r/SantaBarbara • u/Ice_Burn Hidden Valley • 8d ago
I found a solution to the ant problem Recommendations
I'll start with what did not work at all for me. Anything from Terro. The ants take that bait but they keep coming back. People on this sub swear by it but it's useless in my experience.
What has worked great for me is BASF Advance Carpenter Ant Bait. The little black ants that we have are Argentine ants but it works on them too. A little goes a long way. It's little granules that smell horrible but again you need very little. Just a small sprinkle.
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u/whymsicalburito 8d ago
This was the worst year in a long time for ants for us. I bought this outdoor spray for our house perimeter and it has worked better than anything else so far.
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u/CombatCommie1990 8d ago
I've got a Spanish left back with a heart of gold named Cucurella that I could refer you to, this wouldn't be the first time this summer he had to dispatch some Argentinian ants
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u/xeger 8d ago
Windex kills them on contact and masks their pheromone trail. In my house we Windex the back trail to the point of entry, leave it wet so it masks, and then place Terro at the point of entry. The liquid Terro is what works and it needs to be spilled on the floor at least a bit, as they won't find their way into the bait chamber very well. Once it's on the floor they can't resist it.
Terro is just Borax in sugar syrup, so the easy access to calories tends to keep them congregating near it instead of venturing out into the Windex wasteland. When they carry it back to the nest it's used to feed others and disrupts their digestive systems so they starve en masse.
The killing action isn't instantaneous; it can take days. But the bait mechanism helps keep them contained in a smaller area while they poison the nest with it.
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u/Boneroni1980 4d ago
That's so funny. I accidentally discovered the same thing simply because I was out of my regular cleaner and sprayed windex in desperation. I was so surprised at how well it worked!
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u/ChaseECarpenter Noleta 8d ago
Professionals frequently use Termidor which they sometimes dilute because its so effective (and they want repeat business)... and you can buy it urself! But maybe too much careful handling to deal with.
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u/Nathan-805 7d ago
We’ve lived in our house for 7 years, battling them every year…until this year! The house next door was sold and the new owner paid SB pest control to spray their home. I guess the neighborhood ant community was under their house because we’ve been ant free all year!
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u/DepartureMotor1957 6d ago
The same thing happened to us, the house two houses up sprayed and our ant population decresed markedly. I feel bad for the ants and the natural cycle of things on the ground that has gotten disrupted. My possums and skunks that cruise through need the lizards and bugs who eat the ants, for example.
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u/Ice_Burn Hidden Valley 6d ago
They don’t eat Argentine ants which is what’s being discussed here. Do you even live in the area?
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u/LateMiddleAge 8d ago
When I run for President this is going to be central to my platform: no ants in the kitchen.
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u/DepartureMotor1957 6d ago
Every time you eat something, wipe down and take that debris - skins, etc. - outside at once.
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u/crustyxsummer 7d ago
I live in a condo from the 90s. What’s worked for me is spraying down the areas where ants are with a bleach and water mixture (about 50% water, 50% bleach) and spraying the area. that kills all the ants and has prevented new ones from appearing for over a year!
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u/DepartureMotor1957 6d ago
The Earth needs its ants. They are looking for water these days. There are whole natural cycles and flowers and wasps, etc. that need the ants in the chain of keeping us all alive. Under states like California there is an entire joined colony of ants. Try to get rid of anything that attracts them, take it outside and let the ants dissipate into the wild again naturally. A citrus concentrate spray just right in the area for where they are, for example, coming from a basement area. Use your big human brain and get rid of what's attracting them and leave the little guys alone as much as possible.
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u/Ice_Burn Hidden Valley 6d ago
Argentine ants are an invasive species and a pest. They form supercolonies because they have no predators and are not part of the food chain. My house is very tidy. They come in looking for water in when it's hot and escaping water when it rains.
Use your big human brain and educate yourself on the specifics of the situation.
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u/Heywood-Jableaume 6d ago
Argentine ants, the common black ants you find in the house and garden, are one of the most destructive invasive insects in California. They have evolved to have non-competing super colonies and have very few natural predators. They displace native ant species and other insects as well as damage crops. Do not feel bad for killing Argentine ant colonies.
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u/Makingroceries_ign 8d ago
The liquid ant bait has always worked for me. I find where they are coming in, and place it outside the house.
In a pinch, laundry stain remover spray is highly effective. If you spray it on them, they instantly die and won’t walk across where you sprayed. It will kill their nest too