Using ant poison in the kitchen

[MrHammer]

I have ants in the condo kitchen and bought a pack of the 'chalk' poison and box with poison in it from Big C. It says on the label to keep away from food etc and wash hands afterwards, but how poisenous is this stuff. My concern is that if I put it on the kitchen desk, then the ants will go all over the kitchen carrying this posion?

What is the best way to do use these?

[Costas2008]

The best way to use these is:

After catching the ant, open it's mouth as wide as you can and insert a grain of this poison.

Close the mouth properly and make sure the ant swallows.

Let the ant go and repeat the above to all existing ants in the condo.

This procedure will kill the ants and also prevent the spreading of the poison all over the kitchen.

[T_Dog]

Not sure what you are using, but most of the ant poisons work very well if you mix it with a small amount of bacon grease. Make sure your pets can not get to it. I use the tiny yellow cylindrical pellets from Lotus and the ants will empty the cache in just a few hours.

[MrHammer]

Not sure what you are using, but most of the ant poisons work very well if you mix it with a small amount of bacon grease. Make sure your pets can not get to it. I use the tiny yellow cylindrical pellets from Lotus and the ants will empty the cache in just a few hours.

Yes I think it is the same. My question is if this poision is really poisenous to the point were I should clean off the entire kitchen afterwards or if it is not that dangerous for humans? Because the ants crawl all over and may come into contact with things like coffee and such.

[Crossy]

Most of these ant poisons are based on Borax, they kill by the ants taking the grains back to the nest.

Borax is indeed toxic to humans, but in the quantities being used is unlikely to do any harm, particularly by accidental contact.

Normal care in keeping the products away from areas where food could come in contact with them will avoid anything nasty happening.

We use these products in the kitchen and I'm not dea ....................

[T_Dog]

Not sure what you are using, but most of the ant poisons work very well if you mix it with a small amount of bacon grease. Make sure your pets can not get to it. I use the tiny yellow cylindrical pellets from Lotus and the ants will empty the cache in just a few hours.

Yes I think it is the same. My question is if this poision is really poisenous to the point were I should clean off the entire kitchen afterwards or if it is not that dangerous for humans? Because the ants crawl all over and may come into contact with things like coffee and such.

I never put the mixture on the counter, but rather on the floor or near it behind a closed door. The ants will find it so no need to put it anywhere near your cooking surface. BTW, the stuff I use is tetrametrin/alphacypemetrin. Not sure if that is the same as borax, but it works quite well.

[jackflash]

Yes, Borax is relatively harmless (although surprisingly effective!).

But it pays to be careful.

[Straight8]

Most of these ant poisons are based on Borax, they kill by the ants taking the grains back to the nest.

Borax is indeed toxic to humans, but in the quantities being used is unlikely to do any harm, particularly by accidental contact.

Normal care in keeping the products away from areas where food could come in contact with them will avoid anything nasty happening.

We use these products in the kitchen and I'm not dea ....................

Spot on.

I think these can be bought at Big C and foodland. They come in a lime green colored rectangular box, that you place this powdery grains in, set and forget.

The ants will most probably pile in to take a share back to their ant hive, and within an hour there wont be one ant left.

about a month ago i noticed about 20 or so ants on my mantle, and whipped out this product. I was only intending to get rid of them, and to make sure they would take some back to their hive. Within about 20 min, I had literally hundreds of ants come out. They create a nice even trail and you can actually trace it back to where they are coming out of. I could see the tiny hole they where coming out of. Within an hour there was not one ant in sight.

I can say this stuff works amazingly. I have used it on a few occasions and it has worked.

[Loles]

MrHammer, I guess you are so strong like your name and I have a bad news.

You won't win against ants in TH.

I have tried many times and many things but they always come back.

Before I was so accurate ( spray, powder, traps, no food there) they disappeared for a week than they appeared always in my tooth-paste tube.

I told it : OK guys you have won, i give up now.

We live together.

[maswov]

Rather than poisons try sprinkling baby powder where they come in, the ants will not cross the powder. They may find another way to reach their objective so may have to do this in a few places or they will go to someone else's condo. I think rubbing lemon or lime in the area has the same effect but not sure about that one.

[belg]

waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?

bought one of those boxes and ants avoid it... did they read this post on TV and become smart ?

[Tywais]

I think these can be bought at Big C and foodland. They come in a lime green colored rectangular box, that you place this powdery grains in, set and forget.

I use the same and agree they work very well.

[Straight8]

I think these can be bought at Big C and foodland. They come in a lime green colored rectangular box, that you place this powdery grains in, set and forget.

I use the same and agree they work very well.

CAM00108.jpg

Yes, that's exactly the one.

Work extremely well.

[ZeroIce]

Baking Soda mixed with Icing sugar.

[samuijimmy]

Most of these ant poisons are based on Borax, they kill by the ants taking the grains back to the nest.

Borax is indeed toxic to humans, but in the quantities being used is unlikely to do any harm, particularly by accidental contact.

Normal care in keeping the products away from areas where food could come in contact with them will avoid anything nasty happening.

We use these products in the kitchen and I'm not dea ....................

Borax is used as laundry washing cleaner in north America, (not sure if else where) It is not always easy to find here, (at least on Samui) but it can be ordered...( I have never seen the bait that Tywais mentioned... here on Samui!)

