Pesky Little Critters,

[doppa]

so who's got info how to destroy them.

[IanForbes]

Here is some advice from another forum..

I have a question about ants. We have had a problem with the small, brown ants. We have tried the borax & sugar, and poison, nothing works. Does anyone have any suggestions?

• We have 'them, too. About everybody we know does, here in Southern California. We don't like to spray poisons around, so we have to put up with them to some extent, but we have found that they hate baby powder (preferably scented talcum). If you find a trail of them in your house, or some "scouts" looking for food so they can bring the rest of their nest to enjoy it, just sprinkle the baby powder on the ants and wherever they are coming in from, if you can find it, and you will see them begin to get upset. After a while, they'll be gone, and they won't be back again for awhile, even after you remove the powder. We dust baby powder on our honey jar and sugar bowl, as well as the outside of the cats' dish and it keeps the ants off.

• Sounds crazy, but try vinegar! Fill a squirt bottle with plain old cheap white vinegar, and squirt it anyplace you've seen ants (kitchen counters, windowsills, etc) and let it dry. It's non-toxic, won't harm anything, and the smell will go away in just a couple of minutes. It worked for me!

• I have a suggestion for the ant problem; plain old cinnamon. I put in or at the site of the ant invasion, they back off quick!

• Black pepper is a nonlethal, poison free, cheap, and safe way to get rid of ants - sprinkle the black pepper where you see them congregating and watch 'them scatter. Follow them to where they're exiting - which is the same spot they're entering in at - and sprinkle the pepper at that spot to keep them from coming back in. It's safe to use in your cabinets, on windowsills, near your pets and kids, around food, etc.

• I have a book with several tips for the use of apple cider vinegar. One of them is getting rid of ants. Make a mixture of 50/50 water and vinegar and pour it into a spray bottle. Spray the surface with the solution several times a day. Ants guide themselves with their scent. Vinegar has a natural chemical that alters ants' scent and which ants avoid.

• My husband was in conversation recently with a gentleman in the pest control business. This man preferred to use environmentally safe methods to control pests. His recommendation for ants was: equal parts Windex and Ivory Soap. Simply mix, and spray problem areas.

• Most ant poisons have a sweetness to them that attracts most but not all ants. Some ants are attracted to grease. Observe your ants and see what they like, maybe you need a different bait. Also, though this is sometimes difficult, see if you can trace them back to where they are getting in, because caulking is usually the best solution, as it prevents recurrence.

• I live in south Florida, the bug capital of the world, and I don't use anything toxic in or around my home. I discovered a safe way to get rid of ants. I found Shakley's Basic H. It is a non-toxic soap made from soybeans. I take a pint spray bottle, fill it 1/3 with Basic H and 2/3 with water, mixing gently. Follow your trail of ants to try to discover where they are entering. Spray a thin stream of the mix around where they are coming in. I also spray around my door frames and into any openings where they might enter. Caulking any little holes or openings is also helpful. Please remember this is a SOAP. Do not spray where it will be stepped on and someone will slip. I reapply it as needed. Try to keep it off painted surfaces as it will eventually bubble the paint. You can also put three tablespoons into a Miracle Grow feeder full of water and spray outside around the foundation of your house. It will soak into the soil and get into the nests. Do this once or twice a month until the problem abates. As an added bonus, use the same mixture in your feeder and spray your lawn to keep it flea free. I also keep the little spray bottle handy to spritz any bugs that try to dash in the door when it's open. If it can kill a palmetto bug (roaches that are as big as B-52's), it will kill anything!

• I had a bad problem with them last year and tried everything. Then, I read in a book to place Bay Leaves on your counters and preferably along the trail where they are coming in (if you can find it). It worked. Now I make sure that I keep some behind my canisters, etc. on my countertops.

• We use plain white chalk drawn in a line at the place they come in they wont cross for some reason and also I use comet cleanser sprinkled where children/animals don't go.

