assumed you were talking about fire ant hills.

are the ones you're talking about the teeny tiny sugar ants? they usually come out from the outlets too.

sugar ants are tricky, but if the ants are in your house, you may have success with orange oil. orange oil actually dissolves the exoskeleton of the ant. you can buy pure orange oil at some stores, but i've had pretty good success with just orange oil Fantastik.

i can just spray a line of them with the Fantastik, and a lot of them will start dying on the spot; others will slow down and wander off.

 

[ORChick]

If they are coming from outside in, and you know where they are entering, try blocking the way with some borax. That usually takes care of it for me. Good luck

 

[Dace]

Great suggestions...I had used borax in the carpet years ago to help with a flea explosion, but I have never had an ant problem like this! Yes, they are the little black ants :/

They are everywhere, in all the bedrooms, kitchen office....they are just wandering around. I just flicked one off this computer screen

I will try some of the suggestions. We had a little spot near the kitchen where they were coming in, a big long line of them across the floor and right up onto the kitchen counter. DS filled the gap with some silly putty and stopped the flow of ants, but I can't cover every little gap in the whole house with orange silly putty and then I gotta wonder where they will come out next, because they are still in the walls!

 

[Beekissed]

I use a small amount of corn meal in a lid on my countertop. Within a day, I see less and less ants and, as long as I keep feeding them corn, I stop seeing them altogether.

Apparently, corn is very corrosive to their digestive systems and they die from this effect. They carry the corn meal back to the nest and any other ants that feed on it will die also, so it does have a longterm affect on the hills.

The only problem with this method is that you need to keep this out at all times during this season. If not, within a week I start to seeing the ants once again.....just a few at first, probably scouts, but then more and more.

 

[OkieAnnie]

We are having the same irritating issue this year. So, we usually (ans we still do) put Borax on the counters and floors and it keeps them at bay, but not this year.

We put boiling water on the mounds closest to the house. So, far it works for a few days, then they come back. Not sure what to do, our neighbors are spraying every week, but we don't want to spray unless we have to.