Fight ants & drive them away successfully

Ants are not welcome guests in the house. However, you can almost always fight them effectively in a gentle way and without poison.

In the warm summer half of the year they become active again: The Ants (Formicidae) are on their way looking for food, shelter and material to build their nests. The interior of our houses and apartments often has a lot to offer them. If you are plagued by ants, this is where you can acquire the knowledge you need to combat it successfully. In the following, you will find out when it makes sense to fight ants and how they can be controlled safely with home remedies or ant remedies.

When does it make sense to fight ants?

Every day, ants perform a number of important tasks unnoticed, from which we humans benefit. But unfortunately they also like to invade our living space - although you can of course look at it the other way round. If ants suddenly appear more and more in the house or apartment - perhaps even in sensitive areas such as the kitchen or bedroom - then it is time to act. In this case, it makes sense from a hygienic and sometimes also from a health point of view to take measures to combat or drive away. All ants can cause a painful, burning skin reaction with their bite. This is uncomfortable, but not dangerous. We introduce you to three ants who are interested in sharing a flat with us humans.

Lawn ants	Garden ants	Pharaoh ants
Lat. Surname	Tetramorium caespitum	genus Lasius	Monomorium pharaonis
description	Small native ant, red-brown	Group of different small black ants	Worldwide widespread cultural follower
behavior	Looking for leftover food, supplies, sweets in the house	Above all else, look for sweets around the house	With us only indoors; build nests in warm, moist areas
Can create nests in the house	Seldom build nests in the house, ant trails possible	Omnivores, proteins and sugars preferred
Are relatively aggressive and bite quickly	Not very aggressive	Hygiene pests in hospitals, kitchens, private houses
Penetrate storage container	Diet: Mainly honeydew from aphids	Preference for narrow cracks: PC cases, catheters, bandages, storage containers
Why fight	Presence unsavory and unsanitary	Presence unsavory and unsanitary	Hygiene pest, carrier of diseases

Ants are much more common in the garden or on the balcony, but they usually don't bother us there. If they don't get in our way, they are even a fascinating sight. However, if you are bothered too much by them on the terrace, you still have a few options to do something about it.

Note: Many of our native ants are not only extremely useful, but also protected by the species protection law for the same reason. They should therefore really only be combated if they massively invade the human comfort zone.

Fighting ants: Instructions in 4 steps

You can get rid of ants by doing the following:

1. Remove potential food sources; Store food in sealed cans; Secure pantries and refrigerators with barriers made of adhesive tape.
2. Find entrances for the ants into the house and seal them with silicone, plaster of paris or clay; remove any nests in the house - or have an expert come for this; However, nests in the house are quite rare.
3. Rooms where ants crawled need to be mopped.; the use of a strong smelling cleaner is optimal for this; Vinegar essence or lemon vinegar cover the scent traces of the ant trails.
4. Then an ant remedy is used: At the ants' former entrances, at potential new entrances, on walkways and around former or still existing food sources; we recommend our Plantura ant remedythat may be used in living spaces.

Tip: To control ants in damp places, for example planters, the use of specific nematodes, such as the species Steinernema feltiae how made. For example, you can use our Plantura SF nematodes against fungus gnats, codling moths & ants use on patios or in greenhouses.

In the case of a low infestation, you can first try Fight ants with home remedies and get to grips with it. If you're wondering why the Ants in the house or apartment surfaced, you will find it in this article. If the home remedies have failed, professional resources or perhaps even an exterminator will be needed to defeat the ants plague.

Fight ants with home remedies

Once you have discovered the first scouts, its origin should be traced back immediately and the access closed with silicone. In any case, you should prevent the intruders from returning home: If ants return to the nest, this leads to more and more visitors and the creation of an ant trail. For example, you can put adhesive barriers around your food source to collect the small animals efficiently and with little effort. Or you can suck the animals around with a vacuum cleaner and whitewash the scent trail with a strong-smelling cleaning agent, which you use to wipe the affected areas. Many strongly fragrant herbs or spices also interfere with the ants olfactory orientation: lavender, marjoram, thyme, Cinnamon, tea tree oil or citrus peel can help in any form. Detailed tips on Driving away ants with home remedies we have compiled for you in this special article.

