I've lived in my house for over twenty years. For the last ten or so, every spring I engage in the "battle of the ants". What I call sugar ants.........they drive me crazy. They're the little itty bitty things that crawl into spaces no other creature can get into to. This year they've decided my bathroom counter is the place to set up camp.
What they don't know is I finally found the secret to eliminating them.....at least until next spring. For years I used sprays, traps, and anything else that claimed to eliminate ants. The problem with the sugar ants, and probably with any ant, is you have to eliminate the the colony, or they just send new ones to take the place of the ones you've already killed--it can be an endless trail of the creepy crawly little buggers.
So what I finally found that actually works; is environmentally friendly (except to the ants); and is safe to use around pets and children, is a mixture of honey and borax. Yep--that simple--and cheap too! You just place it along or near their trail, and within a few days they're gone--obliterated! If you're having a problem like me try it--you will truly be amazed. I've even found their trails outside and put it there and found it works.
What you'll need: a straw (or several depending on how bad the problem is), a toothpick, honey, a box of Borax (you can buy it at your local grocery store--big box for about $5.00). Put a few drops of honey on a plate, then mix in a little borax. It doesn't take very much borax so don't go crazy. Ants find borax very toxic. After you've mixed it together, cut the straw into 1-2 inch segments. Using your toothpick, drop the honey and borax mixture into both ends of the straw pieces. You don't have to fill the straw pieces--just put enough in that they can get to it. Lay the pieces along or near their trail.
What you'll most likely see is a lot more ants in the beginning. I don't know if they have little tiny cell phones to call each other, but once the word is out they seem to be everywhere around the straws. You'll see them "feasting" on the honey. The goal is to get them to take it back to the nest and feed it to their little friends, "ants and uncles", and most of all the queen. Within a few days you should see no more ants--it absolutely makes my day once I've reached that point!
I put a picture below of day 2 in my bathroom. Last night there were ants everywhere.....you'll see today, very few......and yes, I'm smiling......it is a thing of beauty to me!
Wow, Thanks for sharing! Love that it is kid and pet safe. :)
ReplyDeleteI did a lot of research. The only time the borax could be potentially lethal, is they consume a lot of it. Since you just need a little mixed with the honey, they'd have to eat it over and over....not likely in most homes--I hope!
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