• So far this has worked in my house. First you need to find out where they are coming in at. To kill ants that have entered your home without poison I use straight Simple Green. Believe me it works. Then after they are all dead, clean the area and spray the area with a peppermint spray. Fill a spray bottle with water and add approximately 10 - 15 drops of peppermint essential oil , sometimes called Peppermint Spirits. Ants won't cross the area because they hate the smell. Hope it works as well for you as it has for me. Please note this can be dangerous to cats!

•Ants will crawl away from mint. I did this as a science experiment and it worked. Just plant mint all around your house. Especially near doorways.

• A line of cayenne pepper usually stops them from crossing over it.

• Try putting some whole cloves around. I put them on the window sills and door jams and also sprinkled a few around in my bottom cabinets. It worked.

• I recently purchased the book “The Garden Guy – A Seasonal Guide to Organic Gardening in the Desert Southwest” by Dave Owens. Below is quoted information that may help you out. Dave Owens, does the Garden Guy's segments on KTVK (Channel 3) in the metro Phoenix area during Good Morning Arizona. – C.L.

Outdoor Ant Control

Supplies: 1 to 2 gallons water

Stove or barbecue grill

Instructions: Heat water to 160 to 170 degrees. Quietly sneak up to the mounds of ants and pour the boiling water down the hole.

Note: I normally try to do this between 11am and 2 pm.

Indoor Ant Control

Supplies: 1 tbsp. boric acid

1 tbsp. mint jelly or peanut butter

1 cracker

Small cardboard box

Instructions: Mix the boric acid and mint jelly; spread mixture on a cracker. Punch pinholes in a cardboard box; place cracker inside. Place box in an area where ants cause problems, but away from children and pets.

Note: The mint jelly or peanut butter lures the ants in and the boric acid kills them.

Indoor and Outdoor Ant Control

Supplies: Diatomaceous earth

Instructions: Dust food-grade diatomaceous earth along the ant’s pathways.

Note: The white powder will cut through their exoskeleton and they will dehydrate and die.

Indoor and Outdoor Ant Control Supplies:

1 1/2 cup Cream of Wheat

Instructions: Place a dish of Cream of Wheat where the ants can access it.

Note: After they eat it, the cereal expands and the ants will explode.

• Red chili powder !! I've been using it to repel ants for years. Make a paste using a little water, find where the little black pests are coming in and going out and paste the area. you can sprinkle the powder too, but I find adding water makes it more potent. The ants hate the stuff. Brooke and Mary B.

• To trap ants leave an open bottle of maple syrup (cheap stuff is ok) the ants love it and they drown happy. Just make sure you your children and sig. other know about it (LOL). Also I have had luck with the Torro ant poison. It's like a syrup. This they take back to the colony. - Lucy

• Mix borax with sugar water. Place it on the ant trails and where the ants are coming in. It kills any ant that eats the mixture. From CSinbad

• Some mint oil and mint chewing gum help repel ants in a house. placed a stick or open pack of chewing gum on a shelf. Outside you can plant mint around the foundation. It makes a good groundcover and is fragrant when it's stepped on. I hope this helps. Please let me know. - Diana

[eek]

Brilliant! Thanks Ian.

Im not surprised to see apple cider vinegar in there to be honest. I swear that is one of the most useful things to have in your cupboard. Can be used on hair, skin, windows, medicinally... and now I find out as a possible way of combating ants!

..the baby powder sounds interesting too. Do you think the vinegar and baby powder are just avoided by the ants (oh and black pepper too), or do they erode their shells or something? To be honest, if ants are being a bother i would prefer to find either a natural method, or just kill them quickly. Dont like the idea of them rotting away or something..

Heard something about them not liking clear bags of water.. anyone heard of that ??

[krading]

They are not very fond of 'Surface Spray'

[CrossBones]

Here is some advice from another forum..

I have a question about ants. We have had a problem with the small, brown ants. We have tried the borax & sugar, and poison, nothing works. Does anyone have any suggestions?

