If ants had been paying rent, we might have been a bit more forgiving. However, once they begin converting your pantry into their own mini-estate or turning your garden into their personal dining hall, it’s time for battle. YouTuber
Salty Acres
came up with a gratifying way to get rid of ants without using strong chemicals or expensive sprays.
Eager to take back your area without dressing up like a pest control technician? Here’s how you can do it.
1. Collect the Three Vital Components
All you require is borax, sugar, and hot water along with a small mixing bowl. Should you not possess borax, look in the laundry section; it typically appears as a laundry enhancer but also serves effectively as an ant killer. Use whatever type of sugar you have available.
The objective is to produce an adhesive syrup that proves irresistible to ants. Sugar lures them in, while borax takes care of eliminating them. The crucial element here is the proportion used: approximately one tablespoon of borax combined with one tablespoon of sugar, along with three tablespoons of hot water. This mixture maintains just the right level of sweetness to entice the ants without alerting them that they’re actually heading towards their end.
2. Prepare the Deadly Syrup
Add the borax and sugar to the bowl, then gradually pour in some hot water until the ingredients form a thick syrup-like consistency. Mix thoroughly until all components blend seamlessly. Ensuring the mixture is smooth enhances how effectively it saturates your chosen surface material such as cotton balls, paper towels, cardboard pieces, or perhaps even a plastic lid for application.
Warm water dissolves borax quicker than cold water. Attempting to bypass heating the water initially might result in a chaotic situation akin to a poor restaurant rating on Yelp, where even ants would tread cautiously.
3. Allow the Ants to Find It
For the more trivial aspect, if you’re aware of where the ants are originating from, gently disrupt the area. Move their path slightly. Pick up a plant pot. Gently tap around the entrance. The aim here isn’t to frighten them away but rather to rouse them. Ants function akin to tiny GPS units; stirring things up prompts them to communicate with each other. This is when you should act.
Drizzle the syrup either right on or close to their path. There’s no need to make a huge mess; just create a small pool similar to what Salty Acres made, or soak a cotton ball with it where you notice activity. It will attract them as though it were a giveaway event at Costco. The ants will consume it, carry some back to their nest, and within roughly 24 hours, many should vanish.
Why It Works
Borax
It isn’t some enigmatic substance. It’s sodium borate—a naturally occurring mineral that has been utilized in cleaning products and homemade remedies for many years. Once ants consume it, it disrupts their digestive system and ultimately leads to their demise. The key point is that they do not expire immediately; this is precisely what you desire. Should they perish right away, they wouldn’t be able to return to the colony to spread the word about this beneficial discovery.
This
method
Eliminates not only the obvious scouts but also the whole colony. This encompasses the queen, the larvae, and those pesky intruders that manage to find their way into your sealed cereal box.
Safety Precautions
Simply because something is natural does not make it safe as a snack for all. Make sure you do not leave the mix where your dog, cat, or inquisitive toddler could potentially investigate and possibly ingest it.
Borax
Isn’t something you’d desire in anyone’s digestive system unless they have six legs and a bad attitude.
Place the bait in shallow dishes or on inaccessible areas, particularly inside buildings. In outdoor spaces like gardens, position it in hidden spots or beneath planters.
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