It’s common for ants to invade a variety of homes. Even if you don’t have any common issues that lure ants into your home, there are so many ants around the United States that it’s very common for people to have ant problems for one reason or another. If you’re worried about ants in your home, you should know that it’s possible to get rid of them. You just have to know how. Here are the best methods of managing ants in the home.
Facts About Ants
First off, you might want to learn a little more about ants. Why are they so common? Why is it so hard to get rid of them?
There are over 700 different kinds of ants in the United States, which is why the same plan for handling ants may not be as effective with different infestations. You may have a different type of ant infestation and not know it.
It’s also important to know that there can be millions of ants in a single colony. If you want to get rid of ants, you need to make sure that the ants don’t have the ability to get inside or a reason to try, because just trying to kill the ants that enter your home can be difficult.
Where Are You Most Likely to Find Ants?
There are three locations where you’ll be the most likely to find ants in your home.
- Kitchens
The kitchen tends to be the place where you’re most likely to find ants overall. You’ll typically see ant infestations in this area because of the food in the kitchen. It’s even more common for ants to infest a home where you’ve left some sort of food out, but even if you’ve put everything away properly, ants can still come in and infest the area.
- Bathrooms
If ants tend to infest the kitchen because of food, they tend to infest the bathroom because of water. Water tends to be more present in bathrooms, and even the smallest drops of water can be more than enough to ants. Bathrooms are more commonly associated with ant infestations for this reason.
- Basements
Because ants are great at burrowing, it’s common for them to get underground and start burrowing around your basement. If they find a crack in your foundation walls, regardless of how small that crack may be, it’s often easy for them to come inside. That’s why basements can be a huge starting point for an ant infestation.
Quick Tips to Prevent Ants From Coming Inside
So, how can you ensure that ants don’t come into your home? There are actually a number of ways you can dissuade ants from entering your home and make it less likely for you to experience ant problems in general. Consider these tips, all of which may be beneficial in preventing ants from entering your home.
- Seal Cracks and Holes in Walls
- Make Sure Windows and Doors Are Flush With the Wall
- Caulk Around AC and Heating Units
- Fix Your Leaky Pipes and Faucets
- Seal Food in Airtight Containers
- Use Vinegar Where You See Ants Regularly
- Stack Firewood at Least 20 Feet From Your Home
- Repair Your Cracked Pavement or Foundation
Most of these are DIY tips, but if you have cracked pavements and foundations, you’ll want to hand that over to the experts. The only way for you to really manage cracked pavement or a cracked foundation is to fix the underlying problem, and only an expert can help you get to the bottom of it.
Conclusion
As you can see, ants are a frustrating problem to deal with, but they’re definitely not as difficult to manage as they may appear at first. You just have to make sure you’ve handled all the different reasons that you might end up with an infestation. If that includes things like fixing your home’s cracked pavement, you may want to call in an expert to appraise your location.
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