• We have 'them, too. About everybody we know does, here in Southern California. We don't like to spray poisons around, so we have to put up with them to some extent, but we have found that they hate baby powder (preferably scented talcum). If you find a trail of them in your house, or some "scouts" looking for food so they can bring the rest of their nest to enjoy it, just sprinkle the baby powder on the ants and wherever they are coming in from, if you can find it, and you will see them begin to get upset. After a while, they'll be gone, and they won't be back again for awhile, even after you remove the powder. We dust baby powder on our honey jar and sugar bowl, as well as the outside of the cats' dish and it keeps the ants off.

• Sounds crazy, but try vinegar! Fill a squirt bottle with plain old cheap white vinegar, and squirt it anyplace you've seen ants (kitchen counters, windowsills, etc) and let it dry. It's non-toxic, won't harm anything, and the smell will go away in just a couple of minutes. It worked for me!

• I have a suggestion for the ant problem; plain old cinnamon. I put in or at the site of the ant invasion, they back off quick!

• Black pepper is a nonlethal, poison free, cheap, and safe way to get rid of ants - sprinkle the black pepper where you see them congregating and watch 'them scatter. Follow them to where they're exiting - which is the same spot they're entering in at - and sprinkle the pepper at that spot to keep them from coming back in. It's safe to use in your cabinets, on windowsills, near your pets and kids, around food, etc.

• I have a book with several tips for the use of apple cider vinegar. One of them is getting rid of ants. Make a mixture of 50/50 water and vinegar and pour it into a spray bottle. Spray the surface with the solution several times a day. Ants guide themselves with their scent. Vinegar has a natural chemical that alters ants' scent and which ants avoid.

• My husband was in conversation recently with a gentleman in the pest control business. This man preferred to use environmentally safe methods to control pests. His recommendation for ants was: equal parts Windex and Ivory Soap. Simply mix, and spray problem areas.

• Most ant poisons have a sweetness to them that attracts most but not all ants. Some ants are attracted to grease. Observe your ants and see what they like, maybe you need a different bait. Also, though this is sometimes difficult, see if you can trace them back to where they are getting in, because caulking is usually the best solution, as it prevents recurrence.

• I live in south Florida, the bug capital of the world, and I don't use anything toxic in or around my home. I discovered a safe way to get rid of ants. I found Shakley's Basic H. It is a non-toxic soap made from soybeans. I take a pint spray bottle, fill it 1/3 with Basic H and 2/3 with water, mixing gently. Follow your trail of ants to try to discover where they are entering. Spray a thin stream of the mix around where they are coming in. I also spray around my door frames and into any openings where they might enter. Caulking any little holes or openings is also helpful. Please remember this is a SOAP. Do not spray where it will be stepped on and someone will slip. I reapply it as needed. Try to keep it off painted surfaces as it will eventually bubble the paint. You can also put three tablespoons into a Miracle Grow feeder full of water and spray outside around the foundation of your house. It will soak into the soil and get into the nests. Do this once or twice a month until the problem abates. As an added bonus, use the same mixture in your feeder and spray your lawn to keep it flea free. I also keep the little spray bottle handy to spritz any bugs that try to dash in the door when it's open. If it can kill a palmetto bug (roaches that are as big as B-52's), it will kill anything!

• I had a bad problem with them last year and tried everything. Then, I read in a book to place Bay Leaves on your counters and preferably along the trail where they are coming in (if you can find it). It worked. Now I make sure that I keep some behind my canisters, etc. on my countertops.

• We use plain white chalk drawn in a line at the place they come in they wont cross for some reason and also I use comet cleanser sprinkled where children/animals don't go.

• So far this has worked in my house. First you need to find out where they are coming in at. To kill ants that have entered your home without poison I use straight Simple Green. Believe me it works. Then after they are all dead, clean the area and spray the area with a peppermint spray. Fill a spray bottle with water and add approximately 10 - 15 drops of peppermint essential oil , sometimes called Peppermint Spirits. Ants won't cross the area because they hate the smell. Hope it works as well for you as it has for me. Please note this can be dangerous to cats!

