Household: Get Rid Of Ants Without An Exterminator

Household: Get Rid Of Ants Without An Exterminator

The cayanne pepper trails seemed to show an immediate decrease in the ant traffic on the floor en route to the cat food, but was inneffective at keeping the little buggers off the kitchen counter.

Chalk lines on the foundation of the house put an immediate end to the ants sneaking into the bedroom (which was probably bound to be a short lived infestation anyways, since we do not eat in bed!).

Corn meal looks to be an urban legend. While it was amusing to watch the ants delight in carrying off their new found treasure, we didn't see any results.

The winning method was (as some readers suggested) boric acid. We mixed it with maple flavor syrup an filled small containers throughout the house. At first we were discouraged--it was certainly attractive to the ants but did not stop them from entering the house. And then one day, just like that, they were gone. Apparently it takes a couple of weeks to take effect.