When The Ants Come Marching Back

If you are excited about spring and anxious to leave behind the cold days of winter, you’re not the only one! So are ants! Spring is the time of year ants re-emerge from winter dormancy to replenish their energy and mate. It’s also the time of year you might first see indications of them in your home. With their resources running out after a long winter, and the warming effects of the sun awakening them, the scouts will be out foraging for food. Here is what to keep an eye out for and what to do if you find ants in your home.

How to Recognize the Signs of Ants

Obviously seeing ants in your home is a sign. Common ants that make their way into New England homes include carpenter ants, pavement ants, pharaoh ants, small blank ants, citronella ants, and Allegany Mound ants. It’s easy to ignore just a few ants, but be sure to watch them carefully. Are they forming a trail? Do they seem to be going up your walls? Ants leave pheromone trails that other ants follow, so if you see them in a line, it’s best not to ignore them.

But seeing them isn’t the only sign. Keep an eye out for other clues, including:

• Sawdust trails: Carpenter ants particularly like to burrow in wood, so be watchful for piles of sawdust near window ledges or wood flooring.
• Piles of soil or dirt: Just like the ant hill or ant nests you’ve probably seen in your driveway, you might find an ant nest in your home or garden. They can be easy to miss and often are mistaken for a pile of dirt.
• Rustling noises in your walls: Ants can live inside walls and travel around. Listen for rustling noises and check for small rips in your wallpaper which may be an entrance point.

How To Keep Your Home Ant-Free

There are many steps you can take to make sure your home isn’t attractive to ants.

• Keep a tidy home: A clean house is always a smart pest prevention tactic. When it comes to ants specifically, be sure to dispose of food waste properly and clean up spills right away. It’s best to not leave dirty dishes in the sink overnight and store all food (including dog food!) in airtight containers.
• Seal any cracks or gaps: Ants are good at finding even the smallest of gaps to enter your home. Be sure to seal gaps around windows and doors.
• Take care of firewood: Outside your home, take care to store firewood away from the house and to raise it off the ground. Also, remove dead tree limbs, especially if they are close to your home.
• Rinse Your Recycling: Plastic containers with residual liquid or food particles inside can quickly attract ants. Thoroughly rinse your recycling before tossing into your bin to keep it pest free.

If you find ants in your home, or identify any of the telltale signs, getting professional help is always the best course of action. While trying to take care of it yourself, the repellent products available to homeowners can antagonize ants and spread colonies into multiple colonies, making the situation much worse. The trained, licensed technicians at Ford’s Hometown Services have the ability to buy and use special non-repellent products. With these products, ants don’t realize they have even come in contact with it. When they return to the colony, they spread the chemical through means of grooming each other. This kills the entire colony like the plague, guaranteed!