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Ants in the House
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Several species commonly enter houses in search of
food and water -
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Summary:
A number of different ant species invade
homes, especially kitchens, in search of food
and water. A few species can even nest in
walls and ceiling. Most of the time these ants do
little damage but should be controlled because some
nests can become very large and bothersome.
Jack
DeAngelis, PhD
OSU Ext.
Entomologist (ret.)
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Nuisance (house) ants
Certain ants, for example fire
ants and harvester ants, attract our attention
because they can sting people and animals.
Some, like carpenter
ants, are important because they damage
building materials. And some ants only become
pests when they enter homes in search of
food and water.
The last group of ants usually causes
no structural damage, and pose little health risk,
but are important because of their numbers alone.
These are the house-invading ants, nuisance
ants or simply house ants. Common
house ant species are: odorous house ant, Argentine
ant, pharaoh ant and a few other species.
Most ants that invade homes are
yellow, red, brown or black in color, constricted at
the waist, and 1/8-1/4" long. If you find ants that
are larger than about 3/8" (in the US) you've
probably found carpenter
ants. You may also occasionally see
ants with wings (all species), these are the so
called "reproductives".
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Worker ants feeding on a
drop of ant bait. Ants consume the
bait and take some back to their nest where
it disrupts the colony. Photo by E.A.
DeAngelis.
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Other common names: sugar
ants, moisture ants, sweet ants.
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Ant control in houses
While house ants generally cause no
direct damage they can become a nuisance if the nests
get too large. The safest, and best approach to ant
control is to use baits. Baits pose
little risk and most are relatively inexpensive. There
is no need to apply insecticide sprays for these
pests. In fact, insecticide sprays often disperse
colonies and make matters worse (see below).
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Use baits NOT sprays to control ants
Baits are a
food that is attractive to worker ants that may be
laced with a slow-acting insecticide. Workers locate
bait and carry some back to the nest where it poisons
the colony. Insecticide sprays are not effective
because most can be detected and avoided by foraging
worker ants.
How baits work
Baits work best because they target
the colony. Ants are social insects and
live in highly organized colonies. This social
organization allows ant colonies to grow very large
but if the colony is disrupted the ants will die.
Baits work by disrupting these complex colonies,
often killing the egg-laying queen in the process.
See Ant
Control and Ant Baits
for additional information.
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Control
of Common Nuisance House Ants With Baits
(1)
Place baits near ant activity, do not
contaminate area with insecticide. You can
initially place a plain, sugary bait (no
insecticide) to train workers to the placement.
If ants appear to be feeding on bait, as in
photo above, replace plain bait with one laced
with insecticide. For small infestations
use ready-made, or home-made, liquid boric acid
baits. But, for large, stubborn infestations
use commercial gel or granular baits, both are
available here
(DoMyOwnPestControl.com).
(2)
Replace individual stations when they are
exhausted or completely consumed.
(3)
Within a week the number of ants should be
significantly lower.
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Still
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Mission: To provide accurate, up-to-date
and unbiased information for solving common insect
and mite problems around your home, business and
landscape using least-toxic methods.
Jack DeAngelis, PhD,
 , email:
[email protected]
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