friggin ants in the house!

**1MileCrash** · 05-31-2010, 10:04 PM

i've got ants. little red ants. and they're all over my living room floor. i know somewhat where they're coming in from but i don't have any way to seal it up at all. i've got a couple of those little terro ant tramps with the liquid goo shit in them...but they don't seem to be helping.

what can i do to get rid of these things? keep in mind that i've got a cat in the house and i don't want her to get into whatever i use to get rid of the ants and get sick or die...the g/f would kill me as she's in china for another couple of weeks.

**silverWS6** · 05-31-2010, 10:06 PM

Fire works pretty good

**silverWS6** · 05-31-2010, 10:09 PM

Wait... better idea!! Fight fire with fire and put A LOT of spiders so they'll eat the ants. Then put lizards so they eat the spiders. Then put birds so they eat the lizards. Then put snakes so they eat the birds. Then put gorillas so they eat the snakes. Then put lions so they kill the gorillas. Then you have lions as pets and nobody will fuck with you, cause NOBODY fucks with a lion. There fixed your problem. Your welcome sir and feel free to add any other animals in between as long as you finish with lions.

**1MileCrash** · 05-31-2010, 10:11 PM

anyone have any non-asinine ideas.

**silverWS6** · 05-31-2010, 10:13 PM

Raid? Is that how you spell it?

**KahanaReef** · 05-31-2010, 10:14 PM

First, find where they are coming from. Get some Ant granules and pour a bunch on top of the ant hill. They'll take it inside and it'll kill them off. The queen too.

scatter more along the trails to the house. Spray the ones that have gotten in the house and just clean the area up real well so the cat doesn't have access to any pesticide.

That is what I do every time they start invading our property.

**NE-Firebird** · 05-31-2010, 10:14 PM

Do you live in a house or apartment? Is it an inside/upstairs cat only?
Get some Diazinon stuff at Home Depot. Get the spray and powder. Use a face mask with the powder.

*Spread* the *** out of the Diazinon on the outside walls, ground, basement, etc.

If you have a basement. The fumigator (put in water) will kill the **** out of every insect. It will also penetrate into any food! You'd have to take the cat out (in a kennel) for ~3 hours after you use the stuff. Use paper towels to stuff off under the basement door, and any other gaps. Turn off the AC/heat. Shut any floor vents.

Also, Home Depot sells traps for cockroaches that has the same stuff in it as for the ants, but in a higher concentration. That's what I use inside. Just check the ingredients - it's pretty obvious (even with the weird names - just match the names

).

**NE-Firebird** · 05-31-2010, 10:17 PM

Raid Fumigator: For people that need it in the basement or attic (for bees/spiders).

http://www.killsbugsdead.com/fop_fum.asp

That stuff is the "bomb".

**1MileCrash** · 05-31-2010, 10:20 PM

okay...well they minor back story is that the ants showed up within the past 5 days. i'm installing new windows in my rental house...i live in the downstairs of my duplex. it's an OLD house...built around 1930 or so. it appears that the ants are coming in through one of my air vents. when you take the vent panel off you can see the exterior wall of the house...so let's just say that the house isn't exactly "blue-makes-green ziplock sealed."

the cat is an insider cat only and i don't allow her into the basement. the apartment is limited to the first floor with the exception of the basement.

thanks for the thoughts on the other product firebird. i think that i may use that as a last resort at the moment considering that it appears that they are coming in through the air vent.

**NE-Firebird** · 05-31-2010, 10:36 PM

Originally Posted by 1MileCrash

i live in the downstairs of my duplex. it's an OLD house...built around 1930 or so. it appears that the ants are coming in through one of my air vents. when you take the vent panel off you can see the exterior wall of the house...so let's just say that the house isn't exactly "blue-makes-green ziplock sealed."

If you can see and get to where the ants are coming in, that's ~80% of the battle.

They make spray and powder ant/spider kill. Start with doing a heavy spray of the area. Then, "dust" the area with the powder. The powder stays longer. Redo the spray and powder after every rain.

Also, find out what the ants are after, and remove it. The ants follow paths where they once found food. Remove all food, and they stop coming after a while.

The ants are likely are after the cat food (if left open). Also, any boxes of food that aren't sealed. For my dog's dry food, that has to be kept in a sealed plastic container. Otherwise, it attracts ants and other bugs.

Even unopened bags of dry food should be kept in sealed plastic containers. What looks "sealed" to you, likely has some spots where bugs/ants can get in.

