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Housekeeping

Find cleaning advice from other Mumsnetters on our Housekeeping forum.

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Original poster

Ants in my home!

27 replies

xdogsx123 · 18/07/2015 11:14

Hiya!

There are ants in my flat! So far I haven't seen a "colony" or line of ants, mainly random workers. Now my town is ridden with flying ants currently (I blame the weather)
My flat is very, very clean and tidy, got a little ocd about cleaning when I spotted the first ant. Any idea why they're here? I use tea tree oil and water in a spray bottle, got those bait gel traps, lavender behind sofa but they refuse to bugger off!

It makes me feel so dirty, I have checked they have no food source! everything's sealed in Tupperware, no crumbs etc

I have no pets or children (yet I'm on mumsnet because I thought you might be able to help me) so where shall I put poison? Will dead ants attract more?

Maybe I'm just freaking out because this is my first time living alone and a few ants are just something I have to live with?

Thanks in advance!

OP posts:

cozietoesie · 18/07/2015 12:33

The little blighters are everywhere this year. (Actually, they've been everywhere for several years and breeding away happily - but maybe people just haven't noticed them.)

How is your flat situated? eg is it a garden flat or on an upper floor? (And if the latter, is there any vegetation such as ivy growing on the outside?)

Original poster

xdogsx123 · 18/07/2015 13:54

Hi thanks for replying

Garden flat, although estate agents did just send gardeners to clear the plants so maybe they know the about the issue. Today I went to do my laundry and found one nice and cosy in the bottom of my laundry bag so hopefully the wash would have killed any on my washing. Fingers crossed! I really do hate them to the extent I wouldn't drink from a glass at my BF's home because the glass had been sitting out for a while and I'm terrified of them :p

OP posts:

cozietoesie · 18/07/2015 14:06

There's your issue, likely - they're in the garden and coming in to your house on foraging or scouting trips. (Pressure on the colony as they breed.) You'll be able to tell if you go out and have a look at any flowerbeds or eg cracks between paving stones. After a short time of watching, you'll see them hurrying around and maybe notice little holes which are the entrances to their nests.

They're not really a problem or something to get overly worried about. (There's the odd species which bites but even those are merely mild irritants to most people.) It's certainly no reflection on your cleanliness etc.

Here's some further info - and just never watch

PigletJohn · 18/07/2015 14:58

Nippon liquid, in a miniature tube like toothpaste.

Put a couple of drops on a clean coin (so it isn't absorbed) in various places; inside cupboards, behind and under the cooker; under the sink and behind kitchen kick-boards. Don't disturb the ants who cluster round it, and keep replenishing it for a week.

It is so delicious that they will carry it back to the nest to share with their friends.

cozietoesie · 18/07/2015 15:21

...It is so delicious that they will carry it back to the nest to share with their friends...

Oh my.

(Thanks for the tip - is it expensive?)

PigletJohn · 18/07/2015 16:11

not remotely

One tube will last you for years

cozietoesie · 18/07/2015 16:14

Excellent.

Thanks - they may be merely annoying but ants and slugs are two of the things I thoroughly dislike. I think I'll invest in a tube of the stuff.

MoreTeaPenguin · 18/07/2015 16:14

The only thing that worked when we had ants a few years ago was Deathlac. Spray it on airbricks and door sills, wherever they are getting in, they walk on it then die a bit later. www.amazon.co.uk/Dethlac-woodlice-cockroaches-crawling-insects-250ml/dp/B003ESMNFU

Iloveonionchutney · 18/07/2015 16:14

Put talc along the door of you think that's where they are coming in, they can't stand it on their feet. We put it along our front door a thick line of it and it's stopped them coming inside. Been a few weeks now for us so worth a try.

Original poster

xdogsx123 · 20/07/2015 12:55

I figured out their entry point and put ant stop bait trap there, put spray can poison all around the skirting boards, outside the windows and boiling water on any nests I saw in the front garden.
Mum is also calling my LL (I'm 21, deaf so can't call myself) about a pest man coming in.

OP posts:

sparkysparkysparky · 20/07/2015 13:08

We have loads nesting in our cavity wall insulation and getting into our bedroom. We fought them off with a nice person from the council. Came in a couple of days of us making enquiries - sprayed inside and out. less than 70 quid and worth every penny. and the nippon stuff keeps raiders at bat.

florentina1 · 20/07/2015 14:29

There is a product called Raid which I use. It is the most effective as I rarely have them now. Spray around all the areas where the floor and walls meet in the rooms affected. Also on windowsills. The ants don't seem to like crossing where it is sprayed. I like this because there are no ant corpses or sticky residues to deal with.

florentina1 · 20/07/2015 14:32

Another plus is that it is inexpensive and you can buy it in most supermarkets.

