Ants are close to the top of the list when it comes to annoying household pests. Getting rid of ants, especially in the kitchen, can be a difficult and frustrating problem. Some eradication products take a long time to work, while other times the ants can simply come back after a while. Prevention is much easier than eradication, so keep these following tips in mind for keeping ants from coming into your kitchen in the first place.
1. Keep Food Stored Securely
Ensure all pantry items that might be attractive to ants are securely sealed when not in use and stored in an area not easily accessible by ants. This includes keeping items like sugar, honey, and cereal in tightly enclosed jars and containers or even in the fridge. Pantry shelves and wire racks can also go a long way in helping to prevent ants from reaching your food and ingredients.
2. Keep Your Kitchen Clean
It may seem obvious, but the main thing that attracts ants and keeps them coming back to your kitchen is the availability of food left for the taking. Ants will seek out just about anything they can bring back to the colony, whether that’s some granules of sugar on the bench, crumbs of bread, bits of fruit, a sticky patch of syrup and even grains of salt.
Once an ant has found a food source, they’ll let other colony members know using their special chemical trail and your kitchen will be quickly overrun. The solution is simple. Keep all the spaces in your kitchen clean, including bench spaces, cupboards, pantry, the kitchen sink and floor. Wipe down all surfaces and ensure you sweep and mop your regularly.
3. Remove Any Standing Water
While food is the primary motivator for ants exploring, water also attracts the attention of a colony. A small puddle or pool of water can quench an ant’s thirst for quite a while and end up becoming an oasis for the whole colony. The more reliable the water source, the closer the colony will want to be to your kitchen. Clean up all water spills immediately and underneath and around sinks, refrigerators and other high moisture areas to prevent attracting ants.
4. Close Entry Points
Ensure all windows and exterior doors are securely sealed when shut. Even the smallest openings or cracks can offer an easy entry point for ants searching for food. Close up any gaps before ants get a chance to make their way inside. This includes checking all screens for rips or tears as even the tiniest gaps provide an easy way for ants to commence their invasion.
5. Use Bait Traps
If you know there are any colonies nearby or just want the peace of mind that comes with proactive protection, consider utilising bait traps. These attract ants away from your home and can even address existing infestation problems. Bait traps and liquid bait can take down colonies at their source. Ants will detect the bait trap, ingest a small portion and then carry the substance back to the colony, poisoning the other ants including the queen, leading to the destruction of the entire colony.
Pest Control for Ants in Queensland
If you have an ant infestation on your property in Brisbane, Redland Bay, Ipswich or Logan, call the team at Critters Pest Management. We use the latest tools and treatments to quickly eliminate ants and other pests from your home or business. Our range of pest control services include getting rid of ants as well as termite inspections, termite treatments and termite barriers.
Call our friendly professionals today on 07 3820 2238 to make a booking or contact us online.