I have wet lands behind my house. So, I have a constant battle with all types of insects.

Good Luck!
Remember, Home Depot and Walmart are your friends!

**DrMilhouse** · 05-31-2010, 11:59 PM

ants on the ground... ants on the ground. Looking like a fool with the ants on the ground.

**1MileCrash** · 06-01-2010, 06:22 AM

Originally Posted by NE-Firebird

If you can see and get to where the ants are coming in, that's ~80% of the battle.

They make spray and powder ant/spider kill. Start with doing a heavy spray of the area. Then, "dust" the area with the powder. The powder stays longer. Redo the spray and powder after every rain.

Also, find out what the ants are after, and remove it. The ants follow paths where they once found food. Remove all food, and they stop coming after a while.

The ants are likely are after the cat food (if left open). Also, any boxes of food that aren't sealed. For my dog's dry food, that has to be kept in a sealed plastic container. Otherwise, it attracts ants and other bugs.

Even unopened bags of dry food should be kept in sealed plastic containers. What looks "sealed" to you, likely has some spots where bugs/ants can get in.

I have wet lands behind my house. So, I have a constant battle with all types of insects.

Good Luck!
Remember, Home Depot and Walmart are your friends!

thanks for the info. i've been trying to figure out what they're after ever since i noticed them. honestly...no clue. they come into my living room...go down the length of my area rug, get to the end of it, and turn around and go back. i mean...i could understand if they went after my cup on the coffee table or if they were in the kitchen...but my living room. it's weird.

**Nhra Firebird** · 06-01-2010, 06:26 AM

Why can't you seal up where they're coming from?

**1MileCrash** · 06-01-2010, 07:02 AM

Originally Posted by Nhra Firebird

Why can't you seal up where they're coming from?

because i think that they are coming from an air vent in the wall. it's hard to explain...but i could seal it up if i took off the lower wall trim molding and took up the floor...neither of which is going to happen because 1...i just sanded and surfaced the floors last year and 2...my walls are plaster and lathe and it's just terrible.

**bandit95** · 06-01-2010, 07:36 AM

the ant traps are just gonna bring them out even more. they unless its an actual poison that they can get out of the trap and bring back to the nest then its no good. look for ant bait in a tube that u can squeeze out and put little drops around where they are coming from. you'll have to give it a few days. or find a residual spray (meaning it wont be useless once it dries) and spray it around the vent. when they walk through it and get it on their feelers and touch each other with it they'll spread it and kill eachohter off. get some granules and find the ant bed. only a shake or two is all it should take, not too much or they wont take it in. read the packaging because some granules require some water to activate them so u may need to wet them on the bed a little bit. hope this helps. i just had some in my house and treated the inside perimeter with granules and spray treatment. i used to do pest control for a living.

**KahanaReef** · 06-01-2010, 08:29 AM

Originally Posted by 1MileCrash

because i think that they are coming from an air vent in the wall. it's hard to explain...but i could seal it up if i took off the lower wall trim molding and took up the floor...neither of which is going to happen because 1...i just sanded and surfaced the floors last year and 2...my walls are plaster and lathe and it's just terrible.

They would just find another way to get in anyway. You need to hit the colony

Or, at the least, redirect them from the colony, away from your house.

**86 IROC-Z** · 06-01-2010, 08:32 AM

Move.

We had ants in our house in England. Why do you think I'm in America now?

**1MileCrash** · 06-01-2010, 08:42 AM

Originally Posted by 86 IROC-Z

Move.

We had ants in our house in England. Why do you think I'm in America now?

better oral hygiene?

perhaps i will direct them next door...towards my parents house...

**1MileCrash** · 06-02-2010, 08:18 AM

well i got some granules yesterday and sprinkled them across the ground. hoping that it works. says that it should start working within hours and you should notice it within a few days. if this doesn't work i may call an exterminator since i discovered that there's an area about 8-10 feet long and about 2 feet wide which is covered with tiny red ant hills and it's right next to the foundation of the house.

**KahanaReef** · 06-02-2010, 08:37 AM

Originally Posted by 1MileCrash

well i got some granules yesterday and sprinkled them across the ground. hoping that it works. says that it should start working within hours and you should notice it within a few days. if this doesn't work i may call an exterminator since i discovered that there's an area about 8-10 feet long and about 2 feet wide which is covered with tiny red ant hills and it's right next to the foundation of the house.

Those granules work really well

It's all about hunting down that ant hill. The granules work for me every time.