•Ants will crawl away from mint. I did this as a science experiment and it worked. Just plant mint all around your house. Especially near doorways.

• A line of cayenne pepper usually stops them from crossing over it.

• Try putting some whole cloves around. I put them on the window sills and door jams and also sprinkled a few around in my bottom cabinets. It worked.

• I recently purchased the book “The Garden Guy – A Seasonal Guide to Organic Gardening in the Desert Southwest” by Dave Owens. Below is quoted information that may help you out. Dave Owens, does the Garden Guy's segments on KTVK (Channel 3) in the metro Phoenix area during Good Morning Arizona. – C.L.

Outdoor Ant Control

Supplies: 1 to 2 gallons water

Stove or barbecue grill

Instructions: Heat water to 160 to 170 degrees. Quietly sneak up to the mounds of ants and pour the boiling water down the hole.

Note: I normally try to do this between 11am and 2 pm.

Indoor Ant Control

Supplies: 1 tbsp. boric acid

1 tbsp. mint jelly or peanut butter

1 cracker

Small cardboard box

Instructions: Mix the boric acid and mint jelly; spread mixture on a cracker. Punch pinholes in a cardboard box; place cracker inside. Place box in an area where ants cause problems, but away from children and pets.

Note: The mint jelly or peanut butter lures the ants in and the boric acid kills them.

Indoor and Outdoor Ant Control

Supplies: Diatomaceous earth

Instructions: Dust food-grade diatomaceous earth along the ant’s pathways.

Note: The white powder will cut through their exoskeleton and they will dehydrate and die.

Indoor and Outdoor Ant Control Supplies:

1 1/2 cup Cream of Wheat

Instructions: Place a dish of Cream of Wheat where the ants can access it.

Note: After they eat it, the cereal expands and the ants will explode.

• Red chili powder !! I've been using it to repel ants for years. Make a paste using a little water, find where the little black pests are coming in and going out and paste the area. you can sprinkle the powder too, but I find adding water makes it more potent. The ants hate the stuff. Brooke and Mary B.

• To trap ants leave an open bottle of maple syrup (cheap stuff is ok) the ants love it and they drown happy. Just make sure you your children and sig. other know about it (LOL). Also I have had luck with the Torro ant poison. It's like a syrup. This they take back to the colony. - Lucy

• Mix borax with sugar water. Place it on the ant trails and where the ants are coming in. It kills any ant that eats the mixture. From CSinbad

• Some mint oil and mint chewing gum help repel ants in a house. placed a stick or open pack of chewing gum on a shelf. Outside you can plant mint around the foundation. It makes a good groundcover and is fragrant when it's stepped on. I hope this helps. Please let me know. - Diana

You really enjoy doing that dont you, big kid!

[freddy123]

Just tried cinamon on mine, worked pretty good.... until they found another path around it. But at least I stoped them coming in under the door.

[kalasin]

I have had very big succes with the product in the picture. Both indoor and outdoor on broken concrete.

It's like chalk, and you use a knife to scratch the chalk of powder-wise.

I brought a lot to Denmark, and danish ants don't like them either.

[Farma]

We had some jet black ants about 3mm long visit us for a while. My family was glad to get rid of all the other ants using those little green containers of ant poison or spray.

They told me not to kill these little black ones as this type kept termites at bay. Those black ants stayed for a couple of weeks and moved on of their own accord.

[bjohn34]

I see them almost daily around he sinks in my kitchen and bath.

I am less humane than many. I kill what i see and if i can define a trail , I spray it with insecticide.. Slows them down but not stop. I am in a condo on 12th floor.

[monkfish]

Don't kill the ants its pointless, you needs to kill the queen.

Use bait traps where they collect the poisoned food and feed it to the Queen.