BasinHaircut · 20/07/2015 14:54

I feel your pain OP! We have ants in our kitchen. We noticed them on one side of the patio door when we moved in in April and I was told by a colleague to put down some washing powder (as we have almost 2yo DS so want to avoid actual poison) and they will carry it back to the nest and poison them. It seemed to work but now we have them coin in the other side of the door so I've chucked some more powder down.

Will invest in some of this Nippon though and put it down when we go on holiday in a couple of weeks (hopefully the washing powder can keep them at bay until then) so that there is no danger of DS getting his hands on it.

Original poster

xdogsx123 · 20/07/2015 15:59

Pest man is coming but I'll try the washing powder thing as normal ant powder says "do not apply to carpets" and most of the flat and the entry point is carpet that was Raid brand.
Someone in one of the other flats put lavender plants outside but that hasn't helped at all, in fact seen more. Although they do avoid the lavender like the plague when I was watching the scouts :)

OP posts:

avocadotoast · 20/07/2015 16:02

We got a pen thing when we had ants and it was the only thing that worked! You have to suss out where they're coming in and then you draw it (it's transparent) around their entry point. They won't cross it. I don't know if it was this specific one but it was very similar: www.amazon.co.uk/Pestshield-Ant-Crawling-insect-killer/dp/B005GZ0D4C

Ours were coming in through our bathroom, little buggers.

ribbitTheFrog · 21/07/2015 23:32

I've had them in the past. I vacuumed a lot (especially the actual ants!) and bought some little traps to put at the back of the cupboard, just cheap ones from tesco. Didn't want anything poisonous left out due to cats and children.

The vacuuming and hidden traps did tge trick, good luck!

Bubbshjs · 24/07/2015 16:22

We have a major ant problem so I sympathise, but also hoping maybe for some more advice from people like sparkysparkysparky who have had similar. We took some bulging tiles off our bathroom wall to discover the most enormous ant's next in the plaster board/wall joists. We sprayed, cut out and used lots of the 'take back to the nest' things and thought we had got rid of them, but we've just had lots of flying ants appear in the house again. I think they've migrated downstairs rather than being killed off. I did some searching on the internet at pest control firms, but none seemed to be dealing with an infestation like ours - just ants coming in from outside - so I didn't have the confidence to contact any of them. If anyone has recommendations for how we deal with this I would be very grateful as I'm beginning to wonder how much damage they may have done to the structure of the house. OH assures me they only managed to do so much damage to the bathroom wall because the cracked grout had let in water and so the wood/plasterboard was soft, but I'm not entirely convinced! Have visions of having the house shrouded in plastic and large quantities of noxious chemicals being sprayed while we have to move out, so please reassure me someone!!!

sparkysparkysparky · 24/07/2015 18:07

The person from the Council was the most effective and good value -66 pounds which is probably cheaper than a private pest control firm. It is a ghastly business but I felt better getting someone in than trying to manage it myself. Don't know about your area but your Council website will have the info.

sparkysparkysparky · 24/07/2015 18:10

The stuff he sprayed was left to lie for a couple of weeks - non toxic to kids and pets once it dries. A minor inconvenience and it went away (till next time but at least we know what to do and who to call/email). The guy knows me now

sparkysparkysparky · 24/07/2015 18:24

And ... He sprayed our outside wall because we caught the feckers burrowing (or whatever ants do) into our walls. Our pointing needed doing. Now it really needs doing. Apparently our lovely cavity wall insulation makes an enticing home. Feckers!

Flisspaps · 24/07/2015 18:36

That Nippon gel is amazing.

The ants are now bringing out their dead and are depositing them inside my living room as they can sneak in under the back door!

Original poster

xdogsx123 · 25/07/2015 09:48

Hiya, thanks for all the help! I used a bait trap at their entry point, and one by the window, someone came from the letting agency to destroy the nest and I sprayed ant killer along all the skirting boards, outside window ledges, around my front door and paving. That seems to have stopped ants but now the massive spiders are coming in due to the heavy rain can of spray says "crawling insect killer" but seemingly did nothing to the spiders ????

OP posts:

gamerchick · 25/07/2015 10:04

I do sympathise somewhat but you can't keep your house beastie free at all times. Ant season all the young queens are leaving the nest. Spider season where the spiders who live in your house already helping you keep the ant population down come out to mate.

There's no need to kill every single thing.

bec3105 · 25/07/2015 10:23

I mix equal parts of icing sugar and washing powder then sprinkle it wherever I see the ants. The sweet sugar attracts then and they take it back to the best but the washing powder is poisonous to them. Safe to use on carpets, furnishings etc as well as around pets and children.

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