How to get rid of red ants in an apartment

If you notice that red ants appeared at your place, you should not let things go by their own accord. The fact is that the first uninvited guests are “scouts”. They look at the situation in your apartment, evaluate whether it is possible to profit from something here. If you leave unwashed utensils on the table, if there are crumbs and uncovered bread everywhere, and the trash can was empty for a long time, then there are good conditions for the ants to live. They report this to their brethren, and then the whole ant colony moves to live with you. Scary? Do not despair. If you act in a timely, precise and competent manner, you can get rid of the red ants in the apartment once and for all.

Ginger ant

The story of red ants began several centuries ago. They moved to Europe from India with the help of ships, which transported sweets, fabrics and special types of wood. Today, ants live almost everywhere except Antarctica. Due to their unpretentiousness, ants survive in any conditions - they are almost omnivorous and not sensitive to temperature changes.

Modern science has more than ten thousand species of these insects. But in houses and apartments most often you can find a red ant. Ant colonies consist of the uterus, males, females, working individuals, larvae and pupae. The uterus is the leader of the colony that produces offspring. It is quite difficult to completely get rid of ants without eliminating the uterus - it quickly replenishes the "population" with new young ants. The uterus, males and females produce offspring, but do not work. They are fed by working individuals, they also transfer larvae and pupae in the event of the colony moving to a new place. Working individuals are barren, undeveloped females that cannot produce offspring. Destroying these hard workers, you will not be able to completely eradicate the living of red ants in the apartment. If you want to completely get rid of these insects, you need to find the uterus and act on it.

What harm do ants bring to man?

1. Firstly, the ants in the house are the same cockroaches. They spread infection, are carriers of disease and infection. First, they crawl inside your and the neighboring garbage bag, and then they climb onto your table, climb into the sugar bowl, after which you add sugar to the food.
2. The second point is the damage to household appliances. Due to its small size, the ant can penetrate into the slots of a microwave, multicooker, laptop and other equipment. Often this leads to short circuit and burnout of devices.
3. Ants are dangerous enough for babies. A red ant can crawl into a baby’s nose or ear and even bite it. Sometimes bites are accompanied by an allergic reaction in the form of a rash and redness.
4. Ants are happy to crawl around the human body - they are attracted to the smell of sweat. They can crawl into open wounds. And since the ant carries a lot of infection, it can lead to inflammation.
5. Well, an important aspect is aesthetic. Who will like it if the ants crawl all the time on the table, in the sugar bowl in the vase with jam? If insects populate the house, they can be found everywhere - in clothes, in cupboards with cereals, on the floor, walls - but anywhere!

For the sake of justice, I would like to note that ants are not completely useless creatures. Sometimes they benefit a person - they eat bugs, moths, fleas and spiders. But be that as it may, the ants must be disposed of.

How to get rid of red ants

1. If you just noticed the appearance of ants in the apartment, then this is the first "scouts". This is an immediate signal that you need to do a spring cleaning. You must show uninvited guests that there is nothing to profit from in your apartment and it is not recommended to stay here.
2. Unfortunately, most anti-cockroaches and mice are completely harmless to ants. For them, you need to use special chemical means of control.
3. If you decide to take a serious step in the extermination of ants, it is best to do this together with your neighbors. Otherwise, they will run from one apartment to another.
4. The principle of combating ants is as follows. It is necessary to feed an uninvited guest with such a delicacy so that he does not die immediately, but has time to infect the uterus. If the dose of poison is strong, the ant will die instantly, but the colony will not suffer any loss from this. But if an ant eats poison, the effect of which occurs within a few hours, he will have time to "convey" deadly poison to the colony and uterus. And if the uterus dies, the colony will fall apart and victory will be yours.
5. Finding a uterus on its own is quite difficult. Of course, you can follow the string of ants - they always walk on trodden paths. However, the uterus can hide under the floor, under the floorboards, and even with neighbors.
6. The most effective way to get rid of insects is to use specialized means to combat ants. These are insecticidal aerosols, special gels and pencils. When applying them, you need to use glasses, a respiratory mask, gloves. It is better to remove pets and children from the premises during treatment.
7. It is best to change the manufacturer of the used poison from time to time, since insects can adapt to one or another means of control.
8. Also popular are ultrasonic devices that repel insects using waves of a special frequency. They will not come closer to you than the set distance.

How to drive red ants out of the house with folk remedies

There are many effective ways to get rid of a red-haired guest in one go.

1. Boric acid and yeast. This is one of the most famous and popular ways to get rid of goosebumps. As you know, ants love sweets. We take advantage of this fact and take jam as a bait. In a half glass of jam, add a teaspoon of boric acid and the same amount of yeast. Thoroughly mix the composition and smear it on a plate. Put the prepared "potion" in the place where you most often see uninvited guests. When the ants taste the delicacy, they will not die immediately. They will bring infection to the colony, which will allow to destroy goosebumps in the very center of their habitat.
2. Garlic. Ants walk on the same path. They are guided by smell. To confuse them, grease their paths with garlic juice and plug the crack where they come from with a clove of garlic. Perhaps they will forget your way.
3. Citrus. Oddly enough, but ants really do not like the smell of zest. Spread a lemon and orange peel in the corners of the room and insects will bypass your house. But there is one drawback in this method - as soon as the peels dry, they will be ineffective.
4. Poison for the Colorado potato beetle. It has been observed that ants are exterminated from poison intended for processing beds from the Colorado potato beetle. Usually one bag is designed for 10 liters of water to deal with the beetle. Dilute a similar bag in half a liter of water and spray the cooked product in the corners and baseboards. Ants will not come to you anymore, be sure.
5. Borax and honey. This is a very effective remedy against red ants. Mix borax, honey and water. Arrange the prepared mixture along the path of goosebumps. Borax does not affect adults, but poisons pupae and larvae that are fed by ants.Thus, you simply block the breeding of new offspring and the anthill gradually dies out.
6. Diesel fuel. If none of the methods help, you need to use diesel fuel. Ants do not tolerate this remedy. Keep track of where they take their supplies and simply fill the anthill with diesel fuel. Oddly enough, but these insects, at the cost of their lives, are trying to save the uterus and carry it out. As soon as you find the "Queen", destroy her. So you can get rid of the entire colony.

So that later you do not have ants settled, you need to follow simple preventive measures. Do not leave food on the table, especially at night. Cover the bin with a lid, do not leave crumbs on the table and floor, carefully wipe the surfaces from food contamination. You should not leave the ants a single chance to eat. And then, hungry, the red ant will leave you forever.

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