How to Get Rid of Ants! – Phoenix Pest Control – Scottsdale Pest Control

Ants are often a problem for homeowners but not so much for Phoenix Pest Control and Scottsdale Pest Control techs. Why?

Many Phoenix Pest Control and Scottsdale Pest Control companies are good at killing ant colonies while individuals struggle with ant issues and often see the problem get worse and worse. So why is this? What is the secret that the pros know about getting rid of ants, their queens, and their entire colonies? On the other hand, most folks don’t know about these secrets. I’m going to give you some of our “tricks of the trade” in this article.

Firstly it’s important to look at why ant problems don’t usually get better and often can get worse with many store-bought products, even those that are labeled as ant killers. Many of the products that say they are ant killers on the label are actually telling the truth, kinda. A lot of these sprays and powders have active ingredients that will kill an ant or even a few hundred ants that are outside at the time you spray them. But they don’t kill the thousands that are still underground including the queen.

The other issue with these sprays and dust is that many have repellent active ingredients that tip-off all of the ants that survived your massacre to your game. These repellent products usually achieve one of two things. The better result is that the ants move their hole away from the treated area, sometimes as little as an inch or two away. The worse scenario is that the colony perceives the treatment as an attack, which it is, and they go into a sort of “emergency mode”, splitting the colony in two, making a second queen, and doubling your ant problems.

I have actually seen cases where a person treated an anthill with aerosol brand X. But a few days later they had three new ant hills just a few feet apart from each other.

Natural Ways to Attract Ants and Kill Permanently

A good Phoenix pest control or Scottsdale pest control company will usually do one of two types of treatments:

  • A non-repellent spray treatment or
  • A bait treatment

A non-repellent spray can allow the ants to go about their business for a while, not knowing that they are walking on and collecting little particles of pesticides on them. These particles can be rubbed off onto other ants inside the colony and pretty soon they are all sick and die.

A bait treatment is a more common and sometimes easier treatment to do. Ant baits come in four basic forms:

  • Liquid
  • Gel
  • Bait Stations
  • Granular

Liquid baits are usually very basic. Essentially sugar water syrup with an active ingredient in it that kills the ants when they eat it. The pros to these are that they are simple to apply and appeal to a lot of different types of ants. Normally you’d just drop some right next to a line of ants and if they like it you’ll see them start eating it pretty fast. The cons are that they can dry out fast, making the bait difficult to harvest for the ants. They can also be a sticky mess!

Gel baits have similar pros and cons to liquid baits. But they have one big advantage. They can defy gravity when injected into cracks and crevices like the spaces behind cabinets. This makes them nice for interior treatments.

Bait stations can be nice when you want to just “set it and forget it” because of they simple to use, don’t cause a mess, and tend not to dry out as easily as liquids or gels.

Granular baits, my favorite for outside treatments, the ease of just shaking them around the area where you see ants. They also can help you do some detective work. If you don’t know where the ants are coming from you can put some bait granules in or near their path and after they start taking the bait you can follow it and you can bet they’ll be taking it home!

When you successfully bait an ant colony it’s important to let them go about their business until they die out. You want to avoid causing them any alarm which may cause them to stop eating the bait or move out of the area. It can sometimes take a couple of weeks to see the activity stop, but your patience will be rewarded. And you will be get rid of ants.

Good Phoenix pest control and Scottsdale pest control techs will have several different ways to deal with ants with them. This is one of the advantages of using a pro. If the ants aren’t interested in one type of bait, we’ve got a couple of others to try. sometimes they aren’t interested in any of the baits. This is usually when it’s best to do a non-repellent spray treatment.

If you’re having a problem with ants…or any other pest…or simply a question…call NaturZone Pest Control at 602-476-1088 and ask for me, Jeffrey.  I’ll be happy to speak with you anytime.

Till then, thanks for reading!

Here’s to helping YOU live Pest Free,

Jeffrey

PS. Call 602-476-1088 today for a FREE Consultation and FREE 58 Point Pest Analysis of your home or office!

We do Termite, Bed Bug treatment, and General pest control in Phoenix, Scottsdale, Queen Creek, Chandler, Gilbert, Glendale, Peoria, Ahwatukee, Avondale, Litchfield Park, Cave Creek, Fountain Hills, Mesa, Apache Junction, San Tan, Waddell, El Mirage, Carefree, Buckeye, Verrado, Tempe, Sun City, Sun Lakes, YoungTown Paradise Valley, Gold Canyon, Maricopa, Goodyear, Surprise and Anthem!