I mix one teaspoon of borax and one teaspoon of sugar, with about a cup of hot water to dissolve the sugar .... shake it up...

The ants will come to it... Easy to hide in safe place under counter or behind door etc .... since doing this back in early December, I seen very few ants.... except a few recently, so I just made more "traps" ....

A milk container punched with a few holes will do the trick,too, and help prevent animals getting to it.... or glass jam jar with small holes punched in the lid....

They came like flies ! ....but soon disappeared...so just about 3 months control a lot cheaper than sprays and chalk... which need to be applied much more often.

It seems to work on all ants, including the small ants around the house... plus those biting red buggers around the garden.

Remember that table salt is very toxic too... so it really a case of using common sense.... when using any chemical.

Lots of info to be found.... here is one link ....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borax

Edited February 25, 2014 by samuijimmy

[SanukJoeII]

Forget about poison, there is a nice and cheap way to keep ants out of the house, once you have found out where they enter.

It's Cinnamon powder!

Yes, just sprinkle some cinnamon powder where the ants enter the house, they won't pass it and go back. The advantage is that it smells good, is not poisonous and does not kill the ants (ants are very useful in extirpating termites and mealy bugs).

I live in the sticks in Isan, have hundreds of big red tree-ants around me, black ones too, but they do not enter the house. It's the small red ants that you find inside the house, surely during the rain season. Cinnamon powder takes care of it, no more ants inside the house...

[MrHammer]

I've put up the container with the borax but so far no interest from the ants. Perhaps they prefer to 'hunt' by night?

[Retired2]

I think these can be bought at Big C and foodland. They come in a lime green colored rectangular box, that you place this powdery grains in, set and forget.

I use the same and agree they work very well.

CAM00108.jpg

Yes......... This is the one. You may need to use a little mayo or peanut butter to get them started.

You must think like an ant.

[bob6130]

I,m a boring old fart that likes to follow the ants to the nest and then spray the hole they are coming from with Chaindrite crevise spray. It lasts a few weeks but seems to kill the nest. You will never keep ants out, so keep it clean and check.

[Mrjlh]

Simply spray along and inside all the crevices using the long metal needle that comes with the spray can. Take of electrical cover plates and spray around the edges. Then wipe down all the surfaces with a paper towel and throw away. Helps to clear your counters first.

You can also use "Boric Acid powder" but it's harder to spread inside along walls. You can use an old "baby powder can" (if you remove the label) to sprinkle it around but make sure you mark the can as "poison" with skull and cross bones too. Wear gloves if you are worried about getting it on your hands. The powder you buy has other chemicals mixed in and it depends on the manufacture which ones are added. You don't need to add water. Put it down dry. Boric Acid is best spread along the outside walls of your house all the way around the house 4-6" wide. Doesn't need to be a continuous path. May take several bags depending how much ground you need to cover. Then using a rake or even a broom, go along and rake the powder into the soil just a little bit to even it out. This works for up to 3-4 months at a time.

I've use this method on several places I've in and usually fixes the ant problem for several months at least. You'll never get rid of all them.

[Straight8]

I think these can be bought at Big C and foodland. They come in a lime green colored rectangular box, that you place this powdery grains in, set and forget.

I use the same and agree they work very well.

CAM00108.jpg

get yourself down to Big C and get one of these, no mess, no fuss. no hassle, 60 baht, and u rid yourself of ants.

[rotorbreeze]

Not sure what you are using, but most of the ant poisons work very well if you mix it with a small amount of bacon grease. Make sure your pets can not get to it. I use the tiny yellow cylindrical pellets from Lotus and the ants will empty the cache in just a few hours.

Put your table legs inside small lids that will hold the chalk or poison, the ant can not get to top of table through the legs as they are housed in the chalk, ... I usually mix the black ant paste with a little honey...and my honey dispenser has a water molt around it..a larger lid filled with water couple drops of bleach... or one can spread pepper around areas ants enter... once the Aunts are gone you have to deal with the Uncles of the deceased ants a long going fight with nature.

[marko kok prong]

waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?

bought one of those boxes and ants avoid it... did they read this post on TV and become smart ?

Depends on the species of ant,some like protein,some like sugar and so on ,i am an ex pest controller,so i know this,you could possibly buy some different types of ant control products,and find one they like unless of course they are alien ants on overstay.

[marko kok prong]

also if you live in a concrete block construction there will be hundreds of nest inside the cavities in the walls,you will never eradicate them it is a matter of control to an acceptable level,did you know all the ants in the world roughly weigh as same as all the humans in the world.

[MrHammer]

The box did the trick surprisingly well. They are all but gone now.

[willyumiii]

You don't need poison!

Ants will not walk through chalk or talc.

baby powder, body powder, or plain chalk work.

Find out where they are entering the kitchen and block the entrance with powder, or chalk if on a vertical surface.

They will then find someone elses kitchen to invade.

It works...no poison!

[canman]

I have been using a gel similar to the pic below. It is rated food safe and the safety blurb says swallowing 16 teaspoons or less does not require medical attention. By far the best product I have ever used for getting rid of kitchen ants. I follow their trails and put a small dab next to the hole they enter from and a couple along the ant trails. One day and they were gone. They reappeared after two weeks which is by far the best result I have had with any product. The active ingredient is disodium octaborate tetrahydrate.