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How To Get Rid of Ants

Summary: Before you plunge your house or belongings into pesticide oblivion, it's important to know that many ant issues can be resolved without a drop of insecticide spilled. Identifying the specific ant species will help you learn how to get rid of ants.

A reader asks: I need help! I have been getting bitten everyday by ants that have invaded my car. What is an easy, quick, and odorless way to get rid of ants?

Dear Reader: If you want to get rid of ants quickly you have to identify the ant species. Different ants are attracted to different types of ant baits. If you don't want to do that I would suggest purchasing several different types of ant baits. Some are for sweet or sugar seeking ants and others are for protein or grease seeking ants. I think the Maxforce Ant Baits are one of the best ways to get rid of ants

. The baits have no ordor and are of low toxicity to mammals. For outdoor protection I like the Maxforce Complete granules. The Intice Select Ant granules can be used in gardens, too.

Now, you need to determine where the ants are coming from. Are you parking your car directly over an ant nest? Are you transporting something that is attracting the ants like boxes of fruit or other types of food? Or, perhaps you put something in your car that had ants living in it.

Ants often require a water source, so I would think your ant infestation is being caused by something you are doing to attract them, rather than thinking that the ants have created a permanent nesting area inside your car.

Once you have identified your ants there are many effective ant baits, granules and sprays available. You can see a list of pest control products by clicking here.

Do some sleuthing and let me know if I can offer any more suggestions?

Comments

Samantha
17 Jul 2009, 03:14

I have ants in my car, i bought the car about a week ago, i put bait traps in, iv'e been spraying the tires and im still seeing them. The dealership is going to have it detailed tomorrow, do you think this will work or is it just a waste of time?

Brittany
21 Aug 2009, 14:47

I have ants in my car. They are most active around noon and 5:00 PM. They are small and black and don't bite, but I'm about to lose my mind. I've covered my floor mats in cayenne pepper and it almost seems as if they actually LIKE it. I've used Terro liquid ant killer - they love it - but I'm not sure that it's killing them? Tonight I am going to try (again) to vaccuum them out, spray my tires with ant killer and wipe down all surfaces with some kind of cleaner...Any ideas?

Samantha
21 Aug 2009, 18:18

I got rid of my aunts by finding their nests. I had one in the door hinge of the drivers door and one under my spare tire, i have a rav 4 and the tire hangs on the trunk door. Look where you see them the most and you will find it. It looks like mulched up dirt and leaves.

David Gordon
05 Nov 2009, 13:26

Just a question about a question.Jodi from coastal MA from march second seems to have termites not ants.She says the droppings are like finely ground pepper.That doesn't sound like ants to me.

Nicole
06 Apr 2010, 16:12

I have ants in my truck, they started showing up about 2 weeks ago, I do not eat in my car, there is no food. I find the little scavengers crawling around on the dash, just appearing from around the windshield, today i found them around the floor coming from the dash that leads down to the floor. They are freaking me out!!! I sprayed raid around the vents on the dash, and I have check up in the engine, how do I get rid of them, HELP ME PLEASE!!!!

Laurie
23 Apr 2010, 07:43

I will look for "nests" but these would have to have come from the dealership, because our car is less than 2 weeks old! And there has been NO food or anything in there yet, so why the ants? All I can think of is that there must be some kind of glue, greaser or some other compound used in a brand new car that they are attracted to. We have a 2010 Subaru Outback, and I do NOT expect it to come with ants...

Ginabean
31 Aug 2010, 23:42

We have 4 cars in our family and they all have ants in them. We sprinkle SevinDust under the floor mats and in little crevices around the car. This helps a little. We do not see near as many ants but there are 2 cons to this way of dealing with ants: #1- Once you vacuum car, if you do not reapply SeviDust immediately you get invaded again within a few hours. #2- If you put too much, even people not sensitive to powder or poisons (non-asthmatics)start to become affected by the poison powder...with itchy, sore throat or respiratory system...coughing...sinus issues, itchy eyes, etc. When will these little jerks go away?

Ask the Exterminator
01 Sep 2010, 12:25

Getting control of ants begins with getting the ants identified. There are many species of ants, each one with its own nesting and feeding habits. If you know the ant species you will know what ant bait to put out to kill the nest.