[bjohn34]

Don't kill the ants its pointless, you needs to kill the queen.

Use bait traps where they collect the poisoned food and feed it to the Queen.

I have been looking for the queen. I assume she has big feet, an Adams apple and a deep voice, but no luck so far.

I know. Where can i find this queen killer poison in CM? I used many times in the US for fire ants but have not seen here.

Edited August 9, 2009 by bjohn34

[ToonBroon]

so who's got info how to destroy them.

I hear a wee dram o' two of toonbroon will give 'em somethink to think ov!!

But mind not ower much, cos they might just get the taste and keep coming back for more!

Maybe they're part of the fan club yu've been solicitating via ur hip op posts. Rock on...but carefully ok!

Cheers,

TB

[loubrockbank]

we had these and they were a nightmare, we swept them all away off our floor then 10 mins later they would be back, tried the chalk, bleach hot water and didnt work, so got some spray from tesco that kills ants, but the can has a thing tube on the end.

If you can try to fighure out where they are coming from ie is there a tiny hhole under worktops etc? if so put the nozzle/tube thing in and spray. You may need to keep doing it every now and then, but if there is a nest should do the trick...or move them at least.

We did this in the soil out side too and havnt had a problem since, it worked instantly but just keep doing it and u should be ok.

good luck

[monkfish]

Are these the buggers!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pharaoh_ant

Bait traps are available in Big C and most other stores, think i even saw in 7/11.

They consist of a see through plastic container and a packet of ant poison pop the ant poison in the container

and place near to the ant paths. If you have a lot you may need 2 or more in each room.

Edit: Do not attack them! They will scatter and make a new colony and you will have more.

Edited August 9, 2009 by monkfish

[IanForbes]

Ants are fascinating critters and although I just wipe up the excess ones in my Thai room it is interesting watching their behaviour through a magnifiying glass. Some seem to swarm, but the tiny ones in my Thai hotel follow a very narrow path like they are in a parade. I took video and photographs but they ants are so tiny it's hard to make a worthwhile photo.

[xerostar]

Has anybody experienced what we have here?

Mot SeeDang (red ants)

They are very tiny but extremely aggressive!

I've been stung several times while working in the garden.

Two or three occasions on my hands or feet.

I was unaware of the stings for about one minute, but they cause intense itching!

The itching can last up to two weeks!

In every case I have scratched my skin until it bleeds.

The bleeding seems to dilute the itchiness for a while.

One tiny ant can cause me misery for days.

I'd go mad if I had a whole lot of ants sting me at once.

If I get a sting now I race to get an anti-histamine tablet.

That seems to alleviate the itchiness for a few hours.

We have a lot of these ants around our place.

Because of the problem, I'm constantly checking where I'm walking, in case I cross their path.

Maybe I'm just super allergic to these ant stings?

I started off wearing boots, but they are too hot and it takes time getting them off

and removing socks just to come indoors so like most people I wear flip flops.

Of course they provide almost no protection at all.

Anybody got some ideas to help with these vermin?

.

[noise]

so who's got info how to destroy them.

I do two things:

1. I clean food and desk surfaces (water proof surfaces) with Heiter/water mix (i.e., clorox/bleach/water) regularly.
   
2. I put out TERRO Ant Killer liquid on a 1/4 inch square piece of non-absorbant cardboard for the little buggers to take back home.
   

These two seem to work pretty well. I have only found the TERRO at Rim Ping. It says its active ingredient if 5.4% borax.

The power (really granules) that comes in a bag to put into the clear yellow plastic boxes only works sporadically for me and only if the granules are bright yellow (fresh?). If it is brown when I open the bag, the ants seem to ignore it. And there is an expiration date on the package, but I found that it is frequently brown but still not expired. Bags not air tight, maybe?

[glegolo]

I have had very big succes with the product in the picture. Both indoor and outdoor on broken concrete.

