With the appearance of the sun, we can notice that the apartment has been occupied by red ants. They prefer damp places, bathrooms, toilets, kitchens, where it is constantly warm and there is water. They do not disdain anything: they crawl around, spreading infections through garbage cans, cabinets where there is food, as well as with bed linen, between books and sheets. They really like the smell of sweat and blood, they crawl into wounds.
If you decide to find the nest, don’t try, you’ll have to tear off all the tiles and baseboards and the result will be zero. Just because they have trails everywhere doesn't mean the nest is somewhere nearby. In large quantities, acid causes poisoning, and 4 grams for an ant is the amount that can destroy it.
Ants appear in every apartment or house. It is difficult to remove the nest even with expensive drugs. They hide nests in places where it is difficult to get to. It is not difficult to track where the nest is; they move in a chain. To kill insects, you need to kill the queen. Each family has worker ants, whose responsibility is to feed the larvae and the queen, who only lays eggs for new offspring.
Consequences for animals and people from ants
These insects are very difficult for animals to tolerate. Ants transmit infections that can later spread to humans. Eggs are deposited in the animal's fur, which causes redness and the bite site begins to itch, causing allergic reactions.
What is the effectiveness of boric acid against ants
Boric acid has antiseptic properties, but an overdose leads to accumulation in the kidneys. This drug was used in the 50s to disinfect wounds. At the moment it is produced, but analogues have appeared. This acid paralyzes the nervous system of the ants, resulting in death. Small grains stick to the paws and when removed and consumed, death occurs. With its help, you can destroy a nest without even knowing its location.
But boric acid has one more feature. It works even in the dead bodies of ants. Ants feed on everything, even their own relatives. By eating their relatives, they also become infected, and extinction occurs, as a result of which the population disappears.
But to get rid of this infection, there are many ancient recipes using boric acid, and here are some of the few.
Effective ways to kill ants
- To kill ants, a mixture of 1 part fresh brewer's yeast and 4 parts honey (it can be replaced with thick sugar syrup), 1 part boric acid. Place the resulting mass on plates wherever the ants appear. The latter feast on the sweet mixture and quickly die from the action of boric acid and brewer's yeast.
- The presence of ants in residential areas is highly undesirable. The best way to get rid of them is to use boric acid and naphthalene. Lumps of cotton wool are impregnated with substances and laid out in different corners of the room. The ants will quickly disappear.
- In the above rooms, place a cup with kerosene and boric acid and add fresh oil from time to time.
- I recommend making a mixture of honey, boric acid and tartar emetic.The mixture is poured into plates (you can also place rags and sponges soaked in it) and placed wherever ants appear. The sweet liquid attracts ants, and they die from the action of boric acid.
- Many means have been invented to exterminate ants in homes, but not all of them achieve their goal. Experience has proven that if insects have grown in large numbers and it is necessary to resort to drastic measures, mix sulfur, wild marjoram, boric acid (all in powder) and fill the cracks where the ants live. In the cabinets where food is stored, acid, sugar and potash are mixed.
These methods are very old, they were used in 1900, but they are still effective. Today, people have come up with methods of fighting ants, also based on boric acid.
Consider the following methods of destruction.
- Mix 3 egg yolks and 1 tablespoon honey. Mix all this with 3 g of boric acid. Roll small balls and place them in habitats or paths.
- 30 grams of sugar, 8-10 grams of honey and 4 grams of acid. Pour 4 grams of acid into a glass and fill it with warm water, add all the ingredients there. Pour into bowls and place in cupboards and next to trash cans.
- Boil 3 yolks and 3 potatoes, mix with 40 grams of sugar and 12 grams of honey, 4 grams of boric acid. Make balls and place them in areas of travel paths. Change as it dries or during the moon.
- Well, if the ants have multiplied, a meat recipe will do. Mix 3 tablespoons of minced meat with 3 grams of boric acid and add 2 tablespoons of minced fish. Fashion any shapes and place them in areas with large populations. This is a very effective method of removal.
Expiration dates for these baits
Boric acid acts slowly, be prepared to wait 3-4 weeks, but even if the nest is not in an apartment, the effect will be prolonged. You should not add a large dose because the ants will not have time to bring food to the nest, and the birth of new larvae will continue. It is necessary that the worker ants have time to feed the queen with contaminated food.
Prevention at home
- Clean the house, take care of the trash can.
- Keep the table clean and do not leave crumbs or food behind.
- Keeping the bags tightly closed is what interests the ants most.
- Always take out the trash.
- If you have an animal at home, do not leave food in the cup all the time.
An important factor in exterminating ants is that the entire entrance or house must be eliminated. If there are a lot of ant families, then they will eventually come to you. Of course, you can use expensive insecticides, but they evaporate, which can lead to poisoning, and if you have pets, this is not permissible. And although the product will be advertised, the effectiveness of destruction is zero.
Acid safety
Boric acid is safe for both children and animals. To be poisoned by acid, you need to eat as much as is not used to prepare the ant mixture. And an animal that eats 1-2 balls will not get poisoned.
To improve the effectiveness of baits, it is necessary to install new baits after 2–3 days.Before laying out the baits, put all food in places inaccessible to ants, clear all cutlery of food, do general cleaning and remove food debris under baseboards, remove animal cups and do not give food to animals anywhere. To avoid cleaning up after each bait, use paper. From the first days of using the bait, it will seem to you that there are many times more of them, but when the bait starts to work, the ants will begin to slowly disappear. It is important to take into account that as soon as you notice the appearance of ants, you must immediately begin to take action, otherwise over time they will multiply and it will be more difficult to remove them.
If you don’t want ants to appear in your house or apartment, maintain hygiene, do general cleaning, if you have pets, feed only in designated areas, do not leave food on the table overnight, crumbs, well, and if they do appear, use boric acid.
However, it is even more reliable and effective to attract ants to boric acid and force them to either eat it or take it to an anthill so that its relatives can feed on the poison.