Can anyone tell me how to get rid of these stupid black ants? They are overwhelming us. They range in size from so small you don't see them but feel them on you to so big they look like beetles (no joke). They come in the windows, doors, and cracks in the house. Is there anything I can spray or leave around in the windows that will kill them? I've tried Diazinon, those baits you put in the yard, and a host of other things in the insecticide aisle at Wal Mart. My wife tried skin so soft from avon. All to no avail. I have small kids so I need something that isn't too dangerous.

-- Joel Combs (jwcinpk@yahoo.com), May 09, 2002

Answers

Simple borax from the laundry aisle. It takes persistance but it works.

-- Tis I (really_tis_i@yahoo.com), May 09, 2002.

Diatomaceous Earth

http://ighawaii.com/naturally/naturalanimal/de.html

Good luck!

-- Cindy in IL (Ilovecajun@aol.com), May 09, 2002.

i have posted this several times but, know your frustration. this works well on all but, fire ants without exception. taake four (4) teaspoonsful of borioc acid ( available at any pharmacy),.add three cups of water and one cup of granulated sugar bring this mixture to a boil and stir to disolve all ingredients let it cool. place in several low to the ground containers like bottle caps, coffee can lids, etc., place these real close to where the ants are moving and let them eat it up they will eat/drink it up carry it back to the nest where it will form crystals inside of them and they will, simply explode all the other ants will eat the remains and they will all die. this is completely harmless to children and farm animals. lol bob m.

-- bob mccaffrey (bobmccaffrey1@netscape.net), May 09, 2002.

You didn't say where you are, so can only tell you what worked here in Western Washington. We have "red ants" and we have what we call "sugar ants". The sugar ants show up on kitchen counters in late winter/early spring. The red ants have big hills, they look like they are made out of precisely cut straw, and on a warm day, the hill is covered by the ants. Anyway, we bought from either Gardener's supply, or one of those organic supply catalogs, an "ant-begone- product. It is a mixture of boron and sugar. It took less than a 1/4 teaspoon behind my sink, and the sugar ants were gone. For the red ants, I couldn't take the time to find their hill, so I put about a half teaspoon in a line along their trail they had through my asparagus patch. That was probably about 3 years ago, and haven't seen any since. I still have most of the (4 ounce bottle) left.We are "certified" organic, so I tried the organic method, and to be honest, didn't expect much, so am really really pleased. I have no idea if this would work on fire ants. My Dad always dumped motor oil on the hills, then a dollop of kerosene, let it sit for a week or so, then put on a quart or so gasoline and torched the hill. (I'm talking the "red ants" here) and within a week, there would always be a new hill within a yard. So you can see why I was very pleased with the boron/sugar remedy. When we were kids, my little brother caught a big garter snake, tied a noose around it and "staked" it on an red ant hill. Within a few hours, he had a perfectly clean snake skeleton. I thought that was really cruel and disgusting. But he wrote it down, showed the skeleton at school, and won their "science project of the year". I really prefer the boron/sugar solution. Kathie

-- Kathie in Western Washington (twinrosefarm@centurytel.net), May 09, 2002.

Cayenne pepper worked for me. I just put a thick layer of it where ever the ants were coming in and around their favorite places ... countertops,cupboards, etc. They haven't come back in any significant numbers for about 3 years. I see a few starting to make their way in now and I will put the pepper out again. Also, a dish of vinegar in the cupboard seems to help deter them, but the pepper worked the best.

-- nancy (stoneground@catskill.net), May 10, 2002.

Could you get free range chickens or guineas to eat the ants. The above suggestions should work well for the ant hills you have but to keep other ants from eatablishing in your yard then maybe this could help. Good luck.

-- Erika (misserika129@hotmail.com), May 10, 2002.

I'm not sure if I'd want chickens or guineas in my kitchen . . . they're loud & messy. ;) They do keep the ticks at bay in the yard, around the house, though!

I have read that placing strips of cucumber peel in their "path" will deter them. Never tried it, so I can't say if it works or not.

I usually use diatomaceous earth for everything & have had good luck. Just remember: it kills good bugs, too, so be careful where/how/when/etc. you use it.

Regards, Sarah/MI

-- Sarah Sanders/MI (chilechile@hotmail.com), May 10, 2002.

The cucumber peels didn't work for me. Just ended up with dried up vegetables and ants in the cupboard. Ours were the little black ants. Good luck.

-- cindy palmer (jancpalmer@sierratel.com), May 10, 2002.

Hi, I have used liquid, lemon-scented dish soap and also the lemon juice in the little squeeze bottle, around the kitchen counter seams. Just squirt it in the cracks.

-- lacyj (hillharmony@hotmail.com), May 11, 2002.

I used a combination of cayan pepper and sugar mixed up together and laid it out in small dishes or caps in areas where the ants traveled. They carry this back to the nest and it kills the group off. Worked great for me, but the number of big ol ant carcasses around the house was astounding! LOL

-- CJ (greensleeves421@aol.com), May 12, 2002.