Tina S
03 Sep 2010, 18:37

We have ants in our truck to coming out of the dash.... I was infested with them sprayed and a week later still see some.. are you saying they can build a nest in a car? How do you tell wha type they are.

Ask the Exterminator
04 Sep 2010, 08:36

If the ants can find everything they need to survive, they can build a nest anywhere. Collect a few ants and take them to a local pest control company for a free ID.

Laurie
06 Sep 2010, 21:24

I think I was lucky that I didn't have nests IN my car (yet) because it was a new car. I put some ant cups up on the dash (where I saw them coming from) and I also used Terro drops. I definitely had the "comes out when it's sunny and warm" problem, but only for a few days. Took about 5 days but we haven't had the problem since (April). I suspect our car was parked over ant nests at the dealer... we have pavement ants at home but that's all.

rich
05 Nov 2010, 23:57

4 door passenger car. Car's been under a cover for 2 weeks. Wife removed cover to move the car and found large black ants in door jams. She put the cover in the trunk, so I'm sure there are ants inside the car now. She thinks they're carpenter ants, but I haven't found anything online indicating carpenter ants want to colonize a car. Car is spotless inside, no food, car is parked on a clean driveway, but it's been raining quite a bit where I live, so I think they sought a dry space to live. PLEASE HELP.

Ask the Exterminator
06 Nov 2010, 09:07

There are some excellent carpenter ant baits for sale on this website. They have no odor, but do a great job of controlling an infestation. Buy some and put the product in your call to attract and kill the ants.

Shirley
17 Jul 2011, 11:51

My cement around my walkway & my cement block building looks like it is getting eaten up by something.Could it be some kind of ant? If so what kind & how do I get rid of them.

Ask the Exterminator
18 Jul 2011, 11:12

Insects don't eat cement.

Martha
03 Sep 2011, 15:04

I live in the Houston area and several months ago I noticed tiny little black/brown bugs crawling over the console, dash, and seats. I also noticed that when I turned the car on then the A/C, small bits of white stuff blew out of the air vents (eggs). I thought they may be the new "Rasberry crazy ants" but from what I've read about those, the ones in my car are smaller- although they do run in a crazy pattern. I've sprayed Raid in the vents and that hasen't helped. Any suggestions as to what type ant this may be? They're so small when I try to scoop one onto my finger, it smears.

Ask the Exterminator
06 Sep 2011, 13:25

Get your bugs identified before doing anything else. Collect a few of the bugs in a jar and take them to your local county extension agent for a free ID. Once you know the species you will be able to learn what best controls them.

lacey
10 Sep 2011, 12:02

My car has been sitting for 2 Months and now there are tiny little brown.ants crawling around on the floor and the seats

Ask the Exterminator
12 Sep 2011, 16:06

Maxforce ant bait stations installed inside the car will help get rid of the ant infestation. Here's a link: http://shop.asktheexterminator.com/ants/maxforce-fc-ant-station.html.

Stephanie
15 Oct 2011, 21:01

Hi I have a 2011 new vehicle and just purchased in april so my problem is i have ants and tiny tiny spiders in the dash board... how can i get rid of them and can i take it to the dealer for detailing?

Ask the Exterminator
21 Oct 2011, 12:35

Put out monitor traps. As the ants and spiders search for food they will get stuck in the traps. Here's a link to the traps: http://shop.asktheexterminator.com/trapper-monitor-insect-traps.html.

Jt
22 Oct 2011, 18:29

I have black sugar ants in my 2011. I have a baby seat and it has alot of food in it. I tooling seat out and cleaned it but looks like the ant are still there. Should I put bate and what kind.

cynthia
12 Jan 2012, 10:19

I have ants in my car but i dont eat in my car at all and the ants r really big there not normal looking it scares me.. how do i get rid of them!?:(

Ask the Exterminator
12 Jan 2012, 11:49

I recommend placing ant bait stations in the car to stop those ants. Here's a link: http://shop.asktheexterminator.com/ants/maxforce-fc-ant-station.html.

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How To Get Rid of Ants

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