Content:
- 4 Best Homemade Ant Traps
- Benefits of Using Homemade Ant Traps
- When to Call the Professionals
- Conclusion
Ants are eusocial insects. This means they can hardly survive alone, so they always belong to colonies or groups. If you notice an ant or two scurrying past your cabinets, the chances are that there are many more where they came from. These insects may look small and harmless, but an ant invasion is one of the last things you want in your home.
An army of ants in your home is never a pleasant sight, and these insects are quick to damage your properties in search of food and shelter. They can also feast on your foodstuffs and leave bacteria in them, so you should not let them get comfortable in your space.
Getting rid of ants may prove quite a challenge, as they are more resilient than other insects. Many people often count on insecticides to solve this problem, but these chemicals are either too strong or not very effective.
Do you know that you can eliminate ants from your home using simple homemade ant killers? This article will highlight some of the best homemade ant traps and how to go about them.
4 Best Homemade Ant Traps
Baking Soda Trap
As far as ant traps go, the baking soda trap ranks among the easiest to prepare and the safest for domestic use.
However, this simplicity does not compromise its efficacy in any way. The baking soda trap is a homemade insect killer used to kill different ants in one of the most efficient ways possible. Ants are not fond of baking soda, which is lethal to them. Hence, you already know what will happen when they ingest it.
Requirements
– Baking soda
– Powdered sugar
Preparing a baking soda ant trap is pretty straightforward. You have to get powdered sugar, mix it with white baking soda, and spread it around your house where the ants can reach. The sugar is a bait to lure them to the trap, and the baking soda does the rest.
However, you must ensure the sugar is more in the solution, enough to coat the soda.
Cornmeal Paste
This solution is pretty similar to the baking soda trap in preparation. However, this method replaces baking soda with boric acid for more kill power.
Hence, this method may be more effective because of the boric acid concentration. But the downside of this homemade trap is that it may be harmful to any pet that ingests it.
Requirements
– Boric acid
– Corn syrup
Pour ½ cup of corn syrup into a spoonful of boric acid and stir well to get a perfect mixture. Put the mixture on a piece of paper and place it around the ants’ hideout or concentrated area in your house. Ants are always curious about sweet items, and they will surely take the bait.
Also, since the boric acid won’t kill them immediately, they will take the mixture back to their colony to indulge other ants.
Plastic Bottle Ant Trap
The plastic bottle ant trap is another good homemade ant trap that is very effective. It is proof that you can catch fun while eliminating the invaders in your home. What’s more? Preparing this trap will not cost much, as you can easily find most of the required ingredients in your kitchen.
Requirements
– Plastic bottle/container with lid
– Sugar
– Borax (obtainable at pharmaceuticals)
– Water
Open your plastic container and pour about ½cup of water into it. Add two tablespoons of sugar and borax, and stir for a perfect mixture. Make tiny holes on the container’s lid (enough to grant the ants passage), and cover your mixture.
The sugar will attract the ant into the container as usual. But once they get into the container, there will be no way out for them.
Soap and Oil Solution
You may not have noticed this, but some ants are as attracted to oil as they are to sugar.
Therefore, you can use oil to lure them to a lethal mixture laced with soap or soda. This homemade trap may not be prevalent because most people are unaware of it. But you can rest assured that this method is very effective and can help get rid of the crawlers in your home.
Requirements
– Plastic container
– Oil
– Soap/soda
This ant trap is easy to make and often involves only two ingredients; oil and soup. Pour a little oil into a small plastic container and add soap/soda (both can function efficiently).
You can place the container in a corner in your house with high ant activities or spray the solution on the ants.
Benefits of Using Homemade Ant Traps
Many people often turn to insecticides and other chemicals whenever they notice ants in their homes. These chemicals may be effective, but they often have several side effects that can put you and your family at risk. Hence, homemade ant traps may just be the perfect solution. The best homemade ant traps have lots of advantages, including;
– Homemade ant traps are very effective and can even be more efficient than some chemicals.
– Homemade ant repellents and traps are very easy to produce. They are also cheaper than insecticides and chemicals that can cost significant amounts of money.
– Some insecticides may be very harmful to humans and can put you and your family at risk of several health problems. But homemade traps are safe, although you will need to keep them away from the reach of children.
When To Call the Professionals
Like other pest invasions, you may find some ants pretty challenging to get rid of. Either the ant specie is resilient, or there are too many colonies around your home. In such cases, you will need more than the excellent homemade ant traps highlighted above, as they can only act temporarily. If you find yourself in such a situation, perhaps it is time to let the professionals take over.
You can call expert insect control companies to help with your ant problem. They are more skilled and equipped to solve this problem, and they will help you with a unique program to get rid of these crawlers in no time.
Conclusion
Ants may look small and harmless, but they can often invade your space in number, causing discomfort. You certainly do not want them wandering around your house freely and disturbing the peace in your home.
Do you have an ant problem in your house? A homemade ant trap may just be the best way to get rid of these tiny pests, and these articles have highlighted some of the best homemade ant traps.
