Tell me again--what are the natural ways to get rid of ants in the house?

[Lady TS]

Well, the ants are coming in the house. I guess they finally woke up due to the spring weather.

Can anyone tell me what to use that is kid-safe and effective in warding off these little buggers?

I have boric acid but I don't know whether that is safe for the kids to get into...

[~mamacharly~]

I have heard that lemon juice works.
Another thing I have heard several times is to put crushed rocks all around the outside of your house, it splits their bellies and they die. Greusome I know but no chemicals involved.

[tcdsmama]

When we notice ants in the spring, we sprinkle cinnamon across doorways and windowsills. Ants don't like cinnamon and won't cross it.

[Lady TS]

Cinnamon! That's what I was trying to remember! They aren't coming through the windowsills or doorways, they're coming in a teensy-weensy crack between my floor and the trim by the floor. I think I shall swipe up the ants with vinegar/water/tto and put a bunch of cinnamon over by their hole and see what happens.
Thanks!

[katiekind]

Did it work?

I just can't figure out where my ants are coming from. I don't like sharing my kitchen with them though.

[BeckaBlue]

I couldnt remember about cinnamin. i almost did it the other day but it smelled so sweet i didnt wanna chance them liking it, lol

[Winkie]

chili pepper powder works too!

[BeckaBlue]

chili pepper powder works too!


:nak

i eremembered the cayenne pepper, but i dont have eiter of thosre here right now

[milkmommy]

Ohh were having huge ant problems right now, I'll have to try some of the suggestions if not were going for the raid :eek

Deanna

[Katigre]

Paprika works too, suppesdly. I used a pastry brush to sweep some ([lus cayenne pepper) under the crack between our floor and trim where the ants were coming in (which we just noticed 2 days ago--it must be spring b/c i've had a bunch of people complain about renegade ants the past few days!)

[Lady TS]

Risking jinxing myself :lol, I am going to say that the cinnamon worked.

I cleaned the floor with vinegar/water/lavendar water and then sprinkled the cinnamon where they were coming out under the trim. Haven't seen an ant since I did that almost a week ago--I checked yesterday.

I need to sweep and mop the house again....better remember to put some cinnamon back down there.

[iplsmama]

Orange oil and diatemaceous earth. That and bait the anthills outside. Oh and also keep the floor spotless (which never happens in my house ;))

[BeckaBlue]

oh ya, on the big annthills outside pour some grits, wait about 5min and pour warm water, theyll eat the grits, the water will cause it to expand and theyll die.

I'm not nice to ants!

[Lady TS]

Orange oil and diatemaceous earth. That and bait the anthills outside. Oh and also keep the floor spotless (which never happens in my house ;))


BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
A spotless floor in a house with young kids???? How on earth does one do THAT? LOL Don't get me wrong, I LOVE a spotless floor. The only problem is, I am the only one that cleans it, and once it's clean it only lasts at MOST a day, lol.

I thought d.earth only worked on like beetles and earwigs and such....never thought of using it on ants. I think it takes awhile for that to work though, right? We have used it a bit in organic gardening but not for ants in the house...

[Winkie]

I'm not nice to ants!

Well, if the ants are *outside* the house - I boil them! :wow Just heat up the tea kettle & pour boiling water on the hill or wherever they seem to be congregating. The water will run down along any cracks. It kills most of them & it's totally non-toxic ;)

[toymama]

We had ants coming in under the air conditioner last month and I remebered that someone had told me before to sprinkle the cheap laundry soap around your house to keep roaches and spiders away. I had used it before when we lived in a trailer that a horrible roach problem :sick and it did work. I sprinkled it around the house and we haven't had any ants since then. No spiders or roaches either :D I use the Sun detergent from the dollar store that cost 2.50. I honestly never thought it would work but it did. (My neighbors were watching me and giving me :rolleyes strange looks)