Note - baking powder with powdered sugar against ants: Using baking powder and sugar against ants is relatively effective. However, this is not necessarily the most animal-friendly way to defend yourself. If ants ingest the mixture, it foams up in their stomach and they perish because of their internal injuries. The high pH value of the powder also corrodes the insects' limbs upon contact. But other animals also like to nibble on the sweet powder. Around Bees as native butterflies and especially to protect your pets, it is better not to use this remedy.

Get rid of ants effectively with InsectoSec®

InsectoSec® is a biocide that is suitable for use against pests in the house and garden. It is pure diatomite that can fight insects and arachnids alike. Its effect is not chemical, but purely mechanical: Due to the large surface area of ​​the fine powder, the lipid layer on the chitin shell is absorbed by insects and arachnids. Without the protective layer of fat, 95 to 100% of the dusted animals dry up within four days. In addition to this effect, the very sharp-edged small particles damage the membranes between the segments the chitin armor, clog the respiratory openings (trachea) and damage the gastrointestinal tract when ingested will. Even with repeated use, no resistance can develop. If used correctly, other living beings will not be harmed. Because we are convinced of the effective control with InsectoSec®, ours persists Plantura ant remedy from this pure substance. You can do this not only against ants, but also against Cellar lobsters and Silverfish use - the powder is particularly effective in dry places, such as in the house, in garages and sheds.

Fight ants with nematodes

In case you have problems with ants in more humid places like the patio, lawns, in the greenhouse or in planters and window boxes, certain types of nematodes are ideal for combating ants at. For example, ours are well suited Plantura SF nematodes against fungus gnats, codling moths & ants. The tiny nematodes of the genus Steinernema feltiae parasitize the ants' larvae, causing the ants to move their nests further away. In contrast to InsectoSec®, these are living organisms that are natural enemies of ants. This is also the reason for the difference between the two remedies with regard to the scope of application. Nematodes need a moist, not too cold environment to survive. One advantage of nematodes over synthetic insecticides is that they are harmless to both humans and other animals and plants. So you don't have to worry about pets or small children. The exact application of our useful Nematodes against ants can be found on the enclosed leaflet.

Fighting ants in the garden

If ants become annoying or aggressive in outdoor areas, we recommend a few very practical measures first.

Measures against ants in the garden:

• Avoid creating food sources.
• Clean the surfaces regularly.
• Grout paved areas with paving joint mortar or chippings; both cannot be penetrated by ants, so that no nests arise on the surface.
• Ants should only be fought in the garden if they are a major disruption due to their bites or the robbery of food. Ants are not pests and therefore do not need to be fought on plants or in the bed. Because the garden is rather humid, nematodes are like ours Plantura SF nematodes against ants, Fungus gnats and codling moths are ideal.

Fight ants with poison

Chemically acting biocides against ants have many side effects that you should neither expect yourself nor the environment. We list some products below and give you information in key words. Because we are very critical of the environmental and personal endangering effects of these poisons, we put them to the one recommended by us Plantura ant remedy opposite to. Even with ours Plantura SF nematodes there are no harmful environmental effects.

Comparison of different biocides:

• The DFNT Anti Ant Spray is toxic to aquatic organisms - with long-term effects. It can also cause allergic reactions in humans.
• Compo Ant-Free contains the substance tetramethrin, which is toxic not only to all insects, but also to humans.
• The Loxiran-S ant agent from Neudorff contains pyrethrins from chrysanthemums, which, despite their natural origin, damage aquatic organisms and do not protect beneficial organisms.
• The Celaflor ant remedy is very toxic to aquatic organisms - with long-term effects; it can cause allergic reactions in humans; the active ingredient fipronil is not gentle on beneficial organisms and (in relatively high doses) is also dangerous for mammals and thus also for humans.

Fighting ants: The exterminator

It is time to consult a professional if pharaoh ants infest your home, the nest simply cannot be found or you have small heaps of ground building fabric in your rooms discover. Such an “exterminator” is a better option than reaching for the poison bottle yourself. A responsible pest controller will determine the type of ants, deduce where the nest is, and target or remove it. It can also better identify the origin of the insects.

Now that you've decided to treat your ants plague with our Plantura ant remedy or ours Plantura SF nematodes For more information, see here.