Ever tried to deal with an ant infestation by spraying the ants with a supermarket aerosol? You think you’ve succeeded, only for the ants to return the following day. There’s a good reason for this…
Kill the queen, kill the colony
When you spray the foraging ants, you’re only killing a small percentage of the colony –there are plenty of other ants back in the nest ready to replace them. To get lasting control, you need to kill the queen. By killing the queen, you stop the egg production line and the nest subsequently dies.
But it’s also not always that simple. While many ant species have only a single queen, some have a colony that consists of multiple queens in a single nest. Worse still, other ant species have multiple nests all with multiple queens as part of the same colony. And the only way to effectively control an infestation for good is to kill all the queens.
And this isn’t easy!
Ant baits are the key to success
Ant baits are the best way to target the queen/s. Ant baits consist of an attractive food matrix and slow-acting insecticide. Ants take the bait back to the nest and feed the bait to other nest members, including the queen before it starts to have an effect. By the time the insecticide kicks in, it’s too late and the colony is doomed!
But wait, there’s yet another hurdle. Different ant species have different food preferences, and their preferences can change throughout the year. Success is dependent on correctly identifying the ant species that’s taken residence in or outside your house and choosing the best bait with the appropriate food matrix to ensure the ants take the bait back to the nest. Professionals have access to a wide variety of different ant baits to account for all the species.
Other specialist ant products
It is often necessary to use other products in combination with baits to deliver comprehensive results and to tackle every variable in ant colony control. Specialist products only available to professional pest managers include non-repellent sprays, and an application of the spray around the perimeter of your home and in areas of ant activity can deliver excellent results. These sprays can’t be detected by the ants, and as they walk on the treated surface, small amounts of insecticide attach to their bodies. This can then be transferred to other members of the colony that don’t walk on the treated surface, magnifying its effect.
Professionals also have access to insecticide powders which can be useful in dealing with ant nests in roof cavities and wall voids.
Call a professional
The fact is, it can be a struggle for homeowners to deal with persistent ant problems, as it needs a combination of expert knowledge and access to specialist ant products, which are not available in the supermarket or hardware stores. Calling a professional ant expert can save a lot of time and money… and certainly eliminate the stress.
If you have an ant problem, whether in the house or in your business, in the lawn or under your pavers, SpidermanSE has the expertise and solutions to deal with any ant situation.