Is your kitchen or bathroom looking like a cartoon picnic scene with hundreds of tiny dark ants scurrying along cabinets, pantry shelves or sinks as they set up a buffet line to and from a source of food?

You’re not alone. Many Austin area residents have called in recently with complaints of these tiny but numerous invaders. Called little black ants or sometimes rover ants or sugar ants, these are seen particularly in the summer months. Their mating season is June through August so their numbers often increase in late summer or early Fall. They can be spotted crawling around home foundations, in gardens and even crawling into structures through cracks in the cement or other access points.

Prevention

Prevention is helpful in many cases. Cleaning up food or beverage spills and ensuring containers like honey bottles are cleaned or sealed in bags can help reduce or prevent their occurrence. Removing food crumbs also means any bait used will be more effective as it won’t be competing with other sources.

Because they are so small it is more difficult, if not impossible, to completely seal a home against little black ants — making in-home prevention even more crucial. However, cracks in exterior walls can be caulked to not only reduce ways for the ants to intrude, but also other insects.

Getting Rid of Little Black Ants

Both baits and sprays can be effective against the ants, particularly once competing food sources are removed. You can even mix a homemade version. For the patient do-it-yourself-er, or someone wanting to re-create a 7th grade style science experiment, you can mix about 3/4 of a teaspoon of boric acid (available at Home Depot) with 1 cup of sugar water, honey, peanut butter and bacon grease. Leaving this smorgasbord out will determine which type of food the ants are currently interested. Using too much boric acid in the ratio will kill them too quickly, and they won’t take it back to the colony.

For those who prefer to spend their time in other ways, we’re happy to come out to help. We can treat small ants for you with our combination of people and pet-friendly sprays, dusts and baits that will help eradicate the problem.

Even though they’re small and not particularly dangerous, they are annoying and they don’t need to live rent-free inside your home.

Call Aztec Organic Pest Service at (512) 443-0123 for a small black ant pest control quote or use our easy online ant treatment quote form.