It's like chalk, and you use a knife to scratch the chalk of powder-wise.

I brought a lot to Denmark, and danish ants don't like them either.

--------------------------------

Yes this is "Mortchak" 5 baht a piece, and it is the only one I also use. Ants do not only dislike it. They DIE from it quickly.

Another way and a better strategy is to buy (cheap) ASSWIN , is being sold over Thailand, it is a powder who the ants love and takes back to Mamasan and she dies together with her 2.500 workers....

Good luck

Glegolo

Edited August 10, 2009 by glegolo

[GeorgeO]

Don't kill the ants its pointless, you needs to kill the queen.

Use bait traps where they collect the poisoned food and feed it to the Queen.

I agree that the poisoned food traps are the winner.

I recently used a brand called 'ARS Ant Killer'. You will find it in most supermarkets next to the cans of bug sprays. Comes in an opaque green plastic rectangle (about 50mm x 30 mm) mounted on a piece of card.

Just empty the contents of the small sachet into the opaque container close to where the problem is. I watched with interest as this mass attack of ants rushed in to pick up the small granules and take them back to the nest. The next day, not an ant in sight! Jing jing!

[Robert44]

Has anybody experienced what we have here?

Mot SeeDang (red ants)

They are very tiny but extremely aggressive!

I've been stung several times while working in the garden.

Two or three occasions on my hands or feet.

I was unaware of the stings for about one minute, but they cause intense itching!

The itching can last up to two weeks!

In every case I have scratched my skin until it bleeds.

The bleeding seems to dilute the itchiness for a while.

One tiny ant can cause me misery for days.

I'd go mad if I had a whole lot of ants sting me at once.

If I get a sting now I race to get an anti-histamine tablet.

That seems to alleviate the itchiness for a few hours.

We have a lot of these ants around our place.

Because of the problem, I'm constantly checking where I'm walking, in case I cross their path.

Maybe I'm just super allergic to these ant stings?

I started off wearing boots, but they are too hot and it takes time getting them off

and removing socks just to come indoors so like most people I wear flip flops.

Of course they provide almost no protection at all.

Anybody got some ideas to help with these vermin?

.

Have the same problem in Chiang Rai, most of the methods mentioned on here work but you will never get rid of them 100%.

Only thing I do when working outside on the garden, especially when digging as this disturbs them the most is to ensure I am fully covered - eg gloves, socks, long sleeved shirt, trousers, boots etc. maybe hot but certainly less painful than scratching for 2 weeks.

Good luck

[haybilly]

I have had very big succes with the product in the picture. Both indoor and outdoor on broken concrete.

It's like chalk, and you use a knife to scratch the chalk of powder-wise.

I brought a lot to Denmark, and danish ants don't like them either.

--------------------------------

Yes this is "Mortchak" 5 baht a piece, and it is the only one I also use. Ants do not only dislike it. They DIE from it quickly.

Another way and a better strategy is to buy (cheap) ASSWIN , is being sold over Thailand, it is a powder who the ants love and takes back to Mamasan and she dies together with her 2.500 workers....

Good luck

Glegolo

I, too, generally favour this chalk but one must be careful with it when there are children in the same house--it's quite poisonous if fingers get in it and then are licked-I usually try to confine it's use to external areas where the little blighters are entering or in difficult to access places-also, my ants tend to hang out around food prep areas and, again, one needs to be very careful if you want to use the chalk--I'm going to give the Borax method a go since it's non toxic.

[CrossBones]

Its the white ants youve got to worry about (termites)

[Sparkles]

so who's got info how to destroy them.

Tesco's Kitchen Cleane,r at about 40 baht a bottle complete with sprayer, will kill small ants. Found this out by accident. The added advantage is that when you are cleaning up the corpses you are also cleaning your bench tops and leaving a pleaasant smell unlike traditional insecticide products.I think its the alcohol in it ????

Doesnt solve the problem of contiued invasion but as yet they havnt been back for more.