Do One Thing: Stop Ants Without Toxic Pesticides.
It’s that time of year – ant season. The ground has thawed, temperatures are going up, and the ants are on a hunt for something yummy to eat. Although I don’t (knock on wood) have a problem where I am currently living, I have had to deal with an onslaught of ants in prior homes – it’s not very fun. You could go the toxic route to try to stop the ants, but why risk your own health just to get rid of an annoying pest? Instead, I recommend trying a few safer, non-toxic methods before resorting to chemical sprays.
There are a few proven ways to stop ants without toxic pesticides. First, I recommend you find where they are coming in your home, as if you just attack them at random places inside it won’t stop – they will just start hanging out somewhere else. Coffee grounds have worked wonders for me in the past, sprinkling it at the point of entry and stopping them in their tracks. You can also try cinnamon, cayenne pepper, orange or lemon citrus oil, laundry detergent, cornstarch, or even vaseline. Happy hunting!
Photo from Shutterstock
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Orange Guard from Whole Foods is an incredible product. Our neighborhood is burdened with tons of mini ants that move with relative ease through our split levels. Orange Guard has been the only product that really works at keeping them out. I spray the floor perimeter at night and let it dry and by day I’m confident it’s safe for my children to play (2 and 4 y/o
). I have a tidy house but I will use one bottle a year so at $10/bottle it’s quite a steal.
I put water, peppermint essential oil, and vegetable glycerin in a spray bottle. They won’t cross it.
Borax (laundry booster) is actually used in a finer form as a pesticide in the industry. You can mix it with sugar water or peanut butter (depending on the mood of your ants) and use it as a bait. I prefer baiting as it kills the nest rather than just forcing them to go look for a new entry point. (that and mine come in from somewhere behind my kitchen cabinets, would take an enormous amount of work to figure out where.
boric acid is about as toxic as table salt, plus it’s easy to keep out of reach of my little ones.
Actually, it may not be as safe as some believe it to be:
“A reassessment of boric acid/borax by the United States Environmental Protection Agency Office of Pesticide Programs found potential developmental toxicity (especially effects on the testes). Boric acid solutions used as an eye wash or on abraded skin are known to be especially toxic to infants, especially after repeated use because of its slow elimination rate.”
Thanks David, good to know. I’ve never heard of using it directly on eyes or skin, so I guess we’re safe there. Altho I think I’ll keep using it as ant bait since it works fairly well and is still WAY better than the more toxic chemical products.
I use the honey/Borax method. It really works.