Ants are some of the most varied insects in the entire world. Depending on the type that infests your property, the consequences can range from simple contamination to sheer catastrophe. Knowing how you can protect your Livermore property will give you a leg up on these six-legged invaders.
Ants: Common Home Invaders
Even nuisance ants, the kinds that don’t harm people or pets, can be a big problem for your property. Most ants are foragers, meaning they will contaminate food sources in their constant quest for building materials and stuff to eat. However, other ants can prove downright hazardous if left unchecked. Knowing how to spot the differences between common home-invading ants can clue you in ahead of time on the degree of risk factors.
- Pavement ants: These tiny black bugs are the ones you most often see crawling out of the cracks in the sidewalk. While they thrive outdoors, they will venture inside of homes and businesses in search of food.
- Odorous house ants: Similar in appearance to pavement ants, these bugs are attracted to sweet-smelling foods. When squashed or agitated, they emit a foul and unpleasant odor.
- Carpenter ants: This ant is easily mistaken for these other nuisance varieties, but carpenter ants are a far bigger problem. They eat away at wooden materials to make their nests, and they can pose structural hazards for homes and businesses.
Interior Ant Prevention Tips
Nearly all ant colonies form outside in the dirt, where members of their society spread far and wide in search of food. Knowing how to make the inside of your property less attractive to ants can help ensure they won’t get inside in the first place:
- Food storage: The biggest factor that drives ants inside is the smell of food. Even tiny little traces leave an aroma that attracts ants. Properly and securely storing food -- and trash -- will make sure that ants don’t detect food items, saving them from contamination.
- Deep cleaning: When even tiny crumbs can prove a treasure for such small pests, keeping a spotless home is important. Make sure to get behind and beneath heavy appliances and in other often-neglected spots.
- Professional treatments: If you already have an infestation, it’s best not to trust unproven store-bought methods that might only mask the problem. Proven solutions from pest companies are backed by guarantees, and proper treatments can prevent future colonies from forming.
Exterior Ant Prevention Tips
Paying attention to the inside is only half of the solution for proper ant prevention. Since colonies form outside, you’ll need to head outdoors and see where an ant’s domain overlaps with yours:
- Crack-sealing: No hole in the wall or crack in the foundation is too small for an ant to crawl through. Regularly inspect the exterior of your property and seal up problem areas.
- Door sweeps & window screens: Any portal into your home should be treated as an easy route in for bugs. Proper window screen and frame maintenance will prevent small imperfections from providing an entryway for ants. Installing door sweeps and weather stripping can also reduce space around doors for ants to crawl through.
- Lawn care: Far too many property owners only think about decoration rather than protection when setting up their lawns and yards. Keeping soil beds and vegetation away from your structures will reduce the likelihood that pests can make it inside.
Professional Protection from Pro Active Pest Control
Those are a whole lot of steps for you to have to take all on your own. It’s not only easier to trust the professionals, but it’s also safer. If an ant colony is of the variety that can spread disease or dole out painful bites and stings, getting anywhere near them is a bad idea for unprotected civilians. Not only that, but a trained pair of eyes can also provide assurances that a potentially hazardous infestation is caught or prevented early before irreparable harm is done.
For more ant prevention tips, or to get started on our thorough inspection and treatment programs, contact Pro Active Pest Control today.